contents · • story of daniel paul tammet from the internet or one of his books: born on a blue...

Lessons for Youth

Lessons for Youth WholenessthroughChrist:BalanceandConnection page 2

Lessons for Youth Wholeness through Christ: BALANCE AND CONNECTION

copyright 2011 Community of Christ Independence, Missouri, USA

Contents

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Supplies.Needed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Blessings.of.Community. . . . . . . . . . 6

Unity.in.Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Grace.and.Generosity. . . . . . . . . . . 15

Worth.of.All.Persons. . . . . . . . . . . . 21

All.Are.Called. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24


Supplies.Needed.The supply list is provided here in a combined format (to prepare for all lessons at once) and is also given for each specific lesson.

• 15 ft/4.5 m rope or tape (see “Hula Hoop Obstacle Course,” lesson 2)

• Three or more hula hoops (see “Hula Hoop Obstacle Course,” lesson 2)

• 3 in/7.5 cm x 5 in/12.5 cm cards (two per person)

• Balloons (one or more for each student)

• Banner paper, newsprint or flip chart

• Beach ball

• Bibles for each student or copies of the selected text: Acts 2:1–11, 41–47; Ephesians 4:1–7, 11–16; John 4:1–29; Ephesians 2:8; Genesis 1:27; 1 John 4:10; 2 Corinthians 9:6–12; Luke 4:16–21; Romans 12:3–8; 1 Corinthians 12:1–1

• Candy or small gift for each student

• CD player

• Communion bread and wine (including gluten-free alternative), prayer cards, Communion cups and trays (optional, lesson 1)

• Copies of “We Are One, We Are Many” (www.CofChrist.org/discernment/onemany.asp)

• Copies of interview questions for each student (lesson 4)

Wholeness through Christ:Balance and Connection for Youth

IntroductionWholeness, balance, and connection are words that may not be in the vocabulary of many young people, but are at the core of their struggle. The sometimes broken, lopsided, and lonely conditions of life are what many young people sense. As adults, many of us can relate to young people today if we are honest about our feelings, emotions, attitudes, and actions when we were their age. It is not always proper to share with young people all of our actions—it is proper to identify with the way they feel.

Moving toward wholeness through Christ helps all people, but especially young people, have hope. Sometimes young people sense that no one is going through what they are. We need to affirm their feelings. Even though we can identify with the way they feel, older people lived at a different time and place in human history. It is important to help young people understand that God’s love for each person is steadfast regardless of time and place. Everyone struggles with wholeness, balance and connection.

The purpose of these lessons is to help young people move toward finding wholeness, balance, and connection.


• Copies of paraphrased scripture text from 3 Nephi 8:12–14, 23–26 (lesson 4)

• Copies of possible careers list (lesson 5)

• Copy for each student of handout “Networking in Community” (lesson 5)

• Copy for each student of handout “What We Can Do for God” (lesson 5)

• Copy for each student of skills and gifts list from lesson 5 (or one copy in poster form)

• Doctrine and Covenants for each student or selected text: Sections 161:4a–b; 164:6a

• Freshly baked bread or something similar (including gluten-free alternative)

• Information on priesthood from www.CofChrist.org/priesthood (possibly a copy for each student)

• Jigsaw puzzle (an easy level for the age of students)

• Markers, crayons, or similar

• Music (CD): Bob Marley’s “One Love”

• Name tags or stickers, one per student

• Old books (ones that could get damaged)

• Paper

• Pens or pencils

• Poster markers

• Prizes for each student (coupons for an ice cream sundae, pizza, or movie tickets—from commercial vendors or something you can do yourself at church or in your home after the lesson or once the course is complete)

• Props or costumes for skit creation

• Several decks of playing cards (enough for each group of four to six)

• Small gift for each student (deck of cards, a unique coin, cookie or candy)

• Spoon (four to six)

• Spray bottle full of water

• Stickers with the word “Awe” for each student

• Story of Daniel Paul Tammet from the Internet or one of his books: Born on a Blue Day (Free Press, 2007, ISBN 9781416535072) or Embracing the Wide Sky (Free Press, 2009, ISBN 9781416569695)

• Telephone pole, boards or low ropes course beams (see “The Narrow Way,” lesson 2)

• Tennis balls (one for each pair of students)

Lesson.1:..Blessings.of.Community


• Poster markers

• Music CD (suggestion: Bob Marley’s “One Love”) and CD player

• Freshly baked bread or something similar (including gluten-free alternative)

• Bibles for each student or copies of the selected text: Acts 2:1–11, 41–47

• Copies of “We Are One, We Are Many” (www.CofChrist.org/discernment/onemany.asp)

• Paper

• Pens or pencils

• Markers, crayons, or similar

• Stickers with the word “Awe” for each student

• Spray bottle full of water

• 3 in/7.5 cm x 5 in/12.5 cm cards (one per person)

• Optional: Communion emblems, prayer cards, Communion cups and trays

Lesson.2:.Unity.in.Diversity

• Jigsaw puzzle (an easy level for the age of students)

• Bibles for each student or copies of the selected text: Ephesians 4:1–7, 11–16

• For “The Narrow Way”: Telephone pole, boards or similar low ropes course structure


• For “Hula Hoop Obstacle Course”: three or more hula hoops, 15 ft/4.5 m rope or tape


• Poster markers

• 3 in/7.5 cm x 5 in/12.5 cm cards (one per person)

Lesson.3:.Grace.and.Generosity

• For “Grace under Fire” (see activity—some items may not be required)

• Prizes for each student (coupons for an ice cream sundae, pizza, or movie tickets—from commercial sellers or something you can do yourself at church or in your home after the lesson or once the course is complete)

• Tennis balls (one for each pair of students)

• Old books (ones that could get damaged)

• Balloons (one or more for each student)

• Beach ball

• Spoon

• Bibles for each student or a copy of the selected text: John 4:1–29; Ephesians 2:8; Genesis 1:27; 1 John 4:10; 2 Corinthians 9:6–12.

