I do some guest speaking from time to time and was thinking how awesome it would be if I got a Speaker Information Sheet that gave me some details about the culture of the place I was teaching at. If it included several key things, it would help me a TON in understanding the culture and attempting to meet the needs of the people. I suppose it could include just about anything, but here are some of the things that would be of particular interest to me.
- How am I going to be set up? (Do I need to intro myself, or will you handle it.)
- What version of the Bible do you use? (So I can line up with it.)
- What were some of the recent themes/passages/series? (So I don’t teach the same thing someone did last week.)
- Who is in the audience? (believers, nonbelievers, ages)
- What type of students are attending? (freshman, homeschoolers)
- How long should I teach? (Don’t want to go long or run short.)
- What words should I avoid? (Don’t want to get crap for saying “crap.”)
- What types of culture references can I make (Should I avoid a “Twerk” reference?)
- Have there been any recent tragedies or big news items that affected the whole group? (Help me avoid stirring something up.)
- Are there probably disruptive students in the group? (the funny-sounding sneezer, etc.)
What would you add to this list to help out a guest speaker?
