What No One Tells a New Sunday School Teacher

When you were first handed a teacher's manual, did anyone say this to you? "Be careful. While this is the best curriculum we've found, there may be errors in it." 

Choosing a curriculum is important, but an even greater responsibility lies with those of us who use it. We are the ones who will be held accountable for what we teach. A teacher who is willing to study first from the Bible and then look at the teacher's manual will be able to overcome a less-than-perfect curriculum. 

When you use a curriculum or create your own lesson from scratch, these six points will help you teach a lesson that correctly reflects biblical truth.

1. God is the central character of every lesson. We use drama, excitement, and emotion when we tell the story of David and Goliath. That's good. But who comes out looking like the hero? Is it David? Or is it God? David was clear when he charged the giant. "I come in the name of the Lord." We need to ensure that our students understand that it was not David's courage or his abilities that won over the Philistines that day, but God who enabled Him. If we stop to think of how many things could have gone wrong that day, we will have a better understanding of David's confidence in God. We need to paint a picture of God's abilities with such admiration that there is no doubt Who won the victory for the Israelites.   
2. Subpoints should not take center stage. The story of the feeding of the 5,000 is not a lesson about sharing, but a lesson on Jesus' power. It should fill us with amazement and wonder at how great He is. God may choose to use that lesson to encourage a child to share, but our emphasis as teachers needs to be on Jesus, not the boy who doesn't even get mentioned in some of the gospels' narratives of this event. 
   
3. My emphasis needs to be on spiritual change, not good behavior. Many children understand the need for grace when they initially ask God to forgive them of their sins and to include them in His family. Too few realize that they still need grace in order to grow and live the Christian life. Sometimes it's easy for them to believe that they are accepted by God because of their good behavior. If we do not continually encourage a dependence upon God's grace as they grow in their walk with God,  they may come to believe that their own self-discipline and obedience are making them pleasing to God. This can lead to Phariseeism and legalism. 
4. I waste time if my activities do not aid in teaching the central truths of the day. Activities and games are valuable teaching tools, especially for children. We should employ a great variety of teaching methods. But with every activity, we need to ask some simple questions. How will this help the students grow? Will it increase their understanding? Will it help them apply today's main truth? If I include this activity, will they be more or less likely to remember and apply today's truths?  Will they walk away from my class more excited about God or will they only remember the game? We have so little time with our class. Let's not waste one minute of it on activities that do not help to drive home the main point.
5. I need to be thorough in my lesson preparation? Lesson manuals are wonderful aids for teachers, but they do not replace the study of the Word of God. As teachers of the Bible, we start our lesson preparation with our text, the Bible. We do our best to ensure that we understand the lesson thoroughly ourselves before we try to teach it to others. This requires preparation throughout the week. Some truths are hard for us to understand, but rather than ignoring those truths, we need to spend time working to interpret them to our students. Once we feel we know what the Bible is teaching, then we pick up the manual to help us supplement what we've already learned.
6. Prayer is vital to my lesson preparation. Unless God does something in us and through our teaching, all our efforts will be in vain. As we begin to prepare, we ask God to teach us and help us to apply what we learn. We ask God to enable us to teach it in ways that our class will understand. We ask Him for attentive ears and receptive hearts. We ask Him to take His Word and apply it. We pray for the life situations that our students face. We entrust the our teaching time to Him, asking Him to use it to spread His fame in each of our lives.

God has given us a book.  That book is about Him.  We want to provide a solid foundation that will last a lifetime.

Are you one of those who was given a curriculum without any instructions on how to use it? Were you aware when you started teaching that you might find errors in it? Did you? I would love to hear your answers in the comments below.

Ministry in the Chin Hills

We flew from Chattanooga to JFK, Frankfort, Singapore, and Yangon, arriving 37 hours later.  In Yangon we were greeted by heat, rising into the high nineties. I removed my wedding band, certain that my hands and feet would swell because of the sharp shift in temperature. I was glad I did. The next day I would not have been able to get it off.

After a day in Yangon, we flew on to Kalemyo, where Brother Kap, IPM’s missionary in Myanmar, met us and took us to a hotel. He was there for a conference, so we attended the last night of the conference meeting. The four-hour service seemed even longer after a long day.

God's beauty surrounded us.

The next day we got into Kap’s Land Cruiser to make the journey through the hills to Tedim where we would be teaching for the next two weeks. Rain, road construction, and the twists and turns on a narrow road meant that the 57-mile journey took almost three hours.  We were relieved to finally arrive at our destination where we were shown to an ample guest room with a private bath, and luxury of luxuries, the bath had hot water in the shower! We were now in the hills, where temperatures dipped into the fifties at night and hovered around seventy in the daytime, and the hot water was appreciated.

Crowing roosters and beating drums announced the coming of each new day. After a breakfast of scrambled eggs, bread, and coffee or tea, we prepared for our day of classes.

Our teaching day started at 8:45 when we joined the students for fifteen minutes of prayer and singing and then headed to class. Charlie taught the 3^rd and 4^th years students on Biblical counseling for an hour and a half while I taught the children English. We each had a break and then went to the chapel where Charlie spoke. After chapel we enjoyed lunch. Our afternoon classes lasted 45 minutes. I taught the 3^rd and 4^th year students on the teaching ministry of the church while Charlie taught the 1^st and 2^nd year students on Christian stewardship. Then we had some free time which we usually spent getting ready for the next classes.

At 5:00 in the evening, I headed off to teach the children again. This time it was more of a translated Bible club. I had a phenomenal translator who is also musically gifted. He could really get those children to sing. After teaching several songs, I told a simple Bible story which he translated. Some of the older students knew more English and were following me in English. We finished off with a review game and sent the children home at about 6:00.

The children of my evening class.

Charlie started his evening class at 6:00 with the graduate students, teaching Baptist Distinctives. When they finished at 7:30, we headed down for supper. Our meals always included an assortment of locally grown vegetables. Other things like chicken or noodles were often on the menu as well. We could not have asked for better food while we were there.

