This month: Leader s Guide Noise! Praying for Others Prayer Changes Us When God s Answer Is No May 2006
Leader s Guide The Credo Leader s Guide is a FREE resource created by Barefoot Ministries for use in conjunction with Credo. Each issue of Credo delivers a month s worth of devotions, features, and articles around a central theme. The Credo Leader s Guide gives youth leaders the ability to build on the monthly theme through small-group Bible study. The Leader s Guide uses the articles and devotions from the magazine as illustrations and lead-ins for digging deeper into God s Word. As each Bible study is dependent on the students having used the magazine for their daily devotions and spiritual growth, the Credo Leader s Guide helps youth workers keep their students accountable in their spiritual walk. The Credo Leader s Guide is available for download as a.pdf file at www.barefootministries.com, www.wordaction.com, and www.credomagazine.com. For inquiries, order changes, or customer support, call toll-free 1-866-355-9933, or e-mail cmolinquiry@barefootministries.com. For more great youth ministry curriculums, Bible studies, training, tools, and other resources, please visit www.barefootministries.com, the most complete and affordable online youth ministry solution. How to Use the Credo Leader s Guide Each week s small-group Bible study provides a leader s lesson summary, suggested opening activities, and a student study sheet. The study sheets are designed to get students into God s Word through the reading of the Scripture as well as discussion. Student sheets are laid out in half sheet pages so that they can be printed out, cut in half, three-hole punched, and stored in a journal. Each student study sheet has the following sections included: Examine: Students explore their personal thoughts on the issue before reading the Word. Explore: Students dig into the Word by reading the Scripture and answering and discussing questions or statements. Live: Students make life applications from what they ve discussed, read, and learned. All Scripture quotations unless otherwise indicated are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV ). Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
Week 1: Noise! Summary: Often our lives are so filled with noise we find ourselves unable to just be still. Many of us wake up to the radio or TV. We listen to music on our way to work or school, and then spend the rest of the day with people at work, in the classroom, at the store, at home, etc. Many of us also fill our afternoons and evenings with music and/or TV, until we finally drift to sleep to it. It s no surprise that we find ourselves not hearing from God. We never have a moment to enjoy some quiet and meditate on the Word of God. It s important that we find some time during the day to focus on Jesus in prayer and to live in an attitude of prayer. We do not necessarily have to find a place where we can bow our head, close our eyes, and clasp our hands, but we do have to take the time to talk to Him and be aware of His presence as we go throughout our day. Learning to be still is difficult, but it can be done. Leadership Focus: Leaders must know how to wade through and eliminate the noise in their lives, so they can spend time with God and hear from Him. Movie: For Love of the Game (PG-13). Clip Location: Start 0:24:26 (Billy Chapel looks into the crowd at Yankee Stadium.); End: 0:25:00 ( Strike one! ). Synopsis: To most, Billy Chapel is a has been. In his last year pitching, Billy knows he has to make each game count. While on the field, he can hear the insults from the crowd, the yelling fans, and the noise. He knows that if he s to do his best, he must block out all the noise and concentrate one what s important. *Adapted from Videos that Teach 3 by Doug Fields and Eddie James (Youth Specialties & Zondervan: Grand Rapids, MI, 2004), 70-71. Music: Switchfoot s, Adding to the Noise on the album Beautiful Letdown. Synopsis: We fill our lives with noise. Switchfoot suggests that we turn it off. Gospel Filter: Even Christian things can make our lives too noisy to hear the voice of God. We need to get away and quiet ourselves to be able to listen for that still small voice of God. Examine Play Switchfoot s song Adding to the Noise as students are entering. You may want to play it a little louder than normal so that it s hard to carry on conversations. Hit the repeat button so that it plays several times. This can help drive home the message of the song. When it s time to start the discussion, suddenly turn off the music. The difference in the level of noise should be drastic. Discuss with your group how our world is filled with noise. Ask them, What things fill your day with noise? What things distract you throughout the day? Play the clip from the movie For Love of the Game, then discuss the following questions: What is solitude to you? How hard is it for you to get away from the noise and be with God? How well do you do quiet? Explore Have your students look up and read aloud the following scriptures. Invite them to share their thoughts and record their observations on the study sheet. During the discussion, ensure that the ideas in parentheses are considered: Isaiah 55:1-6 (God calls us to come to Him to be restored.) Exodus 14:10-15 (The Israelites are scared. They ve just left Egypt, and the Egyptians are now in
pursuit of them; unfortunately the Red Sea is standing in their way of escape. Moses speaks for God, telling the Israelites to be still.) Psalm 37:5-9 (David tells us to commit our way to the Lord and to trust Him to be still and wait on God.) Psalm 46:1-11 (This Psalm is a celebration, praising God for the security He offers. In the midst of their celebrating, God tells the Israelites to be still to quit all their activity and to just be with Him and know that He is God. Live It takes a real commitment to have quiet time each day to listen for God s voice. There are a million different things that can get in our way. Have your students spend a few minutes reflecting on three things that they can remove from their daily schedule that would help them find some quiet time to spend with God? These don t have to be huge things, just things that will help them get 5-10 minutes a day to spend with God. If they are already spending time with God daily, have them write down three things that they can give up to help them spend more time with God daily. To close, have each member of your group individually read the Inside Story article found on pages 24-25. These mediation stations are designed to be used outside. If possible, take your group outside. If that s not possible, set the mood inside with dimmed lights and soft music.