• Banner paper, poster board, or flip chart

• Markers

• Paper

• Pens or pencils

• Several decks of playing cards (enough for each group of four to six)

• Small gift for each student (deck of cards, a unique coin, cookie or candy)

Lesson.4:.Worth.of.All.Persons

• Candy or small gift for each student

• Bibles for each student or copies of the selected text: Luke 4:16–21

• Doctrine and Covenants for each student or copies of the selected text: Section 164:6a

• Poster paper and markers for each group

• Props or costumes for skit creation

• Paper

• Pen or pencils

• Copies of interview questions for each student

• Copies of paraphrased scripture text from 3 Nephi 8:12–14, 23–26

Lesson.5:.All.Are.Called

• Name tags or stickers, one per student

• Pen, pencils, or markers

• Copies of possible careers list from this lesson

• Story of Daniel Paul Tammet from the Internet or one of his books: Born on a Blue Day (Free Press, 2007, ISBN 9781416535072) or Embracing the Wide Sky (Free Press, 2009, ISBN 9781416569695)

• Bibles for each student or a copy of the selected text: Romans 12:3–8; 1 Corinthians 12:1–11

• Doctrine and Covenants for each student or a copy of the selected text: Section 161:4a–b

• Poster board or flip chart

• Poster markers

• Copy for each student of handout “What We Can Do for God” at the end of the lesson

• Copy for each student of skills and gifts list from this lesson (or one copy in poster form)

• Information on priesthood from www.CofChrist.org/priesthood (possibly a copy for each student)

• Copy for each student of handout “Networking in Community” at the end of the lesson


Blessings of Community

Focus.Scripture

Acts2:1–11,41–47

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

5Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 41So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.

42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44All who believed were together and had all things in common; 45they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Focus• The gospel of Jesus Christ is best expressed

in communities where people are open to God’s grace and open and honest with one another.

• We are committed, despite the difficulty, to living in and creating new communities of reconciliation, acceptance, unity in diversity, and love. These new communities are and will be the sign of God’s reign (the peaceable kingdom).

• We are each called to nurture one another spiritually, mentally, physically, and emotionally.

• We accept God’s call to build healthy relationships through sacred communities of Christ’s peace everywhere we are.


Discipleship calls us to be balanced and connected in all facets of our lives. That includes attention to solitude and community, prayer and work, contemplation and compassionate action, listening and speaking, self-care and sacrificial service, and the grace of simplicity and generosity. When our community is in balance with healthy connections, we are blessed. When a community is out of balance with broken connections, tension, stress and struggles arise. The gospel of Jesus Christ is expressed best in community life where people become vulnerable to God’s grace and one another.

Apostle Stassi Cramm shares about the blessed community that occurs during our weeks together at camps and reunions: “These experiences are sacred for me because something miraculous always happens at camps and reunions. …In these moments, we are made spiritually more whole as a community, and our improved spiritual condition allows us to experience God’s new creation being born. This is our glimpse of the kingdom.”1

Don Compier, dean of Community of Christ Seminary, writes, “Throughout the history of the Christian church, its theologians have insisted on the corporate nature of discipleship. We aren’t called to achieve individual salvation. We are tasked with the difficult but ultimately rewarding work of building true community.”2

Background

Activates background knowledge, prepares and motivates for lesson.

As students gather, have them sign their names on a banner paper in very large print or writing. Sign your name before class as an example. Have music going and have freshly baked bread or a similar snack available. Be sure to use gluten-free bread so it can be eaten by most everyone. Greet each one and introduce students to one another—chances are there are some new students to this age level who have not been part of this group or class before. Encourage them to have a snack and visit until it’s time to start.

Tell the class that God, the Creator, knows each of them by name. Explain that you had them write their name big, so each person in the class might know them by name, too. Explain that part of being a community is knowing the other people in the community.

Explain to the students that you are going to call out two alternatives and they must decide which of the two choices best describes them. Tell them you are going to point to one side of the class area for one and point to the opposite side of the area for the other. Once everyone has decided and moved to that area, have them sit down (or stand in a circle) and respond to the questions below. After about three or four minutes (or more depending on the size of the class) have them regroup in the middle and repeat the exercise for each of the pairs below.

Are you more like a…PC or Mac Wind or RainRock or Cloud Snow or SunLion or Lamb Add your own to make it more local and more fitting with your class.

QuestionsforGroups• Why did you choose this answer?

• Would the world be a better place if everyone agreed with you?

• What are the benefits if people choose different answers?

• How can you be a blessing to the “other” side with the answer you chose?

Explain the purpose of the lesson is to understand the blessings of community.

1. Cramm, Stassi, “Witnesses of Hope,” Herald, August 2010 (www.CofChrist.org/D&C164/aug2010_Cramm.asp)

2. Compier, Don, “Enduring Principles Series: Unity in Diversity,” Herald, January 2010 (www.CofChrist.org/enduringprinciples/unitydiversity.asp)


Takes the learners from hearing to doing.

Invites exploration and interaction.

Say: The daily rhythms of Jesus’ life shape us. We find in the scriptures Jesus spent time in both community and by himself (solitude). He spent time in prayer and work, thinking (contemplation) and action (compassionate response), listening and speaking, self-care and sacrificial service, with the grace of simplicity and generosity. In Christ there is wholeness. As we seek to balance our lives, it allows us to connect with God and others, and to take care of ourselves.

In small groups, have students study Acts 2:1–11, 41–47. For younger students, consider using the New International Version or the Contemporary English Version. For older students use the New Jerusalem Bible or the New Revised Standard Version.

Have them answer the following questions after verses 1–11:

• What’s happening in these verses? Have you ever witnessed the Holy Spirit change things like this?

• Jewish people from all over the world heard them speaking in their own language. Have you ever been in worship and suddenly heard something that makes sense to you?

• How would speaking another language bless others?

For verses 41–47, talk about these questions:

• How are youth camps and family camps (reunions) like the community described in these verses?

• Jesus’ ministry often included food. What happens with your family and friends when you eat together (not fast-food style, but sit around a table and take your time)?

