Coronavirus Response

  • Home
  • A-Z List
  • About
    • About the NCC
    • Connectional Table
    • Staff
  • Calendar
    • Events
    • Google Calendar
    • Past Events
  • Churches
  • Contact
    • Find Us
  • Districts
    • District Office
    • Beacon
    • Capital
    • Corridor
    • Fairway
    • Gateway
    • Harbor
    • Heritage
    • Sound
  • Employment
  • Search

NC Conference

Healthy Congregations and Effective Leaders in Every Place Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World

  • Discipleship
    Developing Disciples
    • Christian Formation
      • Children
      • Church & Society
      • College
      • Differently Abled Persons
      • Educational Ministries
      • Older Adults
      • Status & Role of Women
      • Young Adults
      • Youth
    • Church Revitalization
      • Coaching
      • Disciple Making Way
      • Evangelism
      • Grants
      • MissionInsite
      • Real Discipleship Survey
      • Shift
      • Spiritual Life
    • From the Bishop
      • Bishop’s Bookshelf
      • Bishop’s Sermons
      • Church Transformation
      • Conflict Transformation
      • Connections
      • Discipleship & Learning Plan
    • Multicultural
      • Asian
      • Hispanic/Latino
      • Native American
      • Strengthening the Black Church
    • Stewardship
      • Apportionments
      • District Remittances
      • Financial Discipleship
      • Grants
      • Insurance
      • Mission & Service
      • Pension
      • Treasurer Training
  • Leadership
    Strengthening Leaders
    • Bishop’s Office
      • Appointment Book
      • Bishop’s Sermons
      • Church Transformation
      • Conflict Transformation
      • Connections
      • Discipleship & Learning Plan
    • Ministerial Relations
      • Board of Ordained Ministry
      • Called to Ministry?
      • Extension Ministries
    • Board of Laity
      • Certified Lay Minister
      • Lay Servant Ministries
      • Local Church Lay Leaders
      • United Methodist Men
      • United Methodist Women
      • United Methodist Youth
    • New Faith Comm.
      • Called to Plant?
      • New Room Society
      • Our Communities
    • Conference Offices
      • Center for Leadership Excellence
      • Christian Formation
      • Communications
      • Conference Secretary
      • Connectional Ministries
      • Information Technology
      • Multicultural Ministries
      • Outreach Ministry
      • Treasurer’s Office
  • Service
    Ministering To The World
    • Local Outreach
      • Church Construction
      • Church Loans
      • Restorative Justice and Mercy
      • Disciple Bible Outreach
      • NCC UMVIM
      • Seed Funds
      • Mission Projects
        • Health Ministry
    • Global Outreach
      • Imagine No Malaria
      • Love for Liberia
      • Missionaries
      • Project AGAPE
      • Sierra Leone: Mission of Hope
      • ZOE
    • Disaster Ministries
      • Donate to Storm Response
      • Hurricane Florence
      • MERCI
      • Response Plan
      • Response Team
      • UMCOR Kits
    • Giving
      • Advance/Rainbow Covenant
      • Apportionments
      • Give to Storm Response
      • Mission & Service
      • The Gary Wayne Locklear Mission Endowment
      • New Room Society
      • Special Sundays
    • Ministry Partners
      • Camps & Retreats
      • Partners In Ministry
      • Robeson Co. Church & CC
      • UMF
  • Resources
    Supporting Ministry
    • Conferences
      • Annual Conference 2019
      • Annual Conference 2020
      • Charge Conference 2020
      • General Conference
      • Pilgrimage
      • SEJ Conference 2016
    • Media Center
      • Catalog
      • Labyrinth
      • Ministry Tools
      • Online Resources
      • Weekly Newsletter
    • Online Resources
      • Archives & History
      • Church Lookup
      • Online Data Collection
      • Online Learning
      • Pastor Lookup
      • Podcasts (NCCUMC.FM)
      • Ramus: Web Hosting
      • Video (Vimeo)
    • Publications
      • Advent 2020
      • Appointment Book
      • Bible Study
      • Conference Directory
      • Conference Journal
      • Every Day Grace
      • Lenten Reflections
      • Mission & Service
    • From UMC.org
      • Agencies
      • Communications
      • Discipleship
      • Finance & Administration
      • Global Ministries
      • Graphics Library
      • Relief
      • Status & Role of Women
  • Media Center
  • How It Works
    • Borrowing Policies
  • Catalog
    • OPALS
    • Resource Request Form
    • Request a User Account
    • OPALS User Guide
    • Video Tutorial
    • Pathfinders
  • Online Resources
    • Ministry Tools from Around the Web
    • Guide to NC LIVE
  • More Resources
    • For Small Group Leaders
    • For Church Librarians
    • Labyrinth
    • Copyright Laws
  • Newsletter
    • New Resources
  • Contact Us

Study Harder Challenge: Free Online Study

July 8, 2019 Leave a Comment

Study Harder challenge

Join the NC Conference Media Center’s Study Harder Challenge! Your group is invited to expand your circle of influence and try something new by studying resources that apply any of 12 characteristics that will help you think outside the box. Read more about the Study Harder Challenge and download your worksheet.

