STIX 'N STONES

Do You Have "Junk" That Your Hiding?

Last night in our Sr High 2Twenty Youth Service we did something unique.  Instead of having a typical sermon, we watched one of Rob Bell's "mini-movies" from the Nooma series called LUMP, which talks about the "junk" we often hide in our lives.  Then we broke off into small groups for a time of discussion and Bible study relevant to the topic of the video.  It actually went really well.  I even decided to post the discussion guide that we created for our small groups.  Some of the questions were taken from the booklet that came with the purchase of the Nooma series, while others were ones we came up with ourselves.  If you choose to watch the video (which I recommend), just know that it lasts about 10 minutes.

Lump (Rob Bell - Nooma)

HERE'S OUR DISCUSSION GUIDE WE CREATED:

Question #1 – Have you ever gotten busted for something you’ve done?  If so, what was it?

 

Question #2 – What are some ways that you avoid dealing with the “junk” in your life?

 

Question #3 – You don’t have to answer the first part of this question out loud, but make sure you think about it:

• Do you have anything in your life that you’re hiding or something that you’re ashamed of?  If so, are you ready to deal with it?
• Here’s the portion of the question that you can answer out loud: Instead of hiding something that you’re ashamed of, or that you regret, what’s the best thing to do about?  What are the results of continuing to hide it?

 

*Let’s see what the Bible has to say about these things:

 

James 5:16 – “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.”

• This verse tells us there is freedom and power when we confess the things we’re trying to hide.  When we confess to God, He forgives us.  When we confess to another person who is spiritually strong, they can help by to keep us accountable so that we don’t keep getting tripped up by the same thing over and over again.

Romans 8:38-39 - And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. ³⁹ No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

    

Question #4 – Is it difficult for you to believe that God loves you no matter what you have done in your life?  Why or why not? 

 

Question #5 – How can that truth (the fact that God loves you no matter what) help to change the way that you live? 

 

Remember this quote from the video: “May you stop hiding under the covers.  May you let God pull the covers back.  May you embrace him.  May your whole life become a response to the truth that you’ve always been loved, you are loved, and you always will be loved.”

Would You Rather. . .?

Recently I purchased a game called, "Would You Rather?"  The game is filled with questions that begin with the phrase (of course) "WOULD YOU RATHER. . . ?"  The idea is to give an answer to each question as if you had only the 2 listed options to choose from.  An answer of "neither" or "I don't know" isn't acceptable (just to keep it more fun).  Most of the questions are ridiculously crazy, but that's what makes if entertaining!

I've used variations of the game at parties and small groups.  It can be a resource for sparking conversation.  Here are some of the questions:

1) WOULD YOU RATHER spend one year in a hotel room with a funky smell in it OR with a really uncomfortable bed in it?

2) WOULD YOU RATHER have one million dollars to you today OR ten million in ten years?

3) WOULD YOU RATHER have everything you eat taste sweet OR everything you eat taste salty?

4) WOULD YOU RATHER always take a cold shower OR always get one hour less sleep than you need to be fully rested?

5) WOULD YOU RATHER have to wear scuba flippers during all waking hours for a month OR have to wear a huge, festive sombrero and carry a large trumpet with you everywhere for a month?

6) WOULD YOU RATHER speak like a static radio (fading in and out) your entire life OR sing every word you speak?

7) WOULD YOU RATHER have body odor that can be detected across the room OR be hairy like Bigfoot?

8) WOULD YOU RATHER have your nose grow 1/4 inch a year OR your ears grow 1/2 inch per year?

9) WOULD YOU RATHER spend 3 weeks in a lifeboat with a person who talks incessantly about his or her medical problems OR with somebody who has a chronic, wet, hacking cough?

10) WOULD YOU RATHER live in a world without antibiotics OR without anesthesia?

11) WOULD YOU RATHER speak for only a minute each day OR stand for only a minute each day?

12) WOULD YOU RATHER have to let 30 five-year-old children have the complete run of your apartment for 3 hours with no rules OR let 2 sea lions have the complete run of your apartment for one hour?

Consistency With God - "Take 10"

We often hear that we should spend time with God, but the truth is, many people often don't know exactly what to do during that "time with God."  It can almost seem like a daunting task!  To overcome this obstacle, I've created something called "Take 10."  It's a daily devotional guide that we publish for teenagers every month, but it's really applicable to people of all ages.  The concept behind this tool is simple, yet powerful.  The challenge is to take at least 10 minutes of every day to spend with God in prayer and Bible reading.  For each day of the month there is a chapter to read from the Bible, some prayer points, and a Scripture to meditate on or memorize.

Here's today's exert from the "Take 10" devotional guide:

Scripture Reading: Mark Chapter 4

Prayer Points: Philippians 1:9-11
"Cause my love to increase more and more in knowledge and depth of insight."

• Pray that your life would be captivated with love for Jesus.  Take some time to tell God how much you love Him. 

"Help me to discern what is best and to be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."

• Pray that every evil thought that doesn't line up with Christ would be defeated in your life.
• Surrender yourself to God and ask him to make you pure in your thoughts, actions, relationships, words and desires.

"Fill me with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God."

• Pray that the following "fruits of the Spirit" would be evident in your life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  (Example: "God, give me {list the fruit of the Spirit} in my life today.  Remove anything in my life that keeps you from producing this quality in me.  Change me to live with more {list the fruit of the Spirit} so that I will be more like Jesus.")

Scripture For Meditation: Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

 

Reading Through The Bible In A Year

Reading through the Bible can almost seem like such a monumental task that it's difficult to know where to start.  BibleGateway.com has created some FREE Bible reading plans that will take you through the Bible in the year 2009.  Here's a description of the plans that they offer to choose from:  

1) Old/New Testament: each day features a reading from both the Old and the New Testaments, so you read through both Testaments together.

2) Chronological: reads through the Bible in the order that its events occurred historically. For example, Job lived sometime after the beginning of creation (Genesis 1) but before Abraham was born (Genesis 12). As a result, the Book of Job is integrated into the Book of Genesis.

3) Beginning: starts at the very beginning of the Bible and reads straight through to the end.

4) Historical: reads through the books of the Bible in the order in which they were written historically, according to the estimated dates of their writing.

There's no better time to start reading the Bible than NOW.  Click Here to go to BibleGateway and select your reading plan today!