By the time we finished, the children were singing several songs and choruses without the help of the words. When I split them into two groups to sing “Rejoice in the Lord Always” as a round, they tried to out-sing each other. As they walked home at night, I could hear them singing along the way. Thongpi, my translator, requested the words to all the songs we used so that he could continue to teach them to the children. Toward the end, the children began bringing little gifts to me before and after class. My real regret was that I could not communicate with them in their language.  

Because it was the dry season, the hydro-electricity was limited and rolling blackouts were part of life. One night you would have power all night. The next night there was none. Some days there would be power, but not on others. So our evenings ended relatively early and the mornings were early as well. It was important to get the most use of the daylight.

As we came to the end of our two weeks, we both felt that we could have stayed much longer. Maybe next time.

Plagued by Many Choices

In the U.S., we are plagued by many different choices whenever we have to make a decision. When we bought our house, we looked at many different ones. None of them were exactly what we wanted, but we eventually chose the one we thought fit best. When I go to the grocery store, I am often overwhelmed by the many different choices of cheese, cereal, or cleaning products. If there were only one of what I wanted, my trips through the store would be much quicker. When we prepare to take a trip, we have multiple routes to sort through before arriving at the best way of getting there. At almost every point in life, we have to make choices among many possible options.

Because life is full of choices, we often approach finding a church the same way. We ask God to lead us to the right choice and then proceed to look for a church based upon our list of personal preferences. If no church has all of what we want, we settle for the closest thing, in the same way that we settle for the closest thing in our search for a house.

However, once we have a house in which to live, certain other things fall into place. We soon learn where we will do most of our grocery shopping and where the local gas stations are. We find the local library and gym.

In the same way, nearby churches become a logical choice for us. A church close by provides accessibility to a network of other people nearby who also attend there. It allows me to attend all the events, even when gas prices rise or there is a threatening weather forecast. If the car is in the shop for a few days, it is easier to get a ride from another church member (or even walk if it is close enough.) In other words, a church nearby is most likely one that God would have me attend, provided that it is theologically sound.

I can already hear some objections, so let me address a few of those.

• The churches near me do not have a youth group, and we have teenagers. Could it be that they are just waiting for your teenagers to start a youth group? Could it be that God wants you to be the one that starts a youth group? (This applies to any other ministry that may be your favorite.)
• We went to the church that is near us, but the pastor preaches boring sermons. Are the sermons the only negative? Is he good at shepherding the people? Is he good at counseling? Is he a good example to others? One man usually does not have all the abilities that everyone would like in a pastor. Can you have a ministry there by teaching a stimulating Bible study or Sunday school class?
• The church near our home has so few people in it that the atmosphere there is sad. Maybe God wants you to be the one that will help infuse new life into that church so that they can once again be a light in the community.
• The churches near me do not have good music. Are you sure that your definition of "good" music is the one God has for His church? It is possible that music can be unbiblical, but often our definition is a personal preference based on our experience. Could it be that they do not have the training to use good music? Maybe they are just waiting for someone who is an accomplished pianist or song leader in order to incorporate better music. 
• I like going to the church that is 45 minutes away because they have good (you fill in the blank.) Maybe the church near you does not have good ______ because you and others who live nearby have made the same choice you have. Will you still go there if gas prices rise? Can you be as involved there as you can be in a church nearby?
• Someone attends there that I do not like. This may be the worst reason I have heard. We are called to love one another, and the unlovable person is the one who needs our love most.  If God wants you to attend there, ask God to help you forgive them and then determine to love them in spite of anything that may happen.

When we moved to Lafayette, it did not take us long to find out that there were many different churches nearby. There were also many more good churches farther away. But God led us to a home in Lafayette, so it made sense that we were also supposed to attend church here. To go to a church far away would be like refusing to go to the local grocery store and drive an hour away to one we like better.

I know that sometimes God clearly leads people to a church that is not nearby. Sometimes it is for a season to help a new church start or to fill in when someone is needed for a particular ministry. Usually, though, God leads to a close church so that time, finances, and weather do not hinder our participation.

If you are one of those currently looking for a church, please consider one nearby. Ask God how far is too far and then keep your search inside those parameters. Unless you live in an area without a gospel witness or that is very sparsely populated, you will usually still have a choice, but the decision will not be as overwhelming. Then go to God with your thoughts about the church you are considering to make sure that He is leading you there. Otherwise, when there are difficult days, you will not be as likely to stay and struggle through the hard times. (But that's a blog for another day.)

January Newsletter

Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. Psalm 66:16

Dear friends and family,

God has done great things in the past year, and we want to declare His greatness to all who will listen.

Church in Guatemala

1. He funded our travel. When we started the year, we saw that the money in our travel account was inadequate for the trips we planned to take. Here we are beginning a new year, and we now have more money in that account than we did last year at this time after taking five trips and visiting six countries. How great is His provision!
2. He brought people to a saving faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. Throughout our travels we were witnesses to Christ's great work of redemption. In Guatemala alone, we saw more than twenty people make professions of faith.
3. He gave us new opportunities to serve Him. IPM held their first pastors' conference in the Amazon town of Mazan, Peru, and Charlie was one of the teachers. We both taught in Mindanao, Philippines, and they have asked us to come back and teach again. Joan partnered with Levi Schooley to lead a VBS seminar in Arequipa, Peru. It was the first time they had worked together and they both enjoyed it.

   

   Teaching a game in Peru

4. He gave us the opportunity to take a missions trip "vacation" to Europe where we were able to help out in ministries in Belarus and Luxembourg.

As we look back and see His faithfulness to us in the past year, we have no doubt that He will again be faithful in 2017.

