ADULT LEADER GUIDE 2016
KINGDOM WORKERS
CONTENT PROVIDED BY
CHRIST IN YOUTH
Dear Adult Leader, Welcome to MIX! You’re holding in your hands a guide to one of the most important moments in the entire week of MIX. These three lessons are designed to unpack what the students will learn in the morning sessions, but now within the context of your group. You will also see five discussion questions for every evening group time. As you know, Jr. high students need an outlet through which to express themselves and hear from those who are playing a key role in their lives. We hope that this guide will help facilitate Spirit-­‐led conversations among you and your students. NOTES FOR GROUP TIME A couple notes on how to get the best use of this Adult Leader Guide: 1. Make sure your students have their Bibles, their student books and something to write with during group time. 2. Under “Talking Points” and “Application,” you will see bullet points where you can simply teach your students. You can read these straight from the guide, but we suggest you familiarize yourself with them before MIX and adjust the script to fit your style and your students’ personalities. 3. There are times for you to share personal examples about what God has done in your life. Be sure to familiarize yourself with those moments and take some time to plan ahead on what your personal examples will be based on each morning’s theme. 4. Attached is a packing list. We have tried to make everything possible in these lessons with little money spent. However, there will be a couple items that you will need to buy from any common grocery store. The MIX team has been praying for you all year! We are eager to see what God does in your life and in the lives of your students. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at [email protected]. Blessings, The MIX Team 2 THINGS LEADERS SHOULD KNOW Adult Leader Meetings MIX will host a brief daily meeting to communicate important information for each day. The following information is covered: text message sign-­‐up info, daily theme introductions, how to use nightly elements, rules particular to each campus, explanation of outer realm games, small group info and more. Check your weekly schedule for meeting times. Text Message Notifications MIX strongly encourages all adult leaders to sign up for text message notifications throughout the week. The following types of messages will be sent: meeting reminders, emergency information, changes in schedule, etc. Sign-­‐up information will be provided during the first Adult Leader Meeting on the evening of Day 1. Damage Reports MIX provides damage reports that should be completed upon arrival and turned into the MIX Hub no later than the morning of Day 2. These reports guard your group against charges of any prior damages sustained to dorm rooms. Damages occurring during the week will be charged to your group. Adult In-­‐Room Forms Upon arrival, MIX provides forms for every adult leader to complete and post on the outside door of his or her room. This enables proper security and safety measures in case of an emergency. Parking Once you’ve arrived on campus, please park in specified parking areas ONLY – not the streets. MIX is not responsible for ticketed or towed vehicles. Checkout Groups may depart at any time following the final main session on Day 4. All venues will provide housing for that night. If your group chooses to stay, you must check out with the campus the following morning. 3 IMPORTANT INFORMATION MIX ÆFFECT STORE The MIX Æffect Store is the place to go for all MIX apparel, books and resources. The MIX Hub will always be located right next to the MIX Æffect Store. EMERGENCIES & FIRST AID Dial 911 for emergencies. First Aid should be administered by adults from your group. More serious injuries should be directed to the local hospital and communicated to MIX personnel. The staff at MIX CANNOT offer any kind of first aid to your adults or students. EMERGENCY DESTINATION On the first day of MIX, determine a place where your group should meet in case of an emergency. Select one indoor location (a specific room) and one outdoor location (a parking area, etc.) LOST & FOUND Lost and Found items will be kept at the MIX Hub. Please note that items not claimed at the end of the week will be donated. MAIL Go to the MIX Hub for incoming mail. Outgoing mail should be dropped off at any nearby postal box. There are no outgoing mail services at the MIX Hub. SEATING CHART A seating chart will be posted outside the main entrance to the main auditorium. The chart will be changed every morning to ensure every group gets a good seat, so be sure to check it on your way into the morning sessions. MEAL SCHEDULE The color of your lanyard will determine your group’s mealtime for most meals. See the meal schedule on the back of your daily schedule card for a complete meal schedule. ADULTS ONLY may grab their breakfast at 7:30 a.m. in order to be done in time for the Adult Leader Meeting. CAFETERIA Please relay cafeteria courtesy to your students. Please be courteous to others and the cafeteria staff. Before leaving, clean up your mess, throw your trash away, push your chair in, etc. When finished eating, please leave the cafeteria to make sure everyone has plenty of room to sit. 4 MIX RULES 1. Respect others and yourself. 