We're still in our Foundations series, but we are nearing the end. This past Sunday (11/25/07) we looked at the Holy Spirit. First off, remember when we studied that Jesus Christ is a part of a Holy Trinity? The beginning of the Gospel of John tells us that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was there since the beginning of time. So was the Holy Spirit. You could describe the relationship of the Holy Spirit like saying, "me, myself, and I". You could also say it is like water with 3 different states- gas, liquid, solid. Neither quite does the trick, but they give you an idea.
Now keep in mind, there are atleast 100 Scripture passages that talk about or reference the Holy Spirit. Obviously we cannot look at all 0f them, but I believe we hit a pertinent few of those.A couple of those passages are in the Gospel of John. The first passage (14:25-27) teaches us an important thing. The Holy Spirit is there to teach us. To remind us of the teachings of Jesus. This was particularly important for His followers that were with Him while walking on this earth. Although they didn't quite understand what would happen, it would all make sense after Jesus Christ was crucified and resurrected.
The second passage in John (16:12-15). Once again, it shows that the Holy Spirit will be a teacher, a guide. But it also reveals a bit of its character. It says the Spirit will bring glory to the Son. One of the roles of the Spirit is that of a servant. We bring Jesus Christ glory only through the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Whether it is worshipping Him in song, bringing Him glory through our job or schoolwork, or serving others. It is only the Holy Spirit working in our lives that lets us do so.
Next we looked at Romans 8:9-17. Here we mark the changes that happen in us as a result of the Holy Spirit. We are made alive. Our spirit is made alive. Fear does not control us (v 15). This is how we "have life, and have it to the full".
To finish off, we played a game called 2 Truths and a Lie. This is another type of get-to-know-you game, but it also illustrates a couple characteristics of the Holy Spirit. What you do is write down three statements about yourself. Obviously two of them are true and one of them is a lie. The point is not to make it obvious which one is a lie because the rest of the group guesses which one is the lie. You can do this in teams or just have everyone else guess if you have a small group.
Just as you discern what is truth and what is a lie, so does the Holy Spirit as you come to choices in your life. It also tells us about the knowledge the Holy Spirit can give us. The game has you make statements about yourself because obviously, you know the most about yourself. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, so it knows the most about God. The Holy Spirit is the best resource to learn more about who God is (I Cor 2:6-16).
I hope we all strive to live more according to the Holy Spirit to grow intimacy with God and give Him glory.
Showing posts with label game. Show all posts
Showing posts with label game. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Fellowship/ Community
What a big topic for me personally! I try to get involved with a variety of communities whenever I can. At this church building, we are blessed to have three church communities. We rent space from Meadows Baptist Church, an English-speaking church. There is also a Spanish-speaking church that rents space. In addition to that, there is Meadows Community Services and Awana. My prayer is for there to be more opportunities for these different communities to spend more time together.
We looked at the way community worked in Acts 4:32-35. Then I brought up more points on community with games and a familiar movie clip. There are two major points I brought up from the passage in Acts. One is that the community was devoted to testifying of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That's probably the most important thing of any Christian community. The rest of the passage combines into one big important aspect of community. They shared everything. Possessions and money were distributed to those who needed it. They spent time together each day so they knew each other.
The first game we played, Who's Your Neighbor, illustrates that last point in a playful way. The idea, of course, is knowing each other. I think any serious community needs to get together outside of their normal meeting place to get stronger. The second game we played is Whatever It Takes. Great game to illustrate a negative aspect of a community or group of people. Sometimes we alienate outsiders without even realizing it. In fact, that's just what was written about in a youth ministry ezine I read. Check out the article here.
Finally, we saw a familiar clip from Coach Carter. It is a PG-13 movie with language and other adult situations, but this scene has a good point in it. Timo Cruz attacked Coach Carter during his first meeting with the team. When we wants to get back on the team, Carter assigns 1000 suicides and 2500 pushups to be completed in a week's time. At the end of the week when he can't complete it, the other players step in to finish the assignment before Friday's practice is over. "You said we're a team...right. If one player struggles, we all struggle. If one player triumphs, we all triumph." I think that quote from Lyle (one of the teammates) says it all.
