Hebrews 9 & 10

This week, like last week, was kinda different.  I (Jael) had written out a handout, and so, instead of doing one big group study, the girls were divided into 4 groups of 2 or 3 to fill out the sheets together.  It actually worked pretty well.  :-)

The worksheet was called Jesus, the Fulfillment of the Old Covenant, and looking similar to the following:

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[I handed out slips of paper with one of the Old Testament offerings on it, like guilt, sin, grain, fellowship, etc., along with the references where the descriptions of the offerings could be found.]

Look at the slip of paper it gave you.  What type of offering do you have?  ____  

Which references?  ____

How did Jesus fulfill that offering?  ______

In the Holy Place, there was the consecrated shew bread and the lamps.  What are two names of Jesus that show that He was the fulfillment of these?  _____  

[bread of life and light of the world]

In the Old Testament, when Moses was sealing the law God had given him on Sinai, what did he mix together and sprinkle on the people?  _____

[As found in Hebrews 9: water, scarlet wool, hyssop and blood]

How were those represented on Good Friday?  _____

[water=water pouring out of his side; scarlet wool=red robe the soldiers gave him; hyssop=wine vinegar on the sponge on the hyssop stick; blood=all the blood Jesus shed for us]

What do they repent to us, now, as Christians?  _____

[Now, these are open for picking, and no one answer is more correct than another, but I had: water=baptism or the Holy Spirit; scarlet wool=the white robes washed in Jesus's blood {yes, I know they are white, but they were washed in blood :-P}; hyssop=Jesus cross; blood=Jesus blood shed for us or communion.]

Thorns were the sign of the curse.  What did Jesus wear on his head on Calvary?  :-)

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Unfortunately, due to time restraints, we weren't able to do much more, but let me summarize what  we WOULD have gone over, as well as what we did.  :-)  (Sections in quotes are what I was unable to say during the lesson.)

At the beginning of the lesson, we used a program to look at an artist's 3D renditions of the tabernacle and its articles.  We learned about the candlestick and accessories, the alter of incense, the table of consecrated bread, the High Priest's outfit, and the Ark of the Covenant.  We learned that a lot of blood was involved.  :-P

A few girls pointed out the lack of items in the Ark, so we discussed the three things found there:

1)  The bowl of manna (Exodus 16:33-35)

2)  Aaron's staff that had budded (Numbers 17:10)

3)  The stone tablets (Exodus 25:21, 40:20)

"Hebrews 9:7 says that even sins committed in ignorance are punishable.  For example, imagine that I made a law that you couldn't cross your legs, and anyone who crossed their legs would be punished.  If Abi crossed her legs, even without knowing about my law, she would be punishable, because she is disobeying the law.  Same way with God.  Ignorance doesn't equal innocent."

"In the Old Testament, the priest had to spatter the alter and the Ark with blood in order to atone for sin.  The earthly High Priest used the blood of a goat or a bull.  Jesus used His own."

"I kept reading about how God cleared our conscience, and how that was an important part of atonement.  For a while, I was rather confused, but I think that clearing the conscience is necessary for a pure life.  If you're always regretting what you've done or not forgetting, you are burdened down by the past.  So God clears your conscience and gives you a fresh start.  :-)"

"If I were to write a will, but not die, what would happen to the will?  Not much, right?  I have to die in order for the will to be a real will.  In the same way, God left us a will, but His Son had to die in order for us to be able to claim it."

"Jesus did away with sin.  Do you actually believe that?"

"Hebrews 10:5.  God needed a perfect sacrifice, so He gave Jesus a body so that He (Jesus) could be sacrificed.  And Jesus took that body upon Himself willingly.  Oh, the power in that thought!"

When you're finished with something, do you keep standing?  Like, if you just finished a race, do you stay on your feet?  NO!  You sit down!  In the same way, Jesus is SITTING at the Father's right hand.  His work is done."  

"Sometimes, it's tiring to see all the evil in the world, and to see sin still at work within your members.  But think of Jesus' salvatation as a good disease.  Not all the symptoms appear at once, even though you may have the disease."

"Jesus came to put the law in our hearts.  The old covenant was that of words.  The new is that of spirit.  See last week.  :-P"

"God has buried all our sins in the deepest part of the ocean, and has posted a sign that says "NO FISHING!!!""

A few of the girls did three skits.  In the first one, two of the girls called the other names.  In the second, one girl rejected a gift that the other gave her.  In the third, girl 1 fell down.  Girl 2 helped her up.  Girl 1 then proceeded to yell at and kick girl 2 for helping her.  In the same way, some abuse Jesus.  (Hebrews 10:29)  Don't let yourself do that.

"Some will shrink back in times of trouble.  But you aren't that type!  You will stand firm!"

More notes that we didn't get to... 

When you look at all of the different requirements for sacrifices, it is amazing how many of those Jesus fulfilled with His own sacrifice! All these laws were, for the most part, symbols of what Jesus was going to do hundreds of years later.

The Old Testament confuses a lot of people… myself definitely included. We wonder, “What was the purpose of allllll those rules and regulations? And why would God want all those animals slaughtered?  Well, one main reason was that sin requires death, and there is no way around that. However, it says in chapter ten verse four, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” So why require it if the death of an animal won’t take away sins? Well, it’s because that blood could cover over sins… not take them away, but cover them over until Jesus came to make the final sacrifice that would take those sins away. Verse 13: “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,” (So they sanctify the flesh; in other words, they can sanctify the person while they’re on earth) “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” (So Christ sanctified our souls, basically.) And another reason for the animal sacrifices – as it says in chapter ten verse three – was an annual reminder of sins.

10:10, 12 and 14 – Unlike the animal sacrifices, Jesus’ sacrifice atoned for ALL sins… every single sin committed by every single person.

10:18 – and so we don’t have to constantly offer animal sacrifices for our sins, because we have forgiveness!

10:20 – the ‘curtain’ referred to is the curtain that separated all the people from the Holy of Holies… basically, the separation between the people and God. When Jesus died, this curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom… Jesus’ death took away that barrier between us and God and gave us the means to reach God directly, and to receive forgiveness directly.

10:24-25 – And that is the purpose of groups like Bright Lights!

10:26-29 – It’s a temptation, when we have God’s free forgiveness, to think we can do anything we want, because, after all, if we just repent afterward, then we’ll be forgiven and everything will be fine. But it doesn’t work that way… we have to truly love Jesus and try to serve Him. If we mess up, and we will, we’ll be forgiven, but if we keep on sinning without even trying to change or to do better, we will not be forgiven. And it makes sense… if Christ died for us, does it really make sense for Him to forgive us as long as we’ve “prayed the prayer” and asked for forgiveness, if our hearts aren’t truly in it? If the only reason we’re doing it is so we can get out of hell, not because we love Him in the least? If we’re constantly “trampling underfoot the Son of God” and treating His laws as if they don’t matter, have we really accepted Him into our hearts and accepted His forgiveness? No, we’re just looking on it as a free ticket to heaven that we don’t have to work for. It is that in one sense… we can never earn it… but at the same time, we have to try.

Eleni, Abi, and Callie filling out their sheets

Maddy, Sophi, and Haylee looking up their Bible verses

Next time, each girl will research a character mentioned in Hebrews 11.  So...homework for next time: research your character, read Hebrews 11, and memorize at least one verse.

Hebrews 7 & 8

This week, instead of listing all our notes, we decided to take the cream of the crop, and post those.  Also, since we had two activities this week that were rather time consuming, we posted an explanation (and pictures, too) and let it go with that.  That being said, I present to you "Romans 7 and 8...Jael style!"

7:1-10  There once was a man named Melchizedek who no one had ever heard of... Just kidding.  Melchizedek is a minor Bible character who plays a disproportionately large role in the book of Hebrews.  Who was he, and how does he come to bear in this chapter and the last?  

In Genesis 14, Abraham is returning from rescuing his nephew Lot from some people who had captured him.  As he travels, Melchizedek "the King of Salem" appears and gives him bread and wine.  This Melchizedek is described as "priest of God most high" (which is very surprising, considering that Abraham is, like, the only "Yaweh-fearer" in the land up until this point), and he blesses Abraham.  Then, Abraham gives Melchizedek 1/10 of the plunder he has recovered.  And that's that end of the story.  Kinda small, until you read Hebrews 7.

Hebrews 7 starts out by describing Melchizedek and his interaction with Abraham.  But then it describes his name as "King of Righteousness" coming from Salem (which means "peace").  So the king of righteousness is coming from peace.  Then we're told that Melchizedek has no genealogy, and no beginning or end.  If you think about it, that is true.  Most people in the Old Testament have a full genealogy written out for them.  Abraham did.  Lot did.  But Melchizedek doesn't.  Hmm.  

