The Right Tool for the Job

Transcription

1 / January 28, 2018 The Right Tool for the Job Focus: God equips us to withstand the forces of evil. Bible Basis: Ephesians 6:10 18 Students will discuss using correct tools needed for various jobs and will discover that God equips us with the tools we need to withstand the enemy. Materials: Internet access Table and chairs Spaghetti noodles (1 package, cooked) Paper plates (5) Fork, toothpick, straw, piece of tin foil, tweezer (1 each) Stop watch or watch with second hand Memory Verse: Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil s schemes. Ephesians 6:11 Divide the cooked spaghetti noodles between the five plates. Place one of the featured utensils (fork, toothpick, straw, piece of tin foil, tweezer) randomly on each plate. Ask for five volunteers to participate in the contest. Sit them at a table so they are facing the classroom. Give each participant a plate of spaghetti. Tell the participants they will have one minute to eat as much of the spaghetti as they can using only the utensil provided. They may not use their fingers to help. Scooping is not allowed, and the plates must remain on the table. The participant with the tin foil may try to fashion it into a fork or some other utensil as long as no scooping is involved. When ready, start the timer. Ask classmates to cheer on the volunteers until one participant wins or the minute runs out on the timer. In all probability, the participant using the fork will have won the contest. Ask the following questions of the other contestants: What was it like to have such a poorly suited utensil to accomplish the task of eating your plate of spaghetti? (Allow participants to share their experience.) How did the tool you were given affect the outcome of the contest? (Allow several students to answer; opinions may vary.) By Kathy Wenrich Have you ever been in a situation where you were asked to do something but weren t given the resources you needed to accomplish the job? Tell us about it. (Be prepared to share your own experience to get the conversation going. Ask students to share what they did to make do, or if they had to abandon the project completely.)

2 Share the following video clip [due to length, start at 3:20 and stop at 6:35]: The first Trap Can Catch A lot of fish & Crabs and Eels By 5 Bamboo With deep Hole At first glance, this guy appeared to have all the wrong tools for a fishing expedition! Who goes fishing with bricks and a shovel? But he knew what he was doing, came equipped with specific resources, and proceeded with confidence and purpose. In the end, it turned out he had exactly the right tools for the job. The right tools are necessary in order to be the most successful in completing any task. God equips us with the necessary tools to be overcomers in our battles against the enemy. Today, we will learn what those tools are and how best to use them. (Continue on to Steps 2 and 3 in your teacher s guide; your Step 4 appears below.)

3 / January 28, 2018 The Right Tool for the Job Focus: God equips us to withstand the forces of evil. Bible Basis: Ephesians 6: Memory Verse: Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil s schemes. Ephesians 6:11 Materials: Spiritual Armor Inventory list (1 per student; template can be found at the end of this step) Whiteboard and marker Pens/pencils Before class, print out enough Spiritual Armor Inventory lists so that each student has one (the template can be found at the end of this step). The correct tool or equipment is important. When we choose to use the wrong one for the task at hand, we fail to get the best results. Lack of proper equipment can leave us frustrated and can cause us to quit trying. How are our spiritual weapons of warfare like the tools we use for a specific task? List the pieces of spiritual armor on the whiteboard, and hand out a copy of the Spiritual Armor Inventory list to each student. Ask your teens for specific day-to-day examples of when each of those pieces might be the correct tool or equipment needed; list their answers under the corresponding piece of armor as they respond. Earlier we talked about the importance of using the right tools for the job at hand remember the man using the bricks and bamboo pipes to catch fish? It might have looked like the wrong choice, but it was the perfect choice. What would happen if we tried to rely on our own strength to overcome the supernatural power of evil? (Help your students to see that it is impossible to resist the enemy apart from the tools that God provides.) If we receive the armor of God when we accept Jesus as Savior and Lord of our lives, why do so many Christians live defeated lives? (They have the armor, but aren t using it.) Ask students to think of several temptations that they face personally (these could include temptations to have sex, to lie, to bully others, to take drugs, etc.). Give them an opportunity to jot these down next to the piece or pieces of armor that would best help them fight against the

4 temptation. Challenge them to begin to specifically use the armor of God this week when they come up against these struggles utilizing the right tool for the job. Close in prayer asking God for insight and strength to practice using all the spiritual armor when being tempted or attacked by Satan. (We are not affiliated with and do not endorse any website or any other media listed on these pages. At the time of writing, we carefully review the referenced material and non-referenced web page content. However, due to the nature of the Internet, non-cited content on the website [including pop-ups, links, and ads] changes frequently and is beyond our control. Please review carefully before showing links in the classroom.)

5 SPIRITUAL ARMOR INVENTORY PIECE OF ARMOR BELT OF TRUTH BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS PROVIDES PROTECTION AGAINST Lies from the enemy about God s character Our position in Christ The path we are taking Intentions of others Accusations from the enemy telling us that we are losers, that we are still slaves to sin and aren t really saved. SHOES OF PEACE SHIELD OF FAITH HELMET OF SALVATION/DELIVERANCE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT PRAYER Anxiety Fear Uncertainty Division, hostility Doubt Fear Lust Thought life Double-mindedness Lies from the enemy Doctrines of demons Distortion of God s Word Half-truth, twisting, Hath God said? Rebellion Fear in witnessing to others Attacks from others (particularly believers)