Teaching the Bethel Bible Series
This was the most challenging part of my experience with the Bethel Series. I had a group
of about thirty folks sign up to attend the class I was going to lead. I clearly remember
the first week. Can anyone remember the first time they led with prayer in front of a
group? My knees were knocking. My voice was shaky. I was scared to death. Needless to
say, I got through it, but it was truly a life experience. Then came the lesson. I was
well prepared, and my professional background had given me some experience speaking to
groups. But this was different. I was the young new convert leading a study of the Bible
to a substantial group of lifetime Lutherans. I didn't know what they knew, and my
understanding of the Scriptures was in the form of an overview. But we followed the
script as written by Harley Swiggum.
Harley, it was amazing; week after week, we had a wonderful time. I obtained an ample
supply of blank business cards and handed them out for the group to use to memorize the
concepts. And as near as I could tell, they went at it in earnest. And they did the
reading. This was a dedicated group and they were reaping the rewards of their efforts.
One thing I learned through teaching the Bethel Series is that the teacher gets the most
out of the classes. Naturally, I had to do the reading assignment each week, and I had
to be prepared to explain the message being presented by the drawings. This meant that
I got to read the Bible in its entirety a second time. What a blessing this was. I was
actually getting into a position of tying the message together. I realize that one can
study the Scriptures daily for a lifetime and not fully grasp all that is presented
therein. But this certainly was a strong beginning for me. I look back now and realize
how fortunate I was to be introduced to the Bethel Bible Series right after accepting
Jesus as my Lord and Savior.
To continue reading Barry's letter to Harley Swiggum, click
Teacher Training in Madison here, or in the frame on the left.