Teen Trends
Christianity often requires us to be genuinely honest about life's reality as we apply and revise that reality with God's truth. This week's trend could be a way for you to creatively do that. "This week’s big meme was “How It Started vs. How It’s Going.” Participants post a photo or screenshot of how a relationship, a job, or even the year in general started and contrast it with a photo or screenshot of where things are now, or even how things ended.
Most of the popular memes of 2020 so far have had one thing in common: they reflect, with a shrug and a smile, on our expectations versus how reality plays out. Nearly every human relationship and experience starts more hopefully than it ends because we live in a broken world. But sometimes, smaller moments we would never expect can define the ways that bigger ones shake out. Time spent practicing a sport we love can lead to a championship trophy, or a casual comment made over text message can lead to the love of our lives. In addition to being funny, this meme gets bonus points for encouraging posters to reflect with earnestness and sincerity on the threads that stitch our lives together." www.axis.ogr/ct/
Worship Song of the Week
A name we can pass on from what Southern Wesleyan college students have enjoyed listening to recently is Maverick City Music. This worship group is known for its spontaneous worship moments and featuring well-known worship leaders such as Chandler Moore, Steffany Gretzinger, and Naomi Raine. They just released part 2 of their album called Maverick City Vol. 3 Pt. 2. Yes, that is literally the name of the album. It's really creative, isn't it?
Game of the Week
Even though this game is called Fruit ER, hopefully, no one has to actually be taken to the ER. If you're socially distancing, start by bringing group two or three people to the front of the room appropriate space and give each person a banana, a cutting board or something to cut on, and a a pre-cut banana into many randomly shaped pieces (you could do this in front of the group for affect if you have more time). Once each person (or group) has this, pass out some supplies that will help them put the banana "back together." Things like safety pins, fishing line, toothpicks, or anything else you can find that will help them reassemble the banana will suffice. Now, you can tell the participants to put the banana back together and try to make it look exactly like it was before they cut it. Give them a few minutes to operate on the banana (you could play music or a fun video in the background during this moment) . Afterwards, have someone just which banana looks the most like a normal banana to decide on a winner.
Sermon Illustration
Referencing the game, you can mention howGod takes broken things, like the banana, back together again. You could also focus more on how some things are not easy to repair, like a broken relationship or your reputation. You could even have a nice loaf of banana bread to help illustrate how something amazing can come out of bruised or messed up bananas that may seem impossible to put back together the same way. Maybe God's restoration is more of a new redemption than a reversal of every destructive event ().
Encouraging Thought
Maybe you've heard the phrase "If it was easy, then everyone would do it." This quote definitely applies to ministry and helping people. It's not easy, and it's not for the faint of heart. If God chose you for it, though, He'll give you the skills and strength to carry out His work. The Holy Spirit is in you. You've got this.
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The vision of the Student Leader Weekly is to empower high schoolers (alongside adult leadership) with practical ministry ideas.
Header Photo by Eric Brehm on Unsplash