It could be tempting to burn out as a Sunday school teacher, that’s why encouragement for Sunday school teachers is necessary. If I were to write a letter to a Sunday school teacher, I would look something like this:
Dear Sunday School Teachers,
I know some Sundays are hard.
Throughout the week you take a lot of time to prepare for class.
You’ve said no to a lot of fun stuff because you’ve said yes to the kids.
Not to mention your personal agenda.
You can’t get everything you want done because of the time it takes to prep.
And let’s not forget about your social life.
Saturday nights have changed since you started teaching. You can’t stay out late because you’ve got to be at church early in the morning.
Sunday arrives.
The alarm goes off and you feel exhausted. You want to hit the snooze button and go back to sleep, but you can’t. You have 12 kids waiting on you in an hour.
You drive to church tired, maybe even frustrated.
You get in class, and put the final touches on prep.
The kids come storming into class.
Soon after class starts, the room is a mess and the kids misbehave.
You pour your heart out during the lesson. But you feel like your words fell on deaf ears.
You start to wonder: Am I even making a difference?
And this is where I want to say: Yes, you are.
More than you know.
Don’t believe me?
Read these stats:
- Over 50% of Christians are converted before age 12.
- Less than 6% of Christians are saved after 12, so the early years are crucial.
- By the time a child is 9, their basic moral foundation has been formed.
- By age 13, a person has formed a majority of their beliefs about the nature of God, existence of Satan, the reliability of the Bible, eternity, the holiness of God, the doctrine of sin, and the role of the Holy Spirit.
- From ages 4-14, kids and teenagers are more open to the gospel than any other time in their life.
- 80% of church leaders grew up in church, and inevitably participated in Sunday School.
Now do you believe me?
Sundays aren’t always this hard. But sometimes they are. And often, you wonder if your work even matters.
Let me tell you: Yes, it does.
Your work is changing lives for eternity.
So press on, Sunday school teacher. Your work is not in vain.
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