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Posts by Kevin Lawson

Kevin Lawson

Kevin Lawson is a professor of Educational Studies at Talbot School of Theology at ������ʷ. Lawson cares deeply about strengthening the educational ministry of churches. For 11 years, he served on church staffs as a minister of Christian education. He holds degrees in Christian education, biblical studies and educational administration, and carries out research on local church educational ministry, church staff issues, theological and historical foundations of Christian education, children’s spiritual formation, and other related topics. Lawson teaches on the historical foundations of Christian education, leadership issues and educational research methods, and does ministry consultation. His recent publications include: Supervising and Supporting Ministry Staff: A Guide to Thriving Together (co-authored with Mick Boersma, 2017); Associate Staff Ministry: Thriving Personally, Professionally, and Relationally (co-authored with Mick Boersma, 2014); Infants and Children in the Church: Five Views on Theology and Ministry (co-edited with Adam Harwood, 2017), Understanding Children's Spirituality: Theology, Research, and Practice (editor, 2012) and has contributed chapters to Shaped by God: Twelve Essentials for Nurturing Faith in Children, Youth, and Adults (2010), Introducing Christian Education and Formation (2008), Nurturing Child and Adolescent Spirituality: Perspectives from the World's Religious Traditions (2006), Children's Spirituality: Christian Perspectives, Research, and Applications (2004), and multiple entries in the Encyclopedia of Christian Education (2015). His research and writing has been published in several periodicals, including Christian Education Journal, Evangelical Missions Quarterly, Religious Education, Journal of Youth Ministry, Growing Churches, The Journal for Case Teaching and two international journals. He serves as editor of the Christian Education Journal and “Christian Educators of the 20th Century Project.” He chairs the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities’ Council for Collaboration in Doctoral Education and works with the International Council for Evangelical Theological Education on issues of doctoral education development.

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• The Good Book Blog

  Aprender y Crecer Día a Día

  Kevin Lawson — March 29, 2024

  Así que, los que recibieron su palabra fueron bautizados; y se añadieron aquel día como tres mil personas. Y perseveraban en la doctrina de los...

• The Good Book Blog

  Learning and Growing Day by Day

  Kevin Lawson — March 29, 2024

  So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the...

• The Good Book Blog

  Like Sheep Without a Shepherd

  Kevin Lawson — March 15, 2024

  The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves...

• The Good Book Blog

  Como Ovejas Sin Pastor

  Kevin Lawson — March 15, 2024

  Entonces los apóstoles se juntaron con Jesús, y le contaron todo lo que habían hecho, y lo que habían enseñado. Él les dijo: « Venid vosotros...

• The Good Book Blog

  Study it, Do it, Teach it

  Kevin Lawson — March 01, 2024

  "Now after this, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah . . .this Ezra...

• The Good Book Blog

  Estúdiala, Cúmplela, Enséñala

  Kevin Lawson — March 01, 2024

  Pasadas estas cosas, en el reinado de Artajerjes rey de Persia, Esdras hijo de Seraías, hijo de Azarías, hijo de Hilcías, . . . este Esdras...

• The Good Book Blog

  Do You Love Me? Feed My Lambs

  Kevin Lawson — February 19, 2024

  I cannot imagine how devastated Peter must have felt when he found himself, out of fear for his own safety, denying that he ever knew Jesus (John 18). It happened right after Jesus was arrested and taken to the high priests for questioning.

• The Good Book Blog

  ¿Me Amas? Apacienta Mis Corderos

  Kevin Lawson — February 19, 2024

  Cuando hubieron comido, Jesús dijo a Simón Pedro: « Simón, hijo de Jonás, ¿me amas más que estos? » Le respondió: « Sí, Señor; tú sabes que te...

• The Good Book Blog

  Initial Reflections on Discipleship Ministry in a Time of Pandemic

  Kevin Lawson — April 30, 2020

  It is late April, 2020. and in North America we’ve been grappling with the rapid spread of the COVID-19 virus and its impact on all aspects of our...

• Talbot Magazine

  Book Excerpt: Facilitating and Supporting the Ministry of Your Associate Staff

  Except adapted from 'Supervising and Supporting Ministry Staff: A Guide to Thriving Together' by Kevin E. Lawson and Mick Boersma.

  Mick Boersma, Kevin Lawson — June 20, 2018

  What produces satisfaction for you in your ministry efforts? Is it seeing increased attendance, or increased giving, or receiving a lot of positive...

• The Good Book Blog

  Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation in the Reformation Movement: Impact on Ministry with Children in Churches Today, Part II

  Kevin Lawson — January 11, 2018

  Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation in the Reformation Movement: Impact on Ministry with Children in Churches Today [i] , Part II As I shared...

