Leader Connect

Helping support one another for the kingdom

 

Explore a series of articles that are focused on leadership — testimonies, leader tips, and highlighted study tools. Our goal is to better engage leaders and our monthly Leader Connect email is one of many ways we want to interact with you and support you.

Get the latest news direct to your inbox, including an invitation to our monthly Leader Connect meeting to be encouraged in God’s Word and meet other leaders across Canada!

Testimonies

Hear how God is at work through Precept leaders across Canada

Resources

Read articles from Precept Trainers and browse their recommended study tools

Leader Tips

How to better engage your student’s with God’s word

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Word Studies with Beth Schmidt

Word studies should go beyond simply looking at the one-word definitions in most online apps. Hebrew and Greek scholars have given us readily accessible tools to help us and others in our Bible study groups dig much deeper into God’s Word. Read more:

Why hold an orientation session? with Sharon Kaufman

An orientation session is for new people and can also be a refresher for those familiar with Inductive Study. This session will give everyone in your group the confidence to be prepared to participate fully in the first official week of the class study. Read more:

How to disciple your students with Sandra Loewen

Discipleship is more than leading a weekly class. God was teaching me that He does not call us to be all that we can be, all on our own. Instead, he calls us to pour ourselves out for others like a drink offering. I realized that not  to make disciples (in the Spirit’s power) is to disobey Jesus. Read more:

Training 101 with Mark Sheldrake

Our new leadership workshops are designed to create an environment to practice new skills learned in training or to use the skills you have been developing over the years to teach a practice lesson where others can learn from your experience. Leaders, I want to encourage you to refresh your skills in our workshops. Here are two things vital for leaders and three workshops I want to highlight for you. Read more:

Creative Questions with Carol Folkeringa

It is super important for students to keep reviewing and reinforcing what they’ve already learned and use that knowledge as a basis for what they will learn. But can I just say — don’t these kinds of questions sometimes get B.O.R.I.N.G?  Still, I wonder: could we do the review in a more interesting or engaging way to help students remember without repeating the same questions every week? Read more:

Leadership Development Small Group with Beth Schmidt

Community — we all want to be part of a small dynamic community. And a small dynamic community that is sharing and growing in the Word together is even better. That’s what Precept Canada is all about. The next step is to develop our skill in the Word so that we can teach others how to grow deeper in their knowledge and understanding of the Lord through His Word. Read more:

Leading through Job with Mark Sheldrake

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to lead a group of people through the Book of Job in our Precept Study Program. Forty-two chapters in six days! And I plan to do it again in March for two reasons. First is that the topic of suffering and how to interact with those suffering is vital to us today. The second reason is that Job is an intriguing story with two different types of literature within its forty-two chapters. Read more:

Pivot, Pivot, Pivot! with Mark Sheldrake

We are heading into the third year of this pandemic, and I don’t know about you, but I had hoped that we would be out of this pandemic and back to doing more of our ministry in a hybrid format with both online and in-person classes and training. It seems like life is a lot like Ross trying to get his couch up the stairs. Read more:

Persevere in Observation with Mark Sheldrake

A few years ago, I was in the lobby of our church after the service discussing the sermon we had just heard. The pastor had shared the importance of making God’s Word a part of our daily routine. I love these sermons as they speak to my heart; they probably speak to your heart as a Precept Leader as well. This is what we do; we study God’s Word as a part of our regular day-to-day routine. Read more:

Where To Get Started? with Mark Sheldrake

In February, Sharon Kaufman and I had the opportunity to work with a new set of Precept Upon Precept leaders in our three-day new-leader training workshop. I love this training workshop as it creates a safe space for new leaders to teach a Precept Upon Precept lesson from the Gospel of Mark. Read more:

In the world not of the world with Beth Schmidt

“In the world but not of the world.”  What did Jesus mean?

To join a cloister tucked away from society to keep the world’s filth from contaminating us? Guess what, when you entered the cloister, you ruined it for everyone else — we are the problem! Read more:

Time to Guard This Treasure with Mark Sheldrake

A quick study of the exhortations and instructions in 2 Timothy clearly shows the importance of protecting the Truth of God’s Word and entrusting the Gospel to others who will be faithful to pass the Truth on to others….Leaders, thank you for partnering with us in guarding the treasure of God’s Word in Canada. As this is our last Leader Connect until September, I want to make a request—Would you pray for a couple of areas of our ministry? Read more:

Choose Your Rut Carefully with Carol Folkeringa

We can sometimes get stuck in a rut when it comes to Bible study. We can focus exclusively on the New Testament, or Old Testament, or historical books, or prophetic books. We can be exclusive leaders of Precept Upon Precept studies, of LORD Series studies, or of 40-Minute studies. We can fall into the trap of saying, “I’ve always done it this way,” and close ourselves off to new (and perhaps better) techniques and methods.