Then it goes on to say that Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder.  If you know your Old Testament history, you know that it was every Israelites bound duty to give a tenth of all their crop to the Levites once a year.  But Abraham was the grandfather of Levi, and yet he gave a tenth to Melchizedek, which says that Melchizedek was a higher order of priest than even Levi.  

Furthermore, Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and it's generally understood that the greater person blesses the lesser.  (Aka, your dad blesses you, not you blessing your dad)  So Melchizedek was above Abraham who was the grandfather of Levi, which means that Melchizedek blessed Levi.  

Basically, this whole section is there to explain logically why Melchizedek's priesthood is about Levi's.  Okay.  End of my big, long explanation.  :-)

7:23  Levidic priests died, so there were many of them.  (Does that mean that the Levidic priesthood will die?)

7:24  Jesus lives forever, so his priesthood will never go away.

7:26  We need a high priest who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens, innocent, harmless, and undefiled.  The Bible describes exactly what we need!  Now, I want you to look a this big beautiful bag of marshmallows.  I'm leaving them in the bag so they don't touch me.  You see, these big white innocent-looking...fluffs...are deadly!  They clog your arteries, slow your heart, and ultimately give death!  *mock shudder*  So these represent sin.  Now Cecily here is obsessed with marshmallows.  I mean, everything she does or things about is connected with marshmallows.  Everyone that knows her KNOWS that marshmallows are her life.  Now Maddie also adores marshmallows, except she hides her obsession.  All her marshmallows are hidden in her closet, and if someone were to mention marshmallows to her, she'd be like, "Oh, marshmallows are terrible things!  They clog your arteries!"  Then she goes home and stuffs herself with them.  Now I want to shift to the difference between purity and innocence.  I know there's all this hoopla about purity, and so I wanted to explain it in a simple way.  Callie is innocent of marshmallows.  She has never heard or seen of a marshmallow.  Her parents have carefully checked to make sure all movies she watches are "marshmallow free."  So she doesn't want a marshmallow.  But she isn't really pure of marshmallows.  She is INNOCENT of them.  But let's take Sophi now.  She has heard of marshmallows, and seen them.  She's also heard how DELICIOUS they are!  Yet she doesn't eat them.  Is she innocent of marshmallows?  No.  But she is PURE of them.  In the same way, Jesus was pure of sin.  He was in the world.  He was tempted by them.  Yet no marshmallows were found in him!  I mean, the devil even offered him, "Turn these stones into marshmallows!"  :-P  Yet even though Jesus was surrounded by a marshmallow-prone world, he didn't give in.  He was pure of marshmallows.  And we are called to be like him.  

7:27  Jesus is different from the Levidic priests.  He doesn't have to offer sacrifices day after day.  The Levidic priest had to offer sacrifices for themselves and for the people every day.  Jesus didn't have to atone for his signs, so he, as priest, offered himself once to atone for the people forever.

7:28  The Levidic law appoints as priests imperfect men, because that's the only type available.  Jesus, however, is perfect.

8:1  All of chapter 7 was describing the perfect priest lived out in the person of Jesus.  The good news is, we get Jesus as our high priest!  :-D

8:2 Jesus serves in the tabernacle set up by God.

8:3  To be a good high priest, you have to have gifts and sacrifices to offer.  So, Jesus had to have them too.  What did he offer?  :-P

8:4  If Jesus have been from this world, he could not have been a priest, given his ancestry.  

8:5  The Levidic priestly order reflects the heavenly order.  That's why they were instructed to obey the law given to Moses on Sinai SO carefully!  Let me illustrate.  Here are 6 pieces of paper with six idioms: "Bring down the house", "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink", "You look like something the cat dragged in", "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade", "Put the right foot forward", and "Kill two birds with one stone".  Take them and act them out.  :-)

8:6  Jesus has the spirit of the law, so his law is much better.  :-P

8:6  Jesus's ministry is reconciliation, so that ministry has better promises.  (We live by faith)

8:7-12  Now, nothing was "unrighteous", per say, in the Levidic law.  But it wasn't perfectly "God's law", if you know what I mean.  Think about the skits earlier.  It was the letter of the law, instead of the spirit of the law.  But Christ's law is the spirit of the law.  (1 Corinthians 9:20 & 21)

8:13  Explain about abrogation.

8:13  Jesus lives forever!  

Random thought to consider: 

Do we have to obey the 10 commandments in order to be saved?

Hebrews 3 & 4

Along the same lines as last lesson, what you'll read here are just our notes.  However, we did this study with the desire to do more object lessons and tell more stories, so we expanded our notes to include the illustrations and object lessons.  Hopefully it'll be an easier read, and make a little more sense.  :-)

Jael's thoughts on Hebrews 3 - 4

At the beginning of the lesson, we removed a log from a fire we had going outside. We told the girls that that would come into play later.  :-)  The log was still flaming when we left.

We have the same calling Paul did! (3:1)

There are so many possible distractions in the world.  We have to focus on the true thing. Now, I want everyone in the room to NOT think of a polar bear starting NOW.  You know, don't think about the white one.  The one that lives in the arctic.   With black claws and pads.  The one that can kill people.  Don't think about a white polar bear.  Okay, stop.  How many people were able to keep from thinking about a white polar bear?  Most of you, right?  How?  By thinking of someone else?  You fixed your thoughts on someone else!  By fixing your thoughts on Jesus, you'll be able to avoid all the other distractions in the world. (3:1)

Apostle means "messenger".  Jesus was the word come to us.  He brought the message to us by coming and living among us.  He WAS the message.  (3:1)

Jesus never betrayed that which God gave him or told him to do.  He was faithful.  (3:2)

The Bible compares Jesus to Moses.  Somehow, I never equated Moeses I with being the most faithful servant in God's kingdom before Jesus.  (3:2)

Jesus was even more faithful than Moses.  Jesus never disobeyed God.  Moses received God's word.  Jesus WAS God's word.  (3:2)

Jesus was God.  He built the house.  Moses was human.  He was part of the house.  Jesus, being God, could do everything perfectly.  Moses, being man, couldn't.  (3:4)

Houses don't come together by random chance.  Now, I randomly put a room together.

 What do you think?  Not very pretty, huh?  The tub is by the bed, and the fridges is by the bed, and there's a tree by the tub.  When a room or a house doesn't have a designer, it's not good.  Things don't turn out well.  That's why we needed a designer.  God.  (3:4)  

God made everything.  (3:4)

Moses was as faithful to God as a servant can be.  But JESUS was as faithful as a son could be.  And we are sons of God!  We can live in Christ's victory.  (3:6)

We are his house, as long as we represent him.  (3:6)

We boast about our hope in eternal life.  Sylvia: I just passed a test today with this AMAZING score!  I'm so smart, 'cause I can remember all that stuff!  Don't you think I'm genius!?  I mean, I passed it in WAY the time given me.  And now I have 20 credits!  I'm so happy!  Jael:  That's really cool!  I'm glad you passed!  But I have Jesus.  You're happy now, because things went well.  I'm happy, because I know my future.  Before each test you take, you don't know how it will turn out.  But I know that I will pass God's inspection, because I am pure because of Jesus Christ!  I have the confidence and ability to stand before God pure and spotless, so I can be happy all the time!  I know the end of the road!  (3:6) 

The Holy Spirit issues the "today, if you hear his voice..." speech.  (3:7)

When the Holy Spirit calls, DON'T say no!  Just do it!  (3:7&8)  (see Ephesians 4:30)

TODAY, if you hear his voice.  Not tomorrow.  (3:7)

The period in the desert was a time of testing, as well as a time of punishment.  Everyone has times of testing "in the desert."  Yes, it may start as a punishment, but God can turn it into a time of testing.  So always stay tuned to God's voice!  (3:8)

Or...was the time in the desert a time when they tested God?  (3:9)

When God is tested, he always proves himself.  And the people who test him see what he does. (3:9)

Those who test God, even after he shows his wonders, do not know God and his ways.  Their hearts aren't fixed on Jesus. (3:10)

God gets angry at persistent unbelief.  At those who just don't get it out of stubbornness of heart.  God hasn't changed since the OT.  (3:10)

When God is angry, he can be harsh.  Those who forsake God can never be at peace.  (3:11)

God's peace must be something else!  Not being in it is a terrible punishment!  Or, is his rest heaven?  (3:11)

