Why I teach Sunday School Part II

Or this could also be entitled... I may be going to hell!

First off, my good friend, Mr. Kodafit wanted me to thank everyone who took me up on my call to action. He didn't win - actually he didn't come close, but then he found out the numbers of those who voted, and was pleasantly surprized at how many he had actually gotten!

OK, so funny story this weekend. A sibling of mine graduated from college - I think he's been staying in school to avoid the real world, and finally with a PhD to add to his name, he's run out of excuses.

The commencement exercises were pretty cool - I figured I should go, since I got my degree in the mail, and have never been to an actual graduation for anyone.

I sat next to my Dad for the ceremony, while my 3 year old daughter squirmed and wiggled in my lap. Somehow we got on the subject of the Sunday School class I teach, and he told me about an awful class he had to sub for a few weeks ago.

I'll summarize this because it was pretty long.

First thing he asked the kids was how the regular teacher handled things. He was told that it involved a bag of Swedish Fish every week, that most of the class was spent talking about normal day to day stuff and that kind of thing. He said that none of the kids listened, some even climbed out the window, and after 3 weeks, he felt it was time to lay down the law. A few kids told their parents that they didn't like my dad teaching them, and so when the parents approached him, he told them in no uncertain terms that their kids were causing major problems.

Interestingly enough, I usually bring Swedish fish for my class each week, and if not, then it's usually Twix bars, Kit Kats or something similar. The first 20 minutes are a chance for everyone to share their favorite story from the week. Yesterday it included the gay guys at dance camp, a kids bike getting stolen and a few others - We've had better stories in past weeks though.

My goal is 5 minutes of lesson with the objective to pass one principle across to them. I have yet to have any kid climb out the window though. And if a parent ever approached me and asked if there was a problem, I wouldn't say a thing, even if there was a problem (Which their isn't - I mean they're kids for crying out loud!!!) If the kids have a problem, there's always the chance that it's the teachers lack of ability!

I guess I should have expected this from my Dad. When I was 11, I had a Sunday School teacher physically throw me from a classroom door by the collars of my shirt. When my parents found out - I got a pretty good "laying on of hands" from them as well.

As for my class... Attendance is sky high! The kids love it, I love the kids and I think they may even have learned something this year!!