How Is Your Sunday School Like the Grand Canyon?

In June, my wife and I travelled the western United States to see the sights. We drove nearly 5,500 miles and took nearly 1,500 pictures on our journey. Here are the days of our journey (listing only a few of the many sights along the journey):

• DAY 1: travelled from Louisville, KY, to Blue Earth, MN (740 miles)
• DAY 2: travelled to Sheridan, WY (saw the Badlands, Wall Drugs, and Mount Rushmore, 765 miles)
• DAY 3: travelled to West Yellowstone, MT (saw Bighorn and the northern half of Yellowstone, about 400 miles)
• DAY 4: travelled to Jackson Hole, WY (saw Old Faithful, the southern half of Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and Jackson Hole, about 200 miles)
• DAY 5: travelled to Provo, UT (finished Jackson Hole and saw BYU, about 400 miles)
• DAY 6: travelled to Grand Canyon Village (saw the northern rim, then drove 210+ miles to the southern rim, total of 600 miles)
• DAY 7: stayed at Grand Canyon Village (hiked over 4 miles of the southern rim gawking at God’s creation and taking pictures)
• DAY 8: travelled to Tucson, AZ (Montezuma Castle and to celebrate Yvonne’s cousin’s birthday, about 400 miles)
• DAY 9: travelled to Fort Stockton, TX (headed out after a late morning, almost 600 miles)
• DAY 10: travelled to San Antonio (enjoyed the Riverwalk, 330 miles)
• DAY 11: travelled to Texarkana, TX (visited The Alamo before we left San Antonio, 450 miles)
• DAY 12: travelled home (650 miles)

Our only regret is that we wished we had stayed two days in a row at least a couple more times on our journey (including in Tucson visiting with Yvonne’s family). Spending time together was enjoyable. We were worn out every night when we went to bed, but we were up early the next day eager to see what new sights lay ahead. And we talked more during the twelve days than probably in weeks combined–something about a captive audience in the car for so many hours.

Anyway, the sheer magnitude of the Grand Canyon’s size and beauty made me reflective tonight. How is your Sunday School like the Grand Canyon?

• Is your Sunday School deep? (The Canyon is over one mile deep.)
• Is your Sunday School wide? (The Canyon is from 4 to 18 miles wide.)
• Is your Sunday School difficult for some to visit? (To travel to the floor of the canyon requires a lot of time and/or money.)
• Does your Sunday School attract lots of guests? (The Canyon south rim has about 5 million visitors annually.)
• Are your Sunday School’s trails narrow and difficult to follow? (Hiking down and mule rides down into the Canyon are!)
• Does your Sunday School look good from a distance? (There is much more to see on the south rim. We could have spent days.)
• Does your Sunday School look different from every angle? (The more we walked the south rim, the more we wanted to see.)
• When you look at your Sunday School, do you immediately praise God? (We must have said “wow” a hundred times at least, recognizing the beauty of creation is a reflection of our Creator!)
• Is it a challenge to get from one part of your Sunday School to another? (It is over 210 miles by road from the north to the south rim and is at least a two day hike down one rim across and back up the other rim. The best runners can make the challenging trek in about eight hours.)
• Do you have a welcome center, guides (greeters), and good signage to assist your Sunday School guests? (The south rim has lots of signs, several visitor centers, and free transportation to many stops along the rim. Plus you can hire jeep guides, plane/helicopter tours, rafting expeditions, mule rides, and more.)

I could think of scores more questions, but if you really deal with these questions, it could take quite a while. Either of the first two alone could cause a great pause. What response would you get if you asked your teachers these questions? How would your members respond? Gather a planning team now to start the conversation. If some of the answers would not be ideal responses, what can you do to address that reality? What steps can be taken to improve your Sunday School in that area? Don’t allow it to continue to be less than ideal. Give God your best effort! Be revolutionary!