Week 2: Praying for Others Summary: Praying for others can be difficult. Saying we ll pray for them is easy, but unfortunately, too often it s just a phrase we say we aren t really praying for them. On the other hand, we have no problem praying for ourselves; it s not very often that we forget to do that. Jesus set the example for us with His life not only are we supposed to pray for others, we are supposed to pray for, and forgive, our enemies. Leadership Focus: Leaders understand that praying for our enemies and forgiving those who hurt us can have life-changing and world-changing effect on others. Song: Casting Crown s Love them Like Jesus on the album Lifesong Gospel Filter: Most people are experiencing hurt, loss, or an emptiness in their lives when they don t know Jesus. We are called to be Him to a hurting world. Examine Start class by reading and discussing the Footnotes article Prayer on page 4. Then ask your class the following questions: How often do you pray for yourself? How often do you pray for those you love? How often do you pray for your enemies those who have hurt you or someone you love? Explore Have your students look up and read aloud the following scriptures. Invite them to share their thoughts and record their observations. During the discussion, ensure that the ideas in parentheses are considered. Matthew 5:43-47 (Jesus goes against common, logical knowledge and tells us that not only are we supposed to love our neighbor, we are supposed to love our enemies and pray for them.) Luke 6:27-36 (Luke expands on the Matthew passage, telling us specifics on how we can love our enemies.) Luke 23:33-43 (As He hung dying on the cross, Jesus forgave.) Acts 7:54-60 (The crowd stones Stephen because they didn t like what he had told them [vv. 1-53]. Despite the fact that he is being wrongly killed, Stephen asks that Jesus forgive his killers.) Live Stephen s life had quite an impact and ours can too. In what ways do you see your life impacting others today? Are you enough like Jesus for others to notice it? Listen to the Casting Crown s song Love Them Like Jesus, then discuss the following questions: How can you begin to show Christ s love and forgiveness to others? Is there someone in your life that you need to forgive? Read the devotion Praying for You found on page 28. To close, have your students write a prayer on their student sheets that focuses on the needs of others, not their own.
