God’s Embroidery – What’s your Perspective?

May 7, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

Many times our lives seem like a mess and it’s often our mothers who come to our rescue. We don’t always see the wisdom in the things they tell us to do and sometimes we think that we’re smarter than they are. But we often forget that many times, they see life through the lens of their rich life experiences. Often, it is only later, when we look back, that we appreciate their wisdom and guidance. What is true of mothers, is even more true of God.

God’s Embroidery – An illustration

When I was a little boy, my mother used to embroider a great deal. I would sit at her knee and look up from the floor and ask what she was doing. She informed me that she was embroidering. I told her that it looked like a mess from where I was. As from the underside I watched her work within the boundaries of the little round hoop that she held in her hand, I complained to her that it sure looked messy from where I sat. She would smile at me, look down and gently say, “My son, you go about your playing for a while, and when I am finished with my embroidering, I will put you on my knee and let you see it from my side.”

I would wonder why she was using some dark threads along with the bright ones and why they seemed so jumbled from my view. A few minutes would pass and then I would hear Mother’s voice say, “Son, come and sit on my knee.”

This I did only to be surprised and thrilled to see a beautiful flower or a sunset. I could not believe it, because from underneath it looked so messy.

Then Mother would say to me, “My son, from underneath it did look messy and jumbled, but you did not realize that there was a pre-drawn plan on the top. It was a design. I was only following it. Now look at it from my side and you will see what I was doing.”

Many times through the years I have looked up to my Heavenly Father and said, “Father, what are You doing?” He has answered, “I am embroidering your life.” I say, “But it looks like a mess to me. It seems so jumbled. The threads seem so dark. Why can’t they all be bright?”

The Father seems to tell me, “‘My child, you go about your business of doing My business, and one day I will bring you to Heaven and put you on My knee and you will see the plan from My side.”

Author Unknown

A Learning Activity

Ask the youth to imagine a big clock on the ceiling, the kind with hands on it.
Ask the youth to then imagine the second hand moving around the clock in a clockwise direction.
Ask everyone to reach out their hand and finger and point at the clock, and move their hands in a circle in the same direction the clock hand would be moving. (Demonstrate this for the group to see)
Ask the youth to slowly lower their hand and finger to chest level, all the time still pointing at the celing and rotating their hand in the same direction.
Now ask them to look at their finger and to tell you if their finger is rotating clockwise or counterclockwise?
The answer: counterclockwise!

TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Make it Spiritual

What changed during the activity? – The youth’s finger has NOT changed it’s direction during the activity, but the perspective has changed.
Have there been experiences in your life that seemed messy, chaotic, without any apparent plan? Explain.
What are some of the lessons your mom has taught you? Did some of them seem to make no sense at the time?
Are there some things in the Bible that you once found difficult to undertand?
What are some ways that a mom or parents have a different perspective from a child or youth?
What lessons from your Mom or from the Bible now make sense because you have a different perspective?
What are some ways in which God has a different perspective from us?
What do you think some of the famous Bible personalities might say about this lesson? Jonah swallowed by a fish? Joseph sold into slavery? Israelites marching around Jericho and blowing trumpets? The disciples at Christ’s crucifixtion? Paul on the Road to Damascus? Moses in front of the red sea?

Make it Spiritual

What are some of the lessons for life we can learn from this story and the activity?

Make it Personal

Maybe there are some things in life that you don’t understand now. Maybe there are some things that look messy and without a plan. What is an area of your life where you need to trust in God’s perspective on things?
Take a moment this week to thank God for having a plan for your life, and working things out for your good.
Take a moment this week to thank your mother for also having a plan to raise you well and to help you to have the best things in life, for having faith in you and putting all those things in place so that one day you might be amazed and delighted at God’s plan for you.

Scriptures

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” – Proverbs 3:5-6

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” – Romans 12:2

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; …” – Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.” – Psalm 139:16

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” – Proverbs 16:9

“But, as it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him'” – 1 Corinthians 2:9

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Creative Teaching Ideas

Appreciate Mothers (Mother’s day Idea)

May 1, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

We must never underestimate the role that our mothers play in teaching us about God, about His Word, and about salvation. From a very early age, a mother is preparing us for life. Teaching us about our Creator and Redeemer is part of God’s purpose for mothers, and we must appreciate the godly mothers and honor them for taking up the challenge of preparing us for life.

