Sr. High Parents Update – November 21
Baggage – Week 3
Nov 21th 2012
Camping is something that is enjoyable for some people. Those people that enjoy it realize that it is a ton of work. For those who don’t like it, the thought of loading up a backpack with a tent and sleeping and eating canned beans and hiking through the woods is very unappealing. Sometimes living life as a teenager can feel like a camping trip where you have your backpack loaded with things and the journey is getting tough and exhausting. It is a good opportunity for you to stop and take inventory of what is in your backpack and look to God to carry that load and that burden for you. As we look at the life of Jeremiah we see God at work in a similar way in his life. We also see how God carried the load that Jeremiah was had and gave him the strength that he needed to carry on with God’s plan.
Goals…
- To build relationship and trust with your group
- To understand the work that God did in Jeremiah’s life
- To give our students an opportunity to look their own life through the lens of this story
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Do you have any good camping stories?
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- God called Jeremiah to do things
- What are some things that God calls you and I to?
- What are some what are some excuses that Jeremiah made?
- What are some excuses that we make?
- What did God do to help Jeremiah?
- What are some things that God does or can do to help us?
- What are some things that are in your suitcase that you think that you need to deal with?
- Why is it better to give these heavy things to God rather than carry them yourself?
- In what ways do you think God could “lighten the load” that you carry?
- Are you worried or nervous about what God has called us to as His followers?
- Do you think that God always “carries” to load for us or sometimes does He give us the strength to carry it on our own?
Personal…
- You could share a time in your life when you felt like you were insecure about something and God helped you through that
- You could share about a time when you asked God to carry your burdens and He did
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- Encourage them to give their burdens to God
Key Scriptures …
Jeremiah 1:6-10
“Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”
But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.
Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”
1 Peter 5:7
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you
Sr High Parent’s Update – November 14
Baggage – Week 2
Nov 14th 2012
Baggage is something that we’re all faced with. We often hold onto our sin, and it weighs us down. We want to run the race, and we want to win the prize, but the weight of our past. Paul, in the new testament tells the church in Corinth that they need to run in such a way as to win the prize. With all the weight, bringing us down, how are we supposed to win the the race and the prize? In Psalm 55, we’re invited to cast our burdens upon God. We serve a forgiving God, who is constantly inviting us to give him all our issues, fears, etc. Our goal as small group leaders is to demonstrate what it means to give our burdens to God, and to show our students that they have the opportunity to accept God’s grace, no matter what.
Goals…
- To build relationship and trust with your group
- To understand the idea of God’s forgiveness and grace.
- To give our students an opportunity to cast their burdens and baggage on God
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Some kind of fun things to get them focused
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- Sometimes it can be really difficult to cast our burdens upon Christ. Why do you think that is?
- Why do you think God wants us to cast our burdens upon him?
- Grace is incredible concept, and we truly don’t deserve what God gives to us. How should we thank God for the grace that he gives us.
- Do you think we can be weighed down by things other than what we talked about tonight already? What kind of baggage can we be weighed down with in our lives?
- Can you name someone in your life that does an awesome job of giving their baggage to God so that they can run the race? How do you think that they do it?
- Other than the verse in Psalm 55 we talked about, how do we know that God wants us to give him our baggage?
Personal…
- You could share a time in your life when you were able to get rid of some baggage, and the feeling of being free from your past sins.
- You could share about a time when you tried to live life with baggage, and how it was difficult.
Applications…
- Pray with your students
Key Scriptures …
Psalm 55:22 (MSG)
Pile your troubles on God’s shoulders—
he’ll carry your load, he’ll help you out.
He’ll never let good people
topple into ruin.
1 Corinthians 9:24-25 (NLT)
24 Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.
Sr High Parent’s Update – November 7
Slavery Abroad and at Home
Nov 7 2012
Leaders,
This week’s content and topic is heavy as we learn about Slavery abroad and right here at home in Canada. During your discussion time some students might feel pumped up to do something- fundraise, raise awareness, start campaigns for the work of International Justice Mission- that’s great! Encourage and Brainstorm ideas and then put those ideas into ACTION. Other students may be very quiet and look a bit put off or scared about something- be sensitive. As I talk about the human trafficking piece in Canada I have no doubts that some of our students have either been in a situation, know someone who has been trafficked or are living in abusive homes. This topic will hit some nerves but that is where you must be intuitive and looking at your students with compassion to know when to pull someone aside and speak in private. You may have students tell you of a friend, family member or someone from school they know of involved in prostitution, or giving sexual favors- encourage them to befriend those people: love on them like Jesus, listen to them with full attention and seek help(ASAP). Most human trafficking victims do not self-identify but once you know the signs you can see it. I’m also available for any guidance and so is Kevin.
~ Sharon
Goals…
- To get to know your group and build relationships
- To raise awareness about human trafficking
- To think through what we can do in response
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- As a Christian- what are you feeling as you hear that there might be girls in your school, neighborhood, families who could be victims of human trafficking?
- What would you do if you knew of someone who needed help?
- Are there things in your past- abuse of any kind that may leave you vulnerable? What are you hiding that you need to deal with now before someone else takes advantage of you?
- Our past is the past but it’s our choices now that determine are future. What do you need to change?
