Monthly Archive for February, 2008

Values Session 4: Honour (Part 1)

Published
by
Jon
on 11 February 2008
in Youth Group Resources, Youth Ministry and Youth Work
. 0 Comments

This is part of an 11-session series for 11-14 year olds, teaching our mission statement and the importance of its values:

We exist to learn to follow Jesus, to show honour to God, to use our gifts to serve, to support each other, and to share our faith.

Session Aim: To look at what it means to honour God

Activity: Barmy Bowing Bonanza
Split the group so that they stand on opposite sides of the room. Explain that all they have to do is walk around the room, BUT they must be polite and courteous to everyone else and not allow their backs to be shown to anyone! At all times they must face towards the others and bow to them while saying “How do you do”. In practice this means that they must think and move very carefully to avoid ‘offending’ anyone by showing them their back. If a leaders spots that a back has been shown to someone, that person is out. Keep going until only one or two are left in. Try this game a few times.
Explain that showing honour is about giving proper respect to something, like bowing to the Queen. God deserves all of our honour and respect.

Read: Matthew 22:35-38

One Pharisee, who was an expert on the law of Moses, asked Jesus this question to test him: “Teacher, which command in the law is the most important?”
Jesus answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and most important command.

Illustration: The Incredibles
Show the clip from near the end of the movie (Chapter 29, 1:36:00 - 1:37:48) when the Incredibles beat the giant robot and the crowd come out to applaud them. Explain that everyone wanted to show their thanks and appreciation for what they had done. We are constantly told by the Bible to do the same thing for God!

Discuss:

  • Who do you have respect for? Why?
  • In what ways do you show respect to God at the moment? Are there ways that you could show more honour?
  • Honour and Respect is sometimes explained as Worship. Have you ever had a time when you really worshipped God and thanked Him for what he’s done?

Pray:

  • Pray that God will help you to realise ways in which you can give Him more honour.
  • Pray for any issues affecting the group this week.

Challenge:
Try to spend a few minutes each day saying thanks to God for something, even if it’s something really small. This is part of honouring Him.

Further Reading: Proverbs 15:33

Respect for the Lord will teach you wisdom.
If you want to be honoured, you must be humble.

Raising Children Right

Published
by
Jon
on 9 February 2008
in Christianity, Youth Ministry and Youth Work
. 0 Comments


I came across this quote on Taking Thoughts Captive from Martin Luther the German theologian and reformer from the 16th century regarding how Christian parents should raise their children:

If [bringing up children in the fear and knowledge of God above all things] were done, God would also richly bless us and give us grace to train men by whom land and people might be improved. He would also bless us with well-educated citizens, chaste and domestic wives, who, afterward, would raise godly children and servants. Here consider now what deadly harm you are doing if you are negligent and fail on your part to bring up your children to usefulness and piety. Consider how you bring upon yourself all sin and wrath, earning hell by your own children, even though you are otherwise pious and holy. Because this matter is disregarded, God so fearfully punishes the world that there is no discipline, government or peace. We all complain about this but do not see that is is our fault. The way we train children and subjects spoils them and makes them disobedient.

(Large Catechism, “The Fourth Commandment,”)

Well 500 years later his observations are still true and the problem is certainly magnified (if not quite “no discipline, government or peace”). Taking Thoughts Captive has some great views on this regarding youth ministry:

Luther reminds us that the piety of parents is of no avail if the ‘training’ and ‘discipling’ of our children consists of shuffling them off to amusing (literally), relevant, worldly, youth ‘ministry’ events that are more focused on being hip, cool, and trendy than they are teaching the true Word of God.

Any thoughts on the role of youth workers as surrogate parents and the lack of parental discipline?

Values Session 3: Follow (Part 2)

Published
by
Jon
on 8 February 2008
in Youth Group Resources, Youth Ministry and Youth Work
. 0 Comments

This is part of an 11-session series for 11-14 year olds, teaching our mission statement and the importance of its values:

We exist to learn to follow Jesus, to show honour to God, to use our gifts to serve, to support each other, and to share our faith.

Session Aim: To understand how we should go about following Jesus.

Activity: Fitting Description
Ask a volunteer to step out of the room and listen outside the door. Then ask everyone else to describe the person who stepped out. Ask for details on their hair, clothes, eyes, make-up, shoes, scars, moles, etc (don’t get too personal). When they’ve finished, get the individual to come back in so everyone can see how accurate the description was. Some may find it easy, others may be totally wrong!
Explain that it can be difficult to know exactly what someone looks like, without spending time paying lots of attention to them. How can we follow Jesus if we don’t spend time finding out what He is like?

Read: 1 John 2:3-6

We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.

Illustration: Blindfold Challenge
Choose someone to blindfold and then give them a task to do, e.g. draw a picture, make their way across the room. Obviously they will find this difficult, so then allow one person to help them out, e.g. guide their hand, give directions. Explain that having someone to follow makes things much easier for us. As Christians we must follow Jesus! Jesus said “I am the light of the world. The person who follows me will never live in darkness but will have the light that gives life” (John 8:12).

Discuss:

  • If we are a Christian, we should “walk as Jesus did”, what does that mean?
  • Can you think of examples of how Jesus lived his life? How might you do the same?
  • Do you think that you obey God’s word? Why or why not?
  • Is following Jesus easy? What happened to Him?

Pray:

  • Pray that you can start to follow Jesus’ example. Ask God to challenge you about how you live.
  • Pray for any issues affecting the group this week.

Challenge:
Why not try spending at least 5 minutes each day in prayer to God? Try to get into the habit of praying regularly just as Jesus did.

Further Reading: Luke 9:23-24

Jesus said to all of them, “If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. They must be willing to give up their lives daily to follow me. Those who want to save their lives will give up true life. But those who give up their lives for me will have true life..