Tag Archives: Discipleship

Teaching Illustrations

Guiding Others – A Story of Two Horses

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Are we guiding others?

This tale reminds us that we must care for one another, not only with their needs, but also by guiding others along the right path in life.

Two Horses

On a forgotten country road, there is a field, with two horses in it.

From a distance, each horse looks like any other horse. But if you look closer you will notice something quite interesting.

One of the horses is blind.

The horse’s owner has chosen not to have him put down. Instead he has built a safe and comfortable barn for him to live in.

This alone is pretty amazing. But if you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the sound of a bell. The sound is coming from a smaller horse in the field.

Attached to the smaller horse’s halter is a copper-colored bell. It lets the blind friend know where the smaller horse is, so he can follow.

If you take a moment to stand and watch these two friends, you’ll see that the horse with the bell is always checking on the blind horse. The blind horse listens for the bell.  He then slowly walks to where the other horse is, trusting he will not be led astray.

Each evening the horse with the bell returns to the shelter of the barn. On the way, he will occasionally stop to look back. He is making sure that the blind friend isn’t too far behind to hear the bell.

We all need people we can depend on when we face struggles in life. Sometimes we are the guide. And sometimes we need others to guide us. Listen for my bell and I’ll listen for yours.

Scriptures on Helping Others and Guiding Others

Helping Others

  • Hebrews 6:10 – “God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.”
  • Luke 6:38 – “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
  • Matthew 25:44-45 – “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ ” He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'”
  • Isaiah 58:10-11 – “Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.”

Guiding Others

  • Ephesians 4:2 – “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.”
  • 1 Thessalonians 5:11 – “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
  • Galatians 6:2 – “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
  • 1 Corinthians 12:25 – “There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.”
  • Philippians 2:3-5 – “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.”
  • Proverbs 12:26 – “The godly give good advice to their friends; the wicked lead them astray.” (NLT)
  • Proverbs 17:17 – “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” (ESV)
  • Proverbs 18:24 – “Some friends don’t help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.” (CEV)
  • Luke 6:31 – “Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.” (NASB)
  • Romans 15:1 – “We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.”
  • Isaiah 58:10-11 – “Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.”
Game Ideas, Object Lessons

Gummy Worm Discipleship

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Gummy Worm Discipleship
Although gummy bears were invented by German Candy maker Hans Reigel in 1922, the gummy worm is a relatively recent concept. The Gummy bear wasn’t shipped to America until around 1981 and then an American candy company extended the idea to gummy worms to give youth something fun to eat and to shock their parents. Gummy worms are one of the most popular gummy candies around. Use these games with gummy worms as an object lesson to talk about Jesus’ call to his disciples to become fishers of men.

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What You Need

Lots of Gummy Worms

Games using Gummy Worms

NOTE: The intention is for these youth games to be played with gummy worms, but if you can’t get gummy worms, you can use extra long Twizzlers, or string licorice.