• Where do you hang out with friends? Can you imagine doing this every day? What would it take to attract you to such a place? How is that “church”?

WeAreOne,WeAreManyHand out copies of “We Are One, We Are Many,” found in Sharing in Community of Christ, page 27, or printed from www.CofChrist.org/discernment/onemany.asp. Have volunteers take turns reading the first five paragraphs (the last two paragraphs are short, so one person could read both).

Pause after this reading and encourage students to create a picture, poem or other writing that reflects the message in these paragraphs. Ask if anyone would like to share with the entire class; don’t force it if they aren’t comfortable.

Continue with volunteers reading each of the next five paragraphs of the section titled “Community.” Read the questions offered in paragraph six, pausing to allow for comments. After time for discussion, have a student read the last paragraph of that section.

The Not So Mellow DramaRead aloud the story below, wait for and encourage participants to act out what you say. This includes pausing after reading a quote to let the correct group repeat it to you. Before the reading begins, ask for volunteers for the cast, and gather props listed below or something similar.

Cast:Group of Disciples (2–12)Violent Wind (1)Tongues (same number as disciples)Crowd (remaining class members)Person Full of Awe (awe-full!)Apostles (2–3)

Props:Bread (plenty)Stickers with the word “Awe” for eachSpray bottle full of water


Explores how the lesson might be lived out.

The Not So Mellow DramaWhen the day of Pentecost had arrived, the disciples were all together in one place. Suddenly from heaven there came a sound like a violent wind, and it said, “I’ll huff, and I’ll puff, and I’ll blow your house down” (Violent Wind repeats, “I’ll huff and I’ll…”) Sorry, wrong story… it blew on the disciples where they were sitting.

Tongues, moving around like flames, appeared among them, and a tongue sat down on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit (disciples take a deep breath) and began to speak in other (foreign) languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. (Okay at least gibberish that sounds like another language).

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound (wait for gibberish to continue), a crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in their own language. They said “we are amazed and astonished.” They asked, “What does it all mean?” These are Galileans and they don’t even speak our language!” They said “Hey! We hear them speaking about God.” So those who heard were baptized (one or more of the apostles spray people with water), and that day about three people joined with the disciples (pull up three more people). Oh, it says three THOUSAND (pull up a few more, but not everyone). They spent their time hanging out with the apostles, having a great time, eating some bread and often got on their knees to pray.

“Awe” came on everyone (have Person Full of Awe hand out stickers), because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together (huddle) and shared everything. They sold their possessions and gave the money to all to those in need. Each day, as they spent time together in the temple with the apostles, they ate (more bread) their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God (everyone yells, “Praise God!”) and taking care of all the people. And each day the Lord added more people to their community (apostles pull up remaining people to join the others up front). THE END!

After the drama, ask: How does it help, even in a humorous way, to act out the scripture? What did you discover about this scripture that you didn’t catch before? How would it be to live in this kind of community all the time?

Give each student a 3 in/7.5 cm by 5 in/12.5 cm card or something similar and a pen or pencil. Ask them to draw a line down the center of one side of the card. Ask them to write the following words in each column:

WithpeopleRestingServingThinkingListening

BymyselfWorkingPlayingActionSpeaking

Have them circle one word (or words) on each line that represents what they do more of. For instance, in an average week, do they spend more of their time (while awake) with other people or by themselves? As they go through each set of words, encourage them to come up with their own definitions—help as needed.

As an entire group, discuss each set of words and ask how we might spend more time “with people” and how we might be blessed and be a blessing to others by doing this. Then ask how each of us might spend more time “by myself” and how we might be blessed and be a blessing to others by doing this.

Have the students brainstorm ways they could be a blessing to their community during the next week. Record these on the same banner paper the students signed at the beginning of the class. Write the responses in and around the names. Encourage each person to identify one thing they can do and will commit to do. Encourage them to share these with the class, but don’t force anyone who is uncomfortable to share publicly. Showing grace in this way shows hospitality.


Prayer of blessing, praise, thanksgiving, and hope.

Ask students to study the banner with their names and their responses of how to be a blessing to their communities in the next week. Ask them what might hold them back. Write these down as they share them either with you or someone you’ve invited to offer prayer. Ask them to kneel, if physically possible, for a prayer of blessing. Include as many of their concerns as possible.

OptionDepending on the setting of this class and when it’s held, consider including the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper at the end of the class time. While it might seem to be a serious way to start this series of lessons, using the sacrament might help the remaining lessons have a greater impact on the students.

Planning.Notes


Unity inDiversity

Focus• We take on unity and diversity through the

power of the Holy Spirit.

• We celebrate Community of Christ as a diverse international family, interdependent, yet united in mission.

• We work toward agreement in important matters. Even if we cannot agree, we commit to continuing discussion and find unity in our common faith in Jesus Christ and the church’s mission.

• We work to show behaviors and relationships that support the worth and giftedness of all people and that protect the most vulnerable. In particular, we seek deeper understanding of justice, and to learn how to celebrate diversity while discovering our unity.

1Corinthians12:4–12

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

12For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.

Focus.Scripture

BackgroundUnity amid diversity is a challenge. As relationships develop, differences may be interesting and fun. As people become more acquainted, differences begin to challenge us and sometimes divide us. Balance comes and connection is made when we accept those minuscule differences that become so large in our minds, keeping us apart, and when we realize we are blessed, made richer, by them. Balance comes and connection is made when there is diversity, not sameness, for sameness can cause imbalance.