Guard yourself from a heart that goes astray.  Note that it doesn't say "from sin" or "from unbelief."  It says to guard from a "sinful, unbeliving heart."  This could mean one of two things.  1)  What our heart is like is how we'll behave 2)  God sees the heart: you may stumble, but God can see that your heart is focused on him.  Now, we have two eggs here.  Daisy and Kaity, could you please spin them?  See how Kaity's egg spins all over the place, while Daisy's stays right where it started?  That's because I boiled Kaity's egg.  It has a hard heart, and so it wanders. That why we need to guard from a hard heart.  (3:12)

Encourage each other!  A log by itself gets cold!  Let's go outside and check on that log.  See?  There are no more flames coming out of it.  Why not?  The other logs are still burning just fine. What's the difference?  The log by itself is more likely to succumb to wind and cold.  The  other logs keep each other burning.  That's why we need to keep encouraging each other.  We have to help each other stay lit for Jesus.  (3:13)

God gave us today.  I read a story once in a book called Christian Mother Goose about the Tomorrow Catchers.  These were a group of "monks" who had been trying to thousands of years to catch tomorrow.  They had these huge "butterfly nets" with which to catch tomorrow.  They had clocks that could predict the time up to the millisecond.  When Christian Mother Goose went to visit them, she stayed up with them to see if they could catch tomorrow.  At the stroke of twelve, they all swooped their nets, and lo and behold!  One of them caught something!  It was an owl.  :-P  Then Christian Mother Goose got to explain to them why they couldn't catch tomorrow.  After all, at the stroke of twelve, tomorrow becomes today!  You can never live in tomorrow.  Besides, in the Bible, it talks about God giving us today.  (3:13)  

We are part of Christ if we are confident in him.  Imagine that you're on a zipline. You may start out at the top holding confidently to the zipline handle, but if you let the speed and all the stuff around you to frighten you, you start loosening your grip on the handle, and, ultimately, you'll fall.  (3:14)

God is always offering second chances.  "So long as it is called TODAY."  "TODAY, if you hear his voice..."  Yes, you may have messed up badly in the past.  But you have a fresh start TODAY.  Not tomorrow.  Not next week.  TODAY!  (3:15)

The punishment was given to those who disobeyed.  Even if you are descended from them, you have a clean slate before God.  "I won't punish the children for the sins of their fathers."  (3:16-18)

They couldn't do any of the good stuff God promised because of unbelief.  (3:19)

Even though we can enter his rest, we MUST NEVER grow complacent.  We must keep searching until we get there.  That's not a law thing.  Imagine that you finally earn $10, and you want to get something at the store that costs $10.  You've wanted that item for forever, but you never had them only until now.  On your trip to the store, you keep looking in your pocket or your hand or wherever you have the money.  Why?  Do you HAVE to look at it?  No!  Why do you do it?  Because you want to make sure it's still there!  You don't want to arrive at the store without it.  That's how we should be with our faith walk. (4:1) 

We have the same good news they did!  The only difference is that we combined it with belief!  Callie, see this 1 million dollar bill?  It is for you.  Will it do you any good if you just sit on the couch?  No!  You have to come and take it!  You're coming and taking it is a sign of your belief that I will give it to you.  (4:2) 

Belief is very important.  (4:3)

Even though we may not see what God is doing, or though it seems like he keeps changing his mind, He knows the end result.  (4:3) 

God rests.  It is a God-like thing to rest.  Those who disobey God cannot rest.  (4:4-5)

God picked a day and called it today.  He decided that whenever "today" occurs, you should listen to  him.  (4:7)

The Promised Land was only a symbol of what is to come: heaven!  Joshua couldn't give them rest.  Jesus can!  (4:8)

People who love and obey God will do what he does.  He created a sabbath-rest.  The earthly sabbath is merely a symbol of God's sabbath in heaven.  (4:9-10)

Those who enter into God rest from their own work.  We don't have good works.  We rest from them.  We do God's work.  (4:10)

We don't want to copy those who went before us by disobeying. (4:11)

God's word is always new.  When I began studying these two chapters, I was afraid I wouldn't be able to come up with much.  I ended up with six pages of notes.  Why?  Because God's word is alive.  It constantly speaks.  There is always something new in it that you never saw before.  (4:12)  

God's word can separate anything.  I read the story about a convicted criminal who was put in prison.  While there, the Chaplin went to him, and started telling him about Jesus.  The criminal said, "Ha.  God.  Who's God?  There is no God!  His so-called 'word' is just a bunch of junk."  The Chaplin said, "Okay.  Here.  Open it up and read."  So the criminal opened it up to a passage that says, "The fool says in his heart, 'there is no God.'"  That was the end of the criminal's protests.  (4:12) 

God's word judges.  Now, I know we've been taught that judging is bad.  But look at this yardstick.  I'm putting it against the back of the chair, and it is judging the chair to be 38 inches tall.  Is that judging back?  No!  The yardstick is just telling the truth!  That's how God's word judges us.  It just shows us where we are in comparison with where we should be.  (4:12) 

God can see everything.  Our thoughts, words, motives, and dreams.  Everything.  And we must give an account before him.  Scary thought, huh?  (4:13)

However, Jesus went up before us!  He covers our sins!  We profess that!  If we hold to that faith, our sins will be covered!  (4:14)

Jesus understands everything.  Don't you think that God knows what we go through as humans?  Sure!  But Jesus became a man so WE'D know that God knows.  He went through temptation, just like we did.  Yet, he never gave in.  If we are Christians, we are IN CHRIST.  If we are in Christ, must we give in temptation? No!  Will we?  Possibly.  But that's why Jesus is our great high priest.  (4:15)

If you have murdered someone, would you be able to approach a judge with confidences?  No.  But what if someone had pleaded guiltless to the murder instead of you.  Would you still be guilty in the court's eyes?  No.  Now, in heaven, we have been cleansed of the guilt of murder.  We can approach the judgment throne with confidence, because we have a high priest who covers our sins, and can help us when we need it.  (4:16)

Memory verse: Therefore, God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time late He spoke through David, as was said earlier, "Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your voice as you did in the rebellion."  (Hebrews 4:7)

Sylvia's Thoughts on Hebrews 3 - 4

3:1-3 – We are to look to Jesus as the one who was totally faithful and completely worthy of glory.

3:2 – Wow, Moses is here being compared to Jesus for faithfulness!

3:3 – Moses is being compared to a house and Jesus the builder: He allowed God to shape and “build” him however He willed.

3:5-6 – Then, in verses 5 and 6, there’s a different “house” analogy… Moses is being compared to a servant, while Jesus is a son. But both are part of the same household, as are we “if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.”

3:6 – What exactly does “boasting in our hope” mean? Skit: Sylvia talks to Jael, acting really excited and proud about her "amazing" CLEP score that she attained because of her "brilliance" and boasting about it. Then, Jael counters that by "boasting" about Jesus and how amazing He is and how He will give her perfect knowledge in heaven someday. 

3:8 – Ask girls what “hardening hearts” means 

3:10 – The people of Israel saw God’s works in truly awesome ways, yet they kept on “putting God to the test” and rebelling against Him.

3:13 – “Exhort one another every day”… what does this look like?
Pray for each other; comfort each other; tell each other when we notice sin in another’s life.

3:16-19 – Again, the people of Israel saw amazing things that God had done… wonderful miracles and mighty works. Yet they sinned against Him anyway and refused to believe in Him.

4:4 – Again, “somewhere spoken.” Glad to know I'm not the only one who has trouble remembering references!

4:12 – The Bible isn’t just a book of religious instruction; it has power in itself. It pierces to the division of soul and spirit… it convicts people of sin and draws them to repentance… it speaks to everyone, of all times, places, and circumstances… it discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart, providing wisdom for every situation and conviction for every sin.

4:15 – As we read last week, Jesus can sympathize with us in our weakness and pain because He was tempted exactly as we are, though He never sinned. He experienced unimaginable heartache.

4:16 – If we ever need a comforter, we can run to God. If we need understanding, He is there. If we need mercy and forgiveness, He is the only one who can supply it. If we need help, He is the one to ask. He is enough to fulfill every need we will ever have, and we can approach Him “with confidence” because of Christ’s sacrifice.

Memory verse: Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Homework for next time: Read Hebrews 5 & 6.  Come up with at least one comment or one question to share.  (If not...you may have to make one up on the spot!)  Also, chose a verse from Hebrews 5 or 6, and memorize it.  

First lesson of the year!

To start the meeting, Jael had written some feminine Bible names on pieces of paper.  After explaining the game, we taped a name on each girl's back, without telling them what the name was.  They then had to go around and ask each girl a yes/no question about their name.  Once they figured out their name, they got to sit down.  It worked...with more or less success.  :-P

Emily and Larissa looking at Cecily's name

Abi and Sophia

The first lesson this year was a review of the first set, which we went over last year.  Sylvia did the odd lessons, Jael did the even.

