Practicum Report #6

To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #6
Time: 3 hours (1 Prep, 1 SS, 1 Service)
Preparation: Preparation for the Bible study was relatively easy. It was simply a matter of pulling up the list for the series we are doing and looking ahead to the next passage we are studying. I read the passage, thought about what it meant to me and then looked at the questions that went with the study. After doing that I rethought the passage and searched my study Bible for footnotes about the passage. This gave me some different views on the passage and helped prep me for leading the study.
Study: To start the study, we opened in prayer with the few people we had in attendance. It was only Caleb, Adam, Rebecca and I that showed up. After opening in prayer, I introduced the topic as Adam quickly started to fall asleep in the corner. The study for the week was about Luke 16:19-31. This passage is about the rich man and Lazarus, the beggar. Caleb read the passage aloud and then I probed for general reactions. Typically, the reaction was that we need to be careful about caring more about the physical world and that we need to help each other. So I continued to probe for further examination of the passage by asking a series of questions. The first question I asked was what would you do if you suddenly came into a lot of money? Most people said they would do a combination of spending it, saving it and giving some away. No one said they would give it all away or even more than half. Then I asked who they felt sorrier for in the story. At first, they felt sorry for Lazarus, but seeing that things turned out well for him, it is hard to feel sorry for him. As for the rich man, in some ways it is hard to feel sorry for him because of how he acted. Yet it is hard to dismiss his misery and regret as well as his care for his family. That seemed to be a consensus answer. Rebecca gave it pretty quickly while Adam just shook his head in agreement. Caleb said he felt bad for the rich man because of how miserable he was and how concerned he was about his family. I continued to probe for answers and by the time I was done, the group looked at things a little differently. They saw the need to listen to Jesus in the story. The facts have been given to us. It is up to us to be like Lazarus or the rich man in our faith and daily lives. We then closed in prayer.
Questions:
1. How do I get more people to come to Bible study on a regular basis?
2. What should I do when someone falls asleep during Bible study?
3. Should I add activities to the study to keep it more lively and engaging?