Challenge: Free Online Study

Looking to save some money in your education budget? There are some excellent small-group studies available online that can be downloaded for free. Some of these studies don’t even need to be downloaded. The videos can be shown right from the website.

Belton Joyner’s Bible Study

The NC Conference publishes a weekly bible study by Rev. Belton Joyner. Based on the scripture lessons of Cokesbury’s Adult Bible Studies series, Joyner offers a reflection, quote, and prayer for every week. These short lessons would also function well as a devotional. Belton Joyner’s Bible Study can be downloaded from the conference website in monthly installments, or you can subscribe to receive it in your email. Printed copies through the mail are also available.

Wesleys Take the Web

This animated web series from United Methodist Communications shows the founders of Methodism, John and Charles Wesley, explaining distinctions of our faith. Animated by the NC Conference’s own Rev. Charlie Baber, The Wesleys Take the Web series is full of short clips that are modern, funny, and engaging. They tackle issues such as baptism, communion, money, music, and even social media. A discussion guide is also available.

Vital Conversations

The General Commission on Religion and Race of The United Methodist Church offers several online video series intended to be used in small-group settings. The Vital Conversations series includes four volumes:

  • Vol. 1: Realities of Race and Racism: Contemporary theologians, sociologists, laity, clergy, and other thought-leaders deal with challenges of race, culture, and oppression in the Church and world today.
  • Vol. 2 features thought leaders, pastors, theologians, activists, authors, and scholars from outside of the United States who share their stories, insights, and expertise on issues related to race, culture, tribe, and the global church.
  • Vol. 3: Young Adults, Social Justice and the Church features presenters aged 35 or younger that are activists, theologians, preachers, musicians, dancers, seminarians, and business entrepreneurs from Africa, Germany, and the U.S. Each talks about the search for areas that welcome, respect, and engage expressions of faith, spirituality, ideals, and community action.
  • Vol. 4: Race, Culture, the Church, and Human Sexuality features conversations between theologians, pastors, worship leaders, laity in leadership, Biblical scholars, and community activists to offer varied and multilayered perspectives on the Christian church’s ongoing debate over the status, role, and rights of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intrersex (LGBTQI).

Each of these series includes a discussion guide. The first and second volumes are also available to borrow on DVD.

Commission on the Status and Role of Women

The General Commission on the Status and Role of Women of The United Methodist Church has produced some high-quality studies that can be downloaded as a PDF. The studies are not just for women. They provide powerful lessons for any small group.

  • The Way of Integrity: Living in Right Relationship with Self, Others, and God. Through deep exploration of scripture and other resources, participants will give intentional attention to core values and the development of self-awareness in all they do.
  • God of the Bible: A Study for United Methodists about How God is Revealed in Scripture. This study challenges participants to strengthen their personal relationship with God by removing barriers of human limitations from our understanding of who God is. NC Conference’s own Bishop Hope Morgan Ward wrote the introduction to this study.
  • Women Called to Ministry explores our understanding of women’s roles in The United Methodist Church. Why are women ordained? Why are they included in all areas of leadership? How did we arrive at those understandings?
  • Rock, Shepherd, Friend: Enriching Our Images of God is designed to help Christians look at the way we talk about God and examine the images we hold of God.

Living Like They Believe

In partnership with the Duke Youth Academy for Christian Formation, Duke Divinity School published a four-session online curriculum titled Living Like They Believe. Through honest and relatable personal stories, designed for small groups to explore over four weeks, participants will consider: How are we called to live our faith? How is God making all things new? How do some of the practices of our faith, such as baptism and communion, invite us into ongoing discernment? Explore vocation, daily life and redemption stories through small group lesson plans that include films, Scripture study and practices.

North Carolina Council of Churches

The North Carolina Council of Churches is led by one of our own United Methodist pastors, Jennifer Copeland. The organization has produced several wonderful publications that can be studied in small groups. You can find the full list of free, downloadable PDFs on their website. Topics include:

  • Immigration
  • Food and hunger
  • Creation care
  • And more.

Additional Resources

A complete list of all of the online resources recommended through our online catalog is available in the genre collections for Online Resources.

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn

Filed Under: Resources Tagged With: study harder challenge

Email Newsletter

Sign up below to receive email updates from the Media Center. You'll get short weekly updates on news and resources.

The NC Conference respects your privacy. See our Privacy Policy.

What Should I Borrow?

  • Catalog
  • Pathfinders
  • DVD Studies for Adults
  • For Small Group Leaders
  • How to Choose the Right Study for Your Group
  • Study Ideas for Your Small Group
  • The Study Harder Challenge
  • Posts about Resources
  • New Resources
  • Reviews
  • Labyrinth

Other Resources

  • For Small Group Leaders
  • For Church Librarians
  • Ministry Tools from Around the Web
  • Online Resources
  • Guide to NC LIVE
  • Copyright Laws

NC Conference of The United Methodist Church · 700 Waterfield Ridge Place · Garner, NC 27529
Phone: 919.779.6115 · Toll-free: 800.849.4433 · Fax: 919.773.2308

Copyright © 2021 · Privacy Policy · Powered by WordPress · Site Admin

  • e
  • k