Dear Brothers in Christ’s service,
Attempts at nurturing the faith of the children in our congregations during these COVID-troubled times have uncovered a number of challenges. How do we continue to teach the children when our facility is too small for social distancing; or when people are uncomfortable sending their children even though we are following the health department guidelines; or our teachers are at risk and thus uncomfortable being close to the students; or it is impossible to get the volunteer Sunday school teachers we need? We know that a number of you have made use of the remote Sunday school videos from NPH to reach the children and resolve these issues.
We recently sent a survey to pastors to find out more about how the Lesson Videos are used and to determine if there is a desire to have us continue producing them for the next year. We are just beginning to analyze the responses, but I wanted to share some of the insights we have already gained. The videos are being used in a variety of ways:
- Some Sunday schools are not able to meet face-to-face, and depend entirely on the videos and lesson sheets for use in the home, taught by parents.
- A few teachers use online meeting software tools like Zoom to teach their students. Most of them teach using the regular lessons, but several show the videos through the meeting software as a part of the lesson.
- Some teachers use the videos to teach the lesson, even though students still meet face-to-face.
- Still other teachers use the videos for their own enrichment as they prepare to teach the lessons themselves.
If your congregation isn’t using the videos for your Sunday school program, you might still find them useful for an Easter for Kids program, or just to use with your children to highlight the Easter message.
No matter how their Sunday schools used the videos, many of our brother pastors felt that the Lesson Videos were beneficial in helping them teach God’s Word to the children. Many cited the fact that parents and children were watching the videos together as a major blessing of this program.
For those who are concerned that they can’t tell if their families are watching the videos or using the lesson sheets, we have some encouraging news. Although we don’t know who is using them either, we are able to tell how many are watching them. We can share the reassuring news that after a slight drop in viewership over the holidays, the number of views is again approximately equal to the number who were watching at the beginning of December. In the past, most Sunday school leaders noted a dramatic drop in attendance after Christmas. This drop isn’t happening with those viewing the videos. It is heartening to know that those who have used the program are sticking with it.
The spring lessons begin in the middle of March. Although the postal service has caught up and delivery times are back to normal, this would be a good time to order the spring materials. Doing so would give you the opportunity to deliver the materials in person to find out if your families are using them. A number of congregations have found that by encouraging the parents and showing them how to use the materials, they have maintained a consistent level of participation in the program. Parents have grown to appreciate their opportunity to provide the greatest gift they can give their children as they nurture them with God’s Word.
Remember that NPH can also ship the lessons directly to participating families if that works best for your congregation. Click here to learn how.
May God richly bless your work of nurturing the lambs God has placed in your spiritual care.
Ray Schumacher
Bible Study Editor