2. No guys in girl’s dorms beyond the front lobby and vice versa. 3. Alcohol, tobacco, drugs and weapons are absolutely prohibited 4. You must be in your dorm by the designated “In Dorm Time.” 5. For security reasons, no students with backpacks are allowed into the auditorium or cafeteria. Drawstring bags are acceptable. 6. Follow the schedule. Be where you’re supposed to be when you’re supposed to be there. 7. During sessions, stay in your assigned seating. Please follow the posted seating chart. 8. Don’t leave the auditorium once the speakers begin talking. 9. Respect the campus – no TP, water balloons, shaving cream, sidewalk chalk, etc. No practical jokes! 10. Don’t move furniture – you will be charged for any assessed damage. 11. Don’t dial 911 unless it’s a true emergency. 12. Absolutely no fireworks at any time during MIX or while on campus property. 13. No food deliveries of any kind to the campus. 14. Students may leave campus ONLY with adult supervision; those staying behind must have an adult present. 15. Follow the MIX dress code. 16. No hazing of other students allowed. 5 DODGE BALL TOURNAMENT You think you got game? Bring it! But know this at MIX … we have serious fun, but we play by the rules. Therefore, you will find below the proper etiquette, terms and regulations for our dodge ball tournament. Read the rules. Know the rules. Love the rules. … You will play by the rules. Sign-­‐ups are at the MIX hub, and please remember that the dress code still applies. Rules At most locations, you will be playing on a tennis court. One team will be on each side of the net. We know it’s small – don’t complain, because true champions overcome adversity. Only one adult on the floor/court per team Six team members per team will be allowed on the court during play. If you get hit anywhere on your body with a ball, YOU ARE OUT. The tournament is single elimination. If you catch a ball, the thrower is out, and ONE member of your team who was out may re-­‐enter. The only time you may leave the box is to retrieve a ball. If you step outside the boundaries to dodge a ball YOU ARE OUT. If a ball is thrown at you and it bounces off a ball you are holding, and you subsequently drop your ball, YOU ARE OUT. • Head shots are legal: Momma says, “If you are dumb enough to get hit in the head, you are dumb enough to be out.” • If a ball is thrown at you and it bounces off a ball you are holding and someone catches it, no one is out. • You must have raving fans that are dressed the part, and as a result of the competition they must be hoarse from cheering for their team at the end of the tournament. • If you are a weakling and the force of a ball thrown at you is great enough to knock you out of bounds, BUT you catch the ball … you are safe, the giant who threw the ball at you is out, and one member of your team can come back in. • At the beginning of the match the dodge balls must go to the back line before they can go forward – in other words, you can’t just pick up a ball and drill someone from point blank range. • NO CUSSING • NO TIMEOUTS **Tournaments may not be offered at every MIX event. Rules are subject to change per MIX staff, who are final authority on the court. • • • • • • • • ***Adults: Only one of you per team may be on the court/floor at one time. 6 DECISION TIME This section is to help you lead your students through making decisions for Christ or furthering their walk with Christ. HOW DO I JOIN THE RHYTHM OF GOD? The first thing we want to say is: TALK TO A LEADER FROM YOUR CHURCH. They’ll be able to help you think through the best way to respond to what God is doing in your life this week. That being said, here are a few things to consider: FIRST TIME DECISION People are saved by grace through faith in Jesus – it cannot be earned or bought. We have all sinned (Romans 3:23), and our sin has separated us from God. Scripture tells us that we are DEAD in our sin (Ephesians 2:1) and that God sent Jesus to earth to bring life to people through his life, death and resurrection. If you have NEVER trusted Jesus to save you, put your faith in Him – believe in Him. Scripture teaches that those who do that should turn from their sin (repent), be baptized into Jesus (Acts 2 – if you aren’t sure what baptism is all about, talk with your youth leader) – and live a life in submission to Him. If this is something you’re considering, or something God is doing in you, talk to your leader about it today! DECISION TO RE-­‐COMMIT YOUR LIFE Maybe you’ve already committed your life to Jesus, but haven’t been living the way you should. One of the best ways to respond to God is to turn away from sin and to turn toward