On Friday, Ed Stetzer announced that I am undertaking a new assignment – editor of a new curriculum from LifeWayChristian Resources.
As one of the largest providers of Christian resources in the world, LifeWay plays a unique role in spiritual formation and discipleship. I am excited about taking part in the launch and development of a new curriculum for small groups and Sunday School classes.
My wife and I believe that this position will be a good use of my gifts in the coming years. After much prayer and counsel, we are ready to take this step.
Yesterday, I announced to our church that the Lord is directing our path into a new avenue of ministry. It is a blessing to see how God providentially places people in our path, people who play important roles during key moments in life’s journey. If you look back over your life, you can think of people whose paths crossed yours, for a certain time and in a certain place and for a certain purpose. First Baptist Church of Shelbyville, TN has been such a place for us.
In the four years we have been in Shelbyville, I have learned about church administration, about teaching and preaching, about reaching out to the community, and about the love of a healthy congregation. Our departure is bittersweet. We are sad to leave our church family; yet we are excited about what God has in store for us.
The opportunity to develop curriculum at LifeWay is very exciting to me personally. For a long time, I have wanted to use a curriculum that was theologically robust, mission-focused, and centered in the grand narrative of Scripture: material that connects the dots from all the stories of the Bible to the great Story and the great Savior at the center of it all. I’m thankful that the Lord is giving me the opportunity to launch this curriculum line, and I pray that it will be of great service to the Church.
Ed includes some more details about the curriculum launch:
Curriculum lines are an opportunity for significant ministry. It is the medium that explains a biblical passage to thousands upon thousands of people. For example, one of our dated curriculum lines (there are multiple lines for adults) has a million users every Sunday. It is amazing that a small team of people can be used in such a broad manner to influence others for the gospel of the kingdom.
LifeWay will be starting a new line that is called, at the moment, “Telios.” That may or may not be the final name, but it is our working name for a new curriculum that will be theologically-robust, mission-driven, and built around the narrative of the Scriptures. We will be pulling together an advisory team to help us consider how best to do that– expect more on that soon. We’ll also be asking for input on this curriculum from our readers here and at Trevin’s blog.
I will be serving as General Editor of the curriculum line but the hard work will be done by Trevin as the editor. We are excited to have him on the team.
I’ll be giving periodic updates on the development of this new material. In the meantime, please be in prayer for me and my family as we make this transition. We need your prayers as we get ready to serve the kingdom in a new way.