Outreach weekend
This past weekend before Thanksgiving, our church had an outreach event. It was a great success! Several people dedicated their lives to the Lord. The teaching was solid. Atleast that's what I heard since I was with the youth and kids the whole time!
On Friday night (11/16/07) we spent a good deal of time in the gym. We finally had our first official game of Scatterball, a crazy game of dodgeball where you can add several twists to it. It's a lot of fun with a lot of people. We had about 10 youth and 10 younger kids there. We used 4 balls.
Afterwards, I sat them down for a short devotional. With Thanksgiving coming up, I focused on that. What are we thankful for? Hopefully our family and friends. Our home and the food we eat. Possessions. It's good to be thankful for these things and people. But as believers, we must switch our focus to who provides these things and people. We must always be thankful to God for our family, friends, and possessions at all times, and especially around Thanksgiving. In 2 Chronicles 31, it talks about how King Hezekiah took away all obstacles to worshipping God. They devoted themselves to the Law of the Lord (v 4) and provided many sacrifices to the Lord.
I encourage everyone around Thanksgiving to do the same and devote themselves to the Lord. Thank Him for the blessings in your life. Spend quality time with family and friends.
On Friday night (11/16/07) we spent a good deal of time in the gym. We finally had our first official game of Scatterball, a crazy game of dodgeball where you can add several twists to it. It's a lot of fun with a lot of people. We had about 10 youth and 10 younger kids there. We used 4 balls.
Afterwards, I sat them down for a short devotional. With Thanksgiving coming up, I focused on that. What are we thankful for? Hopefully our family and friends. Our home and the food we eat. Possessions. It's good to be thankful for these things and people. But as believers, we must switch our focus to who provides these things and people. We must always be thankful to God for our family, friends, and possessions at all times, and especially around Thanksgiving. In 2 Chronicles 31, it talks about how King Hezekiah took away all obstacles to worshipping God. They devoted themselves to the Law of the Lord (v 4) and provided many sacrifices to the Lord.
I encourage everyone around Thanksgiving to do the same and devote themselves to the Lord. Thank Him for the blessings in your life. Spend quality time with family and friends.
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Unity with different parts
For Youth Group Friday night (6/8/07) we went over the first couple part of Ephesians 4.
First we did a couple games/activities. We played the human knot, which apparently, you need more than 7 people to make it a challenge. I thought it would be a little harder with 7 people, but we figured it out in a couple of minutes. Next we played a game where the group has to work together to create different shapes. We started off easy with a triangle, then went on to more complicated ones, including the shape of the U.S.A.! Hopefully, you see the idea of these games with the themes we studied in Ephesians 4.
Are there people that annoy that are perhaps different than you? We cannot let these things break us apart. A great movie scene that shows this theme is found in Remember the Titans. The Titans have already come back from camp and are about to play their first game. Coach Boone speaks about unity between all the players despite differences, particularly racial divides. He says, "Nothing. Nothing tears us apart." He got them to come together in part by having them spend time together and learn about teammates of another race. That is what we need to do. Pray for our enemies (or those that just annoy us) and make the effort to spend time with them.
The other major theme has to do with our different roles as the body of Christ. A more complete passage on this can be found in I Corinthians 12. There is no way we fulfill the Great Comission (found in Matthew 28:18-20) on our own. Going to all nation, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and discipling believers? No way! We might as well not even try as individuals. But as the body of Christ, we can do so much more and fulfill so many roles to express the fullness of Christ.
Haven't gotten along well with someone lately? See potential in a new friendship or collaboration? Give it up to God. Initiate. The results may surprise you (hopefully for the better!)
The other major theme has to do with our different roles as the body of Christ. A more complete passage on this can be found in I Corinthians 12. There is no way we fulfill the Great Comission (found in Matthew 28:18-20) on our own. Going to all nation, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and discipling believers? No way! We might as well not even try as individuals. But as the body of Christ, we can do so much more and fulfill so many roles to express the fullness of Christ.
Haven't gotten along well with someone lately? See potential in a new friendship or collaboration? Give it up to God. Initiate. The results may surprise you (hopefully for the better!)
