Spring 1995

ARTICLE TOOLS

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How do you get more men teaching Sunday school? Have a "Men's Month."

Our staff at Christ the King Lutheran Church, Southgate, Michigan, decided June would be "Men's Month" because Father's Day comes in June.

We prayed about men we thought would make good Sunday school teachers or aides. Early in the spring, we started sending them anonymous flyers that read: "Men's Month … it's coming." This slogan also appeared in our newsletter and bulletins starting in April. Soon people were asking, "What is this `Men's Month'?"

Next, we mailed an anonymous cassette tape marked PLAY ME to each man on our list. It opened with the "Mission Impossible" theme song (using kazoos), then challenged the person with, "Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to be a male role model for our Sunday school." We promised that each man would have a partner, get special training, receive a boutonniere on Father's Day, and be invited to the teacher appreciation banquet. The tape concluded by adding that an "agent" from the Sunday school would call for a decision.

According to superintendent Linda Ratliff, "Ninety-five percent of those asked said yes! We had two men for each class from preschool to eighth grade."

Having sampled teaching, several men offered to teach a regular quarter later in the year. "Men's Month" is now an annual tradition each June.

--Robert D'Ambrosio

Director of discipleship

Getting to know where all the members of your new church live can be difficult and frustrating.

On the first Sabbath in my new church, I placed a half sheet of paper in the bulletin and asked the people to draw a map from the church to their house.

I asked them to include their address, phone number, a good time to visit, and whether ...

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