Most of the research I have done was part of my undergrad in biblical studies. A number of assignments required me to comprehend and compare different perspectives related to a biblical text. Likewise, part of understanding the Bible is understanding the biblical context which requires a lot of research as we are about 2000 years removed from the context of the New Testament. Now, when I am able to teach in my church I will often do research regarding a specific topic in the Bible, or else a specific passage. There are some commentary series that are very well respected among scholars. Doing my undergrad helped me know which authors and commentary series were reputable and which ones were less respected.

I was able to direct a small camp for children going into grades three to seven for three summers. When I first started as a camp director I had very little experience speaking to kids. I had spoken to adults and youth before but not children who were that young. I had to start researching how to speak and communicate with kids. Using material from my church, online resources and help from some friends who currently teach elementary school I was able to develop some methods to communicate to children. In the following years I continued to do research regarding how to communicate with children as I felt there was much more I could learn. Building on my past experience, I felt as though I was getting better each year at communicating sometimes complicated ideas to children. It also gave me a newfound respect for elementary teachers. There is a lot of material out there to help teachers and speakers and yet some of the most helpful information I had came from a teacher who taught me in elementary and who is still teaching. She not only helped me understand a little bit about how kids learn, but she also was able to tell me what topics to speak on and what topics to avoid. This gave me greater clarity about what and how I wanted to communicate during those weeks of camp.