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
A Prayer for the Ephesians
Youth Group on Friday, June 1, 2007:
Games and Activities- With many youth around, we were able to play a couple of fun games. First was shuffle your butt, where someone is it in the middle, and they have to try and take a seat in the circle. The players sitting down avoid the person in the middle from sitting by "shuffling their butt." Next, we got to play another pretty hysterical round of "I've never..." Then we got on with the devotional.
Do you believe in miracles? Is there something that you either witnessed or heard an account of that cannot be explained in human terms? This was the topic of our discussion last Friday. I told a story of how Amber, a friend of mine, went on a mission trip to India. There she met a man who was unable to walk most, if not all, of his life. Amber commanded the man to walk in the name of Jesus- and HE GOT UP AND WALKED!
Paul's prayer to the Ephesians in chapter 3, verses 14-21 include this idea. He prays that the power of the Spirit would strengthen them, that they would know how high, long, wide, and deep the love of Christ is. At the end of this prayer, Paul says that Christ is able to do more than we can possibly know or imagine, and He is at work within us.
A couple other places in the gospels relay this sort of power we have in Christ. A parable Jesus says states that if we have the faith the size of a mustard seed we will be able to move a mountain. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says with faith, we will do greater works than He.
To sum this all up- if we are inside of God's will, put our faith in Him, and give Him the glory, we can to mighty works for the Lord. This is my prayer for all of us.
Games and Activities- With many youth around, we were able to play a couple of fun games. First was shuffle your butt, where someone is it in the middle, and they have to try and take a seat in the circle. The players sitting down avoid the person in the middle from sitting by "shuffling their butt." Next, we got to play another pretty hysterical round of "I've never..." Then we got on with the devotional.
Do you believe in miracles? Is there something that you either witnessed or heard an account of that cannot be explained in human terms? This was the topic of our discussion last Friday. I told a story of how Amber, a friend of mine, went on a mission trip to India. There she met a man who was unable to walk most, if not all, of his life. Amber commanded the man to walk in the name of Jesus- and HE GOT UP AND WALKED!
Paul's prayer to the Ephesians in chapter 3, verses 14-21 include this idea. He prays that the power of the Spirit would strengthen them, that they would know how high, long, wide, and deep the love of Christ is. At the end of this prayer, Paul says that Christ is able to do more than we can possibly know or imagine, and He is at work within us.
A couple other places in the gospels relay this sort of power we have in Christ. A parable Jesus says states that if we have the faith the size of a mustard seed we will be able to move a mountain. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says with faith, we will do greater works than He.
To sum this all up- if we are inside of God's will, put our faith in Him, and give Him the glory, we can to mighty works for the Lord. This is my prayer for all of us.
Monday, May 28, 2007
The Mystery of Christ
Friday (5/25/07) was pretty fun. Before I get into that- just a quick note that we did not have too much going on for Sunday, 5/27, so there will not be another blog for that.
For youth group Friday night we started out with the pyramid. After getting some reluctant volunteers and then some switching later on, we finally formed a 6-person pyramid. After that we did a poetry activity, passing it on writing one line at a time without seeing the previous lines. It makes for interesting results that usually do not make too much sense. Some were still fun to read.
I opened the discussion by asking if the youth ever had a time where their peers or parents would not tell them somthing they wanted to know. Of course, this has happened in everyone's life before. Imagine a whole generation, or even generations, not knowing something. God has the perfect timing on when we should know things. And perhaps the biggest example of all is the mystery of Christ Paul says was revealed to him in Ephesians 3:2-6
"2Surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you, 3that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. 4In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. 6This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus."
God revealed that the Gentiles would receive salvation in the Old Testament. But the revelation through Paul is that the Gentiles would become equal heirs with the Jews! Amazing. In fact, that reminds me one of Jesus's teaching in Matthew, the Parable of the Workers Paid Equally. Read through it and I'm sure you'll see the connection.
I also brought up an idea from this passage in Ephesians that a friend told me a couple of weeks ago. It takes this idea of the mystery of Christ even further. Not only did all persons up to the time of Jesus' life not know, but the devil was also unaware of this plan. The devil was setting up the events for Jesus to be crucified thinking that would be his victory over God. Jesus being resurrected, providing salvation, and uniting Jews and Gentiles was why God allowed Jesus to be crucified, unbeknownst to Satan.
