The 2024 Wesleyan Bible Bowl (WBB) Nationals brought together teams from Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana at Houghton University, allowing quizzers to demonstrate their knowledge of Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians and Philemon, which they’ve been working to study since early last fall. Next year, participants will study the Gospel of Luke, continuing the WBB’s eight-year rotation of biblical books.
Christ Wesleyan Church
The event featured both team and individual competitions, allowing for those with different skill sets (from reading comprehension to memorization and beyond) to contribute to their team’s success. During the preliminary rounds, all teams competed against each other in these categories, showcasing knowledge and recall abilities. Following those preliminaries, the teams divided into two groups before moving to the final round.
In the team championship quiz, a highlight was the rematch between Christ Wesleyan Church from Milton, Pennsylvania, and Sweetser Wesleyan Church from Sweetser, Indiana. The Milton team won the quiz, defeating Sweetser in a tight contest, and repeating their win at last year’s finals.
Sweetser Wesleyan Church
On the individual side, quizzers faced 20 rounds of intense toss-up competitions. The top 16 quizzers advanced to the finals, where their skills were further tested. Each participant also completed a series of written quizzes to assess their understanding of scriptural details. Faith Bierly from Milton distinguished herself as the top quizzer in the written competition, while Simon Brainerd from Sweetser and Leila Ask from Milton tied for the top spot in the toss-up competition, demonstrating their exceptional knowledge and quick thinking. But as important as memorization and comprehension are, the real purpose of the WBB is spiritual formation.
“Learning Scripture changes me as a person as I study how God wants us to live and treat other people,” reflected Faith Bierly, the written quiz winner from Christ Wesleyan Church. “Studying Scripture in its contexts helped me to understand the deeper meaning behind verses that I already knew. Overall, Bible quizzing has shaped the person I am today, and I would strongly encourage other students to join,” she continued.
WBB National Awards
In addition to the competitive accolades, one of the most important awards is given to those who exemplify the character and values promoted by the WBB. Tony Gano of Cypress Wesleyan Church, Grove City, Ohio, and Simon Brainerd were honored with the Character Scholarship. Nominated by their coaches, both young men were celebrated for how the WBB has positively impacted their lives, highlighting quizzing’s role in fostering personal growth and spiritual development.
Pastor Matt Stewart, a veteran of 25 years with the Wesleyan Bible Bowl (WBB), says that WBB is built on three pillars: discipleship, fellowship and scholarship. Discipleship occurs at the local church level, where coaches lead and mentor their teams. WBB fosters fellowship through various meets throughout the year, culminating in the national tournament, which includes not only quizzing but also worship and devotional times. Scholarship is emphasized through the competitive aspect of WBB, with participants earning scholarships to Wesleyan colleges based on their performance. These scholarships compound year after year, with some students winning thousands of dollars in scholarship.
“Being a part of Bible Bowl and memorizing Scripture has helped me grow in my walk with Christ immensely,” reflected Melinda Stephens, a former quizzer, current coach and WBB mom. “Throughout all seasons of life, having certain Scripture come to my mind when afraid, angry, struggling or even in moments of praise and joy has defined the person that I have become. Letting God’s words guide you through life changes you to the core. As a coach and mother now, it is amazing to see my children go through the same thing. It’s so cool when they are struggling with something and we can sit down and say, ‘what does the Bible have to say about this’ and the answer is in one of their memory verses. Or to have them get excited to hear a sermon because the message comes from memory verses. The competition is fun. Meeting new people is great. The best by far is hiding God’s word in your heart and letting it transform you.”
Looking ahead, Pastor Stewart expressed optimism about the future impact of WBB on Wesleyan youth, citing stories of how WBB has helped quizzers internalize values and skills that have led many to become pastors, missionaries and leaders in various ministries throughout The Wesleyan Church and beyond.
Pastor Stewart’s own children can give testimony to the formative impact of WBB: “We gave our kids a lot of choice about their extracurriculars, but WBB is the one thing we required them to do, because we wanted our kids to grow up with the Word of God in their mind and heart,” Pastor Stewart reflected. “And even though they’ve withstood hard storms in life, they’d tell you that memorizing Scripture has helped them remember that God could carry them through.”
For those interested in starting a Bible Bowl team or learning more about the program, Pastor Stewart recommended reaching out to WBB alumni, attending demonstrations and invitational meets, or talking with WBB Director Reverend Jim Terwilliger.
Sharing why and how congregations can engage with WBB, Rev. Terwilliger shared: “Churches everywhere are looking for ways to disciple young people, trying to find the latest program or some new opportunity. But Wesleyan Bible Bowl is a time-tested discipleship program to get students into the Word like no other teen program in the church, bearing fruit both in their current walk with God, but also for years to come as they learn and memorize Scriptures that will continue to transform long after the final competition.”
For more information, reach out to WBB Director Rev. Jim Terwilliger at jim.terwilliger@mcslions.org.
Rev. Ethan Linder is the pastor of discipleship at College Wesleyan Church in Marion, Indiana, and contributing editor at The Wesleyan Church’s Education and Clergy Development Division.
