Where is the Love?
It's Your Move
Work Zone and High Way
At 5 min. till start "Where IS The Love" - Black Eyed Peas.
·Worlds of Fun Permission slips
·Caravan Parents MTG 6th $225/200
Which Way Are We Moving
Work Zone and High Way
Begin with a large group&ldots;
I firmly believe that God does NOT make people sick; and God does NOT want people to suffer. We can see this by looking at the life of Jesus. He healed the sick. He CURED people. He did not make them sick! Why, then, are so many in pain?
I can remember reading a story of a young grain farmer who spent his last dollars on seed for a crop, which was wiped out by drought and hail. He missed church for 3 months blaming it on God. The preacher came and said to him, "Son, God knows that, while it is impossible to grow good grain with a drought, it is also impossible to grow good men without a drought. God's object is to grow men not grain!"
There are many positive aspects of suffering that we overlook. Proverbs 30:8 "Give me neither poverty nor riches...Lest I be full and deny thee and say, who is the Lord' Or lest I be in want and steal and profane the name of my God". I think that most of you are rarely in "need". (Most of us suffer from a serious case of "want", however) We are so rich and well fed that most Americans have no need for a belief in God. If calamity occurs in our life, it can bring us back to our sense of what is really important and what is not.
We need to remember that we live in a physical world with physical laws. We stub our toes, cut our fingers, break our legs, catch the flu, get into car accidents. Some things just happen by the very nature of our physical existence. No one is to blame. But if blame is to be laid, let's not rule out the actions of evil. Who afflicted Job with great tribulation, tempted Jesus, and prowls about seeking to turn someone away from God! If you want to blame suffering on someone, why blame the loving God who asks us to "cast all our anxiety on Him for He cares for you" and let the evil get off scot-free?
Moving In
Work Zone & High Way
Exploring Suffering
Work Zone – fine a cool way to divide up into smaller groups.
Say: Why does God allow suffering? That’s a tough question—especially when he allows it to happen to us. Tonight we’re going to discusses tragedies and suffering— and hopefully point out that the Bible has some answers and provides lots of comfort.
Last week there were at least two events that took place that you should have heard about, Virginia Tech and the “person of interest” in our church Wednesday.
Ask:
·Which one affects you more? Why or why not?
·Is one more scary than the other?
·Does being a Christian affect your reactions to the situations?
·If you want, share a tragedy or ongoing suffering that friends of yours have experienced?
Say: You probably have figured out that some suffering is the direct result of human action, but some seems to be beyond human control. Let’s take a look at the possibility of God’s part of the equation—the things beyond your control; some illnesses, injuries, natural disasters, and the like.
Ask:
·Why do you suppose God doesn’t get rid of all suffering on earth? Put an X by two of the follow reasons.
__He’s punishing people.
__He’s trying to get our attention.
__He’s trying to make us stronger.
__He can’t.
__He has a plan we don’t understand.
__He doesn’t feel suffering as we do.
__He’s trying to teach us something.
__He doesn’t care.
__Other—
·How well do you handle suffering or affliction? What is your most usual response to tough times in your life?
I give up and get angry - I try to ignore the pain and move on - I move closer to God and ask him for comfort - I talk with a parent or friend - I move farther away from God - I get depressed.
Moving On
Work Zone & High Way
Perfect Speed
Needed: Scriptures Handout
Work Zone -stay in smaller groups.
Say: Now let's look at some rough times when bad people seem to get away with harmful things-and when God seems slow to respond. God moves at his own perfect speed and no injustice will go unpunished.
Ask:
·Why do you suppose God lets people get away with stuff like Virginia Tech-or does he?
·What about your lives, is there stuff going on in your lives that you don't understand-that doesn't seem fair?
·Has any of these things occurred in your school or neighborhood?
Stealing - Drug dealing - Fist fighting - Shooting - Cheating in class - Vandalism - Sexual harassment - Violence against a teacher
·Do any of the people get away with these actions?
·Were they caught-and if so, did they get off lightly?
Say: Check out what Psalm 10 has to say about evil people. Listen how are they described in this psalm and what awaits them when God steps in. The psalm talks about the ultimate victory that God has over evil and injustice. earlier?
Read Psalm 10.
Say: Now take a look at 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. Read the verse.
Ask:
·What does God do for people in their troubles?
·What does this passage say people can do for others?
·What do these verses say about injustices?
·Help your kids understand that one of the reasons Christians experience unfair problems may be to prepare them to comfort and help others in similar circumstances.
·Why do you think it's a good thing to turn to God for comfort?
Moving Up
Work Zone & High Way
Stop
the Pain
Needed:
Note cards and "starter headers"
Say: Finally, lets look at the problems that can lead to hard feelings and hurts within the body of Christ. It's a call for you to take a look at yourself, our group, and other people to identify behaviors that create pain for your brothers and sisters. No hurtful or accusative comments or statements throughout this discussion please. The purpose of this is not for you to bash each other- but instead to look at the unity of our group and discuss what could make it better.
Progressive story
Split up into smaller groups (of about 4-5) and give each group member a note card and choose one of the following "starter headers" for each group.