  • Chicken Races – In this crazy youth game, everyone is a chicken. Place gummy worms in a shallow baking pan with crushed Oreos piled on top and place it at the opposite end of the room. You can use one pan for each team or have them all fight over the worms in a single pan. On “go”, the first team member from each team must flap their arms like wings and make clucking sounds while running to the pan to collect a worm using their mouth (beaks) only. No hands allowed. Once they retrieve a worm they can return to the team and the next youth repeats the task. Worms must still be whole to be counted. The first team to have everyone retrieve a worm wins. Variation: Instead of oreo cookies, use chocolate pudding sprinkled with oreo cookies.
  • Chicken Feed – This is similar to the chicken race, but have a deeper pan with more chocolate pudding and Oreos. Each team chooses one representative. The youth who retrieves the most worms from the pan in a designated time wins.
  • Worm Fishing – To play this game you fill a fishbowl with pretzels or goldfish crackers, and the youth use a fishing rod to get one out and eat it. The bait is gummy worms that are nice and sticky. If you don’t have a real fishing rod, use a stick and some string. You could even add a reel if you wanted to. If you don’t have a fishbowl handy, any clear, large bowl will do the trick. Use lukewarm water to wet down a gummy worm and then pat it dry so that it’s nice and sticky. Tie the worm to the end of the string on the fishing rod. Players have one minute to use the wishing rod to “hook” a pretzel/goldfish from the fishbowl by getting it to stick to the ooey-gooey gummy worm. No hands allowed. Then, once one is “caught,” it must be brought back to the player’s mouth and she must eat it before the timer runs out in order to win the game. To make it more difficult, increase the distance to the fishbowl. If a pretzel/goldfish falls off the gummy worm it must be abandoned and another one “caught” on the gummy worm. If a player touches the string or gummy worm while a pretzel is attached, that pretzel won’t count. String may not be wound around the finger during an attempt. The player(s) with the most pretzels at the end of the 60-seconds wins.
  • Worms between your toes – Fill 5 or 10-gallon buckets (or kiddie pools) about 1/4 of the way up with water and drop at least 20 gummy worms in each one. Everyone takes off their socks & shoes. The first person in line for each team will run to bucket and dip their foot in the water, pulling out a worm with their toes. They must then transfer the worm into a bowl located beside the bucket. Teams only get a point for worms dropped into the bowl. Whoever has the most worms at the end of a designated time limit wins! (If you•re indoors, have some towels on hand for participants to dry their feet. You may also want to lay tarps down to minimize the mess.) Variation: Instead of a bowl, guys lie down with their heads beside buckets. The girls feed them to the guys using only their feet. The girl and guy team who can eat the most gummy bears in 2 minutes wins.
  • Gummy Worm Rulers – Provide a list of measurements in gummy worms of various items around the youth room. Youth must find the item that matches the measurements. The team with the greatest number of correctly identified items wins. (Tip: Measure the length of a typical gummy worm and then just measure things in the room with a ruler like the length of a table, the width of a door, the height of a poster, etc. Divide the measurements by the length of a typical gummy worm to get the lengths in gummy worms – 3.5 gummy worms, etc)
  • Gummy Relay – Pair up the youth. One end of a gummy bear goes into each person’s mouth. The pairs must then navigate an obstacle course without break the gummy bear or allowing it to drop from their mouths. Fastest pair wins!
  • Gummy Worm Race – Placed a marshmallow, a pretzel, or even a donut in the middle of a gummy worm. On go, players must eat their way to be the one to finish off the marshmallow. Whoever eats the marshmallow wins the game. Variation – The team who eats the worm the fastest wins!
  • Gummy Worms Pictionary – Played like normal Pictionary where you have to draw the clues for your teams to guess the word or phrase, but in this variation, instead of drawing, lay out the gummy worms to create shapes. No numbers symbols or letters are allowed. You can do it on a cookie sheet, chopping board, or butcher paper.
  • Gummy Worm Stretch – In this game, the goal is for partners to have the most stretched-out gummy worm without breaking it. Check your results with a ruler.
  • Fishies – Take a couple fishing poles and stick gummy worms to them with string. Blindfold the youth and dangle the gummy worms around. The first person to find the gummy worm with their tongue and eat it, wins.
  • Make Dirt Cups as snacks – You’ll need 8-ounce clear plastic cups, chocolate pudding mix, milk (as specified on pudding box) chocolate sandwich cookies like Oreos (crushed) and gummy worms. Mix the pudding according to the package directions. Layer the pudding and the cookie crumbs in cups. Top the layers with more crumbs and gummy worms.
  • Gummy Worm Gulpers – Youth race against the clock to eat gummy worms hanging from the ceiling. You’ll need clothespins, strong string, and lots of gummy worms. Cut various lengths of string, attach one end to the ceiling or from a tree and one end to a clothespin, and clamp a gummy worm in each clothespin. Youth run from string to string and, using only their mouths, snatch and eat the gummy worms. The winner is whoever eats all the worms in the shortest amount of time.

TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

  • How would you describe a gummy worm to someone who has never seen or eaten one before?
  • What are some of the characteristics of gummy worms?
  • Name some uses of real worms?
  • Has anyone ever fished with a worm?

MAKE IT SPIRITUAL

Read Matthew 4:17-22

  • Worms are attractive to fish. What are some things that are attractive to people?
  • What things does the world go fishing for?
  • What are we to fish for as Christians?
  • Is a person a fisherman if year after year he never goes fishing?
  • Is he a fisherman if he never catches a fish?
  • Is someone a true disciple of Jesus Christ if he never attempts to win a soul for Christ?

MAKE IT PRACTICAL

  • As a fisherman, do we cast our nets in our backyard or do we go to a place where fish can be found? (Jesus never suggests that the world should come to the church but commands the church to go into the world to witness. Jesus has given us the example – he goes to the people, he never waits for the people to come to Him.)
  • How is telling others about Jesus similar to fishing?
  • Lures are attractive to fish. How can you make the good news of Jesus attractive to your friends?

MAKE IT PERSONAL

  • What can you do this week to be more effective as a fisher of men?

KEY SCRIPTURE

Matthew 4:19: “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”

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MORE IDEAS? See “Creative Object Lessons”

200 page e-book that explains everything you need to know when planning your very own object lessons. It contains 90 fully developed object lesson ideas and another 200 object lesson starter ideas based on Biblical idioms and Names / Descriptions of God.