1. We expect that we will take at least five trips again this year and maybe more, and we have no doubt that, so long as we only go where He sends us, He will fund those as well.
2. We expect that He will continue to save people in the various ministries we visit around the world, and we are looking forward to be able to witness His power at work in changing people's lives.
3. We expect that He will help us as we seek to improve our skills to do a better job. In just a few weeks we are headed to Bolivia where we will visit IPM's missionaries there and take an intensive Spanish course. In addition, Charlie has been working on his doctorate so that he will be better qualified to teach at a seminary level.
4. We expect that this will be a full year. In addition to trips to Bolivia, the Philippines, Uruguay and one or two African countries, Charlie also plans to go to Cuba. We also love to teach and preach whenever we are in the U.S.
5. We expect that none of this will be done well unless God works in us and through us, so we value your prayers and support.

Your partners with national missionaries around the world,

Charlie and Joan Farley

Miles Apart but United in Purpose

Outside my window a blue sky beckons.  It has not rained here in months, so a light haze covers the city.  The consistent weather patterns are part of reason that Levi Schooley, IPM’s children’s evangelist, and myself are here in Peru right now.  Vacation Bible School usually falls during their long break in January and February.  However, those are the rainy months here, and after years of having difficulties caused by the weather, they decided to have their VBS this year during a short break in the middle of the school year.

Last week Levi and I presented “Lost in the Desert,” a curriculum based on the wilderness wanderings of the Israelites.  Next week, the three churches who participated in the training plan to put on their VBS.  On Monday they will distribute flyers, and then on Tuesday through Sunday they will hold their VBS.  Pray that many children would come, that souls would be saved, and families would be reached.

This is cold season here.  Pastor Araujo and his family were all battling colds when we arrived.  Naturally, Levi and I both caught colds as well.  One day I felt quite sick but hid it from my hosts as I knew I needed to teach that night.  Then the other days were a little better.  Last night I could not sing because the cold had robbed my singing voice.  Today when I awoke, my voice was gone completely.  How good it is that we were able to finish our teaching.  Praise God with me for His sustaining power.

While I have been here, Charlie has been at home in Georgia helping with our church’s VBS.  It ended on Thursday evening, and on Friday he flew to Guatemala.  He has jumped into the ministry there, helping today with visitation and speaking at a men’s event tonight.  Tomorrow he will be teaching.  Pray that his ministry there in Guatemala will be effective.

Levi teaching through a translator

Tomorrow Levi will be preaching here.  Pastor Araujo has asked him to address the issue of children getting saved.  Evidently it is common here to think that a child below the age of ten cannot get saved.  Pray that Levi would be able to biblically encourage the church and the parents to lead their children to Jesus.

It will be ten days before I see Charlie again.  This is the first time since we joined IPM that I have left him at home while I traveled for ministry.  It has felt strange to not have him here, and I rejoice that we are together in ministry.  This is also the first time that we have been separated on our anniversary.  I am glad for modern technology that allows us to stay in contact with texts.  Praise the Lord with me for 18 years of being united in our purpose of serving the Lord together.

Tomorrow as Christians around the world lift their voices in praise to God for His amazing work on our behalf, I pray that you too will join the 24-hour chorus of saints who exalt him together.  Even though I am far from you and cannot hear you, God hears us all and is delighted by our praise.

Eight Evidences of Erroneous Education

Thoughts on Teaching Children in the Church

Through the years, I have read many different lessons for children.  I have seen enough problems in teacher’s manuals that I sometimes cringe when I am handed a manual and asked to teach.  Fortunately, people who know me know that I will refer first to the Bible and later to the manual. They expect that, so I am blessed that I am not expected to take the manual and use it exactly as it is presented.

At the same time, I know there are people who may be teaching for the first time.  They will usually take the materials and use them in the way they are presented.  So when I read something that misses the mark, I think of all those teachers who do not realize that the material they have been given is inadequate.  They think they should follow it as written. 

In order to alert teachers to the need to carefully examine their teacher’s materials, let me give you some of the main errors that I see in children’s curriculum.

1. Leave out or undervalue the main point of the Bible story.  What is the main point of the “Feeding of the 5,000?”  It is that Jesus, who looked like just an ordinary man, could take a little bit of bread and fish and feed more than 5,000 people with it.  He was not an ordinary man after all, but the Son of God.  A miracle happened that day!  Yet too often that story, when it is told to children, focuses on the need to share.  The story is not about sharing.  It is about a miracle.  It showed the people the power Jesus had.  We should teach the story with awe and wonder, not make it a moral about sharing.
2. Make the lesson one that will build up the children’s self-esteem by assuring them that they are at the center of God’s love.  Yes, God loves children with a love that goes beyond our comprehension, and nothing can separate a believer from that love.  However, we do not need to encourage a child’s self-centeredness.  Instead, if we help the children to understand God and His amazing plan of redemption, then His grace, mercy and love will naturally create a healthy view of God and a healthy view of themselves.
3.  Focus too much on the human characters instead of the supernatural One.  David killed the giant, Goliath!  Yes, he did.  But David was the first to give credit to the One to whom credit was due.  “I come in the name of the Lord.”  God was the one who put David there that day.  God was the one who gave David the ability to shoot straight.  God was the one who responded to David’s faith.  If we leave out God, why are we asking our children to come to Sunday School?
4. Waste time by using filler that has nothing to do with the main points you are trying to get across.  We have so little time in our children’s ministries that not one minute should be wasted.  Yes, we can teach using games, songs, crafts and other activities.  But we need to ensure that the activities actually teach something important that will help them remember the lesson.  For example, does the song, “Father Abraham” really help to teach children something about the lesson?  When the child walks away from Sunday School, will they go home talking about an amazing God or something much less important?
5. Focus on good behaviors instead of dealing with spiritual issues.  Too many lessons encourage children to act right rather than helping them realize that without God’s grace at work in us, none of us can ever measure up.  God has set a perfect standard before us.  Good behavior is not enough.  When children are old enough to understand their own sinfulness, we need to help them depend upon the God who can change them rather than asking them to change themselves.  We want to see what God can do in their lives, not what self-discipline can do.
6.  “Dumb it down.”  Too many people assume that children cannot learn the great theological truths of God’s Word.  True, it is very hard to teach those truths in simple terms, but if a teacher will give careful thought on how to present those truths, it can be done.  Since children are trusting, they will often believe these truths even more quickly than adults, and those truths will stay with them for a lifetime.
7. Forget about the whole counsel of God.  I have used curriculum that uses the same Bible stories over and over and thereby neglects huge portions of Scripture.  I have been in churches where the same lessons were being taught on Sunday and Wednesday, but the repetition was accidental, not intentional.  There was no attempt to say, “If this child stays in our church until they are eighteen, will they be equipped for adulthood when they are done?”
8.  Ignore the fact that the child is part of a family.  If we are going to do a good job of teaching children, we must also teach the family.  We have very little time with the children who come.  Their families are able to teach much more than we can.  Therefore, we must reach the home and help the parents teach their children.

