Sr. High Parents Update – Oct 3rd
Moses … Alligator Bait
Oct 3 2012
Looking over Moses’ life, we see that God did great things in and through him and that God had a plan from the beginning. We can see that God had a plan for Moses’ life and that He carried out that plan despite the attempt on his life as a child being thrown into the river as Alligator bait. The fact that God has a plan for our lives is just as true for us today as it was for Moses. As we seek to figure out what the future holds for our lives it is important to remember that God has a plan and it is the best plan possible. A huge way to go to a “Whole Nutha Level” is to discover and follow God’s plan for our lives and follow itrather than become Alligator bait.
Goals…
- To build relationship and trust with your group
- To discuss that future and think about it
- To remind the students that God has a plan for their lives
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…
- What are some of your dreams or desires for the future?
- Do you think that your dreams or desires are God honouring?
- What are some benefits or positives of discovering and following God’s plan for your life?
- What are some of the reasons why people may divert from following God’s plan?
- What is the enemy’s pan for your life?
- What are some ways to ensure that you don’t follow his plan for your life?
- It is obviously a challenge to discover God’s plan for your life …
- Is there any advice that you can give to each other about how to do that?
- What about when things do not make sense … how do you stick to the plan?
- What do you think it means to “take control of your life by giving up control?”
Personal…
- You could share a time in your life when life did not make sense and you trusted God anyways and you saw Him work within that situation
- You could share about a time where you pursued your own selfish goals rather than God’s and what you learned from that
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- Discuss some ways in which you can include God in your decisions
Key Scriptures …
Jer 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Exodus 1 and 2
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Sr. High Parents Update – September 26
Enjoy sin or Enjoy God
Sept 26 2012
We have the choice in our lives whether we will dive into the things of this world and “enjoy sin” or whether we will resist that temptation and “Enjoy God.” Running after God and pursuing relationship with Him involves sacrifice and focus, but there is also enjoyment. Too many times we focus our attention on what we have to give up in order to serve God rather than what it means to enjoy God. There is true fulfillment and enjoyment in relationship with Christ. Let’s look at what it means to enjoy God and take your relationship with Him to a “Whole Nutha Level.” Here are some of the questions that the leaders may have covered in small groups this week.
Goals…
- To build relationship and trust with your group
- To focus the students attention on what it means to “enjoy God”
- To remind the students that “enjoying God” involves sacrifice
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…
- What are some of the big sinful things in this world that are tempting or appealing for teenagers to “ENJOY?”
- What are some of the sacrifices that youth would need to make in order to enjoy God?
- Does it seem sometimes like you are missing out on the fun things that your friends are doing?
- What are some of those things and why do they look fun?
- Thinking of the image of the puzzle … would you agree or disagree that you were created for relationship with God?
- Share with each other some of the things that you enjoy about living for God
- What did you think about the time after the message?
- What sacrifices would you need to make in order to make room for something like that in your everyday life
Personal…
- You could share some things that you enjoy about serving God
- You could share about a mistake that you made in the past and how it was not as fulfilling or fun as you thought it would be
Applications…
- Pray with your students
- Talk through some things that they could do this week in order to “enjoy God”
- Talk through some sacrifices that they could make this week in order to pursue God in a new way
Key Scriptures …
Genesis 1:27
“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
Hebrews 12:1
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
John 10:10
“The thief comes only to steal kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”
Matt 7:13-14
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
more infoSr High Update – June 13
Parents,
As we look at some of the teachings of Jesus it changes our perspective on how we view things. While Jesus was on this earth He used things around him at times to teach lessons. One of those things that Jesus used was a tree. He used it to explain a deep lesson about what it means to be a follower of Christ and to dig our roots in deep. Please take a look at some of the small group material that we covered this week.
Goals…
- To take a look at Jesus’ teaching about the tree
- To gain a better understanding of how this applies to our lives
- To be a strength and support to the students
Conversation Starters…
- High’s and lows
- Did anything stick out from the message that you had questions about?
Dig a Little Deeper…
- Review what the tree and the fruit and the roots represent
- What is the importance of the root system and how does it affect the tree?