Resources

You’ll need one set of these for every three youth:

Pair of clean (not smelly) socks
Hard boiled egg
Plastic cup

A set of puzzle pieces from a small puzzle or cut out from a postcard or magazine and
a blindfold for each group.

What to do (Option 1)

Divide the youth into groups of three.
Give each group a pair of socks, one hard boiled egg, and a small cup.
One person in each group must wear the pair of socks, one over each hand.
Place the hard boiled egg in the cup and then place the cup is in thecsock-covered hands.
Give the following instructions:

“The person with the socks is a friend who has come to you with a problem. He or she needs to peel the hard boiled egg so that no shell remains on it and place all the shells in the cup. Your friend may not remove the socks from his or her hands. Discuss the problem briefly then take action and help your friend. When your group finishes, remain where you are and quietly observe the other groups still working a their task. No other instructions will be given. Go!”

What to do (Option 2)

Divide the youth into groups of three.
Blindfold one member of each group. This blindfolded youth can talk and use his or her hands.
Assign another youth in each group who can ONLY talk.
The third youth in each group can use hands, but he or she CANNOT talk, and CANNOT touch the puzzle pieces.
Give the following instructions:

“The objective is to be the first group to put the puzzle together. Your friend may not remove the blindfold. Discuss the problem briefly then take action and to help your friend complete the puzzle. When your group finishes, remain where you are and quietly observe the other groups still working a their task.”

Take It to the Next Level

Discussion

What were the instructions given?
What were the rules of the game?
What resources did you have?
What limitations did you experience?
What strategy did you team use to accomplish the task?

Make it Spiritual

In most cases you will find the unhandicapped persons peeling the egg and doing all the work or the blindfolded person being taken through a complicated process to complete the puzzle. The less obvious solution and the point of the task is to enable the individual to become free to help himself or herself. This is best accomplished if the two helpers remove the socks from their friend’s hands, or the person able to use his hands, but not touch the pieces to remove the blindfold thus freeing their friend to complete the task. (The directions only stated that the person with the socks or blindfold could not remove them.)

There were three ways around the problems:

Do it for the person
Instruct the person on how to accomplish the activity or
Enable the person to do it him or herself.

This the role God has given parents. When we are born, we are very dependent on them to do everything for us. But very soon, they will start releasing some of that role and teaching us, then enabling us to do things for ourselves, to overcome our limitations. We gain strength, knowledge, skills, and wisdom to be the person God created us to be. It would be a sad state to never grow and mature and never be able to care for ourselves and someday care for others. But the role of parents is not simply to equip us for life with knowledge, skills and wisdom. We were created as spiritual beings so that role also extends to preparing us for our relationship with our Creator and Redeemer.

Make it Practical

Make a list of things you have learned from your parents – skills and knowledge.
What have you learned from your parents, by example and by their teachings about God?
What is our responsibility related to learning from our parents?

Make it Personal

Thank your mother for sharing with you lessons and skills to prepare you for the purpose God created you for.

Scriptures

“Hear, my son, your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother•s teaching.”
– Proverbs 1:8

“My son, observe the commandment of your father and do not forsake the teaching of your mother.”
– Proverbs 6:20

King Lemuel in Proverbs 31:1 said that it was his mother who taught him about how to recognize a godly woman who would be a godly mother for his children.

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
– Proverbs 22:6 ESV

“The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.”
– Proverbs 29:15 ESV

“You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
– Deuteronomy 6:7 ESV

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”
– 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV

“A fool despises his father’s instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent.”
– Proverbs 15:5 ESV

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:14-17 ESV (Timothy’s godly heritage was a result of his mother and her mother before her (2 Timothy 1:5).

“And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”
– Luke 2:52

“He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children.”
– Psalm 78:5-6 (See also Deuteronomy 4:10)

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Discussion Questions

What the Bible Says about Mothers

April 23, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

God, who created moms, has a very high regard for motherhood. He even compares His love for His children to the nursing mother’s love for her own child. As Christians, we are called to reverence our moms and to honor them accordingly. “Success as a family, as a society depends not on what happens at the White House, but on what happens inside your house.” Barbara Bush, 1990.

