Prepare yourself.
- Allow yourself adequate time to prepare. 2 hours is recommended.
- Pray for yourself and members of the group to discover the richness and challenge
of the passage and to understand it and apply it personally.
- Saturate yourself in the scripture.
- Read and reread the passage - try to put it into the context of the whole book if possible.
- Study the passage inductively.
- Try to discover the central idea of the passage.
- Determine what the author was saying to the orignial readers and why.
- Think how this applies to similar situations today or what is the underlying principle for us to apply.
- Use resources as you study, but leave them at home while you are leading --
the Bible should be the final authority.
- Work carefully through the Bible study guide.
- Answer questions which should be relativley easy because of your previous study.
- Look at the guide's goals for the study and see if it is similar to what you've discovered.
- Make the questions your own.
- Determine the time frame and plan what questions you might be able to omit if tim runs short.
Create a comfortable atmosphere.
- Choose a comfortable setting, preferably a circle with good eye contact and minimal distractions.
- Make introductions, maybe do a brief community building excercize.
- Give the ground rules for the discussion.
Use a method of discovery.
- People learn best when they find truth themselves.
- As leaders, we first need to discover the truth in scripture.
- We can lead people to discovery though good questions.
- Be careful not to ruin the joy of discovery for others by simply telling them what you've found.
- Christ often used a discovery method of teaching (Luke 7:40-43)
- Depend on the holy spirit to give insight.
Have the purpose of the passage clearly in mind.
- We want the major point of the passage to be seen.
- Be careful not to "strain a gnat and swallow a camel."
- Formulate a specific aim for each discussion you lead.
- Use questions that will help people discover the main purpose of the passage.
Use Ground Rules.
- Approach the bible fresh and open to learn as you would study any good text book.
- Avoid leaning on information froum outside sources; let the text speak for itself.
- Expect the text, not the leader, to answer questions.
- Stay in the passage under consideration.
- Stay on the point under discussion.
- Strive for balanced particiption by all group members.
- Begin and end on time.
Build interest by a good introduction.
- Give helpful background information for the passage.
- Help focus people's attention on the ideas of the passage.
- Build curiosity.
- Don't give away the main point, let them discover it!
- Establish a point of identification between the group members and the passage.
Use an inductive sequence of questions.
- Observation - facts: who, what, when, where, how.
- Interpretation - meanings: definition, purpose, significance, implications, consequences.
- Application - relevance: What does this passage say to us now? How will we act on the truth?
Promote good discussions.
- Try to get beyond a "one-question-one-answer" pattern.
- Never answer your own questions until a good discussion gets started.
- Be grateful for and acknowledge each response.
- Allow "think time": don't be afraid of silence.
Pace the study within the time limit.
- Keep the discussion moving.
- Give ample time to the main point of the passage as a whole.
- Don't cut the discussion short.
- leave enough time to apply the passage to present life situations.
Summarize from time to time and at the end.
- State clearly and concisely the points the group has discovered.
- Emphasize the main point the passage has brought out as you move to application,
- Don't use the summary at the end to introduce new material.
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