BY GEORGE! ANOTHER VOICE

Mark Wingfield, Associate Pastor

Less is More

Why do Baptists make such a big deal out of Sunday School?

If you have come to Wilshire from another Christian tradition, or from no church tradition, you’ve probably puzzled over the high value we place on Sunday morning Bible study not only for children but also for adults.

I guess you could say Sunday School is a Baptist distinctive, although it’s not unique to Baptists. Truth of the matter is, though, Baptists were doing small groups before small groups were cool in other churches. We just call our small groups “Sunday School.”

The underlying idea is that what’s good for children is also good for adults. It’s sort of like that Robert Fulghum book, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.

In Sunday School, adults and children learn:

• How to study the Bible more deeply.
• How the Bible applies to every day life.
• The power of small-group community to connect us to God and to each other in fellowship.
• The power of prayer as we share our burdens together.

For many in our congregation, Sunday School classes have been the lifeline of support in times of crisis. Friendships made in these small groups are far stronger than the casual hellos exchanged among pew mates in the Sanctuary each Sunday. This is where we get to the heart of what it means to “build a community of faith shaped by the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”

Someone wiser than me has said that the best way to grow a large church is to grow a small church—meaning a church full of small groups where believers find community and spiritual formation.

If you’re only attending worship, you’re missing out on one of the best parts of church. So consider this an invitation to find your place in a small group at Wilshire. This really is a case where less is more.