What does the Bible teach about Mothers?

It has been said, “The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world.” Read Proverbs 14:1 and discuss the influence of mothers.
What influence has your mother played in your own life?
In Proverbs 31:10-12, it says “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.”
How she your mother blessed you by being the woman described in this passage.
Proverbs 31:26-31 says “She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: Many woman do noble things, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceptive , and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.”
What are some precious instructions for life you learned from your mother?
“As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; and you will be comforted over Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 66:13)
In what ways has the comfort of your mother taught you about the comfort of God?
In what ways is a mother described in these verses: Exodus 2:1-10; 2 Kings 4:19-37; Luke 7:12-15; Luke 2:51
How has your mother shown these qualities?
Read Proverbs 31:10-31, Matthew 6:24-34, Titus 2:4-5, 1 Peter 3:1-4
What does the Word of God say about working mothers at home and working mothers at work? When is working a complement to motherhood, and when does it crowd it out because of materialism?
How does God feel about single mothers and how does He help them? How can we help, encourage, and comfort single mothers who are struggling?
(See Exodus 22:22-24, Deuteronomy 10:18, 14:29, 24:19-21, 26:12, Ruth 4:10, Psalm 16:7-11, 68:5, 146:9, Proverbs 15:25, Isaiah 1:17, 41:10, 53:3-6, Jeremiah 29:11-13, Mark 12:42-43, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
What word do we find for moms & dads as parents in Proverbs 13:24 and Proverbs 29:15-17?
Why is this significant?
Read Galatians 4:4-7, Ephesians 1:15-20, 3:14-21
In what ways are we blessed, who belong to Him who was born of a woman?
Based on what we have learned, What is our responsibility toward our moms?
(See Exodus 20:12, Leviticus 19:3, Proverbs 1:7-8; Ephesians 6:2; Deuteronomy 21:18,19; Genesis 32:11; John 19:25-27)

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Creative Teaching Ideas

Bible Times Interview

April 9, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

Reporters often get to meet the most amazing people in their line of work, interacting with celebrities, political leaders, inspirational figures, people facing tragic circumstances, heroes, athletes, the wealthy and the poorest of the poor. We get to read about their experiences and hopefully, learn something and grow. Our Bibles are full of newsworthy stories and this activity will help your youth appreciate its depth by looking at it from a different point of view.

Icebreaker to this idea

Out of all the people in the Bible, who would you visit, and why? And if you had the opportunity to ask them any question, what would you ask?

Resources

Bibles, of course!

What to Do

Imagine that you are a newspaper reporter sent back in time to interview one of the people mentioned in the Bible. You want to ask about all aspects and events in that person’s life. The characters in the Bible were much like you an me, not perfect, but still used by God. Here’s a list of interview questions you might ask. Find the answers in the Bible when possible, and when not available, based upon what you do know about the person, how might they answer?

Name

What is the meaning of your name?

Birth

When were you born, and where?
Was there anything special about your birth?

Parents / relatives

Tell me about your family.
What is the your family background?
Tell me about your parents and relatives.
What were your parents views on spiritual things?

Society

Tell me about where you lived? Your nation? Your city? Your culture?
What was daily life like?
To what places did you travel? Why? What did you do there?

Your Status

Tell me about your job history?
How did your job history prepare you for your role in the scriptures?
Did you change roles or start doing something different? Why?
Did you have any special titles or honors?
If you were alive today, what role do you think you would take in today’s world?
Who would you be most like in the world today?

Relationships

Who were your friends? Your enemies? Other people you met?
Tell me a bit about your relationships and how they influenced you?
Tell me about your spouse, your children? Describe your relationship to them. What influence did you have on each other?
What influence did you have on the people you encountered in your life?

Character

How would your friends describe your character? Your enemies?
What do you see as your greatest strengths? Weaknesses?
What kind of person were you?
What were your flaws? Failures? Faults? What was the source, the cause, and the cure?
What were your greatest virtues? Why?

Key Events

What key things happened in your life to make you the person I have read about in the Bible?
What things influenced your thinking and beliefs?
What were the biggest challenges you faced? What were some of the most difficult circumstances you faced and how did they affect you?

