Exposing Hidden Curriculum: Choosing Ministry Tools with Care
A few years ago I decided that using my wife’s kitchen shears to edge around my house’s sidewalks was not only embarrassing my family (my neighbors made comments), but it was also highly impractical. So I went to the local home improvement store to buy a trimmer—a process that was far more perplexing than I had anticipated. The number of trimmers to choose from delayed my usual in-and-out approach to shopping. I finally settled on the one that would best meet my needs, and it has served me well ever since.
Choosing between ministry tools can be as confusing as choosing between trimmers, because we have so many choices. As ministry leaders, we need to choose our tools wisely, for they influence our people in ways that we may not have even considered. We ought to look for tools that reflect our doctrinal beliefs and allow us to minister effectively.
It’s not just what we say; it’s what we say and do!
When we choose ministry tools that do not support our convictions on key doctrinal issues, we communicate more than we think. We communicate a curriculum that is taught by our actions, not by our words. This curriculum is hidden; it is the ideas we teach as a result of our actions. Hidden curriculum is never what we intend to teach, but it has a lasting impact.