Teaching Tips for The Present Word Fall 2007

The fall quarter of the Uniform Lessons studies presented in The Present Word focuses on Genesis. Whether you are part of this study or are using a different curriculum, you can appreciate the miraculous story of creation and covenant and celebrate autumn as a season of change. Take time to reflect on the current changes in the physical environment around you. When do the leaves change colors? Are there flocks of birds migrating? What is happening in the families in your congregation? Perhaps children have gone back to school. Perhaps adults are beginning new commitments and committee work. Take a quick inventory of the changes in your community, your church, and the world around you. Imagine some of the feelings associated with these changes.

Once your inventory is in hand, begin to identify places where your contemporary setting overlaps with the biblical texts from Genesis. For instance, are there people who are near death or beginning to show signs of aging? Maybe there are parents with new children who are beginning to teach them about the world around them. The message of God’s overarching love that we discover in Genesis can provide hope and encouragement to each of us regardless of our particular path of life.

After identifying the bridges between the biblical text and the contemporary world context, you can begin to designate several themes. Think of the themes in terms of God speaking. Look for opportunities to notice the miraculous and the ordinary and in either case, be able
to say “Wow! God is present today!”

For those who are using The Present Word study, you have an opportunity to work with others in the group to discover the “so what.” Lesson 3, for example, provides a sample discussion question: “Is anything too wonderful for the Lord?” Within small groups, participants can prompt the memories of one another. The group setting becomes a safe community for helping each other relate to God’s story. The Genesis stories themselves are centered on communities of people. On the first day of your class, why not create a class community covenant? This simple covenant could be based on openness, trust, and a commitment to participate.

Another tool to assist you in delivering the so-what messages of God’s voice is to focus the students on the world. The theme of Genesis is that God created the world. Perhaps your classroom could be decorated with world maps and faces of people from all parts of the globe. From the ceiling you can hang flags and names of your students mixed up with names of other people elsewhere in the world. These visual reminders of the vastness of God’s creation will prompt students to think beyond themselves.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) produces the Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study. Identify this resource and use it in your classroom. What are other resources that you have in your church? Libraries, computers, and retired missionaries can be helpful in pulling together stories and information on God’s church and God’s people at work in the world. Through the computer students can access and read missionary stories from around the globe.

This quarter culminates in the liturgical period that begins the season of Advent. From a period of “barrenness and wilderness” students are prepared for a season of expectation and anticipation. As you reflect on Genesis 28:15, think about God’s promise to always be with us. From the beginning of creation to the birth of the baby Jesus and beyond, God has not left us. Throughout the entire thirteen-week series, post several large pieces of newsprint around the room. Encourage students to jot down personal instances when they have experienced God’s promise to always be present. By the end of the thirteen weeks Thanksgiving will have been celebrated and Advent will begin.  Students will have visual reminders of the plentitude of God’s promise. Students will see newsprint reflections revealing that God continues to be present today. Your closing session can lift up prayers of thanksgiving for God’s continued presence in our daily lives.

This article was adapted from the Teaching Tips prepared by the Rev. Angela Madden for use in The Present Word Fall 2007 quarterly. For more information on this or other issues of The Present Word, contact the editor, Mark Hinds, at (888) 728-7228, x5480.