- Take a look at the different root systems and ask some of the following questions
- (Bad, unbalanced, and shallow root system)
- How do the roots affect the fruit?
- What are some negatives of being this type of tree?
- What are some things that someone with this type of spiritual root system could do to become healthier?
- What is appealing about a healthy root system and what can you do to develop that in your own life?
- What is the significance of a tree planted by the stream as opposed to in a field? (Psalm 1:3)
Personal…
- You could share some of the things that you do in order to grow your roots deeper
- You could talk about how this principle has played out in your own life
Applications…
- Pray for your students that they would be able to grow deeper roots and become healthier
Scriptures …
Matthew 12:33
33 “A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.
Psalm 1:1-3
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Jr. High Parents Update – May 29th
SMALL GROUPS May 29th, 2012
Listen Up! – Week 4 – Called to Love
PARENT EDITION:
We’re almost to the end of our spring semester! Hasn’t it just flown by? This will be the last week of our series on what it means to hear from God and understand his calling on our lives. For the final week I wanted to tie together two different concepts we’ve been talking about; God’s calling, and our worship towards Him. We’re talking about God’s calling on our lives to love. Often we can become very self centered in the way that we love. We tend to love ourselves before we truly love God and love others. This week we want to help our Jr. Highs understand the importance of loving others and God before they love themselves, and if they can accomplish that, they will truly learn how to love themselves in a very healthy way. God has called each of us to love, and we want to be able to do that the best that we can.
Question 1: Bernard Clairvaux in his book “On the Love of God”, talks about how when we only love ourselves, it takes crisis or calamity in our lives to truly learn to love God. Do you agree or disagree? Why?
Question 2: How can God’s calling on our lives to Love be truly reflected in our families? Would it change anything from the way it is now?
Question 3: Do you think that you’ve been a great example to your kids on what it means to love others? Including your enemies?
Question 4: How can you continue to be a good example to your family on what it means to love God before self?
HOW CAN WE PRAY?
- That our students will start to love God and others more and more everyday.
- That as parents, God will grant you the opportunities to show your students how to love God and others.
- That our leaders will have the wisdom to guide their students towards their calling to love.
LEADERS:
This is the last week in our series on what it means to hear God’s voice, and understand His calling. For our last week we’re going to be discussing the calling that we have on our lives to love. Very often we find that we are very inwardly focused on the way that we love, and very often forget that we’re called to love God and others. This week we’re going to discuss this with our Jr. Highs and challenge them to remember others before the remember themselves. We live in a very selfish society where we focus on loving ourselves. When we are able to love God and others first, then we will develop a good love for ourselves, based on the love that God has for us as our creator.
Question 1: Go around the room and give a High and Low from last week.
Question 2: In your own words, what does it mean to be called by God to do something?
Question 3: What opportunities in your own life do you have everyday to love? Loving others, loving God, loving yourself?
Question 4: How can it be healthy to love yourself?
Question 5: Since we talked about worship in April, how do you think the idea of love fits into worship?
Question 6: How will you make sure that you respond to God’s calling in your life to love?
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
1 John 4:7-9
Go around the room and encourage each one of your students to do their best to listen for God’s voice this week. Encourage a few of your students to pray for the rest of the group.
more infoJr. High Parents Update – May 22nd
SMALL GROUPS May 22nd, 2012
Listen Up! – Week 3 – God’s Calling
PARENT EDITION:
This is our third week of our series called Listen Up! This week we’re continuing to talk about hearing God’s voice, but moving our focus to God’s calling for our lives. As parents, you will most likely have a lot more experience with thinking and praying about your life’s calling from God. Most times the concept of discovering God’s calling for our lives is lost on Jr. Highs. Our goal as parents and leaders is to help our Jr. Highs discover God’s calling for their lives. Often these callings can be both very specific, as well as quite general. We’re all going to realize God’s calling for our lives in different ways, but we want to enable our Jr. Highs to figure that out for themselves.
Question 1: When in the past have you heard God’s calling for your life? What was He telling you?
Question 2: In what way did you discover God’s calling on your life? How did God speak to you? Did you tell anyone about it, or keep it to yourself?
Question 3: Do you think that God is continuously calling you to different things? Maybe a calling to continue to parent well?
