by Greg Pressley 27 Dec 2004

A group of frogs was hopping contentedly through the woods when two of the frogs fell into a deep pit. The other frogs made a quick assessment of the situation and concluded that it was hopeless.

They recommended that the frogs in the pit accept their fate and prepare to die. Sorrowfully they shouted down to the pit-confined frogs such encouraging words as: "save your energy," "give up," and "you’re as good as dead."

One of the frogs bought into their assessment of the situation, gave up and died. While the other frog, who was deaf, thought the others were cheering him on. He continued to jump until he finally leapt so high that he jumped right out of his pit.

Unfortunately, there are many "frogs" who believe that Sunday school has fallen into such a deep pit of despair that it too should prepare to die. They shout, though sorrowful, that we should save our energy, accept the fate of Sunday school and let it die.

Granted, a quick assessment of the current state of Sunday school might lead one to JUMP to that conclusion. But there comes a time when we need to turn a deaf ear and commit ourselves to getting Sunday school out of the pit of despair. The time has come to revitalize Sunday school as an effective ministry tool.

The reality is that Sunday school is not only viable, it’s very necessary, and it’s worth saving. If we accept the conclusion that Sunday school no longer works and as a result we give up on it - then it is certainly destined to die.

"It is not that Sunday school no longer works, but it’s that we no longer work Sunday school," said Rev. Jack Eyestone. Church leaders should not perform some heroic effort to save Sunday school just to say that we saved it, but instead should be driven by a passionate desire for church growth, and evidence that Sunday school is vital to sustained church growth.

The answer seems to lie in our commitment and determination to make Sunday school successful. If your Sunday school is struggling for existence, or if you’ve given up on Sunday school altogether, consider taking these steps to help revitalize your Sunday school.

Step One: Change your attitude

You will be amazed at how a simple change in attitude will impact the way the congregation views Sunday school.

Change the way you "think" and "talk" about Sunday school and it will lift the level of Sunday school almost immediately.

Assemble your leadership team to assess the current attitude and level of commitment that exist in relation to Sunday school. Revitalizing Sunday school begins with your leadership team.

Publicly proclaim the importance of Sunday school. The Pastor must demonstrate that he believes Sunday school is important.

Stress the importance of "attitude" and "commitment" to every Sunday school teacher. A revitalized Sunday school will happen one classroom at a time.

There is too much evidence to support the need for Sunday school to see it as anything other than a necessity.

If there was ever a day when people needed to be exposed to the study of God’s Word, it is today. Sunday school is still the most effective way of involving individuals in a continuing study of God’s Word.

Many people have tried to replace it - but nothing has proven more effective when it comes to teaching the Word, assimilating and reaching people.

Dr. Thom Rainer says that Sunday school is highly effective in assimilating individuals into the life of the church. In fact, his research revealed that an individual is significantly more likely to remain active in the church if he or she attends both Sunday school and morning worship, as opposed to worship only.

Dr. Ken Hemphill, in his book "Revitalizing the Sunday Morning Dinosaur," concluded that Sunday school also has a profound impact on conversion. An individual is much more likely to be converted if he or she is enrolled in Sunday school.

Once you’ve shifted your attitude and have come to grips with the necessity of Sunday school, it’s time to conduct an honest evaluation. It could be that one of the reasons that Sunday school is struggling, besides our lack of making it a priority, is that it’s not worth coming to. Someone said years ago that Sunday school was the most wasted hour of the week.

Before we de-spiritualize people for not coming to Sunday school we may need to take a hard look at the quality of the program that we offer.

Don’t be afraid to ask for commitment, dedication and quality while at the same time realizing that you work with a team of volunteers. You will be much more effective in convincing people that a quality Sunday school can make a difference than you will be in demanding quality. In other words, if people believe in what they’re doing they are much more likely to buy-in.

Involve a variety of people in your evaluation so as to get a fair picture of how your Sunday school is perceived.

Develop a plan working with your Sunday school leadership team to then strengthen the overall effectiveness of Sunday school.

It’s important to remember that a revitalized Sunday school will not happen without hard work! Get ready to roll-up your sleeves and go to work - in the end it will be worth it.

Greg Pressley is the senior pastor of First Church of the Nazarene in Spartanburg, S.C. He also serves as District Sunday School Chair person for the South Carolina District Church of the Nazarene. Pastor Pressley is leading the SC District in an extensive Sunday School Revitalization plan and has developed resources materials for each local church on the district. Some of those resources are available at spartanburgaz.org.