Being Strong For the Lord In Your Youth

For those of you who have been in Bright Lights before, you know what the acronym “BRIGHT” stands for: Being Radiant In Godliness, Holiness, and Testimony. But what exactly does that acronym mean, and how do we apply it?
 

Radiance basically means brightness… if you’re radiant, you’re visible; noticeable. So being radiant in godliness, holiness, and testimony means that you are relying on God so much, being so pure, and having such a great testimony that EVERYONE notices; God’s love and joy fairly shines from you!  It’s as if you painted your face with glow-in-the-dark paint and then walked outside at 9 in the evening… trust me, everyone around you would notice! His joy in us is supposed to be that obvious that no one can help but see.
 

It’s not that we’re trying to gain that attention for ourselves… going along with the “glow-in-the-dark face paint analogy,” people wouldn’t walk up to you and say, “Wow, your skin glows! You are so cool!” No, they’d realize that the glow wasn’t coming from you; it was coming from something else: the paint. In the same way, we’re supposed to reflect Christ so that when others see us, they see Christ. Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” The whole purpose of radiance is to point others to the Lord.
 

All right, so we need to be radiant… that means we need to have Christ’s joy in us… and that means we need to have Christ in us… and that means we need to know Christ. For once, I'm going to ask a question that requires easy, “Sunday-school answers”: How do we get to know Christ?

(Read Bible; pray; church/worship)
 

Very good! Let’s talk about those one by one: firstly, reading the Bible.
 

The Bible is so amazing!  It has wisdom for every situation we’ll ever encounter in life. It’s vital to establish regular Bible-reading habits while we’re still young… starting with 5 minutes a day, then increasing it to 10, then 15… or starting with a chapter a day, and then increasing that to 2, then 3… whatever your goal, it’s important to be intentional about reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating on God’s word. That’s one of the major goals of Bright Lights this year!
 

Prayer, also, is really important. Think about the people you love most in your life: you want to spend time with them and talk to them often, right? Why should God be any different? We are to love Him above anyone else and rely on Him to meet all of our emotional needs. The awesome thing about God is that He’s ALWAYS there and ALWAYS willing to listen to us... He is NEVER too busy for us. He loves it when we pour out our hearts to Him, when we tell him our worries, and when we trust Him to take care of us.
 

Worship is something that most people think of as “Sunday-morning church…” boring; let’s get it over with. But real worship has nothing boring about it! Real worship is being awestruck by how wonderful God is and praising Him with all your heart. This can and should happen just about anywhere… when observing His creation, in church, singing praises to Him, reading His word, talking to Him… all the time! Worship can be expressed in many ways as well- music is a great way.
 

These three areas are ones we’re hoping to emphasize a lot in the group this year as we grow in our relationships with the Lord. To “be strong for the Lord in our youth,” we need to truly know the Lord, love Him deeply, and desire to please Him above all else.
 

GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR PARENTS

What was the first gift you got when you were born?  Your parents, right?  I mean, they were your parents, for better or for worse, the moment you came into this world!  And, believe it or not, they will be your parents until they (or you) die!  So, it becomes rather important to have a good relationship with them.  After all, if you're gonna spend 50-60 years with some people, it'd be a good idea to like them, right?  Besides, good child/parent relationships are a rarity in today's world.  Yet, few things are more greatly commanded in the Bible.  God commands it in Exodus 20:12 - “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."  If you notice, God is speaking to youth, because children are very reward-oriented.  So, God offers a reward.  :-)
 

Now, before I start, let's get one thing straight.  When you are younger, your relationship with your parents is more master to servant than friend to friend.  They tell you to do something, and if you don't, there will be negative consequences.  This is good, and is what God commands.  ("Children, obey your parents in The Lord, for this is right.")  As daughters, you will most likely remain under your parents' authority until you are married.  (Yes, I know that doesn't cover EVERYONE, but, Scripturally, that is what presented.)  But as you get older, your relationship changes.  For example, when I was little, if I didn't do exactly what my parents said, I would probably get a spanking.  They controlled pretty much every aspect of my life.  But, as I got older, they started letting me to more stuff.  Yes, I am still under their authority, but they now let me stay at home by myself, drive places by myself, and pick my own school schedule.
 

But how do you get a good relationship with your parents?  What does a good relationship look like?  [story of girl who told everything to her Mom]  If you have a good relationship with someone, you tell them everything!  You enjoy hanging out with them.  That is what you want!
 

That, of course, presents the question, "how do I get a good relationship with my parents?"  I wish I knew a hard-cut answer, but I'll tell you what I know.  1) Respect them.  This will increase goodwill on both sides.  It doesn't make sense, but it really works.  2)  Pray for them.  Not just once.  Not just for a week.  But pray for them for at least a month.  Every day.  You won't be disappointed by the results.  3)  Talk with them (when they aren't busy).  Most parents love to hear what their kids have  to say!  4)  Help them.  Do whatever your parents ask cheerfully, but also, see if you can't help them in unexpected ways.
 

Jesus is recorded as honoring his parents in Luke 2, when he goes to the Temple with His parents.  Even though He was GOD, He submitted to them, went home with them, and obeyed them.  (Luke 2:51)  And, since we want to be like Jesus, we want to do what He did, right?  :-)   A right relationship with your parents will set you apart from most girls in the world today, and will make you more like Jesus.  :-)
 

More specifically, how will a good relationship help with Bright Lights this year?  Well, this year, we will be focusing more on parent involvement than we did last year.  We've already asked your parents to help you with whatever "homework" (although I hate to use that term) we give.  They want to help you grow into gorgeous young ladies of God, so don't view their help as overbearing or an intrusion, but, rather, view it as an opportunity to ask questions and to grow.  :-)  Moms and Dads have great insights when it comes to the Bible, and they're pretty cool people, too.  

 

Gaining a Clear Conscience

Psalm 51:10-12: Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not cast me from our presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me.

Having a clear conscience is essential to a pure heart. How many of you have ever ignored your conscience when it started telling you that you shouldn’t do something? (Everyone’s hand should go up!) It can be easy to do at first, but often as time goes on, the guilt gets worse and worse.

How many of you have listened to the Adventures in Odyssey episode, The Tangled Web?

For those of you who haven’t heard it, it’s the story of a young boy named Jeremy. Jeremy’s mother gives him some money to go and buy her some flour… he is supposed to go straight there and come right back. However, he goes to Whit’s end to get some ice cream, gets sidetracked by playing… and somewhere along the way, he loses the money. Obviously, he’s pretty worried about this. He gets home, and of course, he’s pretty late. His mother is really worried: “Jeremy, what took you so long? Where’s the flour?” Jeremy mutters, “I lost the money.” His mother is a bit confused; “What do you mean you lost the money?” All of a sudden, Jeremy loses his nerve and blurts, “Someone took it from me.” To get out of trouble, he tells this long, complicated lie about how he was robbed by “some teenager”… he thinks it’ll just get him out of trouble, but then his mom calls his dad… and his dad calls his principal… and the principal calls the police… soon the story is all over town. Eventually, the mayor of the town gives Jeremy an award in front of the entire town for his bravery in fighting off his violent attacker! Jeremy never confesses to his lie, and eventually the whole incident is forgotten. At the end of the episode, Whit says to Connie, to whom he’s telling the story (she’s planning to do something her parents won’t like) that she could listen to her conscience, not do what she’s planning, and talk to her parents, or – in his words – “You can spend the rest of your life like Jeremy did, always wondering if SOMEBODY’s going to find out.”

A guilty conscience is TORTURE! It damages your testimony and will kill your relationship with God if you’re not willing to confess that you’ve done something wrong and need forgiveness.

So, listen to your conscience. Arguing with your conscience is never a good idea. If you’re tempted to go against your conscience, think about the consequences: would you rather refrain from doing whatever it is you want to do now, or have to confess, apologize, humble yourself, and try to clean up the mess you’ll make if you do it? The choice gets a little easier when you look at it in that light…

 

Developing a Disciplined Walk with God

A long time ago, I read a poem that really struck me, and I wanted to read it to illustrate this lesson.  