Don Compier, dean of Community of Christ Seminary, writes, “We humans genetically are one of the least-diverse species. The differences between our races are minuscule. We have the capacity, however, to develop splendid variations from one culture to the next. …We have every reason to believe God delights in cultural pluralism as well. …I am convinced that cross-cultural sharing is God’s dream for all humans. God yearns to bless us as we bless each other in and through our diversity.”1

1. Compier, Don, “Enduring Principles Series: Unity in Diversity,” Herald, January 2010 (www.CofChrist.org/enduringprinciples/unitydiversity.asp)




2. Cramm, Stassi, “Witnesses of Hope,” Herald, August 2010 (www.CofChrist.org/D&C164/aug2010_Cramm.asp)

In “Witnesses of Hope,” Apostle Stassi Cramm wrote about the unity in diversity that occurs at youth camps or family camps (reunions): “People of various backgrounds, opinions, social groups, and other divisive categories, come together. We form a community centered on our shared commitment to Christ and our wish to go deeper in that commitment. Even when we debate nuances of theology, we still find our oneness through each other’s wish to live as faithful disciples.”2

As students gather, have a jigsaw puzzle (an easy level for the age of students) out on a surface face down. Have each student pick up one or two pieces and keep them until everyone has arrived. Ask them not to show them to one another.

Welcome the students and ask them to look at the piece or pieces of the puzzle they hold. Go around the group and ask each student to share a description of their pieces and take a guess at what picture is on the puzzle. If you’re working with older youth, ask them how their puzzle pieces are like themselves. After each student shares, have them work to complete the puzzle.

Ask the following questions:

• How important were your pieces to the entire puzzle?

• How does working on a puzzle feel like real life at home? School?

• What is it like to work together to complete the puzzle?

Explain this lesson’s focus is on unity in diversity. Working on a puzzle together helps us learn more about this topic. Explain this is one of the Enduring Principles of Community of Christ.

Ask students to open their Bibles and turn to 1 Corinthians 12:4–12.

Have the entire group read through these verses together. Divide the class into small groups. Ask them to discuss and restate as a group what these verses say about unity in diversity. Ask the group to create a poster which reflects these verses and then share them with the entire group.

Read through the following two activities and decide which is best for your students and location.

TheNarrowWayLay a utility pole or a series of boards about 30 ft/9 m long on the ground and divide the students evenly into two teams. Have teams stand in a line at each end of the pole (you can only fit about 12–14 youth total). Tell them that each team needs to get all of their teammates from one end of the pole to the other without ever touching the ground. Whoever touches the ground (with any part of their body) will have to go to the end of the line and start over. Assign adult leaders standing by to “spot” the youth, but they are not allowed to talk or touch them unless they seem in danger of injury.

The students will figure out they cannot do this activity without coordinating and cooperating with the other team and, when they finish, they are cheering one another on and can’t remember who was on which team. This exercise can be done silently (youth can’t talk, only pantomime). If the class has too many students to do this exercise at one time, set up multiple stations in areas where groups can’t see the result, or provide an alternative activity for students until it is their group’s turn.

Debrief afterward. Ask students what happened. When did they start helping the people on the other team? Why did they do this? What causes us to take sides on an issue? What can help us see from the other point of view? What causes us to help someone who is on “the other” team or side of an issue?



HulaHoopObstacleCourseThis is a large area, outdoor activity. In a field or large flat area, place hula hoops randomly in an area about 15 yd/14 m by 5 yd/4.5 m. Experiment with adults to decide how far apart to place the hula hoops. Place a line (rope, tape, or other) on the 5 yd/4.5 m wide sides.

Divide the students into two teams and place one team at each end (5 yd/4.5 m wide side).

One person from each team is blindfolded and sent through the obstacle course (at the same time). They must follow directions shouted to them by their teammates (who cannot cross the line beginning the obstacle course). The object is to get to the other team’s side without touching a hula hoop or stepping inside one.

If the size of your field is right, when blindfolded players are about halfway through the obstacle course, the teams will not see the hula hoops for the balance of the course. Eventually, teams may figure out that they need to work with each other and help the opposing team’s players across when they are on their half of the course.

Several adult leaders should be on the course during the activity. They should watch if any hula hoops are touched or stepped into although they should not guide those on the course. They can also adjust the space between the hula hoops if the field is too easy or too difficult.

Debrief afterward. Ask students what happened.

• When did they start helping people on the other team?

• Why did they do this?

• What causes us to take sides on an issue?

• What can help us see from the other point of view?

• What causes us to help someone who is on “the other” team or side of an issue?

Ask students to think of issues that separate people, or create sides. Write responses on flip chart paper, a white board or something similar. Examples might include (adapt for your mission center):

Same-gender marriage Legalization of marijuanaGlobal warmingAbortionIllegal immigration

Assign small groups a topic from the list. Have them discuss and write down why people would be on both sides of the issue and what both sides might have in common. Have each small group share their discoveries with the class.

Remind students of their experiences during the “Engage” part of the lesson. What was it that caused them to overcome the feeling of being on one side, but begin to help the other side? How might they apply this insight to more serious issues discussed in this section of the lesson? Is it possible to help people see another side of an issue? Why, or why not?

Consider exploring with students the Intelligence Squared Debates (either the international version at http://www.intelligencesquared.com or the United States version at http://intelligencesquaredus.org. Both highlights of debates and entire debates are available to view with an Internet connection. The point of these debates is to convince those watching to understand a broader perspective and to change their view. Ask students if such debates are helpful to understanding an issue. How might debates help bring unity to an issue?




Ask students to create a list of characteristics or assumptions about the people they will see between this class time and the next. Have students write three or four of these characteristics or assumptions on a 3 in/7.5 cm x 5 in/12.5 cm index card and carry it with them as much as possible before the next lesson. Explain their assignment is to watch for these characteristics or assumptions and report to the next class how they found these to be examples of unity in diversity. Explain that the next lesson will start with them sharing their observations.

Share with students your own experiences with unity in diversity. Tell how building unity in diversity can be difficult, but rewarding. Have them think of one thing that’s different about each person in the class (or small group if the class is large). Explain that you will close your class with a “bidding” or “popcorn” prayer, in which you will make an open-ended statement and they are to call out words or phrases to end the sentence.

After starting the prayer, use these statements to focus on the points of the lesson:

We thank you for the unique gifts in this group, including…We thank you for each person in this group…We ask a blessing on us as we seek to find unity in our diversity by…

Add more phrases or substitute ones of your own to fit your specific group of students. Then close the prayer.

