Al is teaching Eddie tonight. They will meet weekly for two months. More about that in a moment. Last week 18 people were ministered to one-on-one. This means 18 trained teachers had to touch 18 people with the follow up methods of NBC (New Believer Concepts). These folks were all recent converts or made recommitments to Christ. Is this the best use of manpower and time? Why not have one outstanding teacher or pastor meet with 18 people at one time? Today is Wednesday. Ten people are receiving one-on-one lessons tonight. How very easy if these ten came to one class with one good teacher.
There is that old saying about hitting one’s head against a wall. It means that we keep doing things that don’t work. It is true about follow up. We keep trying to get new believers and seekers into a class, and they keep not showing up, but we keep offering the class.
A simple paradigm shift can fix this, but the shift is not efficient or economical. And it takes work. The shift requires making follow up one-on-one and using ordinary church members to do the teaching. In other words, the pastors should do what the Bible says the pastors should do: Equip the saints to do the work of the ministry (Eph 4:11-3). The paradigm that doesn’t work is to move the saints out of the way and let the pastors do the work of the ministry. That method is an invitation to burnout!
Al is teaching Eddie tonight. They will meet weekly for two months. Two years ago, Al came to Christ and his discipleship began with eight one-on-one lessons. His faith soared and now he teaches others one-on-one. His first pupil was Eddie. Eddie came to church seeking God with his wife, bringing a troubled marriage with him. At his first one-on-one meeting, Al led Eddie to Christ. Soon after, Eddie’s wife came to Christ and is currently doing one-on-one with Jen. Both these new believers attended church regularly and were just baptized. Al’s adult daughter just received Christ and is receiving one-on-one tonight. Her boyfriend is starting one-on-one tonight. As I write, I hear voices from several rooms as one-on-one lessons are being taught everywhere. Teachers and students are making connections around a growing faith in Christ. Some lessons are even taught in Filipino and Spanish. Two words answer the question stated on the title above: It works! Quit banging your head!