Jesus. The term for doing that is Repentance. Luke 15:11-­‐32 shows us what repentance looks like and how God, our Father, is always quick to forgive us. Take a few minutes and read those verses. Maybe Luke’s story looks similar to your life – you’ve run away and rebelled against Him – and this week you’ve realized you need to go back home. Just like in Jesus’ story, God runs to meet you when your heart is repentant. Here are some steps to help you follow through with repentance: • Talk to your youth leader. Confess to them the sin you’re turning away from. This can be really difficult, but it’s one of the most freeing things you can do. Read 1 John 1:9 to see what happens when we confess our sin. • Stay connected to your church. Being with God’s people is a critical part of living your life for Him. Be active in your church and youth group! • Make some changes. Come up with a plan for how you will live differently in light of what you’ve experienced this week. • Pray for God’s strength, so that you can continue to leave your old ways behind and start living the way Jesus calls us to. DECISION TO BE A KINGDOM WORKER Maybe you’ve committed your life to Jesus and you want to use your gifts and abilities to point others to Him! We have good news – ministry is not just for people who work in churches! This week you’ve heard the call to be a Kingdom worker. This is for everyone who follows Jesus, no matter who you are! 7 A Kingdom worker is a Christian who uses whatever gifts, abilities and influence he or she has to point people to Jesus. Kingdom workers can be school teachers, moms, basketball players, bass guitarists, Jr. high students, and countless others. Each individual act of Kingdom work may look different, but every Kingdom worker has surrendered to Jesus and is committed to using the gifts, abilities and relationships God has given them to advance His Kingdom. Here are a few steps to get you on your way: 1. What do you like to do? You can start right now using those things to engage your world with the truth of Christ. Try different things. Find out what you’re good at and what you enjoy, then use those things to do Kingdom work. If you’re confused about your gifts, take some time to talk with your parents, a pastor and even God. 2. Find Christians who do what you’d like to do someday. You know that graphic designer in your church? Get to know him. How about that coach or police officer in your parents’ small group? Ask them a lot of questions. You need to learn from people interested in the same things you are. If they’re Christians, they can also tell you how they use their career as a platform for the Gospel. 3. Pray for wisdom. Pray for God to go before you. 4. Go do it. 8 MATERIALS LIST • Colored Markers or Highlighters (not yellow) for your students to write with. (Need one per student) ***YOU WILL NEED THESE FOR A SPECIAL KINGDOM WORKER SESSION ON DAY 3*** • Scissors (need one per small group) ***YOU WILL NEED THESE FOR A SPECIAL KINGDOM WORKER SESSION ON DAY 3*** • Some kind of tape – masking or duct will work equally well. (It’s going to be used to put over your students’ mouths on the last day. … And no, you can’t keep it there all day.) 9 EVENING 1 – DISCUSSION QUESTIONS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: • What was the coolest thing that happened to you today? • What was the funniest thing you saw today? • What has God been talking to you about today? • What’s one thing that stood out to you in tonight’s session? MAIN PRAYER POINT: Thank God for choosing us and dying for us – and ask Him to help you hear His rhythm daily. 10 MORNING 2 – GROUP TIME MAIN POINT: As chosen children, we act like our Father who is a God of light, not darkness. TEXT: Ephesians 4:17-­‐5:13 STUDENT RESPONSE: To realize their sinful (dark) actions and make decisions in group time toward God-­‐like (Light) actions. Start off with a game! (4-­‐5 minutes) “MIRROR, MIRROR” Have students pair up. Have each group take turns standing in front of their small group. Choose one of those students to tell one of the following: – Their most embarrassing childhood story – Best Christmas story – Best family vacation story. The other student has to try to say what their partner is saying at the exact same time. Once every pair has done this, explain the activity: Once your students have had a chance to play the game, gather them back together and talk about what they just experienced. If you’d like, use the following as talking points for a good discussion: At some point, some of you probably started getting the hang of imitating your partner and were probably speaking in unison. As long as you listened and watched your partner, it probably wasn’t impossible. But as soon as you stopped listening and watching closely, imitating became much more difficult. If we want to be like our God of light, we have to keep your eyes and ears open to Him. If we stop looking at God, we stop imitating. When we stop imitating, our actions go from light to dark in a hurry! 