Legacy

What were some of your successes and your failures? What lessons did you learn from them? What happened to you?
What important contributions did you make? What opportunities did you miss?
What was your greatest acheivement in life? How did this achievement help or hurt others?
What was the end of the story for you? What were some of your victories? Your defeats?
What were some of the greatest lessons others could learn from your life? Examples to follow? Things to avoid?

Ommissions

What were some of the details of your life that were left our of scripture? Why?

Spiritual

Describe yourself Spiritually.
When did you encounter God? How?
How did your encounter with God change you?
Describe your relationship with Him.
What might God say about you?
Describe some key events related to your spiritual growth?
What was your basic response to spiritual things and to God?

Lessons

What is one lesson I should learn from your life?
How can the power, the love, the knowledge of God shine through the story of your life? What does your life reveal to us about God?

Going Deeper

You may wish to zero in on an event and ask the person about how they felt and what they learned from a specific incident.

Tell me what happened?
How did you feel about what happened?
What did you learn from the event?
How affect did the event have on you? others?
Why was this event important?
What should others learn from this event?
What are some events and issues in the world today, they might have an opinion on? What wisdom do you think they would share?

Take it to the Next Level

Making it Personal

The characters in the Bible were much like you an me, not perfect, but still used by God. Thinking about, understanding, and relating to what they went through very often gives us insight into our own situations and how to learn and grow through them.

What is the most memorable part of their story?
What is God telling me from this person’s life story?
How am I encouraged and strengthened?
What has it taught me about myself and how I need to change and grow?
What has it taught me about God and how I need to respond to Him?

Think about a situation in your life story you’re still dealing with. Surrender it to God and allow him to work in and through you just as He did in the lives of countless others so many years ago.

Not sure where to find that famous Bible personality?

Here’s a nice list of famous people in the Bible!

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Icebreakers

Interview Icebreaker for Youth

April 6, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

Interview Icebreaker

Pair the youth up as they come into the room.
Give everyone a few minutes to interview each other. (3 Minutes is usually enough)
During the three minutes, the youth must discover 3 “new” interesting facts about their partner. Let the youth know that later they will need to introduce the partner to the group as if the group has never met them before, using the 3 facts.
After the three minutes has passed, bring everyone back to together.
Each youth introduces his or her partner to the rest of the group, including the three new facts they learned.

Take it to the Next Level

Once they have introduced their partners, Ask the youth to meet someone else and ask the following questions:

Out of all the people in the Bible, who would you visit, and why?
And if you had the opportunity to ask some questions, what would you ask?

The Bible is full of stories of people just like us. The only perfect person in the Bible is Jesus. The rest were ordinary people used by an extraordinary God. Though the men and women were flawed, a perfect God used them in his perfect purpose. We can learn much from their victories and their mistakes.

What lessons can we learn from the characters you chose?
How can we apply those lessons to life today?

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Creative Teaching Ideas

What is the Church?

April 3, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

There really isn’t a “best” way to describe the church. Even the writers of the New Testament found it difficult to describe and used a ton of metaphors to help relate the place of the church in its community and the world. We hope this activity helps your youth not only identify with the mission and purpose of the church, but to find their unique place and role within it as well.

WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

Resources

Objects, pictures, or simply index cards with words on them that represent the Church

Bride – Wedding ring
Vineyard – Bunch of grapes
Flock – Sheepskin
Family – Family Photo
Nation – A Globe
Catholic Collar – Priest
Building / House – Monopoly house
Salt – Salt Shaker
Body – A Barbie or Ken Doll
Lampstand – Candlestick
Loaf – Loaf of bread
City – City map
Field – Bag of soil
Light – Flashlight
Fisherman – Fishing Pole
Army – Toy Soldier
Temple – Small Church with Steeple
New Race – Photo of people from diverse ethnic groups

What to Do

Divide into groups and distribute one of the words, photos or objects to each group.
Give groups have ten minutes maximum to generate a list of qualities based on a keyword, photo, or object as it reflects the church.
Each group must choose a spokesperson from their group to present their group’s responses.
Have each spokesperson take five minutes each to present their group’s responses.
When everyone has finished, celebrate their efforts and spend some time to highlight interesting points that were presented by the students.