• The Good Book Blog

  Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation in the Reformation Movement

  Impact on Ministry with Children in Churches Today, Part I

  Kevin Lawson — January 10, 2018

  Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation in the Reformation Movement: Impact on Ministry with Children in Churches Today [i] , Part I As most of you...

• The Good Book Blog

  Five Biblical Principles for Supervising and Supporting Ministry Staff

  Kevin Lawson — May 01, 2017

  My friend and colleague, Mick Boersma, and I have been working together on a book, Supervising and Supporting Ministry Staff: A Guide to Thriving Together (forthcoming, Rowman & Littlefield). The book is based on research with associate staff members, and exemplary ministry supervisors, about what supervisors can do to help their ministry staff thriving in their ministry roles. It employs a “bifocal lens” model, looking simultaneously at issues of supervision (seeing that the ministry is done well) and support (encouraging the wellbeing of those doing the ministry). Along with the research results, which we share throughout the book, we also put together five biblical foundations for ministry together that I want to share in this blog. I encourage you to read these and reflect on the degree to which they guide your ministry with other staff members, and what other biblical foundations are important to you as you approach your ministry on a staff team ...

• The Good Book Blog

  Praying for Those Who Preach, Teach, and Lead Bible Studies

  Kevin Lawson — June 06, 2016

  Who has God brought into your life to teach you the Bible and help you grow in your faithfulness in following after Christ? Is it your pastor? Are there also others who have taught you the Scriptures, or who are teaching your friends or family members? In most churches, the Bible is being taught in a variety of places to different groups of different ages and stages of life. From children’s classes to youth group settings, to small group ministries, throughout the week God’s Word is opened and studied in churches around the world. This is one of the most powerful agents for change in our lives ...

• The Good Book Blog

  “Teaching Naked” in the Church, Idea #3

  Kevin Lawson — October 01, 2015

  This is fourth and final in a series of blogs on José Bowen’s book, Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning (Jossey-Bass, 2012). I shared in my first blog that the main thrust of his book was for teachers to use technology to deliver content outside of class sessions, and shift the use of class time to processing that information, promoting critical thinking and the application of knowledge to real life situations. I then identified three ideas from Bowen’s work that I think have the potential of deepening the impact of our teaching in the church. In my second blog, I put the focus on his first idea, finding ways to use technology to provide content to group members, preparing them for active learning in your Bible study group. In the third blog I focused on how to better use your class time to help students in processing and applying the content of the Scripture you are studying together. In this final blog, I want to give our attention to ways we can use social media and other online technologies to connect with those we teach, promote a stronger sense of community as we follow Christ, and promote the application of what we are learning over time, deepening the impact of our studies ...

• The Good Book Blog

  “Teaching Naked” in the Church, Idea #2

  Kevin Lawson — July 27, 2015

  This is the third in a series of four blogs on José Bowen’s book, Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning (Jossey-Bass, 2012). I shared in my first blog that his main thrust was for teachers to use technology to deliver content outside of class sessions and shift the use of class time to processing that information, promoting critical thinking and the application of knowledge to real life situations. There are three ideas from Bowen’s work that I think have the potential of deepening the impact of our teaching in the church. In my second blog, I put the focus on his first idea, finding ways to use technology to provide content to group members, preparing them for active learning in your Bible study group. In this blog, I want to focus on how to use your class time to help students in processing and applying the content of the Scripture you are studying together.

• The Good Book Blog

  “Teaching Naked” in the Church, Idea #1

  Kevin Lawson — January 13, 2015

  A few months ago I wrote about José Bowen’s seminar and his book, Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning (Jossey-Bass, 2012). I shared that his main thrust was for teachers to use technology to deliver content outside of class sessions, and shift the use of class time to processing that information, promoting critical thinking and the application of knowledge to real life situations. There are three ideas from Bowen’s work that I think have the potential of deepening the impact of our teaching in the church. Over the next few months I’ll be writing a brief blog on each of the three ideas, beginning with ways of using technology to get students into the content of the Bible lesson/study before you meet, preparing them for a more active and deeper learning experience together.

• The Good Book Blog

  “Teaching Naked” in the Church?

  Kevin Lawson — September 23, 2014

  Now there is a provocative title for a blog! But it’s probably not what you think. This past spring I attended a faculty development seminar at ������ʷ led by José Bowen, author of the book, Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning (Jossey-Bass, 2012). The main thrust of his sessions with us, and of his book, is that with information being so readily available through mass technology, we need to leverage that technology to maximize classroom interaction with students, shifting our roles from presenters of information (which students can get more readily online) to coaches who help students process that information, promoting deeper learning, critical thinking, and application of knowledge to life situations. As I reflected on Bowen’s ideas, I think we may need to start “teaching naked” in the church. Let me tell you what I mean.