11 Review the Journal Questions (8-­‐10 minutes) Let students share the answers they gave to these questions during the morning session… • Which would be worse: If it were always day time or always night time? • List all the things light can do. • Paul calls God a God of light. How is God’s character and actions similar to light? • How can our actions be more like God and Light? Alone Time in God’s Word (8-­‐10 minutes) Have Students break off and spend some time reading God’s Word. Read Ephesians 4:17-­‐5:13. Instruct your students that whenever they read a COMMAND (or any sentence that tells them something to do or not to do) they should underline it. Paul is trying to show us examples of what it means to live like our God of light rather than in darkness. Examples: “Do not let the sun go down while you are angry.” “Follow God’s example.” Adult Leader Teaching Points (6-­‐7 minutes) (Key words to stress: ABSENCE and IMITATE) Bring your students back together and teach through the content below. • Paul tells us that if we follow Jesus, we are children of light. • What is darkness? It’s basically NOTHING. Darkness is just the ABSENCE of light. If we are children of spiritual darkness, we are living in the ABSENCE of God. • Paul says at one time you were darkness. We all have been. Maybe some of you still are. If that’s true for you, maybe you need to ask God to no longer be ABSENT in your life. Let His light in. • Maybe some of you are living in God’s light, but have some dark areas. You just have certain areas where you keep God ABSENT, and you need to let His light in. • In Ephesians 5:1, Paul tells us to follow God’s example. In some translations He says to IMITATE God. 12 • Here are some things about God that we can IMITATE: o 1 John 4:8 – God is love o 2 Peter 3:9 – God is patient o 1 Peter 1:16 – God is holy o Nehemiah 8:10 – God is joyful • If you imitate someone you ACT like them Ask students in your group if they are good at IMITATING anyone. Let them take a swing at some impersonations. • Paul says, “The fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true.” • Paul is simply saying if you IMITATE the God of light, the result will be seen. Being light doesn’t result in being rude, mean, disrespectful or unloving. If you are light, your actions will be good and right and true. This is how we IMITATE or impersonate God. • Then Paul says, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” • So don’t just avoid darkness – expose it. Why? Because light is stronger than darkness. Darkness is simply the ABSENCE of light, and as soon as light shines on it, it is no longer darkness. • When we IMITATE God, we bring his light where it was once ABSENT. Paul Sees the Light (4-­‐5 minutes) Have students read this alone or take turns reading out loud to each other The following story comes from Acts 9:1-­‐19: A long time ago, there was a man named, Saul. He was a devout man. He studied Jewish law and cared deeply about the Old Testament. The only problem was, Saul didn’t think Jesus was God, the one the Old Testament had talked so much about. Because of that, he hated Christians and the Church. He didn’t just dislike them in the way that you dislike homework or Subway. He hated Christianity so much that he would kill Christians. In fact, it became his life mission, and Christians had to scatter from their homes. Everyone knew Saul as the man that hated the Church. He was a villain and feared by all. Just about anyone today who heard the name Darth Vader would immediately think of the evil Galactic Empire or at the least, know him as the ultimate bad guy in Star Wars. In the same way, anyone who heard the name Saul would automatically think of the persecutor and murderer (Cue Star Wars Bad guy music here). 13 This very bad guy was eager to kill Christians, so he went to the high priest and got permission to travel to a town called Damascus. Saul wanted to bring every Christian man and woman from that town back to Jerusalem in chains. However, As Saul was approaching Damascus, a bright light from Heaven blinded him. He heard a voice say, “Saul why are you persecuting me?” It was kind of like Saul got blasted with history’s biggest stun gun. “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. The strong voice responded, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” This experience totally wrecked Saul. He realized all the evil he had been doing, and totally changed his life. In fact, he was so different, that he changed his name to Paul. At first, no one could believe it! His old friends thought it was just a phase and that Paul would be back to his old Darth Vader self soon. Christians thought it might be a trick and he was still out to get them. However, everyone eventually found out that Paul was truly different. What was the changing point for Saul? It was when he saw… THE LIGHT. The LIGHT of God shows us where our evil actions are. The LIGHT of God calls us to live differently. The LIGHT