Now that I think about it, I am not sure how well that holds, since the Old Testament did prophesy that Gentiles would receive salvation. Maybe since Jesus was such an unlikely Messiah- as in, not the kind the Jews intended....I don't know. I just want everyone to think about it. And please comment any thoughts or if anything is revealed through studying this passage and prayer.
blessings
For youth group Friday night we started out with the pyramid. After getting some reluctant volunteers and then some switching later on, we finally formed a 6-person pyramid. After that we did a poetry activity, passing it on writing one line at a time without seeing the previous lines. It makes for interesting results that usually do not make too much sense. Some were still fun to read.
I opened the discussion by asking if the youth ever had a time where their peers or parents would not tell them somthing they wanted to know. Of course, this has happened in everyone's life before. Imagine a whole generation, or even generations, not knowing something. God has the perfect timing on when we should know things. And perhaps the biggest example of all is the mystery of Christ Paul says was revealed to him in Ephesians 3:2-6
"2Surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you, 3that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. 4In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. 6This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus."
God revealed that the Gentiles would receive salvation in the Old Testament. But the revelation through Paul is that the Gentiles would become equal heirs with the Jews! Amazing. In fact, that reminds me one of Jesus's teaching in Matthew, the Parable of the Workers Paid Equally. Read through it and I'm sure you'll see the connection.
I also brought up an idea from this passage in Ephesians that a friend told me a couple of weeks ago. It takes this idea of the mystery of Christ even further. Not only did all persons up to the time of Jesus' life not know, but the devil was also unaware of this plan. The devil was setting up the events for Jesus to be crucified thinking that would be his victory over God. Jesus being resurrected, providing salvation, and uniting Jews and Gentiles was why God allowed Jesus to be crucified, unbeknownst to Satan.
Now that I think about it, I am not sure how well that holds, since the Old Testament did prophesy that Gentiles would receive salvation. Maybe since Jesus was such an unlikely Messiah- as in, not the kind the Jews intended....I don't know. I just want everyone to think about it. And please comment any thoughts or if anything is revealed through studying this passage and prayer.
blessings
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Ephesians 2
Friday night we continued on with Ephesians 2. Although we first played the classic game of sardines. One person (or a pair) hides somewhere while the rest of the group waits in a closed off room for a few minutes. Then the group seeks the hiders, and when they find them, hide along with them. This is a great game and has always worked well with the groups I've led.
Ephesians 2 has two major themes: being alive in Christ (v. 1-10) and unity in Christ (v. 11-22). I focused on v. 3 for our devotional time. This is the verse from the NIV Bible:
"All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
From this verse I brought up a mini-discussion on how good is good enough? 100% of humans sin. And it's not only Christians that do good in the world. If we had a spectrum of bad to good, where would humans need to be for God to accept them into heaven? If you were anywhere in the middle of that spectrum- what would happen if you came before God for judgment and His standard for entry into heaven was a little better than you thought?! The truth is that God demands 100% good to get into heaven. This cannot be accomplished without the gift of salvation of Jesus' redemptive work on the cross through faith.
See Andy Stanley's book "How Good is Good Enough" and Bruce Wilkinson's book "A Life God Rewards." Both are short and good reads.
Ephesians 2 has two major themes: being alive in Christ (v. 1-10) and unity in Christ (v. 11-22). I focused on v. 3 for our devotional time. This is the verse from the NIV Bible:
"All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
From this verse I brought up a mini-discussion on how good is good enough? 100% of humans sin. And it's not only Christians that do good in the world. If we had a spectrum of bad to good, where would humans need to be for God to accept them into heaven? If you were anywhere in the middle of that spectrum- what would happen if you came before God for judgment and His standard for entry into heaven was a little better than you thought?! The truth is that God demands 100% good to get into heaven. This cannot be accomplished without the gift of salvation of Jesus' redemptive work on the cross through faith.