God has given us a book.  That book is about Him.  When we teach it to children, we need to be sure that we are teaching in such a way that what we teach will not have to be unlearned at a later date.  We want to provide a solid foundation that will last a lifetime.

So Little Time - August newsletter

Dear Faithful Friends,


We returned to our home in Georgia after a 10-week trip. During that time, we travelled by car through the upper Midwest, Canada, Maine, and back home. We also flew from Boston to Peru and back again. We give thanks for God’s grace for His protection and enablement. Even though we felt constrained by our limited time in each place, we are thankful that God, who is not bound by time, can multiply our short time and our meager ministry to do great things to glorify His name.

Four years ago, we met Daniel and Sonia Araujo who are investing their lives in making disciples in Arequipa, Peru. It was good to walk into their church on that first Sunday morning and see some familiar faces and new ones as well. Many improvements have been made to the church building. In addition, their son Junior was only beginning to be fully involved in the work of the ministry four years ago. He is now an integral part of their team. In fact, he is largely responsible for a new church
plant in Majes, a desert town about two hours away.

We arrived in Arequipa on June 20. For the next two weeks, we taught every night. Charlie taught a course on Hermeneutics where more than thirty people attended, and nine completed the course The following week, Joan taught on Christian Education. Forty people attended her course, and ten also completed the course work.  On Sundays, Charlie preached in various locations.

On our second Monday, we traveled seven hours over the mountains to a remote village in the Ubinas district. More than a decade ago, God placed this area on Daniel’s heart and he began to make the long journey over the mountains to win people there to the Lord. The growth has been slow, but now several of these villages have a small church. On the day we were there, six small local assemblies gathered for a big celebration together that included a baptism, a feast of alpaca stew, and a combined evening service. Charlie also had the privilege of preaching that day, and our nephew, Jeremy, who joined us on the trip, was his interpreter through most of those days in Arequipa.

The Araujos feel the pressure of time. What pastor do we know here in the US who is pastoring one church, filling in as pastor for another, planting a third church and working as a missionary in a district of multiple towns where there is no church?  So many people to win and disciple. So little time.

From Lima, we flew to Iquitos, the largest city in the world that is unreachable by road. Pastor Giovanni Avendaño, IPM’s Latin America director, met us there. From there, we took a boat down the Amazon River to the town of Mazan. For the next three days, we met with four men who are interested in becoming missionaries with IPM. Charlie taught classes that would help the men in their respective ministries – Communication; Dealing with Anger; Church Discipline; Marriage and Divorce; etc. Joan gave an introduction to IPM’s Children’s Ministry. Brother Giovanni went over IPM’s Policy and Procedure manual. When we were done, the four men were very appreciative. One of them told us as we were getting ready to leave, “Thank you for coming. I was so discouraged that I was ready to give up on ministry and go back to secular work. Now I feel ready to go back. I know I have made many mistakes simply because I did not understand God’s way of doing things. Pray for me and my family as I make the changes we need.” With limited resources, these men are struggling to make a difference in their areas for Christ. Pray for them.  On the Amazon River as well, there are so many souls, and so little time.

Peru has many children and often we were enchanted by their smiles and friendliness (some of the Mazan children are pictured on left).  It was obvious that Peru is an area where children’s ministry is needed. One night when we were sitting in a restaurant in Mazan, we saw four teenagers carrying a
stretcher to the hospital. The form on the stretcher was small and covered by a sheet. The restaurant owner told us, “He died this morning. He is the second ten year-old boy to die this week. The other one drowned on Sunday afternoon.” So many children. So little time.

We came back with hearts burdened for Peru, and especially Mazan and all the needs there. Please pray for IPM as they determine the best way forward to help these men.

In October, we are planning to go to Uruguay for IPM’s regional conference. We want to connect personally with IPM’s missionaries from all over Latin America and inquire how we can best help them. Joan is hoping to have a sample copy of a VBS curriculum for them to look over. Pray that God would help her complete that in time and that we would be able to get it translated as well. Pray, too, that God would supply the $3,000 we need to make this trip.

Thank you for your prayers for us. We felt God’s enabling grace on this trip and we saw His hand redirecting our steps.  Without Him, it would have been a disaster. It would have been so much time, with so little accomplished. Instead, because of God’s work, we believe that much was accomplished that will last into eternity.

Co-laboring together with you,
Charlie and Joan Farley

Children of the Amazon

We wandered through the streets of the town, marveling at the beauty of dark thatched roofs against clear blue skies.  Flowers abounded and palm trees swayed elegantly in the warm breeze.  It was, from what we could gather, a typical Sunday afternoon here.

Children scattered down the road in front of us, laughing as they chased each other between the houses and back on to the street.  As we walked further, we heard laughter coming from the river's edge.  There children splashed each other in the shallows.  One boy dived into the murky water and emerged a few seconds later within inches of his friend, startling him.  They both squealed in delight.

