Modern technology can be used for good or evil, but the church can utilize it to further the Gospel. Bro. Arlo Moehlenpah of Poway, Calif. has created a new home Bible study that does just that. Titled after his website, the new DoingGood Home Bible Study is taught via PowerPoint slides.
In most homes, all that is needed to teach this Bible study is a laptop computer. “The lessons utilize PowerPoint,” explained Bro. Moehlenpah. “There are over 400 slides, most of which use a limited number of words per slide, good visuals, and animation and just one thought per slide. In the notes sections, there are comments as well as the related scriptures. At the end of each lesson there is an audience response quiz.”
Because Jesus is our example of going about doing good, we should do likewise, according to Bro. Moehlenpah. “The apostles were very successful even though they had no church buildings,” he said. “Much of the time they went from house to house. Home Bible studies are still one of the best means to win people to Jesus Christ and to teach them.
“Using charts is effective in that people learn more by seeing and hearing than just hearing alone. The disadvantage of charts is that they are expensive to produce and each extra chart adds to the cost. As a result, many of the home Bible studies series were 60 to 70 pages and often way too much was crowded into each chart. Many images and ideas on one page can be distracting.”
The new DoingGood Home Bible Study is simple and easy to use. Bro. Moehlenpah was motivated to design the new study this spring at the Christian Service Training Institute in San Diego. “Samuel Gutierrez greatly inspired me when he taught a course called ‘The Home Bible Study.’ Sadly, none of us knew that he would pass away just six days after finishing the course.”
In the DoingGood Home Bible Study, there are seven lessons which cover overviews of the entire Bible, Books of Law (Pentateuch), Historical Books, New Testament, The Gospels, The Book of Acts, and the Second Coming of Christ.
“There has been positive feedback on the study,” said Bro Moehlenpah. “Over 100 people have requested a copy. Some comments I have received are: “I just finished going through every slide in the Bible study. I know how much time and effort you must have put into this project.” Also: “I have been sitting here going through the lessons and am excited to utilize them with the four people that got baptized Sunday night from my initial gospel Bible study… I’m also sharing these with our orientation and new convert teachers. Thank you!”
Since Bro. Moehlenpah made this study available via his newsletter just last month, it is too early to tell what the success and impact will be. However, the following testimony verifies the mobility and ease in which the DoingGood Home Bible Study can be used in any situation or venue. “My first time teaching this was on a cruise ship in a room used for Bible studies,” he said. “After getting off the ship, I taught Lesson 7 to a small church in Washington and two came to the altar for the first time. The next week I taught three lessons to a man sitting next to me on a plane. Currently, I am teaching this to a lady and her brother that my wife and I met walking in a park near us.”
To obtain a copy, you may e-mail Bro. Moehlenpah at Moehlenpah@aol.com, who will then enable you to download it from Dropbox. The DoingGood Home Bible Study is free of charge; however, any donation to Doing Good Ministries would be greatly appreciated.