Sabbath School

The Role of Coordinating Sabbath School

The Sabbath School Coordinator is responsible for:

develop leadership by providing training, support and resources
recruiting volunteers to contribute to the Sabbath School experience
coordinating all general Sabbath School activities from cradle roll through to adults
planning a strong world mission program
visiting and observing the various Sabbath School age groups to ensure that the needs of the members are being met
planning and promoting evangelism such as visitor’s days
assisting with a plan to contact missing and new members
supporting and assisting teachers with problem solving when needs arise
checking Sabbath School records to ensure they are kept accurately
organising branch Sabbath Schools or small groups to reach out and involve members in the ministry of making disciples
forming new adult classes relevant to needs at church (growing numbers, new members, members who speak another language)
safeguarding the lesson time and ensuring that a minimum of 35 minutes is provided
finding ways to be creative and ensure that church architecture doesn’t limit the vision for growth
encouraging activities outside of Sabbath School time such as pot lucks, picnics, nature walks and parties.

Responsible to

The Church Board. The Sabbath School Coordinator is a member of the board.

Chairing the Sabbath School Council

This group includes the superintendent, assistants, secretary, division leaders, investment secretary, adult class leaders and an elder (the Personal Ministries leader and Youth leader may be included). The Sabbath School Coordinator may also be the Sabbath School Superintendent in a small church.

Term of Office
One year.

Time Commitment

The coordinator or an assistant are on duty at least a half hour before Sabbath School begins to ensure all division classes are functioning.
One to two hours per month for the Sabbath School Council.
Church Board meetings.
The amount of time spent each week will depend on the size of the church, the number of assistants and how responsibility is delegated.

Skills and Spiritual Gifts

God has gifted each of us in different ways. The following gifts are valuable when considering the choice of members for the role of Sabbath School Coordinator.

Faith: The ability to recognize opportunities for God to work. Planning and trusting for God’s leading.
Administration: The ability to organize and manage details while working with others to achieve goals.
Discernment: The capacity to analyse and discern how circumstances can impact groups and individuals.

The gift of administration is especially important in this role. Some people do not possess all these gifts, so build a team that covers the gifts mentioned above.

Planning

Regular planning sessions for Sabbath School leaders are effective in establishing new methods to reach members. Planning sessions can take place as often as the Sabbath School council decides.

Yearly

The agenda includes a plan for the whole year. Suggestions: training workshops, visitors’ days, Homecoming Sabbaths for missing members, organization of new classes, branch Sabbath Schools, appointment of teachers and helpers, goals for attendance, mission offerings and decisions for Christ.

Quarterly

These planning sessions will deal with the whole quarter’s programs. Suggestions: mission emphasis for the quarter, 13th Sabbath program, evangelistic projects and reporting on attendance)

Monthly
A review of programs/projects and an opportunity to encourage, brainstorm and pray.

Mission Resources

Adult and children’s mission quarterlies provide a weekly mission focus and Thirteenth Sabbath programs to raise the level of world mission awareness in the church.
Mission Spotlight is a monthly DVD feature on world mission.