We walked on.  The front yard had been converted into a soccer field.  At first I thought it was sand, but on closer inspection I realized they had made good use of the sawdust from the nearby lumber mill.  

"Goal!" one small boy shouted.  He spun, his fist beating the air, and his friend slapped him on the back.  Another chased the wayward ball down the narrow street.  When he returned, they took their positions again and the game resumed.  We walked on, careful to not get hit by a stray ball.

There certainly was no lack in the number of children here, I thought.  They seemed to be everywhere:  children carried wood home in small bundles for cooking fires; others played happily at their mothers' feet while they tended the small stores in front of their houses.  I smiled at the joy and blessing they were bringing their families.

The next day we visited Pastor M.'s family. His eldest daughter was staying with them after the birth of her baby who slept peacefully in the tattered hammock in the kitchen.

"What is her name?" I asked.

"She doesn't have one yet," her mother told me.

"How old is she?"

"Ten days old."

Ten days old and not yet named.  How different things are here, I thought.  Is it because you do not want to name a child that might not survive?  I decided I would leave that question for another time, but here was another example of a beautiful child in this beautiful town.

On Tuesday I wandered into the market.  A round-faced girl with shining eyes, no more than four years old, ran up to me and grabbed my hand in her little one.

"Why are your legs so white?" she asked me.  Reaching down with her other hand, she stroked my leg from ankle to calf.

"God made them that way," I told her.  I smiled at her.

She happily chatted on, tugging at my hand the entire time.  Eventually she asked, "May I go to your house?"

"I don't live here," I told her.  "My house is very far away."

"Oh," she said. "I really wanted to go to your house."  Eventually, she let go of my hand and ran off to play again.

The next day when I headed out for a walk, a makeshift barricade prevented moto-taxis from using that road.  I carefully stepped around the barricade, wondering why it was there.  A few moments later, I got my answer.  Outside the school, dozens of children stood in groups with their teachers, lining up in neat lines.  Independence day was coming, and they were rehearsing for their part in the parade.

"Now let's march," called the teacher.  "Left, right, left, right."  The children followed their teacher, marching down the road.  Some looked my way as they passed, smiling for my camera.

Later that evening the seven of us sat in a restaurant, discussing the events of the day.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw four teenagers walking quickly down the street carrying something between them.  It was a stretcher with someone on it.  The figure under the sheet was quite small.

"What is that?" I asked.

"It looks like they are carrying someone to the hospital," one of the men said.

"But his face is covered," I said.  "Is he dead?"

By this time the restaurant owner had joined us. 

"A ten-year-old boy died this morning,"  he said.  "You should have heard the father wail."

"Who was it?" Pastor M. asked.

When the owner told him, a look of deep sadness spread across the pastor's face.

"I know the family," he said.  "The children occasionally come to special children's events.  I talked to that boy about his need of a savior, but I do not think he ever made a decision to follow Christ."

"That's the second child to die this week," the owner elaborated.  "The first one, also a ten-year-old boy, drowned on Monday."

My heart sank.  Two children dead in this short span of time while we were here.  Thousands of children in this town who need a Savior, yet so little gospel witness here.  Who will tell them?

"Lord," I prayed.  "Help Pastor M. to reach these children.  Raise up more workers who will reach these precious souls before it is too late."
 

Celebrate Easter with Your Children

I stood by the nursery desk, wondering why the nursery leader was late.  I could not remember her being late before.  A few minutes later, she flew in apologizing.  "I'm so sorry I'm late," she said smiling.  "But it is your fault, you know."

"What?" I questioned, wondering what her explanation would be.

"Easter," she explained breathlessly.  "I was up before dawn this morning putting out the items for the treasure hunt.  I awoke the children early and started them on the treasure hunt while I put the hot cross buns into the oven.  You gave us so many good ideas for celebrating Easter that I just had to do some of them, and things took longer than I thought they would."  

She was flustered, but her joy in helping her children celebrate this special day was contageous.  She put down her things and began greeting all the parents with a beaming smile on her face. 

Easter.  It is the focal point of our faith.  Without Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, our faith is in vain.  We cannot begin to explain our own faith without pointing to Christ's work in that last week of his life.  We owe everything to it. The assurance of our relationship to Christ rests in it.  We have no hope without it.  Yet in spite of this, Easter is often an overlooked holiday for many Christians.

Think about it.  Do you look forward to Resurrection Sunday with the same excitement as Christmas?  Do your children?  Do they have reason to shout "The Lord is Risen!" on Sunday morning?  Do they know that this is the most important holiday for Christians?  Do they see your excitement as you prepare that special meal to celebrate with family and friends?  Do they hear you singing precious songs about the suffering of Christ that week as you enter into His suffering, identifying with the Man of Sorrows?  Do they sense from you that this day is more important to you than Christmas?

Let us make Easter a BIG deal for ourselves and for our children.  I am not talking about Easter baskets and Easter bunnies and new clothes.  I am talking about celebrating the week and the day in a way that makes a profound impression on the value of what Christ did for us. Here are just a few suggestions on things that will help children grasp the importance of this week.

• On Palm Sunday, buy small palm branches or make them from construction paper and play out Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem.  Let them re-enact going into town to get the donkey, bringing it back for Jesus, and then laying clothing and palm branches out for the donkey to ride.  Shout "Hosanna to the Son of David together."  Sing praise songs to Jesus, and talk about what it would be like if the stones had actually begun to praise Him.
• Make a picture poster of the events of Jesus' last week.  Each day this week add one picture of what happened on that day.
• Celebrate the Passover Seder together as a family.  There is information online that will help you celebrate this.  Explain that Jesus and his disciples celebrate this together just before He died.  
• If your church has a special service on Thursday or Friday, go together as a family.
• On Friday (or Thursday, if that is your tradition) read together one of the stories in the gospel of the crucifixion.  Whenever a different person is mentioned, try to imagine what it was like for them that day. 
• Find a devotional that you can use to focus your family's devotions on the sacrifice Jesus made.
• Invite people to church for Easter and then home to your house afterwards to eat together.
• Make cards together that celebrate the resurrection.  Send them to friends or pass them out to neighbors.
  