of God changes murderers to missionaries. Paul went on to change the world for Jesus. He wrote a bunch of books, including Ephesians which we are studying this week. If Paul could go from living in such evil darkness to such great light, don’t you think God could help you change from living in darkness to light too? Group Questions (8-­‐10 minutes) Bring your students back together and answer these questions as a group. • • • • • Who was Saul? How did he become known as Paul? Is there anyone in your life who is totally living in darkness? Don’t say their name, but explain why they are in darkness. If Saul, a murderer and hater of Christians, can find the light of Jesus, don’t you think those people in your life can too? Have you ever felt like you’ve done anything that is too big for God to forgive? (Take some time here. Do any of your students have some “dark” actions in their lives that they want to change? Feel free to gently motivate them to share. Teach your students appropriate ways to confess and how to keep these confessions confidential. Take some time to pray for each other) 14 Alone Time in Prayer (5 minutes) Have your students break off and work through the prayer exercise below. • You have been chosen. As chosen children, we act like our Father who is a God of light, not darkness. Write out a prayer to God. Pray to him about your sinful (dark) actions, and ask Him for power to make decisions toward God-­‐like (light) actions. 15 EVENING 2 – DISCUSSION QUESTIONS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: • What was the coolest thing that happened to you today? • What was the funniest thing you saw today? • What has God been talking to you about today? • What’s one thing that stood out to you in tonight’s session? • If you hit the drum tonight, why did you feel led to do so? (If any students haven’t made first time decisions, they will be called to do so. Be prepared to discuss what it means to commit your life to Jesus.) MAIN PRAYER POINT: Ask God to help you imitate Him every day. Thank Him for His grace when you get it wrong. 16 MORNING 3 – GROUP TIME MAIN POINT: Out of reverence for Christ, Kingdom Workers serve and submit to one another. TEXT: Ephesians 5:21-­‐6:9 STUDENT RESPONSE: For students to think of a name of someone they can serve and a specific action they can carry out for that person. Start Off with a Game! (6-­‐7 minutes) “CROSS THE BRIDGE” Assign four students to be characters and act out their parts. Have them stand in a group. Stand 15 feet away from them. Explain that they are on one side of a bridge, and you represent the other side of the bridge. Have one of them hold up their student book. Explain that the student book represents an old lantern. Have those students and everyone else figure out how to solve the following riddle. You’re a team of explorers in Nepal. The team includes: – – – – The Resourceful Worker The Brainiac The Old but Wise The Fearless Leader. On your hunt for a mysterious medallion, you find it being guarded by a group of killer monkeys. The group snatches the medallion, but the killer monkeys begin to chase you. The Resourceful Worker, resourcefully throws a ton of bananas at the monkeys. Though these monkeys would love to eat the team of explorers, the bananas are too good to pass up. The Old but Wise knows this will only distract the monkeys for so long. That’s when you come upon an old rope bridge spanning a massive gorge. Each of you must run or walk across the bridge. This is how long each individual takes to cross the bridge. – – – – The Leader (He’s in good shape): 1 minute The Resourceful (Can keep a pretty good pace): 2 minutes The Brainiac (Not such a great runner): 5 minutes The Wise (He’s super old): 10 minutes The killer monkeys will catch up to your group in just 17 minutes. So you only have that much time to get everyone across and cut the ropes. Unfortunately, the bridge can only hold two people at a time. To make matters worse, it’s so dark out that you can barely see and the old 17 lantern you grabbed along the way only illuminates a tiny area. Can you figure out a way to have everyone escape in time? A Few Important Notes: • • • • • No more than two people can cross the bridge together Anybody crossing must either hold the lantern or stay next to it And any of you can safely wait in the dark on either side of the gorge Most importantly, everyone must be safely across before the killer monkeys arrive. There are no tricks to use here. You can’t swing across, use the bridge as a raft, or befriend the monkeys. At first it may feel that no matter what you do, you’re just a minute or two short on time. But there is a way. The key is to minimalize the time wasted by the two slowest people (the Brainiac and the Wise) by having them cross together. And because you’ll need to take a couple of return trips with the lantern you’ll want to have the fastest people (the Leader, the Resourceful Worker) available to do so. How to win: • • • • • • • • • 0:00. The Leader and the Resourceful Worker run across with the lantern. However, the Leader has to slow down to match the Resourceful Workers pace. 2:00. After two minutes both of you are across. The Leader runs back with the lantern. 