Tyson's Creek Workshop

by Micah Ray


James and I were not quite sure what to expect from today's workshop. We had discussed with Pastor Randy and Sam (the Sunday School director) what they believed their teachers and leaders needed. What we designed was a 4-hour workshop that was a mixture of teacher training and growth strategies.

Over the past couple of days, I had taken a bad cold, it was a really busy week for both of us, and we knew we wanted to do our best to help this church with training and motivation for its leaders. We both were wanting to make a good impression and we were feeling the pressure.

However, when we arrived, the church members were so warm and hospitable. And they were truly excited to be there and were ready to learn. They made it so easy for us to do what we do!

Before the workshop began, a gentleman introduced himself and said that he knew someone we knew -- Donna Elmore. In fact, he said he had gotten a copy of our marketing material from her and had given it to his pastor. We had wondered all along how Pastor Randy had received our information because we had never sent him anything. It turns out that God used a good friend of ours to spread the word about our ministry. (Thanks, Donna!)

James kicked things off by talking about the calling of a teacher and the prepared teacher. After each segment of the workshop, we asked everyone to make notes on their Action Plan worksheet and discuss something they had learned that they could put into action. At the end of the workshop, we asked for volunteers to share about a teacher that made a difference in their life. It was a great time of encouragement for us as well as the people of the church. When we had finished all of our prepared workshop material, James and I went to each table and prayed a blessing on each person who had attended. It was a great blessing to do that for them.

When we were finished, the people of Tyson's Creek Baptist Church were so encouraging. In fact, they were already talking about having us to come back again in the near future! We're ready!

Needless to say, it was a great day. God blessed in so many ways. It is just incredible to see how He is working all around us -- in churches and people we've never met before -- in places we didn't even know existed. And He's using us to bless them and to teach them. I feel honored just to be a part of this ministry and to have the ability to invest in people in this way.