Darryl Wilson

MY STORY

When I first stepped in to teach this class, I knew I had big shoes to fill. Their former teacher was deeply loved, and he had moved to another church to support his adult children as they returned to faith. Out of respect for him — and honestly, out of habit — I lectured those first two weeks just as he had done.

But something in me kept sensing the group needed more than another good lecture. So on week three, I quietly rearranged the chairs into small horseshoes of six. I didn’t make a big announcement. I just changed the room and trusted God with the rest.

For the next eight weeks, I began each lesson by helping them see why the passage mattered and reading the Scripture together. Then each horseshoe received a simple assignment: look at the passage, explore the background, identify the main truth, and consider what response God expected. They had ten minutes to work, and then each group shared what they discovered.

It was slow at first. Only a handful had ever spoken up in class before. And after just two weeks, three members approached me before class. They were kind but direct: “We like your lectures better. Could you go back to that?”

I told them I’d keep this approach for six more weeks, and then we’d have a family meeting to evaluate it together. They agreed — mostly because they assumed they’d win.

But something unexpected happened. The room came alive. Instead of four to six people participating, nearly everyone began engaging with Scripture. They weren’t just listening anymore. They were discovering.

Eight weeks later, two members of that original delegation came to me again before the meeting. This time their tone was different. One of them said, “Thank you. We understand now. For the first time in our lives, we know how to study the Bible for ourselves.”

That moment changed me. It’s the reason I wrote Discipling. Too many believers are spiritually starving between Sundays because they’ve never been shown how to feed themselves from God’s Word. Sunday School and small groups must do more than teach lessons — they must equip people to meet God in Scripture on their own.

ABOUT ME

I’ve spent my life helping people open God’s Word with confidence. I graduated from Belmont University (BA, 1982) and later from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv/CE, 1985; EdD, 2003). For nearly three decades (1997–2026), I had the privilege of serving the 2,300+ churches of the Kentucky Baptist Convention as the Sunday School & Discipleship Consultant. Before that, I served 14 years on church staffs in Kentucky and South Carolina — years that shaped my passion for discipleship and the local church.

I’ve been teaching Sunday School since I was nineteen. In 2006, I launched the Sunday School Revolutionary blog as a means to share what I was learning. I’ve also served on the Faculty and Academic Council of Rockbridge Seminary since 2006.

My wife and I are blessed with two sons, two wonderful daughters‑in‑law, and seven fun grandchildren. When I’m not writing or teaching, you’ll usually find me with family, reading, playing golf or chess, or enjoying the beach.

BOOKS

Along with my own books, I’ve contributed to:

--How to Sunday School Manual

--Be a Catalyst: Start New Groups

--Lead Your Group

--100 SMALL Sunday School Changes That Make a BIG Difference