Week 3: Prayer Changes Us Summary: Prayer. How does it work? God is all powerful and all knowing, so why should we spend time on our knees telling Him what He all ready knows? Prayer can t change things anyway because God all ready has things decided, right? Wrong. Prayer is more than telling an all-ready-decided-god what we want. Prayer is our way of drawing close to Him hearing His voice and determining His plan for our life. In the movie Shadowlands, C.S. Lewis is quoted as saying, I pray because I can t help myself. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn t change God, it changes me. The reason we pray is because prayer changes us not God. It draws us closer to Him, merging our will with His. Leadership Focus: Leaders understand the importance and place of prayer in their lives. They realize that prayer is not some strange way of controlling God, but rather, the way to merge their will with God s will. Movie: Shadowlands (PG). Clip Location: Start 1:35:00 ( What news? ); End 1:35:35 ( It doesn t change God; it changes me. ) Synopsis: Jack s colleagues try to comfort him when he learns that a loved one is dying of cancer. The discussion turns to the topic of prayer and Jack clarifies his reasons for praying. *Adapted from Videos that Teach 1 by Doug Fields and Eddie James (Youth Specialties & Zondervan: Grand Rapids, MI, 1999), 142-143. Examine Start the class with a discussion on the purpose of prayer. Use the following questions as a guide: What is prayer? What does it mean to you? Can prayer change God s mind? If God all ready knows our needs, why do we bother praying? Now show the clip from Shadowlands and discuss the following questions: What do you think Jack meant when he said Prayer changes me? Do you agree with his statement? Have you experienced prayer changing you? Explore Have your students look up and read aloud the following scriptures. Invite them to share their thoughts and record their observations. During the discussion, ensure that the ideas in parentheses are considered. Matthew 6:5-15 (Jesus teaches us the do s and don ts of praying it s important to be humble and to not seek attention.) James 4:1-3 (James reminds us that we have to have the right motive when praying.) Luke 11:1-13 (Jesus again teaches on prayer. He tells us how to pray [the Lord s prayer similar to the one found in Matthew s passage]; He reminds us to pray because that s how the door is opened; He instructs us to be persistent in our prayers and not give up; and He says that God wants to give us good gifts.) Philippians 4:6-7 (We are reminded that we should not worry about anything but should instead take all our requests to God.) Live Ask a student to read aloud the Real Deal article Continual Prayer found on pages 12-13, while the rest of the group follows along. After reading, answer the following questions: Have you ever seen praying in movies? If so, what type(s) have you seen? Do you think it s possible to pray continually? Why or why not? Have you ever know someone who lives a life of continual prayer? What would a life of continual prayer look like for you? Close with prayer.
Week 4: When God Says No. Summary: We often find ourselves saying that God is not answering prayer when in fact He is saying no. It s hard to understand why God would say no, especially when the stakes seem so high to us like praying for the healing of a loved one. In 2 Samuel 12, the prophet Nathan confronts David abut his sin with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband. Nathan informs David that as a result of his sin, Bathsheba s baby will die. David immediately begins praying and fasting for the life of his baby boy. During this time he writes Psalm 51. He also begs God to spare his son s life. God s answer for David is no, and the baby dies. It s hard for most of us to imagine losing a baby, but David cleans himself up and goes to comfort Bathsheba. David trusts God even when he doesn t understand God s answers. In this study we want to learn to trust God even when we are told no. Leadership Focus: A leader understands that God s repertoire of answers could include no. When God does tell them no, they trust that He knows best. Song: Natalie Grant s Held on the album Awaken Gospel Filter: God is there with us through of darkest valleys of pain and suffering. Examine Pain, loss and hurt are hard to understand. Take some time to discuss the following questions: If God is a loving God, why does He allow pain and suffering? Why does God not keep terrible things from happening to Christians? Why would God chose to answer prayers with a no? What if the prayer is for healing? Why would He say no to that? Explore: Have your students look up and read aloud the following scriptures. Invite them to share their thoughts and record their observations. During the discussion, ensure that the ideas in parentheses are considered. 2 Samuel 12:13-25 (Sin doesn t just affect us; it affects others as well. Sometimes, despite our prayers, God doesn t give us the answer we desire sometimes His answer is no. ) 2 Samuel 7:1-17 (David wants to build the Temple a permanent place for God to dwell. God, however, tells him no; it s not his job to complete.) Acts 16:6-10 (Despite the fact that Paul was called to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, the Holy Spirit did not allow him to enter into the province of Asia.) Live: Listen to Natalie Grant s song Held, then answer the following questions: Can you relate to what Natalie Grant is saying? In your life, has there been a time when God has told you no about something important? How did you deal with it? How did you react? Sometimes it s hard to distinguish what God is saying; we don t know if His answer is yes, no, or wait because we aren t familiar with His voice. Read the Shout article Knowing Jesus Voice found on pages 44-45. Close with silent, individual pray time. Encourage your students to really listen to for God s voice and to trust Him if His answer to their requests is no.