Planning.Notes


Grace and Generosity

Focus• God’s grace, especially as revealed in Jesus

Christ, is generous and unconditional.

• We receive and give in gracious response to God’s generosity, sharing our witness, resources, ministries, and the sacraments of the church.

• We express grace and generosity especially in covenant relationships with God and others.

John4:1–29

4Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard, “Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John” 2—although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized— 3he left Judea and started back to Galilee.

4But he had to go through Samaria. 5So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. 7A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?”

13Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” 15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” 16Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.” 17The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!”

19The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. 20Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” 21Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as

Focus.Scripture



these to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who wor-ship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” 26Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.”

27Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” 28Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, 29“Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?”

BackgroundThe ideas of grace, generosity and balance provoke many images. The strongest image might be that of a scale tipped enormously toward God in a way that we feel we can never “balance” our response. We can never come close to giving as much as God gives, or responding in kind. Similarly, the ideas of grace, generosity and connection provoke many images; the strongest image being the world’s strongest magnet representing God’s generous love for us and God’s wish to draw us close. We struggle to share love that is generous and grace-filled in our relations with others. Yet, we know that Christ calls us, as Presiding Evangelist Dave Brock expressed, to “generously share our witness, resources, ministries, and sacraments according to our true capacity.” (Enduring Principles Study Series)1 That is the key: our true capacity.

When we look at the many scriptural and personal examples of how God’s grace is freely given, overflowing, beyond measure, we are moved to respond generously to others.

Some worry about being “off-balance” in giving, giving so much that we risk ourselves. However, we find that we can always give just what is needed—what is uniquely ours to give—when we give with a generous heart. Others worry that we can create an unhealthy connection of co-dependencies in our giving.

However, as we seek to create healthy relationships that are rooted in the principles of covenant and faithfulness we discover that we can create healthy connections between one another, God, and self.

We value the giver by receiving the gift. We also value others when we ask them to share their gifts. In the story of the woman at the well (John 4:1–29), Jesus asked a Samaritan to share her water and cup. He needed her gift. This story is about not only what Jesus did for the woman, but also what the woman did for Jesus. A similar story in Mark 14:3 tells about n Mary anointing Jesus’ head with oil.

1. Brock, David, “Enduring Principles Series: Grace and Generosity,” Herald, August 2009 (http://www.CofChrist.org/enduringprinciples/graceGenerosity.asp)

Welcome students as they arrive. Remind them of their assignment to share about what they discovered about unity in diversity since the last class session. List their responses on banner paper or on a flipchart. Have them respond to the following questions:

When and how did they see people of different characteristics sharing? Different ages? Different races or ethnic groups? Others?

Ask them, since the last class session, if they saw more diversity than they usually do or less. What created this circumstance? (awareness, I’m at family camp or reunion). Share with them some of the key parts of unity in diversity are the ideas of grace and generosity, the focus of this session.

GraceUnderFireTell students if they can complete the tasks you give them, they will win a wonderful prize. The prize could be an ice-cream sundae, a pizza dinner, or movie tickets. Explain the way to win the prize is to complete all the tasks you give them, and they must be done perfectly and within 10 minutes (or another short time frame). Make a list of impossible tasks for students to take on. Have the necessary supplies for the ones you choose for students to do. Here are some examples:



• Students must form pairs and toss a tennis ball back and forth (from at least 10 ft/3 m) ten times.

• Every student must balance three books on his or her head and walk across the room without dropping the books.

• Students must stand on one leg for two minutes without any support from another object in the room or from other people.

• Students must cross the room by inflating a balloon and then releasing it and letting it go until it touches the opposite wall. They may only reinflate the balloon by standing where it lands and repeating the process.

• Students must spin in a circle ten times then walk a straight line without stepping off the line.

• Everyone must do 66 jumping jacks while saying all the books of the Bible in reverse order.

• All students must walk across a room with a beach ball on a spoon without dropping it.

• Add any other creative ideas to add to the list to make it even more impossible.

When time is up gather the students into a circle. Ask them at what point they realized there was no way to carry out all the tasks in the appointed time. How do you feel about not measuring up to the challenge? Read 1Timothy 1:12–17.

I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strength-ened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, 13even though I was formerly a blas-phemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbe-lief, 14and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. 16But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. 17To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Give the students the prize you agreed to at the beginning of the activity, even though they could not complete the tasks. Explain how this experience is like the generosity God showed Paul and that God shows us each day.

Have students turn to John 4:1-29. Have three people read this scripture aloud to the group using the verse groupings found on the next page. Reader 1 has a brief narration, Reader 2 reads Jesus’ comments and Reader 3 shares the words of the Samaritan woman. Encourage readers and the students listening to be serious as this is shared. Have the non-reading students listen for the following ideas and be ready to share where in the story they hear each. Post these words if possible.

Envy Honesty Acceptance Discernment Sexism Human generosity God’s generosity Doubt Sin Faith

READER1:Now when Jesus learned that the Phari-sees had heard, “Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John” 2—although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized— 3he left Judea and started back to Galilee. 4But he had to go through Samaria. 5So he came to a Samari-tan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

READER2:7A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.)

READER3:9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.)

READER2:10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

READER3:11The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?”



READER2:13Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.”

READER3:15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

READER2:16Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.”

READER3:17The woman answered him, “I have no husband.”

READER2: Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!”

READER3:19The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. 20Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.”

READER2: 21Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

READER3: 25The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.”

READER2: 26Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.”

READER1: 27Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” 28Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city.

READER3:She said to the people, 29“Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?”

Ask the students the following questions about what they heard in the scripture reading:

1. When was “envy” expressed in the reading? (Verse 1)

2. Acceptance? (Verse 7)

3. Sexism? (expected in Verse 9, definitively in Verse 27)

4. Sin? (Verses 17–18)

5. Doubt? (Verse 12)

6. God’s generosity? (Verses 10, 26)

7. Honesty? (Verse 17)

8. Discernment? (Verse 19)

9. Faith? (Verse 25)

10. Human generosity? (Verse 29)

Be prepared to reread the verses marked so the students might know the correct response. Also be prepared to hear other interpretations by students and give an affirming response.