3:00. Only three minutes have passed. This is the tricky part. The Old but Wise and the Brainiac cross together. This takes them ten minutes since the Brainiac has to keep slowing down for the Wise. 13:00. By the time they cross, there’s only four minutes left and the Leader is still stuck on the other side of the bridge. But remember, the Resourceful Worker has been waiting on the other side. And she/he is the second fastest of the group. So he/she grabs the lantern from the Brainiac and runs back over to the leader. 15:00. Now with only two minutes left, the two of you make the final crossing. 17:00 As you step on the far side of the gorge, you cut the ropes and collapse the bridge behind you. Just in the nick of time. Give students 5-­‐10 minutes to try to figure out how to get everyone across. Once your students have had a chance to play the game, gather them back together and talk about what they just experienced. If you’d like, use the following as talking points for a good discussion: Were you able to get to the other side? In order to win this game, you had to think about everyone on the team. All members had to work together and SERVE the other, or they wouldn’t have made it. Only two could go at a time, and there were a lot of ways two or three people could have gotten over the bridge, but there was only one way to get everyone over. The leader had to serve everyone else by letting them get to safety first. You can do more when you decide to serve and submit to one another. 18 Review the Journal Questions (8-­‐10 minutes) Let students share the answers they gave to these questions during the morning session. • Imagine you were the richest person on earth and had all the servants you wanted. What would you have them do for you? • If you were a servant for the richest person in the world, what’s the one job you would not want to do? • List as many things as possible that are wrong or messed up in this world. • If everyone served everybody else, how would serving fix each of these problems? • List as many things as possible that are wrong and messed up in your own life. • Would any of them be solved if you served others? • Write down one name of someone to whom you could do a better job of serving. Alone Time in God’s Word (8-­‐10 minutes) Have Students break off and spend some time reading God’s Word. Ephesians 5:21-­‐6:9 • • • • Underline the word “Submit” every time you see it. Draw a heart around the word “Love” every time you see it. Draw a square around the word “Obey” every time you see it. Draw a circle around each different group of people Paul mentions. Adult Leader Teaching Points (6-­‐7 minutes) (Words to stress: SERVE and SUBMIT. Help students understand that no one is left out of serving when we are Kingdom Workers.) • Paul addresses three different relationships during these verses: husbands and wives, children and parents, servants and masters. • No matter who he’s talking to, he has one main point: SUBMIT and SERVE • No one gets to be better than the other in this passage. What Paul is doing here is so important. He’s saying if you’re a wife, your job is to SUBMIT to your husband. (All the girls are like “Say what??”) • But look! Paul says the husband has to SERVE the wife, because they love them the way Jesus loved the Church. Jesus SERVED the Church by DYING for it! 19 • Kids, SERVE and SUBMIT to your parents. (Now everybody is like, “Say what??”) Parents, SERVE and love your kids. So both kids and parents are supposed to respect and SERVE each other. • In Paul’s day, servants were often just employees who were trying to work off a debt. Paul says SERVE and SUBMIT to your masters. However, masters are supposed to respect their servants! • If you ever quote one of these verses to justify why someone needs to SUBMIT to you or SERVE you or to say that you’re in charge, you’ve probably missed the point. • The question isn’t: “Who do I have control over?” The question is: “Who can I sacrificially love and SERVE the same way Jesus loved and SERVED me? “The Not Very Great Escape” (3-­‐4 minutes) Have students read this alone or take turns reading out loud to each other. The following story comes from Acts 16:25-­‐34: Paul and his friend, Silas, were in the town of Philippi. They were teaching and serving the local church, but an angry mob grabbed them and took them before the Roman authorities. They were accused of teaching customs that were illegal for Romans to practice (whatever that means). Paul and Silas were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn’t escape. So the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks. Around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing songs to God. The other prisoners thought this was the weirdest thing, because