• The Good Book Blog

  Critical Issues in Ministry with Children, Part Two: Knowing Where We Want to Go, How Can We Get There?

  Kevin Lawson — July 01, 2014

  In my last post, I talked about the importance of our ministry with children and some ministry objectives we need to pursue. In this follow up blog I would like to talk about four aspects of children’s ministry that together help us accomplish our goals of helping children grow and mature as a part of the church, the people of God. These are worthy goals, and it can be tempting to try to design one children’s program in the church to address them all. But if we take them each seriously, it will soon be clear that this is more than a matter of having a class or a club program for children. Instead, it requires thinking carefully about the full life of the church, as well as the church and family environment our children grow up in. It has implications for what we do for our children, with them, to them, and the opportunities we provide for them to be engaged in ministry themselves. I invite you to read and think with me about what this might look like.

• The Good Book Blog

  Critical Issues in Ministry with Children: What Should We Aim For? How Can We Get There?

  Kevin Lawson — April 03, 2014

  It’s been awhile since I have posted on the Good Book Blog. Since I come back to post a few times a year, I want to begin with an area of ministry that is very dear to my heart – ministry with children. In many ways, I think the church in general has a very mixed view of ministry with children. On the one hand we recognize that children are a gift, and we value them highly. On the other hand, we may often feel that “real ministry” takes place with youth and adults. Perhaps it is that we more readily see the impact of our teaching with youth or adults, and in ministry with children it is harder to see significant changes. What we may miss out on is seeing the powerful foundational nature of ministry with children that sets life directions and patterns that “bloom” later in adulthood. I, for one, recognize the critical importance of ministry with children, and the impact it can have for a lifetime. In this blog, and the one that will follow, I’ll be talking about the kinds of ministry objectives we should be aiming for in ministry with children, and some models of ministry for those who serve the children in their congregations. What I share here is adapted and expanded from some material I wrote as part of Introducing Christian Education and Formation, by Ron Habermas, published by Zondervan (2008).

• The Good Book Blog

  Teaching Deeper Part IX: Slowing Down to Go Deeper

  Kevin Lawson — October 29, 2011

  We often face pressures to move our Bible teaching sessions along in church, sacrificing depth of teaching impact to save time and keep on schedule with the lesson plans. What do we lose when we do this, and how might we respond to these pressures to ensure greater depth of impact in our teaching?

• The Good Book Blog

  Teaching Deeper, Part VIII: How to Pray for Your Teaching

  Kevin Lawson — September 20, 2011

  One of the more important areas of preparing to teach for deeper impact that we all acknowledge is the need to pray about our teaching. I believe that all of us affirm this, but when it comes down to what and how to pray we are a bit vague and unsure what to do. Asking God to “bless” our teaching efforts is important, but not enough. In this month’s blog I suggest some ways we can be praying as we prepare to teach.

• The Good Book Blog

  Teaching Deeper, Part VII

  Kevin Lawson — August 23, 2011

  A few months ago I introduced and explained a “coaching” model for teaching that I believe has greater potential for encouraging deeper, more transformative learning. Unfortunately, not many of us are teaching in this way and we need to begin changing how we prepare our lessons and how we use our time as we teach our students. Last month I began to share some ideas for how to begin moving from a “teaching for knowing” to a “teaching for growing” ministry. This month I will finish up these more specific ideas and give you some more questions for reflection. Beginning next month I’ll go back and spend more time on issues of how we prepare for our teaching, how we move beyond teaching for knowing in our use of time in the group, and how to develop a longer-term approach to promoting growth through our teaching. This blog picks up where the last one left off, with six more ideas for teaching more like a coach.

• The Good Book Blog

  Teaching Deeper, Part VI

  Kevin Lawson — July 20, 2011

  Over the last two months I have introduced and explained a “coaching” model for teaching that I believe has greater potential for encouraging deeper, more transformative learning. Unfortunately, not many of us are teaching in this way and we need to begin changing how we prepare our lessons and how we use our time as we teach our students. This month and next I want to share about a dozen ideas for how to begin moving from a “teaching for knowing” to a “teaching for growing” ministry. After these blogs I’ll go back and spend more time on issues of how we prepare for our teaching, how we move beyond teaching for knowing in our use of time in the group, and how to develop a longer-term approach to promoting growth through our teaching. First, how do we begin to teach more like a coach?

• The Good Book Blog

  Teaching Deeper, Part V

  Kevin Lawson — June 15, 2011

  Last month I shared a “coaching” model for teaching that I believe can help us deepen the impact of our teaching, helping us avoid the problems of biblical amnesia and aborted application. This month I start by looking at Paul’s teaching ministry to see how this coaching approach fits with his efforts. Then I go back through the phases of the coaching model and talk about what that would mean for us as teachers in the church. What does it look like to begin teaching like a coach?