Ask students how this scripture story explains the Enduring Principle of grace and generosity?

Have one student read aloud Ephesians 2:8: By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.

Ask: How is grace (understood here as salvation) a gift of God?

Have another student read aloud Genesis 1:27.

So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.


Spades: Take Card—you must take the number of generosity points from another person (example: 10 of Spades = take 10,000 points away)

Clubs:Choose Card—you can choose to give away generosity points or take generosity points (8 of Clubs means to give away or take 8,000 points from someone else).

3. Each person keeps or gives away the cards they have.

4. The goal of the game is for you to have the fewest generosity points at the end of the game by trying to give them away. The game ends by allotted time, or when someone gets to zero, whichever comes first.

5. Go around the group several times. Let the youth get thoroughly into the game and watch how each one reacts. When you stop the game, ask the following questions:

• What did you like about the Generoisty Game?

• What did you dislike about the Generoisty Game?

• How did you feel when you received generosity points?

• How did you feel when you gave away generosity points?

• What frustrated you most during the Generoisty Game?

• How was a person supposed to win the Generoisty Game?


Ask: What does it mean to be made in God’s image?

Have another student read aloud 1 John 4:10:

We love because God first loved us.

Ask: What does it mean, “God first loved us”? What does the verse mean when it says, “We love”? (understood as a part of being generous)

Ask students to tell about a time when they did something for someone without being asked. Be prepared to give an example from your life. How did they feel when they did something for someone that was not expected (without being asked)?

As a class or in small groups, have students make a list of ways they can be generous. If groups have trouble developing a list, suggest they think of ways they can be generous in their families, neighborhoods, schools, church, with friends, on teams, during recreation, or at camp.

TheGenerosityGameDivide youth into groups of four to six. Explain to them they will play “The Generosity Game.”1 Use the deck of playing cards listed in the supplies for this lesson. Shuffle the cards well. Share with them the rules as follows:

1. Each student starts with 15,000 generosity points.

2. Going clockwise, have a person take a card off the top of the deck and do one of the following actions according to the card they get [Note: aces are 1,000 points, number cards are in thousands and face cards are 15,000 points]

Hearts: Receive Card—you receive generosity points (example: King of Hearts = 15,000 generosity points)

Diamonds: Extra Card—take another card and add points from both and follow the actions according to suit (Choose, Take or Receive Card)

1. Adapted from Biblical Stewardship Bible Study Series, (Missouri Baptist Convention), (http://images.acswebnetworks.com/2015/51/s_youth2.pdf), 4–5.

Say, “Everyone is given gifts and talents by God. 2 Corinthians 9:6–12 says that we are to be cheerful givers.” Invite the youth to turn to this scripture.(page 20)


6The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

8And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of every-thing, you may share abundantly in every good work. 9As it is written, “He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”

10He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; 12for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God.

Ask three students to read the verses as clustered above, verses 6–7, 8–9, and 10–12. Have students reflect after each set of verses and put them in their own words.

Verses 6–7What does it mean to be a “cheerful giver”?

Verses 8-9 Do we always “have enough of everything”? What could this mean?

Verses 10–12How are we “enriched in every way for [our] great generosity”?

2Corinthians9:6–12


Close this session by offering students a small gift. It could be a piece of candy or cookies, a unique coin, or a deck of cards to remind them of the lesson. As you present them with the gift, explain their challenge is to be a blessing to others with their generosity.

Explain that some scriptures were written as prayers and other passages can be used in that way. Tell the students you will close the class with Ephesians 3:20–21, which reminds us from where our power comes to be generous, and that it results in more than we can even imagine:

20 Now to him (Jesus) who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.


Worth of All Persons

Focus• God views all people as having inestimable

and equal worth.

• God wants all people to have whole bodies, minds, spirits, and relationships.

• We challenge unjust systems that diminish human worth, following Jesus Christ’s example by bringing good news to the poor, sick, captive, and oppressed.

• We strive to express behaviors and relationships that uphold the worth and giftedness of all people and that protect the most vulnerable. In particular, we seek deeper understanding of the relational principle of Christ-like love in expressing the worth of each person.

Focus.Scripture

Background

Acts10:34

34Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality.”

The worth of all persons excludes no one. When individuals are excluded or not seen as having equal worth in families, churches, communities, or workplaces, there is an imbalance and a disconnect, and God’s shalom cannot exist. When all are included, the whole community becomes more than the sum of its parts. The community comes into balance and achieves connection.

Andrew Bolton writes, “All of us have a chance to be restored to full humanity. Christianity is the religion of the second chance, the third chance ...forgiveness and restoration to wholeness and right relationships. ...To worship God with our whole being means worshiping God in everyone we meet, no matter how the divine image may be hidden. Serving the hungry, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and welcoming the strange is to meet Jesus personally.1

1. Bolton, Andrew, “Enduring Principles Series: Worth of Persons,” Herald, November 2009 http://www.CofChrist.org/enduringPrinciples/worthofpersons.asp.


As students gather, explain they will take part in a game that simulates real life. Have candy or some other small gift for each student. Explain life is not always fair, but working for justice is often worth it. Hand out candy to only a few students who share a common characteristic (all those wearing tennis shoes, those with blue eyes), saying “Only those students with (name the common characteristic) get candy today.” Listen to the responses. Ask students to express their feelings by reflective listening (repeat the key points to the expressions). After a few students have expressed their feelings tell them you agree—that they have convinced you that it isn’t fair to treat people differently, just because of the shoes they wear or the color of their eyes. Hand out the treats to those who did not get one before.

Explain to students how solving the problem with words (assuming no one took another person’s candy against their will) was one way to work for justice. By convincing the person with the resource, the distribution was changed to reflect equality.



According to scripture, Jesus considered his mission to include working for justice. If we are to live as disciples or followers of Jesus, we are called to work out this mission in our world today. Have students get into small groups and study Luke 4:16–21.

