Leave 'em hungry

All of us who are humbling studying and praying to put together lessons tailored for our students at this time have to wrestle with the question: "How much do I try to cover in this lesson?"

There's no hard and fast answer, because it depends enormously on the students and the setting. If you are working with a group of mature Christians who are accustomed to good group discussion-study for 2 hours and have prepared for the class -- you can probably pack a lot in. If you have a 10 minute devotion opportunity with Jr. High students during the half-time of the SuperBowl, you'd best keep it simple and relevant.

There is a principle, however, that I think all Bible teachers should keep in mind: Keep 'em hungry for more.

Prepare for less content, with such quality and clarity, that leaves them feeling that you could have shared more with the class. Their retention will be much higher, and they will look forward to future classes.

You can invite them to dive deeper on a topic on their own (and give them a starter to do this outside of class -- put suggested reading or questions to consider on your handout).

During the class time, leave space and time for the Holy Spirit to work.

Mark Twain famously wrote a long letter to an acquaintance, closing with comments like this: "I'm sorry I have written you such a long letter. I did not have time to compose a shorter one."

It takes some effort, dear teachers, to pare down your lessons to the best stuff. This means that you can't share every great insight the Lord has given you, or show off the depth of your knowledge about this Bible passage. But this isn't about you, it's about your students, and glorifying God. Teaching to change lives means giving your students content set up to maximize their retention and comprehension.