• Have a special Easter dinner.  Serve lamb and talk about Jesus being the Passover lamb.  Make a cake in the shape of a cross or a lamb.
• Make a paper mache or bread dough tomb.  Put together clothespin disciples for the children to reenact the events.  Find a rock to cover the entrance to the tomb.
• Separate your celebration of Spring from Easter.  Celebrate Spring on the first day of Spring.  In your gift for your children, include colored eggs, bunnies, chicks, new clothes, and other special things.
• Attend the Easter Sunrise service, if your church has one.  
• On Easter morning (or afternoon), send your children on a treasure hunt.  Inside small paper or plastic bags or cloth bundles, put symbols of the events of the last week of Jesus' life.  If it will make it more fun, add a small amount of candy to each one.  When all the items are found, see if the children can identify each symbol and tell why it was included.  Then, for older children, see if they can put the symbols in the correct order.  

Easter is coming!  I cannot wait!  But first I will walk through this week with a sorrowful heart as I grieve His horrendous suffering and my own sin that made it so necessary.

August News

Dear friends and family,

What a wonderful month we had in Guatemala.  

Giovanni Avendaño, IPM’s missionary church planter in Guatemala, asked us to come for a month because he knew that the module format that we often use would not work well with his people.  Instead, we would teach a series over the course of a month.  Charlie taught on Biblical counseling for two hours on Tuesday nights in their Bible institute.  Joan taught on teaching for two hours on Wednesday nights following prayer meeting.  We also taught in the monthly men’s and women’s meetings.  On weekends, Charlie preached, we both taught Sunday school, and we were both involved in the teen meetings.  It was a busy, yet rewarding schedule.

But the main question we want to answer upon our return is not “What did the Farleys do?” but “What did God do?”  While there may be things we will never know about, here are some of the things we do know.

• One child asked the Lord to save him.  He talked to his parents during the week, and the on Sunday asked the pastor if he could be saved.
• Four people were baptized.  Three were adults, and one was a teenager.  It was a day of joyous celebration.  As Giovanni said, “I want to make a big deal about the important things in people’s lives.”  So we spent the afternoon together as a church family.  After the baptism in a swimming pool, the children went swimming and adults played soccer.  The rest sat around and shared stories.  Then one family, whose child’s birthday was that day, passed out bags of candy to everyone and hung up piñatas, one for the girls to break and one for the boys.  Then we all sang “Happy Birthday” and had cake.
  
  
• Another church has been started since our last time in Guatemala.  According to Giovanni, it is taking a lot more work to get this one up and running than the other two he started.  Yet he is confident that the Lord led them to do this, and that the Lord will build his church in San Raymundo.
• God granted safety and health throughout our trip.  While Joan battled a couple minor things while we were there, she was able to teach whenever it was her turn.
• God opened the door for us to teach in the public school.  The principal, one of the new people in the church, asked if we would go teach English and the gospel.  Charlie used English sentences to talk of the gospel with the older grades, and Joan used colors and then taught the wordless book to the younger grades.  The following Sunday ten children from the school showed up in church.
• God used us in our teaching.  Over and over people thanked us for what they had learned and talked of how they were already applying it in their everyday lives. 
• We saw obvious change in one young woman’s life after a brief time of counseling with her.
• God is building a strong church in the small town of Cerro Alto.  Three new couples recently started attending, and Giovanni is taking them through discipleship classes. 

Thank you so much for your prayers for us while we were gone. 

Your co-laborers in the Gospel,

Charlie and Joan Farley

Our First Week in Guatemala

 

“Will you be ready to teach on the Wednesday night after we arrive?” Charlie asked me about a week before we left.

“Yes,” I replied, as I put finishing touches on the lesson for that night.  Fortunately, I had been asked to do a teacher training seminar in Chicago for a Spanish church there not too long ago, so I had this lesson almost ready.

We arrived on Tuesday night, well after midnight by our morning rising time, but only a little after 10:00 local time.  The next day we sat down with our host to discuss our schedule for the time we would be there.  We found out that it was similar to their normal schedule, only they were adding a few things because we were there.

Wednesday night prayer meeting is taken seriously. Except for a brief devotional from the Bible, the rest of the time is given to prayer.  Several times during our weeks there Giovanni said to me, “We really enjoy praying together.  I know we are a small group, but that is fine because the ones who come really want to pray.”  One Sunday he told the people, “If you know there is sin in your life, I am asking that you not come on Wednesday night to prayer meeting.  Your prayers would be a waste of our time and God’s.”

Kneeling on the hard, tiled floor with heads bowed and arms resting on the seats of plastic stackable chairs, we prayed around the circle.  When it was my turn, I found it difficult to really pray as I groped for the right words in Spanish.  How I longed to pour out my heart to God the way the rest did, but as I stumbled, I was grateful that the Holy Spirit would take the requests of my heart and make them known to God.  As prayer continued around the circle, I reveled in the fervency and emotion of each person praying.  At 8:00, Giovanni dismissed those heading to my class, while the remainder would continue praying until 9:00.  As I walked toward the classroom, I knew that God had heard their prayers and would act on their behalf.  How glad I was to have this group of people praying for me and for our class as I taught. 

We began the class with nine people.  At about 8:30, another five people, whose jobs ended at 8:00 p.m., showed up.  I was encouraged by their commitment.  I taught on “Basic Questions to Ask Before Teaching.”  At the recommendation of the Avendaños, I had made 15 copies of my outline.  (The next week that was not enough, and by the fourth week, 22 people attended the class.) 

