Meeting #1: Focus-Setting for the Semester

Our first meeting began with singing, as always.  Since we had several new girls, we decided to start out with some common songs that most would probably know: Be Thou My Vision, Amazing Grace, and In Christ Alone.  The singing sounded wonderful--I think this is the loudest our group has been yet!  The girls who know how to read the alto/tenor lines really help it sound amazing.

After singing, Jael prayed to "officially" start the meeting, and then we spent about 30-45 minutes doing icebreakers, connecting names with faces, and getting to know each other a bit.  Next was the lesson, which was meant to give some background on Bright Lights, on some specific protocol for our group, and to talk about our goals for this semester. The lesson notes handout is copied below (with blanks filled in).

Overview of Bright Lights

BRIGHT is an acronym for:

Being

Radiant

In

Godliness,

Holiness, and

Testimony

Overall mission:

         ·         To encourage girls to be strong for the Lord in their youth.

Goals:

1.      Encourage girls to pursue God

2.      Provide positive peer influence

3.      Provide accountability  

Scripture verse “theme” is 1 Timothy 4:12, which says,

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.  

Bright Lights Mascoutah Protocol

1.      During the lesson, please raise your hand before talking.

2.      Be respectful, but not overly so! 

3.      Feel free to disagree with us.

   a.      Compare what we say with Scripture.

   b.      If you challenge something we say, be sure it’s done in humility and with a teachable heart.

4.      Make it your goal to learn!

Bright Lights Mascoutah Goals for Fall 2015

     1.     Focus.

a.      Be completely fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3).

b.      Don’t be distracted by the things of the world.

c.       Be in tune with God’s will by prioritizing time with Him through prayer and Bible study.

     2.    Others-Focus.

a.      Look for ways to serve.

b.      Philippians 2:4: Look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

c.       Be willing to go out of your way to minister to those around you.

Personal reflection: What does this mean for you?

How is God calling you to go out of your way to serve?

     3.     Sober-Mindedness.

a.      Be serious about the things of God.

b.      Be willing to think deeply about Spiritual matters. (Philippians 2:12)

     4.     Humility.

a.      Humility does not mean exaggerating failure. 

b.      Humility does not mean you can’t be happy about success.

c.       Where is your heart?

Personal reflection: What does this mean for you?

Where is your heart—are you seeking God’s glory or your own?

d.      “More of You; less of me.”

     5.     See Jesus.

a.      Philippians 3:7-8: that I may know him and the power of his resurrection...

b.      Ginosko

After the lesson, each girl spent some time in quiet prayer time to set individual goals for the year. (For those who missed the meeting but plan to come to Bright Lights the rest of the semester, we encourage you to do the same: take 15 minutes or so to ask the Lord where He is leading you this semester and what His purposes are for you in Bright Lights. We'll email out the worksheet to those of you who have signed up but couldn't make the first meeting.)

We then spent a little while enjoying snacks and fellowship, then closed out the meeting with singing. Our songs were Mind of Christ, Take My Life and Let It Be, Satisfied, and Come Away from Rush and Hurry (click on a song title to view lyrics).

Jael and I will be praying for each one of you these next two weeks, and we look forward to seeing you all again on Tuesday, September 15th.

Also, please remember to memorize Matthew 20:25-28 before next meeting!

Blessings!