16When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery

Have students answer these questions related to our world and time, and then have small groups report out to the entire class:

• Who are the “poor”? How are we called to “bring good news” to the poor?

• Who are the “captive”? How are we called to proclaim release?

• Who is “blind”? How are we called to proclaim “recovery of sight”?

• Who are the “oppressed”? How can we “let them go free”?

After groups report, ask students if any of their responses related to unjust systems. Have students discuss how systems in our world diminish human worth. Ask students: How can we respond and change such systems?

of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”


Tell the students that our responses to our world begin within our relationships. We are challenged in Doctrine and Covenants 164 to have healthy relationships. Have students in small groups read the following scripture:

As revealed in Christ, God, the Creator of all, ultimately is concerned about behaviors and relationships that uphold the worth and giftedness of all people and that protect the most vulnerable. Such relationships are to be rooted in the principles of Christ-like love, mutual respect, responsibility, justice, covenant, and faithfulness, against which there is no law.

—Doctrine and Covenants 164:6a

Continuing in small groups have students take one or more of the following principles outlined




in this scripture. Ask the groups to explain how this principle is expressed through relationships by creating a poster, acting out a skit, creating a mock advertising campaign, or some other creative activity.

Christ-like loveMutual respectResponsibilityJusticeCovenantFaithfulness

You may need to help students understand these ideas.

Read John 13:34–35.

34I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

In this scripture, Jesus tells us to love one another.

• What must you do before you can love someone else?

• What are you called to do that shows your love?

Explain to students they are to pair up, or if the class is small and the setting suitable, ask them to pair up with someone outside the class setting. Explain they are to interview the person and report to the class at the beginning of the next lesson.

Following are sample questions to consider for the interview. Review these with the students and provide copies for each student. If possible, have them include a photograph of themselves and the other person.

• What is your full name?

• What do you like to do?

• What are your favorite foods? Color? Television shows? Music? Web sites?

• How do you think you and I are alike? Different?

• Which of these differences are significant? Which are not?

• Describe how you relate to people who are similar to you.

• Describe how you relate to people who are different.

• If you could choose one person to understand better, who would that be and what differences would that person have from you?

Tell the students how we are all like children in our relationship with God, and that we are all called to be a blessing to others, but to especially care for those who are most vulnerable. To close the class, have one or more students read 3 Nephi 8:12–14, 23–26 (paraphrased) as a blessing for those who are most vulnerable:

Jesus told them to bring their little children. So they brought them and they sat down on the ground around Jesus. He stood among them and asked everyone to kneel. After he prayed, Jesus blessed each child, praying for them. After he had finished he wept, and spoke to all those who gathered, saying “behold, your little ones.” As they looked, the heavens opened and they saw angels descending in what looked like a ring of fire. The angels blessed each of the little children. May all of those who are God’s children be blessed today. Amen.


Focus.Scripture

Background

Ephesians4:1–6

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.

Receiving the gifts and ministry of others, as well as extending our gifts and ministry, is not only part of our personal balance and connection, but is essential for balance and connection in our faith community.

Seventy Robin Linkhart writes, “All are called. It is in our blood, the DNA of our movement, the essence of who we are. Yet the words go beyond a statement of belief. They sing to the vision of who we are called to become. These words invite us into the struggle of understanding—bit by bit, step by faithful step—the radically inclusive nature of God. As we live the practice of ‘all are called’ our lives become a virtual lens of incarnate witness, inviting the world to see the nature of God revealed through Jesus Christ.”1

Further, Robin explains that we are called for the community. “Community magnifies giftedness. It enriches the faithful response of the whole, recognizing and releasing the giftedness of all in joyful expression.” Therefore, balance comes not only within ourselves when we respond to the call to share our gifts, but it comes to the community that magnifies our gifts for the good of all.

1. Linkhart, Robin, “Enduring Principles Series: All Are Called,” Herald, March 2010 (http://www.CofChrist.org/enduringPrinciples/called.asp)

Focus• God graciously gives people gifts and

opportunities to do good and to share in God’s purposes.

• Jesus Christ invites people to follow him as disciples who share his life and ministry.

• We respond faithfully, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to our best understanding of God’s call.

• Through our connection with others, we help one another achieve balance by discovering and responding to our individual and collective calls.

• We uphold one another in our callings by living the relational principles of mutual respect and responsibility.

• We support those disciples who are called and ordained to specific ministry for service to community, congregation, and world. They need our help as they care for others.

All Are Called




After students gather, ask them to share how their interviews went and what they learned from the experience.

Give out blank name tags or stickers to each, with pens or pencils. Ask students to write their dream job on the tag. Give them a few minutes to think about this and complete the assignment, then put on the name tag. Form a circle and ask each student to share their dream job and why they made the choice. Some youth may find it difficult to decide. Have the list that follows printed out for them to review. Remind them this is just a decision for our class time and it is okay to change their mind later.AccountantActorActuaryAgricultural food scientistArchitectArtistAutomotive mechanicBookkeeping clerkCarpenterChemistChildcare workerCivil engineerCoachComputer hardware engineerComputer software engineerComputer support specialistCost estimatorCourt reporterDancerDatabase administratorDesignerDesktop publisherDisc jockeryDoctorDrafterEconomistElectrical engineerElectricianEngineering technicianEnvironmental scientistFarmerFinancial analystFirefighter

HR assistantJudgeLandscape architectLawyerLibrarianLoan officerMinisterMusicianNurseParalegalPharmacistPhotographerPhysicistPilotPolice officerPoliticianProfessional athletePsychologistReal estate agentRecreation/fitness workerRecreational therapistReporterSecretarySocial workerStatisticianSurveyorSystems analystTeacherUrban plannerVeterinarianWebmasterWriterZookeeper

Explain the purpose of this lesson is to understand how each of us is “called.” Spend time defining the word “called” in this setting. “Called” is about finding our purpose in life—realizing that as we go through life this purpose might change as we do. While “called” is often related to our careers, in Community of Christ it goes beyond that. It is also what we do as disciples of Jesus—how we choose to live our lives in Christ-like ways and serve as members of sacred community.