Variations

Spread the cards, photos or objects out before the group and have them pick one that best represents an experience or a feeling that they have had as a member of the church or youth group. Go around the group and ask each participant to share why they picked what they did and why that represents them or an experience they have had in the church or youth group.
Place cards or photos on each person’s forehead or back and let them try to guess what is on their back by everyone’s reaction to them. No talking is allowed.
Play a game of charades using the words.

Scripture References

Family
(Hebrews 2:10-11; Galatians 4:1-7; 2 Corinthians 6:18; Matthew 12:49-50; Ephesians 2:19; Galatians 6:10; 1 Timothy 5:1)
Do your treat other members of your church as part of the same family, as an extended household?

House
(Hebrews 3:6; 1 Timothy 3:14-15; 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Corinthians 3:11; Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:6-7; Isaiah 28:16; Psalm 118:22; 1 Peter 2:5; 1 Corinthians 3:11-17; 1 Corinthians 6:19)

Fishermen
(Matt. 4:19)
Does your church cast its influence outside in order to capture lost souls for Christ?

Flock
(Matthew 10:16; 26:31; Acts 20:28-30; I Peter 5:1-3; John 21:15-17; John 10:11-15; Col. 1:13)
Are there shepherds in your church guiding and protecting those who are easily lost? Do the members of your church seek and follow the direction of the one Shepherd together?

Body of Christ
(1 Corinthians 12:12, 27; Ephesians 4:12, 5:23,30; Romans 12:4-5, 1 Corinthians 10:17; Colossians 1:24; Eph. 4:12, 16)
Do the members of your church see themselves as part of the same organism with different abilities working together for the common good?

Bride of Christ
(2 Corinthians 11:2, 11:12; Ephesians 5:25, 31-32; Romans 7:4, Revelation 19:7-8, 21:9)
Are they actively engaged in being loved by Christ and loving Him in return?

New Race
(Gal. 6; Eph. 2; 1 Pet. 2)
Do the members of your church see themselves as part of a new group of people brought together in Christ and not by physical race, nationality, gender, and social class?

Salt
(Matt. 5:13)
Do the members of your church preserve, and give others a taste of Christ?

An Army
(Eph. 6:10-1 7, 1 Thess. 5:8)
Do the members of your church see themselves as part of one army that is growing in spiritual life and conquering anything that stands in the way between them and God?

A Holy Priesthood
(1 Pet. 2; Rev. 1; 5)
Do all the members of your church serve God and draw near to him?

Light
(Matt. 5:14)
Do the members of your church bring light to the world’s darkness and shine for Christ in all things?

A Holy Nation
(1 Pet. 2; Rev. 1; 5)
Do their values reflect that of the Kingdom of God or this present culture?

A Golden Lampstand
(Rev. 1-2)
Does your church bear the light of Christ?

One Loaf
(John 12; 1 Cor. 10)
Are the members of your church so connected together that they have lost their independence and individualism? Or do they live as independent, individualistic, uncrushed grains of wheat?

God’s Field
(1 Cor. 3)
Are they passing through spiritual seasons together and growing into Christlikeness as the word of God takes root in their life?

A Vineyard
(John 15; saiah 65:8)
Is your church like a vineyard where the cluster of grapes lives and grows together?

A Temple
(1 Cor. 3; 2 Cor. 6; 1 Pet. 2; 2 Cor. 5, Eph. 2:19-22)
Are the members of your church being built together?

A City
(Php. 3; Heb. 12; Rev. 21-22; Gal. 4:26)
Are the practices of your church based on human tradition, or are they built on the spiritual principles of the city of God?

Take It to the Next Level

These objects are all metaphors for the church in the New Testament that help Christians understand who we are as a church, and our relationship to each other in the church, and to the world.

Make it Spiritual

What connections did you make with the church?
• What connection was most meaningful to you? Why?

Make it Personal

• What is one characteristic you would like to develop in your church?
• What can the youth do to immediately start developing that trait in your church?
• What will you personally start doing to see that characteristic is displayed in your church?

Creative Teaching Ideas

Good Friday – Easter’s Great EGGsChange

March 26, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

Youth will have a quiz for which the losing team will receive punishment, but one of the youth leaders will step in and take the punishment on their behalf. The activity is a metaphor for the exchange that took place when Christ took our place and died for our sins on the cross.