The next day was a “free” day, we were told.  Of course, I knew that on Sunday I would be teaching the ladies on “Teaching Young Children,” so I needed to spend my time getting ready.  This was brand new material for me to be teaching in Spanish.  I desperately needed large blocks of time to get ready, so I spent the morning working.

Lunch, the main meal of the day, was ready by 2:30 p.m.  We sat down to a delicious meal of stewed chicken and vegetables, rice, tortillas and limeade, made from freshly squeezed limes grown on the Avendaños’ property. 

After lunch, as it was considered a free day, we took the Toyota station wagon into San Juan Sacatepéquez, the nearby city.   Charlie was looking for an anniversary card for me, and he eventually found an “I love you” card that fit the bill.  Barbara needed some supplies for home school and for the children’s ministry.  They also wanted to buy flowers for a church member who had just suffered a miscarriage.  I was intrigued by the market, especially the flower vendors who had stacks of flowers to sell.

We made our purchases and left for Laura’s house.  She was in bed recuperating.  The doctor had told her she would need a week of rest, but it was her emotions, even more than her body, that would need recuperation as she mourned the loss of her child.  The flowers were lovely, but she barely noticed them.  After talking with her and kneeling around her bedside to pray for her, we left and returned home.

As soon as we returned home, Barbara left to take her very sick mother-in-law to the hospital.  Later that evening, Giovanni headed out to disciple a new couple in the church, so we stayed with their three delightful children while they were gone.  When they both returned home, we enjoyed a light supper and then retired to our room where I resumed studying.

The next day dawned bright and clear.  The only thing on the agenda for that day was the evening service at church.  That allowed me more time to work on my lesson for Sunday.  Both of us worked since Charlie would be preaching that night.

On Saturday, there was a men’s meeting in the morning and a teen meeting in the afternoon.  Charlie spoke at both.

On Sunday, I taught my class on teaching little ones to the ladies, and Charlie taught the men’s class.  Giovanni preached that morning.  In the afternoon at 4:30, Charlie preached at the service in the new church plant. 

On Monday morning I was back to studying because my lesson for Wednesday night would be a new one.  Not only was it material I had not taught since before I was married, but I also needed to do it in Spanish.  I would need lots of hours to prepare.  Charlie headed out with Giovanni and Otilio, one of the men from the church, to buy boots.  He had heard they were inexpensive there, and Otilio wanted to buy him a pair.  He returned with a beautiful pair of brown boots which had cost about $39.  The same boots in the US would have cost about $150.

Tuesday night was Charlie’s night to teach.  Bible institute started at 8:00 and went until 10:00.  By this time, however, Giovanni had become quite ill and there was no one to translate for Charlie.  Although my Spanish is hardly adequate, I was the only one available.  So with the help of a dictionary and lots of patience on Charlie’s part, we muddled through.

When we went to bed that night, I said to Charlie, “It’s hard to believe we’ve only been here a week.  It seems like a lot longer than that.”  It felt like the longest week we’d had in a long time.  Now that we knew the schedule, though, it would be easier.   

I had to admire Giovanni.  Yes, this was a more intense week for him because of illness (both his and his parents), but this is not much different from normal.  Every week, he prepares for all his meetings and he disciples three different couples.  He has three churches he is trying to lead, one of which is strong and healthy.  The other two are still in their infancy.  He is also the regional director for IPM, so missionaries in other countries report to him.  He has his aging parents living nearby, and he has a young family to take care of as well.   

Barbara, too, amazed me.  She is an excellent children’s teacher.  Every week she was teaching children’s Sunday School and she traded with another woman to do children’s church during the afternoon service.  There is also children’s club twice a month, and she directs that. She also directs the women’s ministry.  In addition, she is an always-ready hostess.  Several times people showed up at mealtimes.  We added plates, scooted chairs closer, and she served them with a heartfelt welcome. People come to her for prayer and counsel.  And, of course, the work at home takes up much of her time.

It was a huge blessing to be in Guatemala.  We look forward to future visits, and now we have a better idea of what a week will hold.

After Mexico

We are seated in the airport in Mexico City, waiting for our flight back to the U.S.  It has been a full week, but we feel blessed to have been a part of the life and work of our coworkers, Sergio and Alejandra Herrera and their family.  Sergio and his family, Chilean nationals, moved to Cuernavaca, Mexico, eleven years ago to plant a church.  We were witnessing a miracle of changed lives over the past decade.

We left the house on April 24 at 6:00 a.m. and arrived in Mexico City in the afternoon. Sergio met us and after a snack, we boarded a bus for a two hour ride, arriving at the home of our hosts at about 7:30 p.m. They had a meeting at church, so they left us in the house and headed out while we unpacked.

Friday morning and afternoon I studied while Charlie went to the church to help with construction.  Then on Friday night, we headed to church where I taught a class on “Training Warriors.”  In the meantime, Charlie hung out with the men and was present when Brother Sergio led a man to Christ.  On Saturday, we returned to church where I taught once again.  This time the subject was “Creating a Bible Lesson from Scratch.” 

After supper (at about 4:00 p.m.) we rested briefly and returned to church again that night.  The evening was for married couples, and Charlie taught on marriage with the help of Armando, a young man who translated for him.  It was his first time to translate.

On Sunday morning Charlie and I both taught Sunday School.  He taught the teens and adults and I taught the children.  When it was time for him to start teaching, Armando had not yet arrived, so the pastor’s daughter, Priscilla, was recruited to translate for him.  It was a good thing.  Had she been asked, she would have refused because she did not feel ready.  But since no one else was available, she did it. 

Right after Sunday School, it was time for lunch.  The families of the church take turns bringing lunch for everyone else.  After lunch, it was time for the main service. 