"One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, the other to the Lord.  When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life, there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.  This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, You said that once I decide to follow You, You'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most You would leave me".  The Lord replied: "My son, My precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you only see one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
 

Now, I know this story is talking more about times of pain and suffering, but I really wanted you to see WHO you are dealing with.  This is a God who loves you beyond all imagining!  He loves you more than your Mom and Dad are ABLE to!  So, technically, walking with Him should be a joy and a pleasure.  However, I do understand that it doesn't work like that.  Some days, you may just not WANT to spend time with God.  I understand that.  :-)  But that's why this lesson is called, "developing a DISCIPLINED walk with God."  Every good thing requires discipline.  And remember, "no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful..."  Now, that doesn't mean that walking with God can't be fun and enjoyable.  It just means that it won't be fun and enjoyable all the time AT FIRST!
 

So, what are a few practical steps for developing a disciplined walk with God?  

1)  Even if you don't feel like it, read your Bible.  Just like Sylvia was saying in the first lesson, set measurable goals.  10 minutes a day.  1 chapter a day. Whatever.  Just make sure you do it!  

2)  Have three people in mind that you want to pray for each day.  Make a list of all their needs, and all the things that you are thankful for about them, and then pray through some of those thing for each person, each day.

3)  Every day, make a list of ten things that you are thankful for.  Be specific.  So, instead of saying, "my house", say "my pillow".  

4)  Sing.  Even if you have a voice that won't cooperate, sing.  If you don't want to sing around others, then sing when you're alone!  Pick a few hymns or praise songs, and sing them every day!  It's amazing what singing can do to an attitude.
 

This year, in Bright Lights, our main goal is to help you know Jesus better.  Like, that is our goal. We want you to love Jesus more than your Mom or Dad or anyone else on planet earth.  We'll be emphasizing the importance of prayer, Bible reading, and singing.  Our prayer is that you will see how much fun a disciplined walk with God can be, and that the word "disciplined" will lose the negative connotation, and have a pleasant one.
 

Understanding the Fear of the Lord

Jael said earlier that stuff God will do is “creepy”, so that must be the fear of the Lord, right? :D

…NO.

One thing about language is that it changes… now, if we say we fear something, we mean that we’re afraid of it. But fear used to actually be something more positive… something more along the lines of respect. You would fear the king of your country because he had the power to punish you if you disobeyed the law. If he was a bad king, maybe you’d be afraid of him because if you offended him even slightly you’d get your head chopped off, but if he was a good king, you would love him for his service to your country while still respecting and fearing him because, if you disobeyed the laws, he could carry out justice on you. Still, you knew that he would do that to others as well, and thus you are kept safe.

It’s that way with God: He is our very gracious king who takes care of us and keeps us safe. We obey Him – yes, because there are consequences if we don’t – but we know that He is just and His laws are good. Shouldn’t be too hard, right? Well, the problem comes when we fear people more than we fear God.

(read story from Bright Lights booklet)

That story illustrates how we often look to people for approval before we look to God. When, like in the story, we’re so influenced by our peers that their view of us is more important than God’s view, it will keep us from fearing Him the way we ought and lead us to compromise our values.

And whose opinion really matters in the long run? Your friends and peers at school will only be in your life for another year, maybe two or three… but then you’ll probably never see them again. God is the one who determines where you’ll spend eternity.
 

Accepting God's Design

Take a look at these two paper dolls.  Which one is better than the other?  [ideally, they are identical in everything except coloring]  Actually, it was a trick question.  :-)  Both are the same.  I just colored them different.  I like them equally, even though I designed them differently.  Make sense?
 

Now, I'm sure you've all heard the pep talks that say that God designed you to be you, and so be content with how you look.  As true as those are (up to a certain point.  It is possible to go TOO far in that area), accepting God's design for you goes much deeper than that.
 

After, how MUCH of you did God design?  All of it, right?  How much of your LIFE did God design?  All of it.  Hmm...so, not only do you need to accept how you look, but you also need to accept how God planned your life to be.
 

I remember reading of a missionary named Adoniram Judson.  He was the first American missionary, and he went to the country called Burma (which is now called Myanmar, for all you Geography freaks).  He served that country for 37 years.  He was married three times.  His first wife Ann bore him two children before she died, both of whom died before they were 5.  His second wife, Sarah, bore him 8 children (plus another child from her previous marriage) before she died, three of whom died before he did.  His third wife, Emily, bore him two children, and he died before they did.  Now, I know that thus far, this sounds like an incredibly bad sob story, but this all has a point.  Inspire of all these tribulations, Adoniram Judson continued in the faith.  Besides being arrested numerous times, and almost starving to death during several inprisonments, he also managed to translate the Bible into the Burmese language, and write several other tracts and books.  He made a tremendous impression for The Lord in a completely pagan land.
 

But what if, after his second child died, (which was after his first wife and child had died, and after he'd been in prison and almost starved to death, and had very little visible fruit, and had been struggling to translate the Bible for years) he had looked at his life and said, "God!  Why do you have this design for my life?  I want to live in a comfortable home, converting 10 people every day, and have a beautiful, happy family with no death.  If you don't give that to me by next year, I'm gonna go live in the United States again."  What would've happened?  Not only would the Bible not been translated for a lot time, but a lot of Burmese churches wouldn't exist, and the American missionary effort would be substantionally smaller.
 

The point I'm trying to make is this: you not only need to accept the way you look, but you need to accept what your lot in life is.  For example, Cecily.  You are the third child, second daughter, in a family with 9 kids.  Sophi.  You are the oldest in a family of two, and your young brother is scarcely a year younger than you.  Abi, you are second oldest in a family of 4 kids.  Each of you has your own set of trials, right?  Each trial is hard to bear, but God designed it for you.  I once heard that if everyone could put all their troubles on a clothesline, and then pick which troubles they wanted, everyone would pick their own.  Why?  Certainly not because they are appealing, but because you are best equipped to deal with your own problems!  So accept where God has you.  Accept what He wants to do with your life.  NOTHING is worse than not doing what God wants you to do or doing what God doesn't want you to do.


Being Fully Dedicated to God
 

Have you noticed a common theme in a lot of these lessons? Maybe… surrender? We keep talking about how we need to surrender to God and try to please Him. Like Jael said in Developing a Disciplined Walk with God, He needs to be a priority in our lives. But why?

Well, 1 John 4:19 is pretty clear and concise: “We love because He first loved us.”

How many of you have ever sinned in your life? (everyone’s hand goes up)

How many of you think that you can get into heaven on your own, without help from God? No one? Okay, that’s good.

NONE of us is worthy; all of us are condemned to hell for eternity. So we needed Christ to die for us. Think about it.. He was king of the universe, yet he came to earth to spend a LIFETIME suffering for and serving others, ending by dying the most painful death IMAGINABLE. Not only that, but He desires to have a close relationship with Every one of us! He loves us so much that he cares about the littlest things that we care about.

How many of you have ever seen a really gorgeous sunset and been absolutely awed and amazed by its beauty? Have you ever thought about how technically “pointless” a sunset is? I mean, why should all these colors randomly appear in the sky every night when the sun goes down? They don’t have any practical purpose; they don’t make us live longer or make breathing easier. But God is a God who cares about beauty and how much we enjoy His creation. He wants to make the world as beautiful and wonderful as possible and give us every reason to enjoy it.

How could we not love Him? He’s enough for every need. No human can ever meet all of our needs, so we have to rely on Him. That means knowing him!

When you love someone, you want to please them and serve them; you want them to be happy. We need to be so dedicated to God so that we’re longing to serve Him; we’re always thinking about how we can please him.

Siblings

Last week, Sylvia talked about friends, right? And one of her main points was that friends influence each other, whether intentionally or not. Therefore, we should be very careful in choosing our friends. But did you know that God had chosen friends for you? And they actually aren't as hard to find as you might think. And I can name them. Sophie, you have a God-ordained friend called Sebastian! And Daisy, you have one named Sam, and one named Ida, and and one named Gus, and one named Becca.

Oh! No groaning! I am a firstborn, as are several of you, and so I can attest well to the annoyance of having siblings sometimes. But, you know, most of the annoyance is really MY problem. For example, if a friend (outside the family) accidentally kicked me in the shin rather hard, I'd just laugh, and say, "oh, it's okay." But if a SIBLING should happen to kick me, it would sound more like, "You JERK!! How DARE you kick me! I didn't even do anything to you!" And then, much to my shame, I would probably kick them back. My problem is that I have different "grace" gauges for my siblings and my friends outside the family.

In order to do that, I need to have a different view of my siblings! They aren't just annoying people who happen to have had the misfortune to be born into my family with the sole purpose of annoying me! They are God's little gifts to me.