Resources

Bibles
Uncracked Raw Egg
Disposable Raincoat or garbage back with holes cut in it for arms and the head
Garbage bags or newspaper to place on the floor to make it easy to clean up any splattered egg.
Damp towel for clean up.

What to do

Divide the youth into two teams.
Each team of youth must choose someone to represent them for an Easter Quiz.
Only the team representative can answer the questions, but the team can help them with the answers by using their bibles and discussion the answer. The choice of representative is final and the team cannot choose a replacement.
Once a representative has been chosen, and the final decision has been made. Explain that the losing team’s representative will be punished by having a raw egg cracked on his or her head.
Scoring: The first team representative to answer correctly scores a point. Wrong answers lose a point. The first team get 5 points wins the game.
After you have declared a winner, have the losing representative prepare for his or her punishment.
Have him or her sit on a folding chair with a sheet of plastic underneath to protect the floor.
Bring out the unbroken raw egg. Talk about how the egg is going to make such a mess and how it runs down your face. Be sure to tell them to plug their ears with their fingers and close their eyes to prevent the raw egg from getting in them.
Then, when they are all prepared, have another leader take the place of the youth and crack the raw egg on the leader’s head.
Encourage the youth to cheer for the volunteer and let them leave the room to clean up.

Questions about the crucifixion

Who was forced to carry the cross for Jesus?
Simon of Cyrene (Matt. 27:32; Mark 15:21; Luke 23:26).
What is the name of the way that Jesus walked to His crucifixion?
The Via Dolorosa, “Way of Suffering.”
What is the name of the place where Jesus was crucified?
In Hebrew, Golgotha (Matt. 27:33; Mark 15:22; John 19:17).In Greek, the skull (Luke 23:33).In Latin, Calvary.
What was the purpose of the writing attached to the cross?
They gave the crime for which the person was being executed.
What inscription did Pilate put on the cross of Jesus?”
Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (John 19:19).
What were Jesus’s first words on the cross?
“Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).
In what languages was it written?
Aramaic, Latin, and Greek (John 19:20).
What is the first prophecy that was fulfilled by those who crucified Jesus after He was nailed to the cross?
They cast lots over Jesus’ garments (John 19:24).
Who are the three women named in scripture who stood by the cross (John 19:25)?
Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary’s sister–the wife of Cleopas, Mary Magdalene
What was the second thing Jesus said from the cross and to whom was it given (John 19:27)?
To Mary: “Woman, behold, your son”; to John, “Behold your mother!”
At what hour was Jesus actually crucified?
The third hour–nine a.m. (Mark 15:25).
At what hour did darkness cover the earth?
The sixth hour (Matt. 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44).
How long did the darkness last?
Three hours (Matt. 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44).
Around the ninth hour, what did Jesus cry out?
“My God, My God, why has Thou forsaken me?” (Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani).
What was Jesus’ next-to-last utterance from the cross and to what did it refer?
“It is finished.” It referred to the penalty He paid on the cross (John 19:30).
At the death of Jesus, what strange things occurred?
a. The veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matt. 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 21:45).
b. There was an earthquake (Matt. 27:51).
c. Rocks were split apart (Matt. 27:51).
d. Tombs were opened (Matt. 27:52).
e. There were many resuscitations of the dead. They entered into the city, appeared to many, and stayed alive until after Jesus’ resurrection (Matt. 27:52-53).
The fear occasioned by these awesome events moved the centurion at the foot of the cross to make what profession?
That Jesus was a righteous man and truly the Son of God (Matt. 27:54; Mark 15:39; Luke 23:47).
How did the multitudes respond to these strange events?
They returned to the city beating their breasts (Luke 23:48).
What reason did the Jews give to have Pilate break the legs of those crucified?
So as not to defile the sabbath-day Passover (John 19:31).
Instead of breaking Jesus’ legs, they did something else to Him, since He was already dead. What?
They pierced His side (John 19:33-34).
What resulted from the piercing, signifying that death had occurred?
Blood and water flowed out (John 19:34).
What two prophecies relate to Jesus’ legs not being broken?
a. No bone shall be broken (Exod. 12:46; Num. 9:12; Ps. 34:20).
b. They will look on me, the one they have pierced (Zach. 12:10).
Who asked Pilate for the body of Jesus for burial?
Joseph of Arimathea (Matt. 27:54; Mark 15:43; Luke 23:50; John 19:38).
How did Pilate confirm that Jesus had in fact died?
He called in the centurion in charge of the crucifixion (Mark 15:44-45).

