Courage

1) Fruits Test [Asked the kids to name the fruits of the spirit]
A. Are we showing these fruits in our daily lives?
B why not? Is it because we lack the courage to do so?
c. Are we showing people that we are believers in our daily lives?
1. examples from Matt and I

2) It takes courage to do that what is courage?
a) Ask the class?
b) Definition – the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.
c) Grant - Grant Leman was in a basketball game last friday night and had to shoot two free throws with one second to go in a tie game.
d) Uncle Bud – show medals - my grandma's uncle was killed after volunteering for a mission in wwii. i showed the kids his purple heart and dog tags and talked about the story.

3) How can we show this courage with the fruits of the spirit and illustrate God’s love in our life?
a) Acrostic – what is it? Divided kids in to three groups and each group had to develop an acrostic for the word courage. We then read them out to the whole class.
b) Create an Acrostic with the word courage about how you can show courage in your daily life
c) Example
C – Creating time to share with others
O – Opportunities to be joyful about God’s love
U – Understanding the difficulties others face
R – Remembering the less fortunate
A – Always being prayerful
G – Going the extra mile to be nice
E – Electing others above myself

Skiing and bonding

The group got up very early on Saturday January 29th and linked up with our new friends in Gridley to go skiing in Wisconsin. Attached are some photos from that trip. It was a beautiful day, and despite one scare, everyone was home safe and sound.

How do we treat other people?

Activity
10:30-10:40 Get to know you exercise

10:40-10:50 How do we treat other people?
Exercise – Flip Chart
A. Flip chart what you see happening between your peers at school in ways that they are destructive towards each other, have been to you, or you have been to them [boys will say we call her ______ ] Divide class in to two groups by numbers
B. Sit down and discuss the list
10:50 – 11:10 Read Scripture [Galatians 5:22-26]
How should we treat other people
A. Same groups, flip chart how we should treat other people, things we can do that show we have a Christ like heart [or, flip chart #1
B. Relate those to the fruits
C. Discuss why fruits are so important
11:10-11:15 Write down fruits
Discuss my reward for fruits
Discussion Points [while flip charting]

1. What kind of person do you want to be? [discuss examples]
2. Think about the kind of people you admire? What traits do they have?
3. Make a decision to be like that person [best example is Christ]
4. What do I [Matt2 want them to be]
A. We want them to be recognized in school as the young adult who people [especially their peers can trust]
B. We want them to be the young adult that even the least popular student believes like them
C. We want them to be the young adult that examines their actions and how they will impact other kids before they take them.

Friends and Decisions

I gave each of the kids a note card with a question on it that they might have recieved from a friend or ones that were likely to come from that age group. They were then asked to right down three responses to the questions, as if they were giving the advice to the friend.

The questions on the cards were;

1. I think I am fat
2. I do not think i am very attractive
3. I think my parents are getting a divorce
4. My boyfriend/girlfriend wants to DO more
5. My friend wants to cheat off of my homework
6. My friends want me to drink alcohol at the party
7. All of the news about shootings is scarry

I supported the answer they gave with the following scripture versus;

FORNICATION?
1 Corinthians 6:18-20 & 1 Corinthians 7:1-2
; 1 Thessalonians 5:22-23:

Shootings
2 Timothy 3:1-4: (KJV) Luke 17: 26-30:

Drinking –
Proverbs 20:1 (KJV 1 Cor 6:19-20

Peacemaker –
Matthew 5:9:

Cheating = stealing
James 4:17 ESV

Depression
Ps 42:11 Matt 11:28-30

Fruits of the Spirit '10

We worked with the class to dicuss the fruits of the spirit and how they might treat each other and be a witness of how Christ taught us to teach.

Activity

10:30-10:40 Get to know you exercise

Asked each student to write one fact about themselves on an index card that they are willing to share with the group. We collected the cards and read each one. The class had to guess which student the fact belonged to.

10:40-10:50 How do we treat other people?
Exercise – Flip Chart
A. Flip chart what you see happening between your peers at school in ways that they are destructive towards each other, have been to you, or you have been to them [ex boys will say we call her ______ ]
Divide class in to two groups by numbers [1,2,1,2]

B. Sit down and discuss the list

10:50 – 11:10 Read Scripture [Galatians 5:22-26]
Ask one of the class to write the fruits down on a flip chart as they are read by someone in the group.

How should we treat other people
A. Same groups, flip chart how we should treat other people, things we can do that show we have a Christ like heart. Encourage them to use examples in their own lives [eg helped someone with homework, stopped another kid from bullying someone, etc]

B. Relate those to the the fruits of the spirit

11:10-11:15 Discuss reward for fruits
Occasionally through out the year i will cover up the fruits of the spirit poster we made and ask the kids to write them down on an index card. I give a small reward for whoever gets them all correct.

Dating 101

One of our ministers was down to talk about purity with our group. He provided a very good explanation of intimacy described in these steps;

1. Looking at a guy or girl and making eye contact
2. Talking to them
3. Holding hands
4. Hands on shoulders and hands on waist
5. Kissing on the cheek or softly on the lips
6. Open mouthed, passionate kissing
7. Petting while clothed
8. Experimental nakedness
9. Sexual intercourse

He asked the kids to live by the following acronym for dating;

for Girls
Dont
Allow
Touch
I'm
Not
Giving

for Boys

Dont
Attempt
Touch
IM
Not
Guilty

The concept behind the acronym was that our sexual purity is a gift that we give our spouses in the future. Girls should not give it up, and guys should not take it.

Finally we talked about what boundaries we have personally set up around the way we dress, movies we watch, material we view on the internet, the way we talk about the opposite sex, places and things i'm willing to do on a date and in the way i talk to God about my relationships.

After Singing Pizza

The 7th and 8th Graders got together after singing at the Home for the Handicapped and had pizza. Everyone had a good time and these few photos were captures on a cell phone.