Sunday School in Southeast Asia

A Verse That Opened Doors

Matthew 19:14 reads, “but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’ Church leaders and pastors in Southeast Asia studied this verse during a recent Sunday school training led by the NOLA project. Gathering children in their communities for Scripture stories has been a challenge, but studying this verse and receiving real, practical takeaways during the workshop brought incredible impact. The unique style of teaching and materials provided gave leaders a renewed conviction for the importance of making time and space for children to learn Bible stories!    

Most of the church leaders and pastors did not have any formal Bible teaching time for children. Additionally, if parents or guardians did not find it important to bring their children to the adult teaching time, the children received no lessons from Scripture at all. 

Answered Prayers for Bible Teaching

*Mrs. J and her husband have been seeking opportunities to incorporate Bible teaching for children into their church for years. They talk about it all the time! Until now, they have not been successful. When they learned about the Sunday school training workshop, they knew God had seen the desires of their hearts. “My husband and I thank God because this workshop answered our prayers.” They plan to use what they learned right away! 

Equipped With Tools That Work

All attendees received training in a variety of activities, songs, and games to use during the lessons, as well as a suggested outline for ordering the events during Sunday school time. One attendee joyfully explained, “I have been to other trainings, but usually we just come away with some teaching on how to do it, but without anything in our hands to actually use when we get back to our church. This was totally different! We now have resources we can use immediately!” Leader attendees especially mentioned the helpful and clear information in the teacher’s guide. When they wanted to start a Sunday school in the past, they had no idea where to begin, but this guide made everything uncomplicated. 

Not only was the guide useful, but the method of learning and teaching Bible stories brought great feedback as well! *K has taught children in the past, but when he tried to tell Bible stories, especially the story of creation, he couldn’t remember the story well enough. The NOLA workshop leaders solved this by using specific and effective steps for helping Sunday school teachers learn and teach. Finally, *K feels empowered to share. “I have attended several Sunday school trainings, but I’ve never received materials I could really use.” 

One pastor who attended the workshop was humbled. “When I preach, I sometimes see people get sleepy, or even fall asleep.” He praised the video lessons and method taught, which he knows will encourage people to participate! 

It wasn’t just the participants who were affected! Members of the *Khon language community who led the training felt honored to be used to share helpful tools with their northern and southern community neighbors. One training team member reflected, “I feel so much joy knowing that God used us to be a blessing! At the beginning of each training I feel a bit nervous because we don’t know how it will go. But once we started we just had fun with the participants! They love singing, doing action songs and even used their free time to practice certain things. I feel so inspired seeing them participate like this.”