A "Wing It" Teacher

But everything must be done decently and in order. 

(1 Corinthians 14:40, HCSB)

I have seen some teachers use "winging it" in Bible study almost as a badge of honor. It seemed as if any encouragement to plan ahead, prepare during the week prior to teaching, or develop an outline would somehow limit the work of the Spirit. What I concluded, after years of observing these types of teachers is:

• They are undisciplined - They don't have consistent Bible study and this is reflected in their approach to teaching their groups. 
• They are lazy - They just don't want to put forth the effort it takes to study, pray, prepare, and wrestle with God's Word.
• They are careless - They are careless with all relationships, and this is reflected in how they lead their groups. Shepherding skills is not on their list of priorities.
• They are prideful - They just don't think they need to prepare. They feel they have enough skill to just wing it.
• They are afraid - They just don't know how to prepare and that scares them.

So when I hear a teacher say that spontaneity is from the Spirit and planning is of man, I immediately begin to look for the reasons why someone says this. For you see, 1 Corinthians 14:40 tells us that there is an order in everything we do.

God, convict us when we are tempted to begin "winging" Bible study. Our small group deserves better and Our God expects better!