- Chase is new to town and has just started coming to your church. During one youth group meeting&ldots;
- Phong is the shy one in your youth group and hardly ever volunteers to do something, but one day&ldots;
- Adam and Ashley, members of your youth group, are dating. They're inseparable, except when&ldots;
- Kaylee has just found out that her mom has cancer. She seems upset but&ldots;
- Zach and Gabe don't get along at all. At one youth group meeting&ldots;
Say: The first person in the group will add the next sentence to the story. Be creative not inappropriate and think about our group-you can't use any names or details of people in our own group. Then keep the card you were given and pass only your card on to the next person. Continue until everyone has written a sentence and has another's card.
Take turns and read each story.
Ask:
·What do you think causes the most problems in a youth group?
·What causes the most problems in school?
·What are the top three trouble spots in the above settings? Why?
·What one thing would you change if you could?
·How close do you feel as a group? Why or why not?
·What has prevented them from becoming close as a group? Or what has made them become a unified group?
Moving Out
Work Zone
Do You Love Your Neighbor (Join the small groups)
How to play: All players sit in a circle except one person who is IT and asks, "Do you love your neighbor?" If they say YES, the persons on each side of the one being asked must switch seats and the person that's IT try's to get a seat. If he/she does, then the person left standing is IT. However if they says NO then the person that was chosen then answers with a physical trait of other people in the circle (ex. glasses, shoes, hair color, and style of cloths - " I love people with glasses".) and those people move to any seat they can get except for there own.
Play "Honey If You Love Me" if this game gets boring
Moving Out
Highway
Where Is The Love?
Say: Each of the following situations is potentially harmful to unity. What solutions or suggestions do you have? What could be done to realistically fix the relationships?
- Sean doesn't like Briana. She just annoys Sean. When he can, he'll take any and every opportunity to make negative comments about Briana. Briana is aware that Sean doesn't like her, but can't figure out why.
- The group of jocks are nice guys one on one, but together their group is untouchable by anyone who's not part of the in-crowd. They're such a tight-knit group that getting to be friends with them seems impossible.
- John can't seem to say anything nice to anyone. When ever he opens his mouth everyone can't help but listen because the things he says are so shocking they seem funny.
- Sydney is a chatterbox and she'll gossip non-stop among kids in the youth group, but she's careful to never take sides-she merely acts as the mouthpiece for all tidbits of gossip. A number of friendships have been damaged recently by her actions.
- Carlos has been going to a youth group at another church down the road. He's come back really excited about how cool the other church is. He really doesn't agree with some of the new churches beliefs, but he thinks he's missing out on something. Now he's talking to other kids in the youth group, pointing out that their church is lame and that the other church is into something better.
Moving In
Work Zone & Highway
Exploring Suffering
Work Zone - fine a cool way to divide up into smaller groups.
Say: Why does God allow suffering? That's a tough question-especially when he allows it to happen to us. Tonight we're going to discusses tragedies and suffering- and hopefully point out that the Bible has some answers and provides lots of comfort.
Last week there were at least two events that took place that you should have heard about, Virginia Tech and the "person of interest" in our church Wednesday.
Ask:
·Which one affects you more? Why or why not?
·Is one more scary than the other?
·Does being a Christian affect your reactions to the situations?
·If you want, share a tragedy or ongoing suffering that friends of yours have experienced?
Say: You probably have figured out that some suffering is the direct result of human action, but some seems to be beyond human control. Let's take a look at the possibility of God's part of the equation-the things beyond your control; some illnesses, injuries, natural disasters, and the like.
Ask:
·Why do you suppose God doesn't get rid of all suffering on earth? Put an X by two of the follow reasons.
__He's punishing people.
__He's trying to get our attention.
__He's trying to make us stronger.
__He can't.
__He has a plan we don't understand.
__He doesn't feel suffering as we do.
__He's trying to teach us something.
__He doesn't care.
__Other-
·How well do you handle suffering or affliction? What is your most usual response to tough times in your life?
I give up and get angry
- I try to ignore the pain and move on
- I move closer to God and ask him for comfort
- I talk with a parent or friend
- I move farther away from God
- I get depressed.
Closing
Work Zone & High Way
The Leader Closes: Gather in a circle.
Sum up the lesson
What if the world wasn't filled with pain? Imagine a world where there is no suffering-what would it be like to be a Christian and feel no pain? Don't answer just silently think about it for a moment. (pause) Some pain and suffering doesn't just go away. Some tragedies last a lifetime. Everyone gets hurt unjustly in some way or another. But God has turned that hurt into a positive thing-the ability to sympathize with and comfort another suffering person. Tonight we have tried to help you find hope where there seems to only be sorrow. We've looked at some of God's promises of comfort and tried to understand the real source of pain.
You have a responsibility to ease each other's burdens to keep each other healthy, inviting, and spiritual. Forgiveness, kindness, and discipline (on some occasions) are key in order to keep the group on track. Just like the real world, with in our group exist cliques, damaged friendships, and grudges, we must be willing to forgive each other, open up to each other, share respect and make an effort to include all.
Remember that tonight you have once again been challenged to grow stronger in your faith with a deeper understanding of "why bad things happen to good people". I ask you to remember the story of the young grain farmer who spent his last dollars on seed for a crop, which was wiped out by drought and hail. He fell away from his relationship with God until he was reminded that God knows it is impossible to grow good grain with a drought, but it's also impossible to grow good men and women without a drought. God's object is to grow your faith not grain!
Close In Prayer: Dear Lord, we've come together as a group again this week and continue to do your work. Thank you for your comfort. Help us to share you love with others and grant us the strength to hold fast to our faith in times of trial. Bless us in your service. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Sing Sanctuary
UMYF Benediction