Yes, gifts. I call them that because God has a great sense of humor when he gives gifts. He doesn't give us gifts that help our strengths - he gives us gifts that strengthen our weaknesses! Which is why I have my siblings. I still haven't figured out what all their "Jael-weakness-fixing" features are, but I do know a few.
Abi corrects my talking tendency. It's been said that the thing that annoys you most in other people is what you are most guilty of. So, when I feel myself getting annoyed that Abi is talking ALL THE TIME, I just resolve to talk less. It actually does work. (Don't laugh. I talk less than I used to...I think.)

Mike corrects my anger and picking-fights tendency. Everyone has a sibling that is much too like them for comfort. Mike is mine. We both have quick tempers, and we both love picking fights. (These things that I'm admitting are NOT things you want to copy.) Therefore, whenever I get annoyed at him for picking a fight with his brother, or snapping back at Mom, I just pray for him, and ask God to deliver me from those same tendencies.

Johnny corrects all my pampered tendencies. Whenever I get annoyed at him for acting spoiled, I have to think, "Do I act like that sometimes?" The answer is always yes, and therefore I give him a little more grace. :-)

See how that works? Instead of judging your siblings, and reacting hastily, first pause and think, "what is God trying to use them for?"

Sarah Mally told a story where her younger sister Grace was CONSTANTLY asking her to do stuff. "Sarah, can you go get me a glass of milk?" "Sarah, can you run downstairs and get me that book?" "Sarah, can you come help me do this?" All these distractions were really annoying Sarah, until she realized that God was probably using Grace to work a servant's heart in her (Sarah). As soon as she realized this, she started consciously seeking to serve her sister, jumping up eagerly whenever her sister asked her to to something. And you know what? Within a few days of deciding to serve her sister in whatever possible, Sarah noticed that Grace was no longer asking her for anything. So, God often uses your siblings to teach you stuff.
But, in order to WANT to serve them, you have to be able to see the good things in them. Everyone can see the good in their friends, right?

Abi, what do you like most in your best friend?

How about you, Cecily?

See? They were able to find something good about their friend, and I'm sure that, if we had given them more time, they could have kept talking about their friends for several more hours.

Now. A challenge. Starting with Sylvia, let's go around the room and name one good thing about each sibling. So, Sylvia will say 7 things, and Sophie will say 1.

[after going around the circle] Now, that was fun wasn't it? [wink] But you were able to think up one good thing, weren't you?

I want everyone to take out your handout, because we are going to be writing some stuff down. First, I want everyone to take a minute and write down each good thing that you mentioned. BUT...no talking meanwhile. :-)

Okay. Everyone done? Now, I want each of you to tell each and every sibling what you appreciate about them, sometime this week. It can be just what's on your list, or it can be other things. You don't have to go up and randomly say something like, "Hey Abi, you know what? You're good at spelling." You COULD if you want to, but I'd suggest something a little more subtle, like, as Abi is drawing, I come over and peek over her shoulder and say, "Wow! You are great at drawing, Abi!" Find subtle ways to tell them. Tell them at least once a week. Siblings need to be built up. I once heard that it takes ten encouraging words to rectify the damage done by one discouraging word. So encourage your siblings. It will make a difference!

Now. A harder part. I want you to write down at least two ways you could serve your siblings. This could include doing their chores for them every once in a while, or just playing with them. Whatever your siblings enjoy doing (or don't enjoy).

The third section is to be used to remind you to have a "serve a sibling" day. Once, when I was about 7, my parents encouraged me to have a serve a sibling day with Mike. Our relationship was REALLY rocky, and they wanted me to try serving him for a day. So, grudgingly, I did so. I did whatever he wanted to do, like play wiffle ball, and swing on the swing set, or play cars. I actually enjoyed it, and there were zero fights that day. Mom and Dad, of course were thrilled. So, they asked me, "Now, wouldn't you like that every day?" And me, being stupid and stubborn, said, "No." [facepalm] So, Mike and my relationship continued to be rocky for years. It is finally starting to improve, but how much better would it have been if I had only listened to my parents, and irked on my relationship with Mike when I was little.

So, what you are supposed to do with this section is to pick at least one day in the next two weeks in which you will pick one sibling in specific to serve. So, Cecily will pick six days (since Leif is a little hard to serve) in the next two week in which she can serve each sibling. Sophie will pick one (although you can do as many as you want) in which to serve Sebastian. The idea is to get so used to serving our siblings that we do it unconsciously.

Let me warn you, though. Satan HATES it when siblings get along! So, he will put every roadblock possible in your way to keep you from serving them. He will make you even more easily annoyed that you were before! He will make your siblings more annoying than before. He is the father of dissension (think about it - he's been at is since Cain and Abel), so don't expect to be let off the hook easily. This past week or two (ever since I decided to do this lesson), I have been kinda half-heatedly trying to serve my siblings, and be kind to them, and all that jazz. But let me tell you! It has been the roughest week ever! I snap at them SO easily! Everything they do annoys me. Abi has been obsessed with Narnia for a few weeks, and instead of asking her politely to stop, I saying something more like, "Abi! Will you stop talking about Narnia!? I'm sick of hearing about it!" This isn't a good way to respond. Just saying.

But what can be done about that pet peeve that your sibling does? Maybe it's something small, like talking about Narnia non-stop or spilling water onto the counter after washing dishes. Or maybe it's bigger, like making faces at you in public or singing off key on purpose. Whatever it is, there is ALWAYS that pet-peeve (or two or three) that just drives you nuts! How do you deal with it?

Well, I can think of a couple remedies. The first and most powerful is to pray about it. Pray for your sibling, and then look at you, and see what might be in YOU that is causing that peeve to annoy you.

After that step, go to your sibling, and intentionally talk about the peeve. Say something like, "Hey [whoever], I know you probably don't realize it, but there is one thing that you do that really annoys me. Could you please stop?" Then, ask them if there is anything that you do that annoys them, and you can both work on stopping the peeves at the same time. Kinda like mutual encouragement. You will probably also want to include your parents on this one, since they are great arbitrators.

If your sibling rejects your plea in the second step, go to your parents, and explain the problem. They will help you take care of it.

So, I want to pause here for a second, and let everyone write down a pet peeve or two, and, when you get home, I want you to first pray about it, and then talk to your sibling about it.

This process is actually spelled out in the Bible in Matthew 18. "If your brothers sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen to you, take one or two others with you, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refused to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector." (Matthew 18:15-17)
This means that you address it individually, and then go to higher courts. :-)

Okay. I'll let you write now.

Now, the final part. What is the best way to get a better relationship with your siblings?

Can anyone guess?

Yes! Prayer! Pray without ceasing! Your siblings need your prayers! YOU need your prayers! God loves it when siblings get along. He even put a Bible verse in about it! Psalm 133:1: "Behold how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity." So pray as if your life depended on it, because your relationship does! There's nothing that look more stupid that adults arguing with their siblings. (Trust me, I've seen it!) So work on your sibling relationships now, 'cause they won't get any easier!

And if your siblings become your friends, you are guaranteed friends for the rest of your life, 'cause your siblings ain't never going away! You will always have contact with them, unlike any of your other friends. :-)

Friends

Tonight was a rather unusual meeting! Since Jael's family was out of town, Jael and Abi "participated" in the meeting via Skype. They even got to participate in one of the activities, using email instead of pencil and paper. :)

Since photos are usually by Jael when Sylvia does the lesson, she used screenshots to take pictures from her perspective... that is, the webcam. :D They may not be the best quality, but here they are:

Sophia and Mary

Daisy :)

Making muffins

The Lesson:

Tonight, the lesson topic is “friends”. As girls, we tend to need our friends! Whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, you need other people around you. God has designed us to function with others; there's a reason that solitary confinement is one of the worst tortures the Germans inflicted on prisoners during World War II.

Who here doesn’t want friends? (silence) Okay; who does? (everyone raises their hands)

While your parents and siblings should be some of your best friends, friendships outside your family can be very beneficial as well. However, as your parents have probably told you many times, you need to be careful when “choosing” your friends.

To a point, you don’t exactly choose your friends; you naturally become friends with people whom you happen to be around a lot. People you see at Lyceum… people who live in your neighborhood… people who always seem to be invited to the same parties as you… etc. But you do have the ability to choose who you make an effort to spend time with. And the people you spend time with the most will be the people who influence the kind of person you become. If you hang around someone who loves Ninja, you start wanting to play Ninja more. Trust me; I've been this influence on several of my friends! If you are always with someone who loves glorpes, you will be persuaded to love glorpes too. Of course, you can fight that influence… if you think Buggles are better than glorpes or if you hate Ninja and would rather play Frisbee, you can resist your friend’s endeavors to “change your mind” for you. However, it’s much harder to resist the influence of a friend – someone you like – to someone you don’t like or don’t hang out with much.

