CONNECT WEEK
CONNECTING STUDENTS TO THEIR LOCAL CHURCH AND THEIR COMMUNITY
WELCOME
Foundation Scripture
“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.” -1 Chronicles 29:11
SAY: “How are we doing today? I hope each of you has had a great week or weekend. We are honored that you are here with us today! We are excited to connect with each of you, and help you connect better to God and a church if you are not already connected to one.
Today is our Connect Week and it is designed to help us connect to three main things.
1. We want to help us all be connected to Christ!
- We want to make sure that you have a personal relationship with Christ because of what he has done for us on the Cross. He paid the penalty that we deserved so we might have eternal life in Christ.
2. We want to talk about how you can connect to the Club.
- First Priority meets each week with the goal of teaching and training students to reach their school for Christ. We believe we have the greatest message of HOPE in the world, and we want to equip students to share the redemption story of Christ.”
3. Lastly, we want you to connect with a local Church!
- First Priority is not a youth group.
- It is not a church.
- It is not a holy huddle!
- First Priority is a school club that is designed to engage students and equip them to share the Gospel of Christ using a tool and their own testimony. If you are not plugged into a local church, we want you to hear about the churches that are represented here in our club. We will have an opportunity to talk about these more at the end!”
OPENING PRAYER
We want to be consistent with the meaning of each week throughout this semester. When you say the three main parts of Connect Week, make sure to be strong and emphasize the meaning of each. You can even have them repeat it back to you after you finished explaining.
DIG IN
SAY: “You may recall the name Rahab from the Bible. Almost any time her name is mentioned, her infamous title accompanies it: Rahab the Harlot (Prostitute)! Well, we really shouldn’t refer to her by that title any longer because God gave her a second chance and brought her out of that sinful life, and used her mightily. Rahab went the way of a lot of women of her day. She had to earn a living and she chose the world’s oldest profession. We aren’t told too many details of her early life, but we know she lived this life of sin for many years. But through a series of events, she bargained for her life with the two spies from the people of God, hid them in her home in exchange for protection for her family, and survived the slaughter and destruction of her country.”
The story of Rahab is likely new to some students. When you read this section be sure to read slowly and precisely to not confuse or go over anyone’s head. They might even have questions about it!
SAY:
“Well, that’s a good enough story as it is, but it doesn’t end there. She marries one of those people of God, an Israelite and becomes a foremother in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Her name is listed in Hebrews 11 as a great woman of faith. What a comeback!
From a notorious harlot to the grandmother many times removed from Jesus Christ. Maybe you have a past of which you are ashamed. Could it be that for many years you lived a life of sin and you feel dirty and tainted as a result? If so, I want you to think about Rahab and remember that God gives second chances to people with sordid pasts.”
If you want to read or know more about Rahab, I encourage you to read Joshua 2 in the Bible.”
TOOL TIME
SAY: Let’s take a minute to talk about second chances or fresh starts! For the last bit of our time, we are going to break up into groups and talk about how we can relate the story of Rahab to our lives.”
ASK:
- Have you ever been given a fresh start before? Was it difficult to receive?
- If God gave Rahab a second chance, can we believe that He would give us a second chance too? (the answer is always YES)
- What are areas in your life where you need a fresh start?
- Knowing God has given us a fresh start, how can we live our lives differently?
SAY: “When God gives us a fresh start, He is allowing us to reconnect to Him and Christ, through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Think about the third icon of the FOUR, this is where we see God giving us a second chance!
We also want to connect everyone not only to Christ but to the Church and this Club as well. The best way to stay connected to God is to get involved in a church. Let’s take a couple of minutes to talk about the churches that are represented here in this club. If you don’t have a church that you regularly attend, that’s okay, maybe you’ll hear about one today that sounds interesting! ”
(This is a good time to have students stand up or share about their church and maybe something special their church does like youth groups, hang outs, etc.)
Tips for making this smooth. Ask a few students/student leaders before club if they would feel comfortable sharing about the church they attend. Here are main points to share:
- Location (city or county)
- Time/day regular service
- Time/day youth group or outreach activity
- Something you love most or is special about what your church does.
Remember: This is NOT a competition of churches but rather an open place for people to share where they go and invite others to join and find a church home for themselves.
You also may want to have diversity of denominations if possible!
Say: “First Priority is not the end of resources and connection for your faith journey. As we have mentioned before, getting plugged into a local church, following Christ, and connecting to your club are all ways to grow in your faith. We encourage you to continue to invite your friends to Club and share your story with those around you!
Here are the announcements for today…”
CLOSING PRAYER
Depending on your Club’s timing, you may have already completed your Operation Christmas Child Packing Party or it is coming up soon. Don’t forget to continue to plan and announce this party if you haven’t done so yet!
If you are approaching November, or have just started, you want to be thinking about a Thanksgiving party for Invite Week. This doesn’t have to be anything special but something different for everyone to enjoy during the holidays! Talk with your Club Leaders about how to make this happen. (Simple ideas: snacks/games/trivia)