Learn More…

Creative Teaching Ideas

New Year’s Resolutions You Can Keep

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In general, each new day is like the one before. There really is no reason why New Year’s Day should be any different than the rest of the days of the year. There is no difference between December 31 and January 1. Nothing special occurs at midnight on December 31. But for many, the New Year is a day to reflect on the past and look to the future. In fact the name of the first month of the year, January, is derived from Janus, a two faced Roman deity that looked both backwards and forward at the same time. January 1st is a time of new beginnings, of getting a fresh start, of letting go of the things from the past that might hold us back and pressing forward.

If that sounds familiar, you might recognise it as a concept, not unique to the Romans but a Biblical concept as well. From the very beginning God appointed the 7th day as a day of rest, a day of renewal to begin a new week. Later God commanded a day of atonement, which allowed anyone to start with a clean slate for a new year. There was even a year of jubilee during which all inheritances were restored, all slaves freed, and everyone was given an opportunity for a new beginning.

“Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1 (NIV)

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)

In Luke 18:18-27, Jesus is asked by a rich young ruler, what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. When Jesus responded he mentioned the keeping of the 10 commandments. The man replied that he had kept them all. Then Jesus said there was still one thing he needed to do – to sell all he owned and Follow Jesus. There was one thing that stood between him and God. For him it was his money.

It is a fitting story for the New Year. At this time of the year people are making lists of commitments of things to do – New Year’s Resolutions. In a way they are personal commandments of do’s and don’ts. But maybe instead of making a long list we need to look at the one things that stands between us and all that God has planned for us. For some it might be the same as the rich young ruler – riches. For others it may be a variety of things. I wonder what that one thing is that would bring you closer to God in the New Year?

What are some of the goals or resolutions that people make for the New Year?

According to the University of Scranton Journal of Clinical Psychology, December 13, 2012 edition, the top ten resolutions for 2012 were:

  1. Lose Weight
  2. Getting Organized
  3. Spend Less, Save More
  4. Enjoy Life to the Fullest
  5. Staying Fit and Healthy
  6. Learn Something Exciting
  7. Quit Smoking
  8. Help Others in Their Dreams
  9. Fall in Love
  10. Spend More Time with Family

These things are all GOOD things. But if we were to follow Jesus completely, with nothing standing between us and Him, a good number of these things would become true. If we were to follow God wholeheartedly and depend more on him in the year ahead, there is so much more God could do in our lives.

Jesus wasn’t against wealth. He was against anything that holds us back from God. For the rich young ruler great wealth was the ‘one thing’ that stood between him and God.

What are some other things that might stand between a person and God?

So what is your ‘one thing’?

Before we focus on that one thing, there is a final thing to remember from this passage. It is found in verse 27.

“With God all things are possible.”

Of those that do make New Year Resolutions, most fail. Some last a week, some last a month, but virtually none will last till the end of the year. That’s because we need God to make lasting change in our lives. We cannot do it alone. And if we do fail along the way, there’s nothing stopping us from confessing and picking ourselves up again then and there to continue on the journey. We don’t need to wait till the end of the New Year.

Pray for God’s help to give up your ‘one thing’ to Him so that you can not only be closer to Him, but so he can bring about even more change in your life over the next year.

Pray Philippians 1:9-11 into your life “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.”

Isaiah 43:18-19 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a pathway in the wilderness and streams in the desert.”

Take it to the Next Level

 

Have youth write that one thing on a piece of paper. Ask them why to write down why that one thing stands between them and God. Then ask them to write a letter to themselves about how God might encourage them and help them to make him more important in their life of the course of the next year. Then give each an envelope to seal the letter inside. Have them write their name and address on the front of their envelope. Then on their birthday or another special day during the next year, send them the letter.

“Until you commit your goals to paper, you have intentions that are seeds without soil.”
— Anonymous

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” Matthew 6:25-34

Additional Verses

Here are some verses to contemplate for the New Year. As your youth are writing, you may wish to make them into a slideshow presentation or write them out on flipchart paper and stick them up around the room. You might also want to consider using them to encourage your youth or as theme verses for the upcoming year.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” (Psalm 51:10-11)

“And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.” (Colossians 3:14-15)

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.” (Philippians 3:12-15)

“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (Colossians 3:13)

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” (1 Corinthians 19:20)

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31)

“How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me?” (Psalm 116:12)

“I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

“May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.” (Psalm 20:4)

“Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” (Lamentations 3:22-24)

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

“Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” (Proverbs 16:3)

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” (Proverbs 19:21)

“Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” (2 Timothy 2:22)

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:1-2)

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.” (1 Chronicles 16:34)

“Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” (Psalm 23:6)

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15)

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23)

“For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.” (Isaiah 64:3-4)

“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord” (Lamentations 3:40).

“Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Gal. 6:9).