Friends’ influence isn’t merely "games and glorpes", though. If you spend enough time with someone, you start acting like them – maybe borrowing their favorite phrases or words, or treating your siblings the way they treat theirs. Often it’s unconscious. I once talked to a girl who was struggling because her friends at school all used bad language. Even though she tried not to say the bad words they did, she told me that when she stubbed her toe or something, she had started to use those words. She knew they were wrong, and she honestly tried not use them, but since her friends were always swearing, swearing seemed like the natural thing to do whenever she was off guard.

And the influence can be even more subtle. About seven years ago, I was in a kids’ choir that had long rehearsals every week, with a lot of free time before, during, and after each rehearsal. That free time was spent talking, and one girl in particular became my friend during that time. She was nice, but her favorite topic of conversation was her brother… and all of the horrible things he did to her. She always seemed to be complaining about him, so guess what I started to do? At that time, I only had two brothers and one sister, but I started complaining to her about all of them, constantly finding fault with them, and seeing the negative rather than the positive. And this wasn’t just “teasing” complaining, it was more like “look at me, I'm so pitiful; I have a horrible life because of my brother” complaining. It was actually a good thing for me when this choir ended and I didn’t see this girl anymore.

Now, I'm not saying that just because your friend complains about her siblings that you shouldn’t talk to her anymore. The situation wouldn’t have been a problem for me if I'd been willing to counter her negativity with a positive attitude. However, since I wasn’t mature enough to do that, the friendship dragged me down and started to damage the relationships I had with my siblings.

We should never be in a hurry to end a friendship, but sometimes it is needful. If a friend is drawing you away from God or causing you to stumble in another way, you need to do something about it.

As with just about everything, the first step is to look at yourself. Think, “is this problem coming from me? What can I do to fix it?”

The second step, if you decide that you can’t fix the problem, is to go to your parents… which you should probably do in either case. Let your parents guide you through the process.

Next, go talk to your friend about it. It’s important to be humble and let them know that you’re not perfect- that you need help in this area. If the problem is that they use bad words, tell them that you’re struggling because your parents don’t want you to say those words, and ask them to please help you out by not saying words like that around you. Do NOT preach at them; be humble and loving.

If the friend is not a Christian, you need to be extra careful. Humility is vital- explain your standards and ask for their help. Be firm and don’t act like you’re ashamed of your beliefs or your parents’ rules, but be loving and humble. Remember, this is your friend! Don’t threaten to end your friendship with them; make it clear that you care about them. Then, talk to your parents again. If your parents tell you it would be wise to end the friendship, have them guide you heavily through the process. Remember humility! And remember that you are a witness to your friend; you reflect Christ to them. Your influence may eventually bring them to salvation.

It’s never about what we get out of a friendship; friendships are all about giving to others. However, our relationship with Christ comes first. That’s why, when a friendship threatens to seriously injure our relationship with God, we might have to get out of that friendship, or at least avoid being around that friend until we’re mature enough to handle whatever temptation comes from them.

Now, what if your problem isn’t that your friends are influencing you badly, but that your friends aren’t influencing you- because you don’t have close friends?

Guess what? Just about every girl goes through this at one time or another. I went through a period of about three years where I had hardly any friends. It was a huge struggle, and I was extremely lonely, but it was actually a blessing. God kept me from having friends those years because He wanted me to draw closer to Him and realize that He was enough for all my needs.

“Ironically”, it was just when I realized that I was happy without other friends because I had Jesus that He brought friends into my life. Bright Lights started- not this group, but Allison Whisler’s group in O'Fallon. I started forming great relationships with the girls in Bright Lights, especially with the girls in my small group. Then, God decided to bring an amazing girl into my life. This friendship started out in a really, really weird way… the girl first shoved me down the 7-story slide at the City Museum since I refused to go down it on my own, and then in Drama was cast as a nasty schoolgirl who kept insulting me and was supposed to try and hit me with a pie. It was a “fun” friendship; we were always insulting each other… but then, one day, she put an anonymous letter on my chair in Bright Lights. The thoughtfulness in that letter showed me that this wasn’t an ordinary girl… and so our friendship grew deeper. She encouraged me in my faith; she was willing to share her struggles with me and help me with mine; she lovingly and honestly told me my faults when I asked her; she prayed for me; she always led me back to God. I had never had such a friend before. I'm talking about Kalei Swogger.

Years before, I'd wanted a “true friend” who would be fun to hang out with, a positive influence, sweet, kind, etc. Kalei was that friend, but God had a bigger picture in mind than I did. He wanted me to develop a wonderful relationship with Him FIRST. When He had completed this, then He gave me Kalei… and soon, more friendships began growing… real, valuable friendships. Kalei was the first of many “true friends” whom I could trust and enjoy spending time with. It wasn’t until I got to the point where I didn’t need human friendships that God decided to grant all of my desires. That’s the way He works… He wants to make us fully dependent on Him so that we don’t need anything else to complete us or make us happy. And then, He showers blessings on us so that we have far more than we ever dreamed of having! Thus, we have a second, optional memory verse for this week which you can learn for extra points: Psalm 37:4. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. It’s on your lesson booklet under the actual memory verse, which is 2 Timothy 2:22. (Anyone going to have trouble remembering that reference?) I'll pass out the lesson booklets now, and while you’re putting them in your notebooks, I'll explain our next activity.

Persecution's Power

Jael's Lesson:

For some reason, I've been thinking a lot about persecution and martyrdom lately. It's not exactly a cheerful topic, so it's strange that I, who to think mainly about cheerful things, should be pondering as much as I have been. But the other day, I was doing my morning devotions, and I came across Psalm 34. Now, this psalm is not the Psalm most people run during times of persecution. But, as I read it, I realized it really does fit the topic quite well. Psalm 34 is a cheerful Psalm, and I think the reason that, most of the time, we think it doesn't fit well, is because we imagine persecution something awful or dreadful. But it is really an excellent privilege. It ushers us into the presence of a our Lord, and it's one of the greatest honors that a Christian could ever have! So let's start the beginning of the Psalm, and we'll just read through it.

Verse 1:
"I will extoll the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips." What a way for the song to start out! Talks about praising the Lord from the very beginning. But, in order to do this, your heart must be purified, because someone whose heart is full of filth and discontent can never praise him all times, especially when being persecuted. Let me share an example of this. I once read a story about some Christians who were being led into the arena to be eaten by wild animals. Normal people, in such a situation, would be pleading and begging for their lives. But not the Christians! They would lead into the arena singing praises to their King and Savior. They had no fear of the Lions. Their faith was in their God, and they knew that he would always do what was best for them.

Verse two:
"My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice."
God totally rocks. Let's just set that straight here and now. God is awesome! But it's one thing to say that here, in a comfortable house, and quite another to say it when you're being tortured. Here, you say it in a rather hum-drum way, 'cause you know it's true because you've been told it all your life, and you've also felt little nudges from God. But, when your body is being torked and pained and evil people are doing everything they can do to hurt you, God's awesomeness takes on an entirely different meaning. (Or so I've been told. I've never been tortured.) [ACT OUTHE STORY?] A great example of this in found in Acts 16:25. "About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them." They had peace, even after being flogged and tortured and pained in general. :-) This verse ties in with the next. "Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together." After Paul and Silas had been singing (and the other prisoners had been listening in - I just think it's so cool that their hope and joy was being transmitted to the other prisoners! I mean, if you were in jail, wouldn't you love fellow prisoners like Paul and Silas to cheer you up!?), there was a tremendous earthquake, and all the prisoners' chains came off. But none of them escaped! The jailer was so scared that he was about to kill himself, but Paul and Silas were able to offer hope to the afflicted (like in verse two). But that Bible story about Paul and Silas shows the power of Christians being together. Their love of Jesus just oozes out onto everyone else. They are positively dangerous! I've heard of jailers and governors and executioners being converted by Christians who were all stuck together in a jail cell! Some bad guys got so tired of their accomplices getting converted that they stuck each Christian into separate cells, hoping to dampen their witness. (chuckle)

Okay. On to verse 4.
"I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears."
Note that it doesn't say that The Lord delivers you from all your troubles. It says that he delivers you from all your fears. Fear can be one of the greatest hindrances to success. For example, I am totally petrified of making phone calls. Like, I get butterflies in my stomach. It's AWFUL!! But, if I could get rid of the fear, phone calls wouldn't be a bad thing at all! So, if and when persecution comes, trust God to deliver you from your fear!
I once read about a man who was about to be thrown to the lions in a Roman amphitheater. But he was not afraid! He actually called the lion his friends, "because they were going to usher him into the presence of his Lord." Oh God! Give me courage like that!