Question 4: How would you explain to your Jr. High how they can hear God’s voice and discover a calling for their lives?
HOW CAN WE PRAY?
- That our students will start to discover God’s calling on their lives.
- That as parents, God will grant you the opportunities to show your students how to listen for God’s voice.
- That our leaders will have the wisdom to guide their students towards God’s calling on their lives.
SMALL GROUPS May 22nd, 2012
Listen Up – Week 3 – God’s Calling
LEADERS:
We’re now in our third week in hearing God’s voice. This week we’re going to focus on the calling that God has on our lives. Though even as young adults, we aren’t always sure of what God is calling us to do, it is always important to start to listen for God’s calling on our lives, even though we might be scared of what we might hear. For Jr. Highs, the concept of knowing God’s call on their life is completely out there, but as leaders, we need to encourage our students that it’s never to early to start to listen for what God is calling them to do in their lives. Though God might not reveal very specific callings for their lives, He WILL reveal a calling on their lives.
Question 1: Go around the room and give a High and Low from last week.
Question 2: Have you ever felt like God is revealing a calling on your life? What was that calling?
Question 3: Do you ever get scared that God is going to call you to do something that you might not want to do?
Question 4: Do you get excited for what God is calling you to do? Are you happy to follow God’s calling or more hesitant?
Question 5: Did you have an opportunity this week to cut out the noise in your life to hear God’s voice? What was that like?
“28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28
Go around the room and encourage each one of your students to do their best to listen for God’s voice this week. Encourage a few of your students to pray for the rest of the group.
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Jr. High Parents Update – May 15th
SMALL GROUPS May 15th, 2012
Listen Up! – Week 2 – Quiet
PARENT EDITION:
This is the second week in our series called Listen Up! Last week we discussed the importance of hearing from God, but how hard it can be because often times we don’t know how to hear from Him. This week we’re talking about the noise in our lives, and how it can distract us from hearing from God. In 1 Kings we see a story about Elijah wanted to talk to God, and going up a a mountain to wait for Him. God doesn’t come in the wind, or the earthquake, or the fire, but he comes in the silence with a still small voice. We want our Jr. Highs to see that sometimes it’s good to shut everything off around them and just listen for what God is trying to tell them.
Question 1: As a parent, do you ever have time to shut everything off around you and listen to what God is trying to tell you?
Question 2: What types of things in your life stop you from shutting things down from time to time to listen for God’s voice?
Question 3: Do you ever try and do things to enable your Jr. Highs to listen for God’s voice in the silence? What kinds of things do you think you can do?
Question 4: What can you do to make more of a conscious effort to teach your student how to listen for God’s voice?
HOW CAN WE PRAY?
- That our students will start to understand that it is possible to hear God’s voice and have two-way conversations with Him.
- That as parents, God will grant you the opportunities to show your students how to listen for God’s voice.
- That our leaders will be able to answer questions that our students have on the topic of listening to God’s voice.
SMALL GROUPS May 15th, 2012
Listen Up – Week 2 – Quiet
LEADERS:
This is the second week in our series on what it means to hear from God. When I was younger, one of the things that influenced the direction of my life was a video called Noise by Nooma. As I watched this ten minute clip, I realized that the way I was trying to listen for God was way off, and my relationship drastically changed. This week we’re going to show this clip to our Jr. Highs. Though I know not all 120 Jr. Highs will be affected the same way I was, I’m hoping that many of our Jr. Highs realize that despite all the noise in their everyday lives, they have an opportunity to shut things down and listen for God’s voice.
Question 1: Go around the room and give a High and Low from last week.
Question 2: Did you have an opportunity to take some time to listen for God’s voice this week? What was he telling you?
Question 3: When was the last time you weren’t watching TV, on your computer, on your phone, playing games and sat in total silence? How hard as that to do?
Question 4: Why do you think that our society is so fixated on noise, and always being plugged in to different technologies?
Question 5: How hard do you think that it would be to shut everything off and spend time listen for God’s voice every day? Do you think you could do it?
“11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.”
1 Kings 19:11-13
Go around the room and encourage each one of your students to do their best to listen for God’s voice this week. Encourage a few of your students to pray for the rest of the group.
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