Welcome to this week’s online Port Ann Wesleyan youth group lesson. To catch up on previous lessons, click here.
Also, up front, a quick reminder. Registration for district youth camp, which runs July 11-14 at Camp Harmony near Johnstown, is now. Cost is $150/$175 depending on when you sign up. Click here to sign up online immediately. We need to know who is signing up, so also please email John/Michelle to let them know you plan to attend right after filling out the online registration.
Kicking off this week’s lesson with an older Matthew West song, “My Own Little World.” This video is worth watching for the visuals that go well with the message of the song. More about that below.
Pastor Paul and Sherilyn Sheets continue a cross-country trip. Please continue to keep in prayers. We also continue to remember Jim Mulaney as he works through cancer radiation treatments.
Ashlynn is currently in the hospital after being life-flighted and struggling quite a bit. Please pray for her, the family and doctors as they address the situation.
Our youth are facing a summer of potential, from jobs to driving alone to other opportunities to experience life like they haven’t been able to during the pandemic. Please pray that our teens find ways to keep God at the center of their summer, and to impact others for Him during the “off-school” schedule.
—
The following clip is from the movie “To Save a Life.” It is a film we watched a number of years ago in the youth group, starting off with a powerful scene of a young man who shoots himself at school and the impact it has on his former childhood friend. Obviously, the movie is pretty intense, not just in that opening sequence, but in some of the other elements it addresses, from teenage drinking/drugs to other questionable behaviors.
However, for a moment, just watch the clip as it stands without all the other elements and the challenge brought up by the young man at the center of the scene.
One of the main questions touched upon in that clip … why do we go to church, a place so many others purposefully avoid? Why do some avoid church and youth activities? How are we individually impacting others by how we treat them (even inadvertently) when together?
Perhaps more importantly, as is brought up in the clip … why do we go to church, or read our bibles, or pray to God, if we aren’t doing all we can to let our worship change us to be more like Him?
Statistics show a steep drop-off in faith/belief and especially action from those involved in kids ministry opportunities such as AWANA and VBS and those in youth group ages. Teenagers naturally question their world around them more, and need to find their own inner-acceptance of faith. It isn’t just transfused from parents to kids, but teens have a responsibility to mature into their own walk with God — or lack thereof.
God has been moving me (John) in preparation for summer family camp youth programming to really study the chapter of Romans 12 — specifically Romans 12:11 (NIV): “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.”
What are you doing this summer to revitalize your “spiritual fervor?” Summer “vacations” typically mean a slower schedule, perhaps landing a summertime job, heading to the beach with family, hanging out with friends, etc. What time are you purposefully building into your summer itinerary to reconnect with God?
I ask this as we wrap up final registrations for district youth camp. At the moment, we have six youth signed up for this program, and we are thankful for each of those six for carving out a portion of their summer to share fellowship with other teens from across the district and learn something new about God in the process. We pray that more still join this group. We have family camp opportunities later in July, as well, and again, we aren’t sure how many to expect yet, but pray that God uses this ministry to recharge our youth heading into another school year at the end of summer.
The last youth camp seems like it was forever ago. Here is a quick reminder from one of the days:
As is mentioned in the verse from Romans 12:11, one important suggestion on how to keep your spiritual fervor is to serve the Lord. The verse makes a very close connection between the two concepts … spiritual fervor and serving God.
How do we serve Him? By serving others. Like the concept pushed in the movie clip above, that means focusing attention on others, being there for them when they are struggling, providing a lifeline, even if just via a text message or friendly hello via chat or phone call. As is shared in the sentiment of Matthew West’s “My Own Little World” song shared earlier, serving God means looking beyond our safe daily routine, but mindfully seeking opportunities to make a difference.
The Bible is full of reasons why we need to make a conscious effort even during the summer “break” to serve God. One great example of this can be found in Matthew 25:14-30 … the parable of the talents where an owner entrusts money in three different servants while he is gone. The two who invest that money, put effort into making the most of that commitment, are honored and cheered by the owner when he returns. The third, who buries and sits on those talents, is cast out into the darkness. This summer, don’t become lax and sit on the amazing gifts, talents and opportunities God has blessed you with, but instead use those resources to serve Him and rekindle your spiritual fervor.
What are some suggestions you have in how to do this? What commitments are you willing to make this summer to serve God via serving others, and in the process, serving ourselves by deepening our relationship with Him? Please send us some potential real-life examples by clicking here.
We’ll wrap up this week with a new song (“A Little Love”) from a new artist (Gary LeVox) with some help from MercyMe:
