Buya Self-Hearted to Soft-Hearted Discussion Questions
January 29, 2010
Discussion Questions
- When you watched that video (Chisel Skit), what do you think or feel?
- What are the “pieces” of you that you wish God would “chisel” into a better shape?
- Do you think God feels the same way about what you want chiseled, or would God want to do some chiseling that you might be uncomfortable with? What’s one thing that you think God wants to chisel on you to make you more like him? Why?
- What do you think “Self-Hearted” means? What about “Soft-Hearted”?
- How would you describe the kind of heart you have right now in your life?
From Roy Moran, “From birth to adulthood we are touched and marked (“chiseled”) by people and experiences. Some are positive and some are negative. We have had evil things done to us and we have done evil things to others. This is our history. Looking back on our history is often painful, yet it is essential if we wish to grow in our spiritual journey. Looking back is the only way to reveal the reasoning behind the life strategies we’ve designed.”
Below are some questions, and there is space for you to answer the questions. Either answer the questions on your own, or work through them together as a group, whatever your Group Leader decides, but please write out your answers so that you can keep reflecting on the experiences that have shaped you. Spend the rest of time in group talking about your answers to these questions.
List 3 significant experiences or events that have marked you (can be positive or negative).
1.
2.
3.
List 3 relationships with other people that have marked or chiseled you (can be positive or negative).
1.
2.
3.
What hopes and disappointments did you feel as a result of these experiences and relationships? How do you feel these people and experience have shaped who you are today?
What regrets do you have as a result of these experiences?
How do you think God wants to use these experiences and relationships to bring you closer to Him?
At Home This Week – Here’s a REALLY big challenge for you this week: Take this paper home, with all your answers, and share it with your parents. Let them into your world and help them understand who you are more. These questions will be emailed out to the parents anyways, so you might as well take the first step!
Cross Cultural Training Opp.
January 29, 2010
From Jarrett Meek, director of Mission Adelante:
I’m excited to invite you to attend Adelante Missions Institute’s first Saturday seminar on February 27th. As a valuable volunteer or partner, we are passionate about equipping you to realilze your potential in your cross-cultural ministry calling, whether here or abroad.
On February 27th we’ll be bringing South America Mission’s Executive Director, Kirk Ogden from South Carolina to lead an interactive workshop on Character and Cross-Cultural Ministry. Kirk will explore the personal, spiritual, and character qualities that are essential for making a lasting impact in a cross-cultural context, as well as the pitfalls that the enemy commonly uses to sideline God’s people. I am convinced that the foundation of our ministry effectiveness lies more in our character than it does in our skills or abilities. So, let’s come together as a team, invite whomever you’d like, and spend some time diving deeper into this important topic.
Date: Saturday, February 27th
Time: 9:00-11:30 (continental breakfast provided)
Place: Mission Adelante 22 South 18th Street; Kansas City, KS 66102
Cost: $15 per person (at the door)
RSVP: Please let us know if you plan to come. You can reply to morganh@missionadelante.org or respond to the Adelante Evite that you should receive in a separate message.
In His Grace,
Jarrett Meek
Executive Director, Mission Adelante, Inc.
The Buzz – Elevate Info
January 10, 2010
Hey Families, here’s what you need to know:
Student-Led Valentine’s Dance Fiesta – Friday Feb 12th 6:30-9:00pm. Here comes the annual Shoal Creek Valentine’s Dance, and it also marks the second time that our student ministries take ownership of it and host it. By hosting it, we’ve been able to turn it into a fundraiser for our student ministries. Money raised will pay for the summer VBS and Children’s Camp we run for Mission Adelante. After that, the money we raise will go to a student scholarship fund, and the general student ministry fund.
This is really big for our student ministries, and we’d really like every family that has a student in either Buya or Crash to contribute in some way. Our biggest need is the donating of Gift Baskets. We use gift baskets in a silent auction which raised us the most money last year during the dance. Please think about creating and donating a gift basket that we can auction of during the dance. Ideas can be found at this link. Contact Laura Mullennix (lauramullennix@yahoo.com) if you are able to put together a themed basket.
If you are not able to donate a basket, please think about find or purchasing gift cards (from restaurants, bestbuy, iTunes, retail stores, etc) or event tickets that we can use for auction items.
Your students have plenty of opportunities to become owners of this dance. Our student ministries are all going to talk about it this week in their small groups. Here’s the Vision Casting sheet that they’re going to use to brainstorms how to make this Dance a success. Take a look at this link.
Bringing in the New Year
January 5, 2010
Hey Families, I hope you didn’t just survive the holidays. I hope you and your family thrived during them! Me and my fam (well, Erin, lol) is getting over a cold, so that was a little downer for us, as I’m sure it was for some of you too. Anyways, here’s what you need to know as we kick off the new semester:
1. Crash Moves to Wednesday night, still 6:30-8:30pm — Crash, or 10th-12th grade youth group, has moved from its Monday 6:30-8:30pm meeting to a Wednesday 6:30-8:30pm meeting time. We’re still doing small group discussions, fun hangouts, and service projects, but now it’s all on Wednesdays.
Event opp coming up for Crash Students – Movie Night Sun Jan 24th. We’re going to all go see “To Save A Life”, a movie coming out in a few weeks. Exact time and meeting place TBA once I get more info from the other youth groups that we’re going to go see this movie with together.
2. Meeting and Mexico Spots! Anyone interested in being a part of our annual mission trip to Mexico needs be at a meeting THIS Sunday, 10:40am-11:00am, in The Attic at Shoal Creek and talk to Eric Haynes. (Read posts below to get more info on the trip–dates June 10th-June 19th–or go to this link.)
3. Camp–Girls on Waiting list, 6 Boys Spots Left - Families of girls wanting to go to camp need to contact me asap if you want to be put on a waiting list to go to YouthFront Camp West this summer (July 26th-31st). There is a reasonable chance of moving from “waiting list” to “confirmed” if we get girls on the waiting list ASAP. Churches reserve blocks of spots, but then have to drop whatever they don’t have filled after Feb 15th, and everyone on that waiting list moves up on the list.
4. Valentine’s Dance – Our Next Big Event! Please keep these two nights available on your calendars to help build up our student ministry community: Thurs Feb 11th and Fri Feb 12th. Thurs is our setup/decoration night, and Friday is the actual dance that our student ministry hosts. We use this night as a fundraiser to pay for the summer VBS/Camp we serve for at Mission Adelante, and we use the other money for scholarships for students and general needs of our student ministries. Family help is definitely needed to pull this off and to make it more than a fundraiser. We want it to be a night the students look forward to year after year, like the always look forward to the Halloween Bash.