I’ve been told that years ago deep ruts were made by wagons that traveled on what became known as the Oregon Trail. These deep ruts were formed in the road as wagons continually traveled the same trail. Sometimes the wagons would get caught in a particular rut and have to travel the entire length of a certain trail even if it was going in a direction they didn’t desire to go.

Churches today could find themselves caught in a rut of tradition ... doing things the same way they’ve always been done, even when what they’re doing is not currently effective in ministry. While a particular way of doing ministry may have worked in the past, it is possible that using a different approach today may bring greater results.

Two weeks ago in our Teachers Meeting we formulated this vision statement for the Education Ministry at West-Ark, "To bring all people closer to God and one another."

The vision helps us define our purpose so that we won’t get stuck in a rut that leads to nowhere. We need to be thinking about what we can do in the Education Ministry that can help us be more effective in leading people into a deeper relationship with the Father and also with one another. In The Purpose Driven Church, Rick Warren stated, "A clear purpose not only defines what we do, it defines what we don’t do."

Although I’ll be sharing with you some ideas that I believe will help us grow spiritually in our Bible Classes, I would like to hear your thoughts on how we can reach out to be more effective in our Education Ministry. You don’t have to wait until our next teachers meeting to let me know what you’re thinking ... write it down or give me a call and we’ll talk about it, all right?

I’ll see you in Bible Class this week.