Take it to the Next Level

Make it Spiritual

Ask the team leader, “How did it feel to let someone else take your punishment?”
Ask the teams, “What were your thoughts as you watched an innocent person suffer?”
How was this activity similar to what Jesus did on the cross?
Why did Jesus have to die on the cross?
How does it make you feel knowing that Jesus exchanged his life for yours on the cross?
How do you think his mother and the disciples felt as they watched Jesus suffer and die?
He told them many times about his death, but do you think they really understood?
Read John 3:16.

Make it Practical

Lets look at what really happened from Mark 15:16-37
Ask the youth to follow along as you read the passage. Explain that when you come to a part where someone is speaking (people, soldiers, etc) you will stop and they must read aloud the words of the people in the passage. Say they words with full emotion as if you were really there at the crucifixion. (Don’t worry about different translations as it will make it seem more real like various voices in a crowd)
If you want to add even more realism, have someone strike a hammer on a nail in wood every, or two hammers together, every few seconds while reading.
Read the passage out loud. Pause at verses 18, 29-30, 31-32, and 35-36.
To add even more meaning, grab some large square nails or long nails from the local hardware store and give one to each youth. Ask them to hold the nail and think about what Christ went through when he exchanged his life for theirs on the cross.

Make it Personal

If you were the only person alive, Christ would have still died for you.
How do you personally feel, knowing Christ, perfectly innocent, died for you?
How does it make you want to respond? to live your life differently?

Easter Collection
Games and Activities in celebration of Easter.

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Object Lessons

Easter Treasure

March 19, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

One of the most common Easter activities is the easter Egg Hunt. This creative youth idea isn’t a treasure hunt, but an object lesson related to our pursuit of earthly treasures. Sometimes in the quest to grab all the things we want in life, we fail to remember that when we seek him first, all things will be added unto us.

Resources

A large number of coins, preferrable of the same denomination.
An opaque Jumbo-sized plastic Easter egg with the letters God written on it but stretched around the egg so that they don’t easily notice it unless it is pointed out to them.
A $20 bill placed inside the large plastic egg.
A stopwatch

NOTE: This game can also be played as a competition between two teams. Just double up the number of coins and add a second Jumbo-sized Easter egg with the $20 note inside.

What to Do

Ask for a youth to volunteer to play the game.
Scatter the coins across the top of the table.
Tell the volunteer, or if you are doing this as a competition, the team repesentatives that they can keep all the money they are holding until the time ends. But there is a condition they must agree to before they can play the game.
Explain the condition: They can only use ONE hand (Youth can choose to use their left or right hand but not both) All coins must be kept in the hand they start with and they cannot lay down any coins for any reason.
Get the youth to agree to the condition and then add another catch. Since it is near to Easter, they must pick up the coins while holding a plastic Easter egg in in the same hand used to pick up the coins. If anyone asks about the plastic egg, just tell them it is to make it more of a challenge.
Yell out “Go” and start the stopwatch. Don’t worry about the time, but as soon as the egg is dropped by all participants, call time.
Reveal that the word “God” is written on the plastic then open it to reveal the $20 bill.
Of course if they had just held on to God, they would have received more than the small coins collected from the table.

Take It to the Next Level

Make it Spiritual

Ask the youth what made the game difficult?
How is this game similar to life?
What are some of the things we try to grab and hold on to in life?
How does our pursuit and holding on to these things affect our relationship with God?
What are the consequences? What do we miss out on?
How does this relate to the words of Jesus “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12:34)

Make it Practical

Of course, most of the time we don’t consciously let our relationship with God drop. We simply fill our lives with too many other things. Sometimes we are trying to pursue things never realising that he has already promised them to us and they already belong to us.

What are some of the things that God promises us?
What are some things you have allowed to drop in your spiritual life? Why?
How can a person be focused on Christ?

Make it Personal

Where is your treasure? What are your treasures?
What are some of the things that crowd out Christ in your daily life? How can you make God more a priority?
If Jesus told you, “One thing you lack” (like he told the rich young ruler in Luke 18), what would he say to you?

