Bible teachers of adult classes will best meet needs and motivate adults toward learning as they understand developmental characteristics of this age level.
Do you want your senior adults class to do more than go through the motions, to maintain a real interest in learning and growing? Then you need to help them see the merit in continuing on, that they still have more to accomplish.
ACCOMPLISHMENT
When elderly adults believe they have no more to accomplish in life, they don’t need to keep learning. But, when they are made to feel that their contribution matters, that they are still valued and needed in the Body, they have reasons to keep pressing on.
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This article is included as a handout in the Reaching All Age Levels Resource with some brief suggestions on how to motivate senior adults based on this need. The resource also includes similar articles for the other age groups. It provides you with a teacher training group session in which you gather teachers of all age groups for a PowerPoint presentation followed by breakout sessions to personalize it according to age levels.
Do you want your busy middle-aged adults to stop long enough to not only take in God’s Word, but want to learn? Then you need to show them how their lives and God’s Word intersect — the assimilation of truth and life.
ASSIMILATION
Middle-aged adults can be physically present in your class but mentally and emotionally disengaged as they are drawn to upcoming events, responsibilities, and the stresses of life. When distracted, it is hard for them to focus. But, if they are able to see that what they are learning relates to their cares and concerns, it makes such a difference.
(Click image to learn more.)
This article is included as a handout in the Reaching All Age Levels Resource with a brief suggestion on how to motivate middle-aged adults adults based on this need. The resource also includes similar articles for the other age groups. It provides you with a teacher training group session in which you gather teachers of all age groups for a PowerPoint presentation followed by breakout sessions to personalize it according to age levels.
Do you want your young adult students to be more motivated to learn God’s Word? Then you need to focus on group affiliation in the learning process.
AFFILIATION
To approach Bible teaching with young adults as an academic pursuit, you will tend to miss the mark with them. Yes, they do need the truth of God’s Word but it needs to be embedded relationally. Truth must remain central but you cannot make it void of the social element.
(Click image to learn more.)
This article is included as a handout in the Reaching All Age Levels Resource with a brief suggestion on how to motivate young adults based on this need. The resource also includes similar articles for the other age groups. It provides you with a teacher training group session in which you gather teachers of all age groups for a PowerPoint presentation followed by breakout sessions to personalize it according to age levels.
A Barna Research Report reveals that just 19% of adult Americans are “Bible engaged – who read the Bible at least four times a week and believe it is the actual or inspired Word of God.” (From: The State of the Bible: 6 Trends for 2014) We’ve already looked at how Bible teachers can have a role in raising that percentage for their classes by creating a thirst within their students for the Author of the Bible and by emphasizing the usefulness of God’s Word for everyday living. There is at least one more thing we can do — equip them.
Many adults would hide behind excuses for not engaging with the Bible like: “I don’t know how to study it.” “I can’t understand it.” “I wouldn’t even know where to begin.” Let’s strip people of these excuses by showing them how. Then, if they still don’t read or study the Bible on their own, we know it is a deeper issue.
What Can Bible Teachers Do to Better Equip Adults to Study the Bible on Their Own?
1) Start by gaining a proper view of being a Bible teacher.
Discipleship: Isn’t teaching a lesson enough? Worksheet (Click to learn more.)
Bible teaching is about more than spoon-feeding people once a week. Rather, it is about discipling and equipping them to nurture their relationship with the Lord at all times, on their own, not just when they are at church or in a small group Bible study. Ephesians 4:11-13 provides the teacher’s job description, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”
2) Help students identify the lies they might be believing.
Adults can get stuck in their ways. They can be resistant to change. They have learned the art of making excuses. If they don’t begin the journey of getting to know God better through His Word, they will miss out on so much of the good God has for them. So, teach them to identify and “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God …” (2 Cor. 10:5).
3) Be realistic in your expectations so you can be encouraging rather than hindering in the process.
Not everyone is a scholar. Not everyone learns the same way. Guard against a “one size fits all” approach in discipling your students toward personal engagement with God’s Word. Meet people where they are and help them begin in small ways that work for them. Always keep the real purpose before them of using Scripture as a tool to better know God and grow in their relationship with Him. It would be better if people meditate on just one verse in which they find connection with God and usefulness to their everyday lives than to read chapters with little to no impact in these ways.
Let’s guard against promoting personal Bible study in a legalistic way. Getting to know God should not be seen as a burden. Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matt. 11:29-30). As their passion for the Lord grows, they will be more willing to be stretched in their study of the Word in ways that take them further and deeper.
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ACCOMPLISHMENT
