How to Use Desiring God for SRE Lesson Preparation

Desiring God (desiringgod.org) is the ministry of John Piper, founded on the conviction that 'God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.' The website makes everything free — thousands of sermons, articles, devotionals, Q&A responses, and book chapters — on the explicit theological principle that the gospel should be given away freely.

For SRE teachers, the practical value is this: whatever passage or topic you're preparing to teach, there is almost certainly a Desiring God article or sermon on it that will deepen your own understanding and give you language and illustration you can adapt for your lesson.

The Ask Pastor John podcast features John Piper responding to reader questions in 10–15 minute episodes. Over 1,900 episodes have been recorded, covering virtually every question about faith, doubt, suffering, ethics, the Bible, and Christian living. Many of the questions are exactly the ones secondary SRE students ask: 'Is God real?', 'Why does God allow suffering?', 'Can I trust the Bible?', 'What happens after death?'

Listening to a relevant episode before teaching a secondary class equips you with both content and language — you hear how someone thoughtful and honest engages the question, and you absorb ways of framing that can be adapted for a 30-minute class. The podcast is free on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and the Desiring God website.

Look at the Book is a video series in which John Piper works through Bible passages in real time — reading slowly, annotating the text, drawing connections, and explaining his reasoning as he goes. It is one of the best tools available for learning how to read the Bible carefully.

For SRE teachers: watching a 10-minute Look at the Book episode on the passage you're about to teach transforms your preparation. You see the text's structure, the key words, the interpretive questions, and the theological weight — all modelled in real time. Available free at desiringgod.org/labs.

The Solid Joys devotional (one short reflection per day on a Bible passage) and the Light and Truth series are both free and available as apps or on the website. SRE teaching is sustained by the teacher's own spiritual life — you cannot give what you do not have. A daily devotional habit that keeps your own heart warm toward God is the most important preparation for SRE that any volunteer can make.