See Andy Stanley's book "How Good is Good Enough" and Bruce Wilkinson's book "A Life God Rewards." Both are short and good reads.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Ephesians 1
Well after a few requests, we are finally starting our series on Ephesians! We did this chapter both on Friday, May 11, 2007 and Sunday, May 13, 2007:
First off, we played this game called "Amoeba." This was just for fun. Everyone joins hands in a circle with a chair in the middle. The point is to avoid touching the chair in the middle, amidst being pushed and pulled by your surrounding players. If you touch the chair, you are out. If two people let go with their hands and break the circle, they are both out. This was a pretty fun game, but left a lot of people with sore hands and arms!
After that was another get-to-know-you game with M&Ms. Everyone had to say one thing about themselves for every M&M they had.
After that we read Ephesians 1, and I brought up a few points:
"9And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ." Ephesians 1:9-10
God makes his plan known to us, just like with our getting to know you game. That plan? To unite Jews and Gentiles in one body. This was not made known until Christ's death and resurrection.
"11In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will" Ephesians 1:11
What is the purpose of His will? To offer salvation to the world. Refer to the Great Comission in Matthew 28:16-20 or Mark 16:15-18.
For Sunday, the two points from Friday were brought up along with these:
Oral readings back then were usually intoned or chanted, rather than spoken. If you had heard this passage in that way, what would you think it was? Many would associate it with a Psalm, which are heavily associated with songs from past to present.
Paul mentions how God blesses us MANY times in this first chapter.
i.e. vs 4- chosen to be holy and blameless
vs 7- redemption through his blood, forgiveness of sins
and so on...
We did a couple different things after that. I really believe it's important not to just read the bible and read in the same way every time. We should meditate on it, memorize it, study it, put it in our own words, pray it, etc. So we did a couple of those things on Sunday. I had the youth paraphrase verse 4 in their own words. In the NIV translation, it reads:
"4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight."
And finally, we each took a verse to incorporate into our prayer time at the end. I encourage everyone to try something new this next week, whether it is to meditate on a passage, memorize a verse, or whichever method that I suggest above. These are just a few ways the scriptures can become alive to us. I'll end with this:
"16I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better." Ephesians 1:16-17
One of the greatest things we can do is get to know Christ better. Learn to be more like Him. Point others to Him. There is no secret about what God is about. My question for tonight is: Are you looking for Him?
blessings
First off, we played this game called "Amoeba." This was just for fun. Everyone joins hands in a circle with a chair in the middle. The point is to avoid touching the chair in the middle, amidst being pushed and pulled by your surrounding players. If you touch the chair, you are out. If two people let go with their hands and break the circle, they are both out. This was a pretty fun game, but left a lot of people with sore hands and arms!
After that was another get-to-know-you game with M&Ms. Everyone had to say one thing about themselves for every M&M they had.
After that we read Ephesians 1, and I brought up a few points:
"9And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ." Ephesians 1:9-10
God makes his plan known to us, just like with our getting to know you game. That plan? To unite Jews and Gentiles in one body. This was not made known until Christ's death and resurrection.
"11In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will" Ephesians 1:11
What is the purpose of His will? To offer salvation to the world. Refer to the Great Comission in Matthew 28:16-20 or Mark 16:15-18.
For Sunday, the two points from Friday were brought up along with these:
Oral readings back then were usually intoned or chanted, rather than spoken. If you had heard this passage in that way, what would you think it was? Many would associate it with a Psalm, which are heavily associated with songs from past to present.
Paul mentions how God blesses us MANY times in this first chapter.
i.e. vs 4- chosen to be holy and blameless
vs 7- redemption through his blood, forgiveness of sins
and so on...
We did a couple different things after that. I really believe it's important not to just read the bible and read in the same way every time. We should meditate on it, memorize it, study it, put it in our own words, pray it, etc. So we did a couple of those things on Sunday. I had the youth paraphrase verse 4 in their own words. In the NIV translation, it reads:
"4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight."
And finally, we each took a verse to incorporate into our prayer time at the end. I encourage everyone to try something new this next week, whether it is to meditate on a passage, memorize a verse, or whichever method that I suggest above. These are just a few ways the scriptures can become alive to us. I'll end with this:
"16I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better." Ephesians 1:16-17
One of the greatest things we can do is get to know Christ better. Learn to be more like Him. Point others to Him. There is no secret about what God is about. My question for tonight is: Are you looking for Him?
blessings
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