Part of the Enduring Principle of all are called is to understand giftedness. We are blessed with skills and abilities that allow us to serve others and God. It is helpful to know our giftedness and our limits. When we serve others, our ministry is finally not ours but God’s.

Tell the story of Daniel Paul Tammet (born January 31, 1979 in East London, England). He is a writer with high-functioning autistic savant syndrome (like the main character in the movie “A Beautiful Mind”). His best-selling 2006 memoir Born on A Blue Day was named a “Best Book for Young Adults” in 2008 by the American Library Association. Tammet’s second book, Embracing the Wide Sky, was named one of France’s best-selling books of 2009 by L’Express magazine in its March 2010 edition. More information about his story is available on the Internet. Have students discuss what it must be like to have such abilities and how such abilities can serve others.

In small groups, have students study Romans 12:3–8, 1 Corinthians 12:1–11, and Doctrine and Covenants 161:4a–b (page 26). Ask the groups to discover what these scriptures say about serving others and to share their findings with the entire class. List their findings on a flip chart or poster board.

In the Corinthians passage, Paul speaks to the nature of giftedness. He underscores diversity as he uses key phrases: “varieties of gifts…varieties of services…varieties of activities” (verses 4–6). After he tells of many forms of diversity he talks about the heart of Christian life: community.


In the Romans text, Paul expounds on the nature of life together, life in blessed or sacred community. Not as people expressing giftedness in solo efforts, but rather within self-awareness and knowledge. Not in the capacity of self-importance, but as a treasure hunt to discover and mine God-given gifts in thanksgiving and full recognition of connectedness one with others. Doctrine and Covenants 161:4a–b highlights the giftedness of children and youth and reminds us to appreciate all of life’s seasons. The passage also reminds us that the giftedness of everyone is needed to fulfill God’s purposes.

Explain to students that the group discoveries are important to the next activity.


Romans12:3–83For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, 5so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. 6We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; 7ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; 8the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

ICorinthians12:1–11Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. 3Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says “Let Jesus be cursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. 4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

DoctrineandCovenants161:4a-ba. Do not neglect the smallest among you, for even the least of these are treasures in God’s sight. Receive the giftedness and energy of children and youth, listening to understand their questions and their wisdom. Respond to their need to be loved and nurtured as they grow.

b. Be mindful of the changing of life’s seasons, of the passage from the springtime of childhood and youth to the winter years of life. Embrace the blessing of your many differences. Be tender and caring. Be reminded once again that the gifts of all are necessary in order that divine purposes may be accomplished.

Give out copies of the handout “What We Can Do for God” (found at the end of this lesson). Explain that students should complete the first part of the handout by themselves. Give them the following list to help them come up with ideas. Add your own or make the list more specific:

prayerinterpretingunderstandingmercyvisitingfriendshipteachingmusicdramawritingcookingstorytelling

Next, have students pair up and work on the second part of the handout. Explain they should put one of their own skills, talents, or gifts in the first box. Next, they should write one of the skills, talents, or gifts of their partner. Then with their partner, they are to brainstorm how these two skills, talents, or gifts might be used together to serve others—serving God. Ask them to share with the entire class.

leadershipwitnessingsensitivitydoing craftsdiscernmentevangelismspeakingfaithgivinghealinghelpfulnesshospitality




Review with the students how some people in Community of Christ serve in specific roles of priesthood. Depending on the age and knowledge of your students, you may need to adjust how much time you spend on this. Concise, updated information on priesthood is available on the church’s website beginning at http://www.CofChrist.org/priesthood/.

As you prepare to end this series of lessons, remind students about the ways Jesus built relationships to give ministry. According to scripture, Jesus did much ministry while eating with others. He showed the gift of hospitality—even to people who his culture said he shouldn’t. Displaying such hospitality goes a long way in building relationships. When you need help, personally or help with your ministry, ask for help. This allows others to use their giftedness. Also, tell others what your skills, gifts, and abilities include—so they may ask you for help when it is needed.

Give each student a copy of “Networking in Community” adapted from page 29, World Community materials (http://www.CofChrist.org/onlineresources/worldcommunity/worldcommunity.asp).

In the center circle, ask each student to write down something they want to do to serve. Answer the question, “How do I want to help build a better world?” Next, have students write in one of three

circles labeled “Who can you help?” answering the questions in relation to what was written in the middle circle. Then have students write in one of three circles labeled “Who can help you?” Answer the questions in relation to what was written in the middle circle. Are there people in these six circles (your network) who could benefit by being introduced to each other? Draw a line between the two circles to mark this. Finally, think of one or more people (either name or category) who might be able to help with your ministry in the center circle. Put the information in the one remaining open circle.

Tell students of the significance of circles of support (networks) in your own life. This important ministry is displayed through many efforts—one example can be found at www.theopentable. It’s an organization that surrounds a person in poverty with a group of friends to help make decisions to lead the person out of poverty.

Thank each of the students for taking part in this class and the series of classes. Encourage students to share what they found to be most significant during the series. To close, have each person say a prayer for the person next to them—then close the time with a final prayer of blessing for all class members.


What We Can Do for God?When you are in the service of others, you are in the service of God.

—Mosiah 1:49 (paraphrased)

Pair up with one other person. Use boxes below.

In the inner circle, write those things you think you are good at which benefit others (gifts, skills, and abilities)

In the outer circle, write those things you would like to be able to do.

The area outside the larger circle represents those things you can’t do and not interested in.

1

2List one of your gifts, skills or abilities in the first box.

In the second box, list one gift, skill or ability from your partner.

Brainstorm how you might use these two together to serve others, to serve God.


Networking in Community

What do you wantto do to serve?

Who can help you?

Who can you help?

Who can help you?

Who can you help?

Who can help you?

Who can you help?

Find out from your network someone

you don’t know who could assist you with what you want

to do to serve.

contents · • story of daniel paul tammet from the internet or one of his books: born on a blue...

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