Small Group May 2006: Week 1 Noise! Examine: Our world is filled with noise, morning, noon, and night What things fill your day with noise? What things distract you throughout the day? Small Group May 2006: Week 1 Noise! Why would Moses tell everyone to be still? Psalm 37:5-9 What does David tell us to do in this passage? After watching the clip from For Love of the Game, answer the following questions: What is solitude to you? How hard is it for you to get away from the noise and be with God? How well do you do quiet? Explore: Read the following scriptures about waiting and being still and record your thoughts about what each one says. Isaiah 55:1-6 What promises can be found here? Exodus 14:10-15 What are the circumstances the Israelites find themselves in? Why would David say Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him (v. 7a)? How can we be still before the LORD? Psalm 46:1-11 The Israelites were actively praising God for His security. In the midst of this God tells them to Be still (v. 10). Why? Live: It takes a real commitment to have quiet time each day to listen for God s voice. What are three things can you remove from your daily schedule that would help you find some quiet time for God? (If you already have a daily quiet time, what are three things that you can give up so you can spend more time with God each day?) 1. 2. 3. When you are finished, read the Inside Story article found on pages 24-25. If possible, go outside to read these.
Small Group May 2006: Week 2 Praying for Others Small Group May 2006: Week 2 Praying for others Examine: After reading the Footnotes article Prayer found on page 4, spend some time thinking about and answering the following questions: How often do you pray for yourself? How often do you pray for those you love? Why isn t it good enough to just love those who love us? Luke 23:33-43 Jesus was betrayed, beaten, and hung on a cross. What was His reaction? How often do you pray for your enemies those who have hurt you or someone you love? Explore: Read the following scriptures and record your thoughts about what each one says. Matthew 5:43-47 What was the common belief on whom to love? Whom did Jesus say we were to love? How was He able to react this way? Acts 7:54-60 Who was Stephen (6:8-15) and why was he killed (7:1-53). How were Stephen s words and actions like Jesus? Live: Stephen s life had quite an impact and ours can too. In what ways do you see your life impacting others today? Why? Are you enough like Jesus for others to notice it? Luke 6:27-36 What specific examples does Jesus give us on how we can love our enemies? After listening to the Casting Crown s song Love Them Like Jesus, answer the following questions:
Small Group May 2006: Week 2 Praying for others How can you begin to show Christ s love and forgiveness to others? Is there someone in your life that you need to forgive? After reading the devotion Praying for You found on page 28, write a prayer focused on the needs of others, not your own:
Small Group May 2006: Week 3 Prayer Changes Us Small Group May 2006: Week 3 Prayer Changes Us Examine: What is prayer? Matthew 6:5-15 How should we not pray? What does it mean to you? Where should we pray? Can prayer change God s mind? How should we pray? If God all ready knows our needs, why do we bother praying? After watching the clip from Shadowlands, answer the following questions: What do you think Jack meant when he said Prayer changes me? James 4:1-3 Why don t we get what we want? Luke 11:1-13 How does Luke say we should pray? Do you agree with his statement? How should we be in our prayers (vv. 5-8)? Have you experienced prayer changing you? Why do we pray (vv. 9-10)? Explore: Read the following scriptures and record your thoughts about what each one says. What does God want to give us (vv. 11-13)?
Small Group May 2006: Week 3 Prayer Changes Us Philippians 4:6-7 What are we to do? What will be the result if we do that? Live: After reading the Real Deal article Continual Prayer found on pages 12-13, answer the following questions: Have you ever seen praying in movies? If so, what type(s) have you seen? Do you think it s possible to pray continually? Why or why not? Have you ever know someone who lives a life of continual prayer? What would a life of continual prayer look like for you?
Small Group May 2006: Week 4 When God s answer is No Small Group May 2006: Week 4 When God s answer is No Examine: If God is a loving God, why does He allow pain and suffering? Is he allowed to do it? Why or why not? Why does God not keep terrible things from happening to Christians? Acts 16:6-10 What happened here? Why would God chose to answer prayers with a no? What if the prayer is for healing? Why would He say no to that? Explore: Read the following scriptures and record your thoughts about what each one says. 2 Samuel 12:13-25 Whom does our sin affect? Why would God give that answer? Live: After listening to Natalie Grant s song Held, answer the following questions: Can you relate to what Natalie Grant is saying? In your life, has there been a time when God has told you no about something important? How did you deal with it? How did you react? How does God answer our prayers? 2 Samuel 7:1-17 What did David want to do?