these men had just been thrown in jail. I mean, is that your first response to getting beat up? Sing some worship music? Then, without warning, their cells began to shake. God had sent an earthquake (like a 10 on the Richter scale)! All the doors opened, and their hand cuffs fell off. They were free! The jailer woke up and immediately saw the doors were open. A quick panic ran down his face. He knew that if the prisoners escaped on his watch, he would be killed by his bosses. In a panic, he took out his sword to end his life. Just as he was doing this, Paul cried out, “Woah! Woah! We’re all here, you have nothing to fear.” The jailer ran inside and collapsed at the feet of Paul and Silas. These prisoners had their chance to escape but didn’t. Shaken up by the earthquake and the men’s kindness, He asked them what he had to do to be saved. Paul told him all about Jesus-­‐-­‐His life, his death, and His resurrection. Paul told the jailer to believe in Jesus. After this, they went to the jailer’s house, and Paul told the man’s family about Jesus. They all immediately 20 got baptized! It was truly amazing. The family fed Paul and Silas and gave them new clothes. These new friends spent the rest of the night praising God. Group Questions (8-­‐9 minutes) Bring your students back together and answer these questions as a group. • • • • If you were Paul and Silas, would you have immediately gotten out of there when the jail doors broke open? How did Paul and Silas serve the Jailer? What was the result of Paul and Silas staying in the jail? Have you ever had a moment where you SERVED someone and saw God use it? Alone Time in Prayer (5 minutes) Have your students break off and work through the prayer exercise below. We were made to serve. Out of reverence for Christ, Kingdom workers serve and submit to one another. • Write down the name of someone you can serve. • Write down one specific action of service you can carry out for that person. • Take some time to pray for that person right now. 21 EVENING 3 – DISCUSSION QUESTIONS TRUTH IN LOVE GAME: Take this evening’s group time to play the following game that will allow your students to speak truth in love with each other. Download the app “Shake ‘Em Dice” to play this game with your students. Roll the dice to find out WHO you’ll be speaking truth in love to! Roll again to find out WHAT you’ll be speaking!
Who:
1 – You say about yourself
2 – Say to the person on your left
3 – Say to the person on your right
4 – HUGS ALL AROUND! 5 – Everyone says to you
6 – You choose someone new
What:
1 – Favorite thing about how God made you
2 – Something we don’t know about you
3 – One thing we can pray about 4 – If Jesus were here, He would say to you …
5 – I like you because …
6 – You’re really good at … MAIN PRAYER POINT: Pray for your youth group. Pray that you will love each other well and always point each other to Jesus. And pray for the adult leader you plan to meet with this year. 22 MORNING 4 – GROUP TIME MAIN POINT: Evil forces are trying to drown out God’s rhythm, but Kingdom workers cannot be silenced. TEXT: Ephesians 6:10-­‐17 STUDENT RESPONSE: For students to point to areas of their lives in which the evil one is trying to shut them up and to understand how each piece of armor protects them from the evil one. Start Off with a Game! (5 minutes) “Haiku Contest” Have every student write a haiku – a Japanese verse in three lines. Line one has FIVE syllables, line two has SEVEN syllables and line three has FIVE syllables. Here’s an example: I really like eggs I like to eat them daily So yellow and soft Let these be silly and fun. The student with the best Haiku wins. But here’s the twist, students must tape their mouths. Have your students put tape over their mouths. One by one, have students read their haiku as dramatically as they can. Once everyone has read their haikus, have students take the tape off their mouths and have them read them again. It’s amazing how much clearer we are when we aren’t being silenced. Tell your students that the point of the game is that the evil one wants to shut you up and keep you where you are, but Jesus wants you to rip that tape off and do Kingdom work. 23 Review the Journal Questions (8-­‐10 minutes) Let students share the answers they gave to these questions during the morning session… • What are your top three biggest fears? (Spiders, Sharks, Clowns) • Talk about a time you faced your fears head on. Have you ever faced a fear head on? (Met a clown, killed a spider) • Write down a definition of Kingdom Work. (The definition we use is “Using our gifts, talents, and abilities to do the work God wants us to do in the world.”) • Sometimes thinking about doing Kingdom Work is scary. What makes you afraid about doing Kingdom Work? • Why would the devil want you to be afraid to do Kingdom Work? Alone Time in God’s Word (8-­‐10 minutes) Have Students break off and spend some time reading God’s Word. Ephesians 6:10-­‐17 • Underline the pieces of the Armor of God in