SPEAKA

Helping a ' Disciple '  Lead a Bible study : SPECKA
 Disciples first learn to relate to God through the Bible. Then they help others study the Word. As a Disciple-Maker you must train a Disciple to lead Bible studies. SPECKA is an uncomplicated Bible study method for small groups. It emphasizes application.

SPECKA '''. ''' SPECKA is a participatory Bible study that a new Disciple can lead. It’s designed for Christians and non-Christians to participate. The Disciple-Maker models how to lead SPECKA, then helps a Disciple become the leader. Here’s how SPECKA works: '

''' Pick a passage. ''' Plan to study 10-12 verses. The goal is not to learn more, but to apply biblical truths to life. Provide Bibles for everyone. Or you can print the verses on a handout, with SPECKA under it. Make it easy for newcomers to read and participate.

''' Read the passage. '''   Have the group read the passage aloud. Be sensitive to non-readers and non-fluent English speakers. Make it easy for them to decline to read aloud. Ask, '' Any questions? Anything you didn’t understand? '' Don’t take long to answer.

''' Lead the discussion. '''   Have the leader ask SPECKA questions:

 S     any SIN to confess or avoid in this passage?

 P    any PROMISE to claim or PRAISE to sing?

 E    any good EXAMPLE to follow or bad EXAMPLE to avoid?

 C     any COMMAND to obey?

 K     any KNOWLEDGE about who God is or how He works?

 A    what APPLICATION to practice personally?

 Give time for the group to think and respond to each question. Try to involve every participant. Keep the discussion on the passage. Answer off-topic questions after the study, if there’s time.

 The last two questions are very important, with  Application  as the most important. Ask each person in the group what verse was most meaningful and what God wants them to do. Expect each Christian to have an application. Encourage non-Christians to consider one.

 Prayer '''. ''' Instruct each participant to pray for the person on their left (or right…). The prayer can be simple, expressing to God the application their neighbor made. Encourage everyone to pray. Non-Christians can pray and often will, if given the option. <p class="MsoNormal">''' Review. ''' The next time the group meets, begin by reviewing applications from the previous study. Ask each person how they put the verse/truth into practice. Emphasize living and practicing the truth, not just having more Bible knowledge. That’s SPECKA ! <p class="MsoNormal">

<h2 class="MsoNormal">Suggestions for leading the SPECKA study <p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">Thanks for agreeing to lead our SPECKA study next time.

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">We’ll use SPECKA to guide us to understand the verses.

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">The purpose of SPECKA to for us to practice what God teaches us in the Bible, not just learn more.

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">And we want everyone to learn to lead, not just be a student.

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">'''Some suggestions to begin: '''

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- provide everyone with the Scripture portion in English/Chinese. This helps the ones who never have been in a Bible study so they don’t have to look it up in the Bible

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- we can encourage people to bring their own Bible if they want. They can use the printout for reference.

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- before starting the new study, ask everyone how they did with the application they picked from the last study; start with your own report

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">– as you start, have a short prayer

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">'''The study: '''

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- lread the verses once in English and once in Chinese, to make sure people get the thoughts of the passage

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- you can start with a general question, Anything you don’t understand?  for clarification; sometimes there are words or phrases that are confusing – don’t take long here

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- now lead the group through SPECKA, the different letters of the acrostic

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- as you lead, give people time to think – when you’re the leader, you must be comfortable with short periods of silence

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- some letters (topics) may not be in the verses; if so, move on (eg: there might not be any promises, or any commands)

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- try to involve everyone in the discussion – if it’s appropriate, ask someone who hasn’t spoken if they’d like to contribute an idea

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- if someone’s always giving the answer, try to ask others who haven’t talked if they’d like to answer

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- if a question comes up that isn’t relevant to the study, or hard to answer, it’s good to say we’ll look at it after, or Paul can answer it in an email, etc – then we don’t get distracted

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"> - as the leader, watch the clock, because you must leave time to pray

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- the most important part of SPECKA is  A  pplication; go around the circle and ask each person what they personally feel God wants them to do, what verse was most meaningful to them;  if you have non-Christians, be courteous, and give them the option not to pick one

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- sometimes a person needs time to think; if so, tell them you’ll come back to them again…

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">Prayer:

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- pray around the circle – in Mandarin or English, it doesn’t matter to God;  make it a simple prayer for the person beside them (you pick the side, left or right), plus any other prayers they have

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">- pick the leader for next time after the prayer

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<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">That’s it! Thanks again for being willing to lead!

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<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">Paul