THE “END TIME REVIVAL” SUNDAY SCHOOL CONTEST
Sunday School Superintendent Responsibilities
Note – All plans and decisions must be discussed and approved by your pastor.
1. Make up a total church member list. Only those who come to church regularly should be listed. All members that attend should be included. Have typed copies made for each team captain. Give team captains a chance to look these over before your meeting.
2. In conjunction with the pastor, set an over all goal to reach. A good goal is between two and three times your average Sunday morning attendance. Plan on the outreach lasting at least three weeks (four is also good). Break this goal into two or three smaller goals for each Sunday of the contest. Divide each weekly goal by the number of teams that you will have to make your team goals. Example, Ultimate goal – 200
(currently averaging 75).
If going for three Sundays:
Sunday #1 Sunday #2 Sunday #3
Team 1 55 60 70
55 60 70
55 60 70
—- —- —-
165 180 210
3. Choose your team captains. You want enthusiastic leaders who have a vision for the lost, are organized, highly motivated, and have a good attitude and spirit.
4.Have each captain choose a co-captain that they can work well with.
5. Choose a night before Bro. Massengale arrives to meet with your team captains, co-captains, and pastor. Do all of the following:
A. Pray!
B. Go over the rules and explain how the outreach will work, answer questions.
C. Pick teams, starting with singles go in a “1, 2, 3, 3, 2, 1” order. After everyone has had an equal number of picks from singles, save remainder for the end to balance up the teams. Go to next category and repeat.
D. Balance the number on each team as best as possible (some trading may be required). Remember to keep in mind the number in the captain and co-captain’s families.
E. Choose team names and colors.
F. Draw out of a hat for team working areas in your city.
G. Assign rooms in the church for teams to have their meetings in.
H. Inspire and inject enthusiasm into your captains. The goal will be reached, there are no losers in this outreach, only winners.
6. Work out plans on how to teach and accommodate the goal you will reach. You will need extra teachers, activities, etc. Meet with the teachers and let them know the number one goal each Sunday morning is to
have an altar call (Junior High age and up) and to place in each child the word of God!
7. Get extra meeting areas if possible. Try not to over pack the Sunday School rooms or little can be accomplished.
8. Each team should have a secretary to keep track of what team members are there and how many each bus/team member brought. These secretaries can double as greeters for the visitors as they come. Fill out visitor cards on each visitor!
9. Work out a follow-up plan for when the outreach is completed. Personal letters, Home Bible Studies, follow-up visitation teams, Enroll to Grow Program, ect. All work, don’t l.et this be a one shot deal!
10. Plan to have a prize for the winning team. A church potluck with steak or something special for the winners is very successful.
RULES
I. Score Keeping
A. All team members and visitors count one point each. If outreach has an adult emphasis – the point system may vary.
B. Young new children, 3 years old and under, are not to be counted unless accompanied by an adult, or are already members of the Sunday School.
C. If tracts are to be passed out, one point is given for each 10 tracts passed. An allotment of tracts will be given to each team. The team may not have more until their allotment is passed out.
Rules for passing out tracts:
1. Must hand to person with an oral invitation to come to church.
2. Only Junior High age and up may pass out tracts.
3. Captains are responsible for making sure they are handed out properly.
D. Rules for score sheets:
1. Must be turned in by 7:00 p.m. Sunday Evening.
2. No changes made after Sunday night, except for errors in addition.
3. Must turn in member score sheet and a list of all visitors (names and addresses) 13 years of age and up in order to count them.
II. Deadlines to Meet
A. Buses and/or cars must be in parking lot by 9:45 a.m. to get full credit.
B. Buses and/or cars arriving from 9:45 to 10:00 will receive half credit on all visitors.
C. Buses and/or cars arriving after 10:00 will count zero points.
D. Members must arrive by 10:00 to be counted except in special circumstances approved by the superintendent.
III. Bus And/Or Carpool Operation
A. Each vehicle (bus or car) must keep record of all new names for distribution to Sunday School classes.
B. Drive Safely! Don’t allow haste to create an unsafe circumstance.
C. Each team has a color. Use a color label on each new child under Junior High age.
D. Do not lose one child! Each bus/car captain should have their name written on the color tag. Keep track of everyone you bring. Don’t leave without knowing everyone is there.
E. Do not fail to pick up regular Sunday School children.
Team Captain Hints & Helps
NOTE : Clear any special strategies with your Paster of Superintendent before you do them.
1. Team spirit is of utmost importance. An excited team is a soul winning team and a first place team. Team spirit can be encouraged by using team ribbons, having a team motto, team songs, team color, ect…But the team will not be excited unless you are excited! Challenge your team to reach for their goal, inspire them to get involved.