your Bible • Write down the different pieces of the Armor of God in your student book. Beside each of those words, write down the opposite. (example: the opposite of Righteousness is Unrighteousness) Adult Leader Teaching Points (6-­‐7 minutes) (Key phrase to stress: DROWN OUT) Bring your students back together and teach through the content below. • One of the most important parts of joining God’s rhythm is not allowing the evil one to DROWN OUT God’s rhythm in your life. • Paul uses the illustration of us putting on armor because the evil one will attack us. • Often his attack is with the noise of worry, jealousy, depression, or anything else he can use to DROWN OUT God’s rhythm of love. • There’s a Greek myth of a warrior named Achilles. He was Troy’s greatest warrior. The guy couldn’t be defeated. He was essentially invincible, except for his heels. The only part of his body that was open to being attacked was his heels. I know, it sounds silly, but as the myth goes, he was killed by an arrow to his heel. • So think of yourself as Achilles. There are certain areas of your life where you’ll be pretty strong, but there are also areas where you’re week. 24 • That’s why Paul says to put on the whole armor of God. So no matter if you’re strong or weak, you’ll be protected. No matter how the evil one tries to DROWN OUT God’s rhythm, you’ll always hear it and will always play along. *** THIS IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU AS THE ADULT LEADER to give a personal story how the evil one has tried to DROWN OUT your faith and how God showed you His rhythm. This can be uncomfortable for some leaders, but choose your story wisely. Students don’t need to know all your weaknesses, but it can be very good for them to see how you work through your own flaws as a Kingdom Worker striving after God. “Keep On Keeping On” (3-­‐4 minutes) Have students read this alone or take turns reading out loud to each other. The following story comes from 2 Corinthians 11:23-­‐38 & Acts 14:19-­‐20. If anyone knew about the evil one trying to drown out God’s rhythm, it would be Paul. He talks in his second letter to the Christians in Corinth of all the trials and pain he’s gone through while being a Kingdom Worker. Paul was frequently thrown in prison, flogged severely, had been close to death countless times, whipped on 5 separate occasions (each time he was whipped 39 times), and beaten with rods 3 times. This one time, Paul was pelted with stones and thought to be dead. The town people dragged him out of the city and left him for dead. No joke, the Bible says Paul got up and went back into the town, preached the Gospel, and made many disciples. That’s not it though, he was shipwrecked 3 times, spent the night adrift in the open sea. He moved constantly without a home. He was in danger from wild rivers, bandits, and found himself in tricky situations in the city, in the wilderness, at sea, and with false believers. He often went without sleep, without food, without water. He had been cold and hot. That’s just the physical ways that he had struggled. Mentally and emotionally, he constantly was concerned about all the churches and people that he had been traveling to and teaching about Jesus. To sum it up, Paul’s life was difficult. Yet he knew one thing, Kingdom Workers cannot be silenced no matter how difficult the situation or how the evil one tried to shut him up. Group Discussion Questions (7-­‐8 minutes) Bring your students back together and answer these questions as a group. • • What is something Paul went through that you would NEVER want to go through? Try to imagine a world where Kingdom Workers didn’t play God’s rhythm—where no one stood up for Jesus or did the hard work of showing the world His love. In your student books, write two or three sentences describing what the world would be like. 25 • • Why does Satan want you to not play God’s beat? Where are places in your life that you can play God’s rhythm? Alone Time in Prayer (5 Minutes) Have your students break off and work through the prayer exercise below. You were never meant to be silent. Evil forces are trying to drown out God’s rhythm, but Kingdom Workers cannot be silenced. • Write down every area of your life that the evil one is using to shut you up. Go through the armor of God, and ask Him to give you each piece of the armor. 26 EVENING 4 – DISCUSSION QUESTIONS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: • What was the coolest thing that happened to you today? • What was the funniest thing you saw today? • What has God been talking to you about today? • What’s one thing that stood out to you in tonight’s session? • How do you plan on sharing the rhythm of Jesus with the person you wrote down? (Students will be challenged to share Jesus with someone who doesn’t know Him. Be prepared to field some initial questions about sharing your faith.) MAIN PRAYER POINT: Pray that God gives you the words to speak to the person you are wanting to tell about Jesus. 27