Why do we get stuck in these ruts? Read more:

Tool Highlights

Suggestions to enhance your leadership skills

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How to Study Your Bible

Step-by-step instructions and practical helps so you can use the inductive method–letting the Bible speak for itself–to discern the clear, timeless meaning of any passage of Scripture. Find out more:

Logos Bible Software

Logos is an intuitive and rich resource filled with in-depth study tools that can help you as you prepare your studies. It is is a powerful tool available online, on your computer or as an app. You can even download Logos 9 Basic for FREE! Find out more:

The New Inductive Study Bible

Every feature of this study Bible is designed to help you gain a more intimate understanding of God and His Word. This is a fantastic study companion to have because it is the only Bible based entirely on the inductive study approach. Find out more:

We will not be silenced — Responding Courageously to our Culture's Assault on Christianity

This is a must read for every Christian as it will open your eyes to see what is happening in our culture today. From discussions on Progressive Christianity, racism, gender issues, sexual sin and cancel culture Erwin Lutzer opens our eyes to how today’s culture is looking to turn even further away from a biblical worldview. This book focuses on what is happening in the USA today but easily applies to what is happening in Canada today. One of the most important aspects of this books is how the church should respond in action and prayer. Find out more:

Another Gospel by Alissa Childers

There is a movement that is seeking to redefine Christianity called Progressive Christianity.  This new thinking seeks to redefine the historical truths of Christianity itself with “new thinking”. This book is one of the most important books to read and Alissa Childers takes you on a personal journey as the Progressive Movement attempted to deconstruct her faith. Learn about Progressive Christianity and how to answer questions about this movement. Find out more:

The Power of Knowing God (40-Min Study)

This is a great study to engage new people in the study of God’s Word. This book is self contained which means the scriptures are in the book as well as the questions. I would encourage you to purchase two of these studies and invite someone to study it with you this summer. Find out more:The Power of Knowing God (40 Min Study)

Free Bible Software

This free software is a great tool to help with your Bible study. There is a resource with library commentaries and word study tools. These websites are very easy to use and will enhance your weekly study. Pass it on to your students as well.

Try out NetBible.org

Try out StepBible.org

“Come, Thou Expected Jesus” Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas

Advent is just around the corner. In past seasons I have appreciated and been encouraged by the book Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus: Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas. This book includes twenty-two Advent readings from both classic and contemporary theologians. Christmas can be a very hectic season. This book is a valuable resource to help us set our minds on the true reason we celebrate Christmas. Find out more:

Precept Leadership Training

Leadership Skills Development workshop is a three-day workshop focused on sharpening your skills in developing effective discussions through coaching and mentoring with one of our trainers and your peers.  Students must complete the Philippians Precept Upon Precept Workbook and be prepared to lead one lesson/discussion in our small group.  This workshop focuses on developing good questions for reasoning and applying the Scripture in your lessons.

The Planning and Leading Discussions workshop is a two-day workshop that equips leaders to lead four different types of lessons.  You will learn how to lead effective discussions in Old Testament History, Old Testament Prophecy, New Testament Letters and New Testament Prophecy.

Please join us for both of these workshops in 2022 and sharpen your leadership skills!

Find out more:

Then and Now Bible Maps Insert

This is a great tool that conveniently fits right inside your Bible case.

The Then and Now Bible Maps Insert provides twenty-three maps and eighty clear plastic overlays, making it easier than ever to see where Biblical locations were 3,000 years ago and where they are today.

Tired of looking at the tiny maps included in the back of your Bible and still not understanding an ancient city’s location? Most study Bibles provide maps showing only the position of cities during Biblical times in super small print, making your study efforts frustrating, time consuming, and incomplete.

Enjoy having twenty-three easy-to-read, full-colour maps that you can easily slip inside your Bible cover with this incredible tool! Features include – larger print, easy-to-read type, and eight clear plastic overlays showing the location of modern cities and countries in red. Now you can easily see where Bible places are located today, plus Old and New Testament time lines! Find out more:

Precept Catalogue

It’s not just for shopping!!!! Remember the old Sears Catalogues? The Wish Book was the best one for sure.  As a kid I would grab that catalogue and start folding the pages in the toy section to make it known what I wanted for Christmas.

The Precept Catalogue does have a list of all available studies but it also has recommended places to start based on different time commitments. This is a quick resource to go to when looking at what studies are available to you. The best part is that you can grab the item number from the catalogue and plug it into the search bar and find it right away…no more looking for hours on our website. Find out more:

Praising God Through Prayer And Worship (NISS)

Discover the psalmists’ heartfelt expressions – in prayer, in confession, in grief, and in praise – of their love for and devotion to God. As you learn to apply the text, your personal prayer times will grow more profound and worship experiences more fulfilling.

24-week Study. Six days of guided lessons, 20 to 30 minutes long, help and teach you how to discover God’s precepts, purposes and promises on your own. Questions for group discussion or individual study are provided on Day Seven along with closing commentary. Find out more:

Host & Attend In-Person Training

We are back in person! Whether you’re hoping to spread the Word by raising up leaders or go deeper in Bible study, hosting a local workshop can be the answer. Contact us today for more details. 

Registration is open for training at several locations across the country. If there isn’t one near you, don’t worry you can host your own or there’s still online training too! Find out more:

STEP Bible (Scripture Tools for Every Person) — A Word Study App

STEP Bible (which stands for Scripture Tools for Every Person), is a recently developed Word Study App developed by scholars at Tyndale House in the UK. It is designed for those wanting to dig deeply into the meaning of words used in the Bible. The program is easily accessible and gives a wealth of information for serious students of the Word using the best tools available for Bible translation. Also included are numerous translations in dozens of modern and ancient languages, with the ability of making them interlinear for ease of comparison. You decide what you want to view, and STEP Bible does the rest. Find out more:

Precept Leader Mentorship Program

This is an invitation to join with a few other faithful men and women from across Canada to the Precept Leader Mentorship Program — an online small group for training and honing Bible study leadership skills. This ongoing interactive experience will provide a nurturing environment for developing solid inductive Bible study skills and the ability to help others to do likewise. Find out more:

Host a Workshop

Bring a Precept workshop to your community

Looking for a way to introduce Precept to your community? Whether you’re hoping to spread the Word or go deeper in Bible study, hosting a local workshop can be the answer. Contact us today to find out more and schedule a workshop in your city.