2. It might be a good idea to have a special planning night with your co-captain, secretary, and several key people on your team. Brain-storming of ideas is very beneficial. During this planning meeting you might decide upon:
a) Types of promotions and/or prizes to be given on each Sunday. A few things that have been done at other churched are – snow cones, Pepsi & hot dogs, gold fish, kites, popcorn, bottles of Coke, ice cream
sandwiches, ice cream sundaes, candy rains, picnics, ect… A large prize might be given to the one who brings the most. Design fliers to be passed out for each promotion.
b) Decide upon a catchy team name.
c) Plan any special team meetings or outreaches.
d) Decide if you are going to provide any special transportation for Sunday school children, or Adults. Buses, vans, ect…
e) Organize your Saturday outreach. Who will be where and do what. Draw up maps, get fliers, ect…
f) Try to get 100% participation on Saturday outreach. Call each team member Friday night and get a commitment to come.
3. Plan what kind of team budget you will require. Take up a team offering. If you give, the team will give also.
4. After the Saturday outreach, you may need to have a special meeting of your key people to plan your Sunday morning schedule. Work out bus or car routes, lining up car pools, plan your promotion (get plenty of help!), ect. If you are picking up children or adults, you will want to send out a wake-up crew and/or call each one Sunday morning.
5. Your secretary should make sure each team member that comes fills out a report slip on how many visitors they brought.
6. The names and addresses of each child visitor must be given to the superintendent.
7. Each adult visitor should fill out a visitor card or sign the guest book. Your secretary should assist in this.
8. After Sunday school, tally up your total points and hand them in before 7:00 PM Sunday evening.
IV. Work Areas
A. Each team may invite all their family, friends, and neighbors. Neighbors are defined as one city block on your street.
B. Each team will be designated an outlined area of the city in which they may work. If team members live in another team’s area, they can only work their neighbors.
C. If you desire to work an area not designated to your team, it must be cleared with the superintendent.
D. Double counting (more than one team counting the same points) on any visitor will only be allowed in special circumstances approved by the superintendent. If you know of another team counting your points, let the superintendent know. It will only be allowed if it is determined that it took the effort of both teams to bring the visitor.
V. Team Responsibilities and Strategies
A. Each team plans their own promotion. Make sure you have adequate help for this.
B. Each team is responsible for finding transportation to and from church for their visitors.
C. The renting or borrowing of any buses, vans, or ??? must be approved by the superintendent.
D. Each team raises their own funds and offerings.
E. It is absolutely necessary for a team to build excitement, enthusiasm, and team spirit in order to win, Team badges, ribbons, colors, songs, etc. are up to each team to organize.
F. There will be scheduled team meetings. Any team may have more as long as it doesn’t interfere with normal church services or functions.
G. The “Big Outreach” will beheld on Saturday. Any additional outreach is up to the team captain.
H. In the event of any disagreements or problems that arise among the teams or team captains, the pastor and superintendent will resolve them to the best of their ability. These issues are expected to be presented
with a good spirit and answers accepted with a good spirit, whether in your favor or not.
I. Team captains and members must maintain a good spirit and attitude among teams. The Lord will bless this outreach only if we remember our overall goal is souls!
J. The key to success lies in prayer, fasting and a burden to reach the lost at any cost. Let’s everyone do our part! GET INVOLVED!
How It Worked For Us:
1. Average attendance before outreach (we preferred not to call it a contest) was approximately 400. Record for one Sunday only was 754.
2. First Sunday we had 739. 15 short of record.
3. Pastor told church it was a long way to goal of 1,000. Didn’t believe they could do it. One team captain got up and said we’d do it this Sunday not Easter. (3 weeks away). Second Sunday we had 995 – tremendous!! It broke our record by 241 or almost 32%.
4. It was not over. Pastor teased church for not making it. Church responded with 1,142 on the third Sunday. (2 to go counting Easter Sunday.) This was a new record and an increase of 147 over the previous
week and a 388 increase above earlier record or 51% increase. Pastor, myself, and Bro. Cantu ate crow!!
5. We thought we may have peaked, but the fourth Sunday we had 1,188, a 46 increase over previous week. 434 increase above old record. Phenomenal!!
6. By this time we began to look for 1,500 on Easter Sunday. The result would mean a double of old record!
7. Folks got involved and excited who had not been before.
8. We got a number of new contacts.
9. We learned we could triple our number.
10. Good goal – triple average annual attendance on peak Sunday.
(The above material was prepared by Bro. Tim Massengale, Director of Apostolic Information Service in Indianapolis, IN.)
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