Every January and June, I take a couple of weeks away from my regular responsibilities with Campus Innovation to join the coaching team for Bible Study Methods (BSM), a graduate-level course that is required for all new staff members with Cru®. This year I drive to Orlando, FL, on June 12 and 13 and I return July 2 and 3.
The Students
I’m so grateful for this opportunity to equip our new missionaries with skills that will help them study and teach the scriptures! Some of our new staff have just graduated from college, others have interned with Cru for a year or two, and still others have come with Cru as a mid-career change. There are even a few who join us after retiring from a different job! But one thing they all have in common is a love for the Lord and a desire to help others come to love Him, too.
Why Coaching?
You may wonder why I called us a coaching team instead of a teaching team. It’s because the bulk of the learning is done in a workshop setting where the students practice Bible study skills that the coaches demonstrate. As the students use those skills to study the book of Ephesians, they discover for themselves what it says.
A Typical Day
The coaches meet at 8:30 in the morning to debrief the previous day’s coaching and discuss the upcoming day. While this is happening, the students are attending a lecture for their other class, called Intro to Christian Theology. At 10:30 we coaches join them so one of us can give a short BSM lecture (usually 20-30 minutes). Then we break up into coaching groups (usually eight to ten people), where we work together until 12:30. Coaches often have lunch with one or two group members to get to know them better. The rest of the day is unscheduled so people have time for homework. I usually take a break in the afternoon and grade homework in the evening.
Thank you!
I love preparing our new missionaries, but I couldn’t do it without you! Your partnership makes it possible for me to do this, so in a very real way, you are equipping them with me! Thank you for letting God use you to equip messengers for His mission!
Please Pray…
- for God to work powerfully in the lives of our new staff members through both Bible Study Methods and Intro to Christian Theology
- for safe travel for me as I drive to Orlando June 12 and 13 and return July 2 and 3
- for strength and health for all of the coaches and new staff members.
Thank you for praying!