Scripture References

Matthew 6:33 [See Matthew 6:19-34]
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Luke 12:33-34
“Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Haggai 1:9
“You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house.

Luke 18:24-25
“Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.'”

Easter Collection
Games and Activities in celebration of Easter.

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Object Lessons

Tough Nuts to Crack

March 12, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

All of us face tough situations in our lives. We could be having the time of our lives but when bad things happen, the good times are forgotten, and all we can see ahead of us is despair. Christ passed through the gates of Jerusalem triumphantly, people waved palm leaves, cloaks were laid at the feet of the donkey He rode on, the crowds cheered and welcomed Him. Barely a week later, the cheers turned to jeers, it was His cloak that was ripped from Him and it was a whip that greeted Him. This Easter themed object lesson uses a walnut to teach the youth that even in the darkest hour and hopeless situations, something good awaits for those who know the plan of the Master.

Resources

Walnuts, one for each youth
Fine tipped markers, one for each youth
Bibles

What to Do

Give each youth a walnut and a fine tipped marker.
Ask youth to think of some difficult situations Bible Characters faced that turned out for good. They can search their Bibles for more examples. (See Examples Below)
Ask the youth to think of difficult times that could end up working out for good for people today? (e.g. Failing a test might lead a youth studying harder and passing a class)
Then ask the youth to think a situation in their own life where something difficult turned into something good. Once they think of something, have them come up with a word, phrase or symbol that represents that situation.
Ask the youth to write the word of phrase or symbol onto the shell of the walnut.
Ask for volunteers to share the word or phrase with the rest of the youth and a little about what happened.
After the sharing, ask the youth to take their walnuts outside and do whatever it takes to crack open the walnut. (You could also provide a hammer or nut cracker if you wish).
When everyone has cracked the walnuts, ask the youth to collect all the pieces and return to the room. Encourage them to taste and eat the walnuts.

Biblical Examples:

Moses: Murder and ran away to desert – Exodus 2:11-22
Joseph: Sold into slavery – Genesis 37
Daniel: Carried off as a captive to Babylon – Daniel 1
Joseph: Accused by Potiphar’s wife – Genesis 39
Esther: Forced into a harem for a pagan king – Esther 4:14
Jonah: Swallowed by a whale – Jonah 1
Paul: Imprisoned in Rome – Philippians 1:12-14

Take It to the Next Level

How did you feel as you crushed the walnut that represented the difficult situation?
How is breaking open the walnut and finding something good inside similar to the difficult situations in life – when something good comes out of a bad situation?

Make it Spiritual

How is Jesus’ death on the cross similar? (Acts 4:27-28)
What good came out of Christ’s death? Resurrection?
How is Jesus’ resurrection like tasting the good meat inside the walnut?

Make it Personal

What does Christ’s death and resurrection mean to you personally?
How has Christ’s death made a difference in your life for good?
Psalm 34:8 tells us to taste and see that the Lord is good. How does this relate to the object lesson?

Make it Practical

What are some tough situations you’re struggling with?
How does Romans 8:28 and the Easter story give you hope and strength to crush these situations in your life?

Scripture References

“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.”
– Psalm 34:8 (NIV)

“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.”
– Rom 8:28 (NIV)

“‘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.'”
– Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

Easter Collection
Games and Activities in celebration of Easter.

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Teaching Illustrations

Life

March 7, 2013 kensapp Leave a comment

Stay away from Anger.
It hurts only You and nobody else.
If you are right, then there is no need to get angry,
and if you are wrong then you don't have any right to get angry.

Patience with family is love,
Patience with others is respect,
Patience with self is confidence and
Patience with GOD is faith.

Never think hard about the past, it brings tears.
Don't think more about the future, it brings fear.
Live this moment with a Smile, it brings cheer.

Every test in our life makes us bitter or better,
every problem comes to make us or break us,
The choice is ours whether we become victims or victorious.

Search for a beautiful heart not a beautiful face.
Beautiful things are not always good, but good things are always beautiful.

Do you know why God created gaps between fingers?
So that someone who is special to you comes
and fills those gaps by holding your hand forever.
Never forget this advice!

Happiness keeps You Sweet, Trials keep You Strong,
Success keeps You Glowing,
and But Only God keeps You Going!

When you don't
give up, you cannot fail.

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