- Who in your life right now needs help? Who could be vulnerable to the snares of the sex trade? What should you do?
- Advise your students: to tell their parents, seek help from school authorities and call the police and/or crime stoppers!
Personal…
- Make yourself available to talk after for any students who may need to talk or pray
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- What are some needs that you have?
- Encourage the students to pray for those affected
Key Scriptures …
Jeremiah 9:24
…but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the LORD.
Proverbs 31:8,9
8 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
9 Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Proverbs 21:15
“When Justice is done it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.”
Micah 6:8
“He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
more infoSr. High Parent’s Update – October 24
Gideon
Oct 24 2012
In our desire to understand God in a new and fresh way, it is very helpful to see how people in the bible interacted with Him. As we look at the life of Gideon and the situation that he was faced with we can learn a ton of things about God. Gideon stood up for what was right and saw God work in his life. Through Gideon’s life, many people were impacted. It is so cool to see how God walked with Gideon every step of the way and there is a ton that we can learn as we desire to see God at work in our own lives.
Goals…
- To get to know your group and build relationships
- To become familiar with this story of Gideon and the Midianites
- To gain a better understanding of God through this story
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Did you have battles with army men when you were a kid?
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- Israel was in a cycle of sin … repentance … they cry out for help … God helps … then they sin again.
- What are some of the dangers of this type of cycle?
- What are some ways to stay out of this cycle?
- As you read scripture, you see that God did many things that are miraculous
- Do you think that some of these things can happen today?
- Have you ever seen God work in your life in this way?
- Gideon had a POSITION of humility before God
- Do you find it easy or difficult to be humble?
- What is so damaging about being prideful?
- Gideon was in PURSUIT of God
- What are some benefits of pursuing God?
- Have you ever felt that God was communicating to you?
- Gideon experienced the PRESENCE of God
- Have you ever sensed God’s presence before?
- Do you desire to see God’s presence in your life?
- Gideon did some PREPARATION by destroying idols
- How would sin hold someone back from seeing God at work in their lives?
- What would some benefits be of pursuing holiness?
- Gideon surrendered to God’s PLAN by cutting the army down from 32 000 to 300
- Why do you think that God did this?
- What do you think that Gideon was thinking during this time?
- What can we learn from Gideon’s experience?
Personal…
- You could share about something that God has done in your life
- You could share how it has been difficult for you at times to trust God
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- What are some needs that you have?
- Discuss some practical ways that this message will change how we live
Key Scriptures …
Judges 6:1 – 7:25
Sr. High Parents Update – October 17th
God Loves Us
Oct 17 2012
There are many different views and perceptions about God and who He is and what He does. One of the main things that we know about God is that He is Love. The topic of God’s love is huge and there are many ways to look at it and describe it. As we look at the topic of God’s love through the lens of the book of Hosea, we discover many things. Also, a fresh understanding of God’s love should change the way we behave and treat others around us.
Goals…
- To get to know your group and build relationships
- To wrap our minds around the fact that God loves us
- To take what we have learned and challenge the youth to do something with that
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Some kind of fun things to get them focused
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- God loves you … what does that mean to you?
- What did you learn tonight about Hosea?
- How does the relationship between Hosea and his wife have anything to do with the relationship between you and God?
- What does it mean that God is in pursuit of you and me?
- Does this understanding of God’s love change how we view those around us?
- God loves you … how should that change the way you live?
- Do you think your friends at school care whether God loves them or not?
Personal…
- You could share a time in your life when you discovered something about God’s love
- You could share about a time when you shared your faith with someone
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- What are some needs that you have
- Discuss some practical ways that this message will change how we live
Key Scriptures …
Hosea 1-3
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
1 John 4:10
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
more infoSr. High Parents Update – Oct 10
God With Us
Oct 10 2012
In seeking to understand the God of the Bible in a deeper way, we need to understand that God is always with us. We learn from the Israelites how God was with them and was their guide through the wilderness. The same is true for us today as we seek to navigate our way through life with all the distractions. We need to realize that God is with us and look to Him for guidance rather than the things of this world.
Goals…
- To build relationship and trust with your group
- To wrap our minds around the fact that God is with us
- To remind the students to focus on God and not to get distracted
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Some kind of fun things to get them focused
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- “God is with us” … is it easy or difficult for you to wrap your mind around that statement?
- God led the Israelites with the fire and the cloud.
- Exodus 40:36-38
- What do you think it would have been like to see that?
- In what ways does He lead us today?
- What are some ways that you stay focused on God?
- What are some ways that you remind yourself that God is with you?
- Why do you think the Israelites made that Idol?
- Exodus 32:1-6
- What are some big things that are “distractions” or “idols” that teenagers could get focused on rather than God?
- What benefits could there be to gaining a better understanding of God during this series?
Personal…
- You could share a time in your life when you were very aware that God was with you
- You could share about a time when you got distracted and how you got your attention back onto God
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- Discuss some practical ways in which can stay focused on God
Key Scriptures …
Matt 28:20
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Exodus 40:36-38
“In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels.”
Exodus 32:8
“They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf.”
Exodus 32:20
“And he took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire.”
Exodus 32:1-6
more info