Verse 5:
"Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame."
Although Christians may be thrown into prison for their confession of Christ, God promises that those who look to Him constantly will never been put to shame. They may suffer all sorts of terrible things at the hands of evil men, but they will have no reason to blush before the throne of God on Judgment Day. Just recently, I heard about a man who was being tortured for his faith. He suffered many things, but would not waiver in his conviction. Someone asked him how it was done, and he said, "I just look to my Savior, and pray that I may not deny him, no matter what they are doing to me or my family. And, thus far, He has kept me true. He is always right by me, and helps me keep a clear head whenever the tempter is near." Just thinking about it makes me go, "Wow!" I pray that when I have to suffer for Jesus, He will make me as strong as that!

Verse 6 is quite similar to verse 4. "This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles." I once read about girl named Perpetua who was totally terrified of pain. She was arrested for being a Christian, and was eventually handed over to be fed to the wild animals in the arena, along with some of her friends. After several minutes of being tossed and trampled by the beasts, she said to one of her friends, "When will they begin to attack?" Her friend glanced at Perpetua's bleeding face, and said, "They HAVE been attacking you!" Perpetua replied, "But I have felt no pain!" God had delivered her both from her fear of pain, and from pain itself! God is merciful. One of my favorite Bible verses of all time is 1 Corinthians 10:13 - "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." That verse just gives me such hope! God knows how much I can or cannot bear!

Verse 7:
"The angel of the Lord in camps around those who fear him, and he delivers them."
I once read about a missionary family in Africa. They were faithfully serving The Lord, but the local witch doctor was really mad at how many converts they were making! So, he hired a local man hunter to go to their house, and kill them all while they slept. So, the guy took some of his henchmen along, and crept up on the house under the cover of darkness. But, when they got to the house, what they saw there made them turn on their heels and flee! The next morning, the man hunter walked up to the missionary's house, and asked the guy, "How can I be saved?" The missionary was delighted, and explained the way of salvation, which the man accepted. But, as the former man hunter was preparing to leave, he asked the missionary, "uh...where do you keep all your guards?" The missionary was surprised and said, "We don't have any guards!" But he insisted, "Last night, I came here to kill you, but surrounded your house were three rows of the largest, biggest, strongest men I had ever seen; all with swords, and wearing white tunics!" Then the missionary realized that God had protected them last night by sending angels to encircle the house.

Verse 8.
"Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man takes refuge him."
Remember where Jesus says, "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God"? Well, here's an earlier verse that says the same thing. :-) There was a guy who was locked into prison for many years, in solitary confinement. He saw very few people during his years there, yet he lacked nothing, because, in his younger days, he had felt compelled to memorize from
Romans to Hebrews. During his time in prison, he realized how valuable that chunk was Scripture was, and, since it was memorized, he was able to meditate on it constantly, and it sustained him.

Verse 9:
"Fear the Lord, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing."
This is a verse that many "health, wealth, and prosperity" preachers say is proof that Christians will never lack any good thing. But that's not what it says. Someone may not even have a shirt on their back, and be the happiest, most content creature alive, lacking nothing. And, a lot of Christians in persecuted countries view their persecution as a good thing. Once, when Brother Andrew was behind the iron curtain, he met with a group of church leaders. During the course of their conversation, he mentioned that the churches back where he was from were praying for them to remain strong. One of the leaders said, "Thank you so much! And we also pray for you!" Brother Andrew was astonished, and said, "But, we're not the ones undergoing persecution!" The pastor replied, "And that's why we pray for you! Without persecution, how do you keep from growing cold in your faith? The persecution keeps us devoted to our cause, but you guys AREN'T being tortured. It must be SOOO hard to keep from growing cold!"

[TAKE A BREAK TO WRITE LETTERS TO PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS]

Verse 10:
"The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing."
You would not believe how many times this verse actually was proved true in the early church! As I was reading through all these histories of early martyrdoms  I kept running across paragraphs like, "Although the lion had not been fed in many days, he would not approach the Christians. Even when prodded with red-hot irons, he could not advance. At times, it was like some invisible force was pushing the lion backwards! Finally, the executioner just ran the Christians through with a sword, and they died." Literally, the lions grew weak with hunger, but Christians were in heaven, lacking no good thing!

Verse 11:
"Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord."
This verse is the theme verse of persecution. Imagine persecution saying to all Christians, "Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord." It's like a red-hot stove saying to Rosemary, "Come, Rosemary. Listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the stove!" Nothing increases your respect of a stove like getting burned. In the same way, not increases your devotion to your King like persecution. I know very few people who will die for something they don't believe in, or know to be false. But if you KNOW something to be true, all of creation can't take it away from you.

Verse 12 and 13:
"Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and you lips from speaking lies."
Have any of you ever heard about a guy name Richard Wurmbrand? He was tortured in Romanian prisons for many years, yet he never gave up his faith. In fact, once he told his fellow Christian prison mates, "I made a deal with the guards. They beat me. I preach to you. That way we're both happy." That's dedication, I tell you! After all those years of beating, though, his heart was full of love. I once talked with someone who had spoken with him before he died, and they said, "That guy's eyes were so full of love that they almost exploded with all the pressure!"
If and when I'm persecuted, that's what I want people to say about me! I have trouble loving everyone when I'm not persecuted, so I know that God's gonna have to really work in me!

Verse 14:
"Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it."
A long time ago, there was this guy named Dirk who was being ruthlessly chased by the local pagan magistrate. Dirk was a Christian, and he knew the Bible's command to seek peace. So, during the course of their foot chase, Dirk dashed across a frozen pond. The magistrate, who was slightly heavier that Dirk, broke the ice, and fell into the frozen river. His screams for help reached Dirk's ears, and Dirk knew what he had to do. He turned round, went back onto the ice, and rescued his pursuer. Instead of showing his thanks by letting Dirk go (since his only "crime" was that of being a Christian), he arrested Dirk, and put him into prison, where he eventually died. Dirk could have SO EASILY left the magistrate to drown, while he went free, but he knew that that wouldn't be the God-honoring thing. "Seek peace and pursue it."

Verse 15-16:
"The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off at memory of them from the earth."
One of the consolations Christians in chains have is that their King sees them, and hears them. Then, He acts mightily on their behalf, in various ways. For some, He delivers them from their pain. For others, He helps them withstand everything, and stay true to their God.
But those who have their faces against God, He puts to shame. There was this guy in the 1800's named Friedrich Neitze who was convinced that God didn't exist. In fact, he once said, "God is dead." (!) Yet, Friedrich Neitze died, and God is still around.
Just the other day, I saw a quote that said, "Friedrich Neitze said, "God is dead." God says, "Friedrich Neitze is dead." Those who rebel against God never get very far.

Verse 17-18:
"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."
As I mentioned earlier, God doesn't usually act as we expect. He doesn't usually rescue us like we're expecting, but He rescues us from our fear, or from Satan. But He loves people with broken hearts. It's like clay that's been worked with for a while, soft and pliable. It can be shaped any way He wants it.
I read about a girl who was being led to the stake, all the while being encouraged to blaspheme Jesus. But she refused so steadfastly, and showed such courage that her EXECUTIONER was converted, and had to be killed with her!

Verse 19:
"A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;"
This verse really stuck out to me. It dawned on me that the more problems I encounter, the more often God will be able to rescue me. So, the more problems I have, the more miracles I'll see. But just talking about this is rather dull. Let me prove it to you, in a rather elementary example. [ACTIVITY]

Verse 20:
"he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken."
Any famous example you can think of for this one? Yes. Jesus! :-) 'nough said.

Verse 21:
"Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned."
Maybe it's because I'm so vindictive, but I just love the idea of evil doers coming to justice. I mean, I want all to be saved, but if someone has done wrong, and won't repent, I want to see them get their just desserts. So, when I read a true story about a Roman governor who was a terrible persecutor of the church, I was so excited. This guy was just brutal in his persecution, and many Christians died after horrible torture by his order. But then, his province was overthrown, and the governor himself was subjected to some of the same tortures he had used on Christians!

Verse 22:
"The Lord redeems his servants; no one will be condemned and takes refuge in him."
This verse refers to the end times. Although we may be condemned to death here on earth, God will sustain us so that we are not condemned before God. I read about a Christian who was particularly steadfast in his confession of Christ. When asked later after his release how he could be so bold, he replied, "I had read about Peter, and his denial of Christ, and I did not want to weep bitterly.

If you want the lesson in a sentence, this is what I want to have passed along:
Persecution is not something to dread, because God always provides grace for the moment. He rejected Jesus (on the cross) so that He'd never have to reject you.