by Pastor Patrick Cho
The summer is winding down which means that Grace Life Bible studies will be back up and running in October. Things will be a little different this year as we will be introducing a different format for the Bible study. Everything will be explained in greater detail at our upcoming Orientation Night on October 8, but we will be splitting up the men and women for Bible study this year. The men will meet one week and the women will meet the next. This format addresses some needs like childcare (since one parent can remain at home to watch the kids), but it also affords our female leaders greater opportunities to serve and teach. The leaders are all very excited about the change in format and agree that it may be the best way to minister to the group at this stage of life.
The curriculum we will be walking through is The Story of Hope, which is produced by the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism (ABWE). This is a forty-lesson study through the major events of the Bible, twenty in the Old Testament and twenty in the New Testament. The idea is to give us a general understanding of the contents of Scripture, but also to help us see what God is doing through human history to accomplish His purposes. One exciting aspect of this study is that the children will be walking through the same curriculum at the same pace in Kids’ Club. When Dr. Ernie Baker spoke for our Grace Life Weekend Conference, one of the lessons he emphasized was the importance and benefit of regular family worship. By walking through the same curriculum as the kids, we are hoping to foster more spiritual conversations in the home around God’s Word.
The study this year will also be a bit more intensive with homework assignments and Scripture memory. It will not be overwhelmingly demanding, but we believe it is helpful to cultivate a greater love for God’s Word through memorization. The homework will serve to provide accountability in the group to keep up with the lessons. It will also hopefully serve as a good first step in developing family worship and speaking to your children regularly about God’s Word.
We want to encourage all of our married couples and parents to join us for Grace Life this year! We are sure it will be an encouraging study. For parents of children ages 5 to fifth grade, registration forms are currently available for Kids’ Club as well. If your child is outside the age parameters, please contact Pastor Patrick if you would still like for them to participate. There will be a Kids’ Club Orientation Night on Thursday, October 1, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. This should be a great year for both Kids’ Club and Grace Life!