At the request of the Herrera’s, we brought Bibles.  Thanks to the generosity of the children of West Hampden Baptist Church and BEAMS, we loaded 56 Bibles into our luggage.  Sergio asked all of those who did not have a Bible to come forward, and we were surprised by how many came.  What a blessing it was to see them receive something essential for their spiritual growth.  (Charlie figured it out.  In the US, on minimum wage, it would take about two hours to have enough money to buy a good Bible.  In Mexico, it would take 2-3 days.)  In addition, we took a small Betty Lukens flannelgraph set as a gift for the church. This was purchased from moneys raised by the children of West Hampden Baptist Church at their Vacation Bible School last year.  Charlie preached that afternoon on “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water.”  By this time, Armando had arrived and was ready to work.

On Monday, Brother Sergio took us and two men from the church to a town nearby that had a small pyramid on top of a hill.  We climbed the hill, took in the view and returned to Cuernavaca for supper.  That night, Charlie taught on the role of the deacon.  At the end, Charlie asked for questions and several questions were asked for clarification.  Then one of them said, “We don’t have a lot of questions yet because this is all new to us.”

We have been so blessed to have person after person tell us how our teaching helped them.  Several of them asked when we would return.  “When we are invited,” we responded.

And now we’re headed home again.  We look forward to being there again when the rest of the building is finished and that part is also filling up.

One Week and Counting

One week from today we leave for Cuernavaca, Mexico. We will board the plane in Chattanooga and fly to Atlanta.  From there we will catch a connecting flight to Mexico City.  In Mexico city, our missionary, Sergio Herrera, will meet us.  We will get on a bus and ride the remainder of the way to where they live near Cuernavaca.

Many things have already been accomplished. 

Two cases of Spanish Bibles.

• We purchased Spanish Bibles and a flannelgraph set to take with us.
• We have been preparing lessons.
• A friend in Maine is checking over my Spanish grammar on the things I've finished while I continue to work on more lessons.
• We bought our tickets.
• We have been in communication with the Herreras about the upcoming seminar.
   

In the midst of all this, I have been so glad to have an office again.



It has been great to go to the bookshelf to research the things I need for my lessons.

What is left still to do?  Much.

The regular things of life do not stop just because we have a trip coming up.  Resurrection Sunday is coming.  There are special events this week, including the arrival of family visiting from Minnesota.  We also need to:

• Figure out how to pack the Bibles and other materials we are taking.
• Finish the lessons we are preparing.
• Print off handouts and outlines.
• Talk to our neighbors and ask them to keep an eye on things while we are gone.
• Hire someone to cut the lawn and water the fledgling garden that Charlie planted.
• Gather our personal items and pack them without going overweight with all the things we are taking.
• Get a ride to the airport.
• Somehow do the other things like eat, sleep, exercise, pray, read our Bibles, go to church, and all the other normal things of life.

If we were to write a detailed list, I'm sure it would be very long.  But you get the idea.  We would definitely appreciate prayer as we count down to our departure.


 

Vacation Bible School

Vacation Bible School is often a highlight for children.  Our church in Maine held theirs recently.  Here is a summary of what happened.

• Every night between 45 – 50 children and teens came to VBS at West Hampden.



Craft time for one group

• Every night there were songs, crafts, games, Bible time, and a missionary challenge. The children heard a continuing missionary story from Joan and the teens were challenged by Charlie to consider God’s calling for their lives.  Charlie also taught the Junior High class during their Bible time.
• Every night the two teams (the Fords and the Chevys) raced each other to reach the finish line first. Points accumulated pushed each team closer and closer to the goal. Every night the Fords were a little ahead until the last night when the Chevys surged ahead and won.
• Every night parents brought their children and some of them stayed until it was over.

So, was it successful? It depends on how you count success. Only God knows the whole story, but here is what we know.

• The workers were faithful to do the job they were called to do. They also did it with enthusiasm and joy.
• The children kept coming back.



Telling the missionary story.

• Many Scripture verses were committed to memory.
• One child made a profession of saving faith. Another name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
• Over $400 was raised for us to buy children’s materials for our ministries and missionaries abroad.

Overall it was a good week, and we are thankful that we were able to be a part of it. 

Back in Maine!

If I were to have designed a first week back in Maine after being gone for nine months, I don’t think I could have thought of a better week.  These are some of the highlights. 


The view from our bedroom window.

An absolutely gorgeous place to stay with very gracious hosts.  Rick and Kathie Ramsdell have a beautiful home on Holmes Bay.  The location itself would have been enough to soothe and cheer my heart, but I also cannot say enough about how gracious they were.  All of the people who have hosted us over the past year have been gracious, but the Ramsdells have definitely stood out as having a God-given gift of hospitality.  We are so grateful for their generosity and genuine love for us and for the work of the ministry.




Craft time

Game time.

Vacation Bible School with the Downeast Baptist Church in Machias, Maine.  My days were spent studying, writing, walking, meditating and praying.  But every night culminated in the best part – VBS.  The children were eager to learn and were enthusiastic about the week, asking at the end of it if it could go on.  The adults fully participated by helping with games, snacks, decorations, registrations, and providing meals for us.

The beautiful bride

A wedding at West Hampden Baptist Church on Saturday.  A young woman we have known for the last twelve years was married on Saturday, and we got to be there!  Seeing so many of our friends from West Hampden made it extra special. 














On Sunday Charlie shared our ministry with the people there, and then our hosts treated us to a lobster dinner.  What says “Maine” more than a lobster dinner?  Whoopie pies?  Well, we had those too!

Eastport, ME

Yesterday we travelled to Eastport, ME. We visited Raye’s Mustard factory, a place that Charlie wanted to see since we arrived in Maine and spent a couple hours enjoying the beauty of the place.  When we returned to Machiasport, the fog had settled in again, but I still spent more than an hour walking the beach.  It was a much needed and relaxing day off for me.



God is good – all the time.  Even when I don’t feel blessed, I know He is blessing.  But it is also a blessing (though not a greater blessing) to feel so blessed, and I thank and praise Him today for these special blessings.