Student ministries has begun a five week series centered on our student ministry purpose statement; ‘we are a real people, in love with a real God, who make a real difference in the world.’  To me, there are five core elements in that phrase that sum up why we get together, why we have church, why we meet and why this is all important.  They are:

• “We are a real people” connects to our need for fellowship.
• “In love with a real God” connects to discipleship (we want to learn more about Him) and worship (we want to show our love to Him)
• “Who make a real difference in the world” connects to service and evangelism.

For five weeks, using the series ‘Life has a purpose’ from the Live Curriculum as a launching point, we’ll take a closer look at each of those core elements, or reasons, for why we do what we do.  Even though senior high and middle school will both be taking a look at the same topics, we’ll be split up for the lesson time to keep it a little more age specific.

This weeks’ focus was on fellowship.  The lesson, called “Making Significant Connections,” focused on understanding the basic need that humans have to be connected with others on a deeper level. Students were challenged to make their church and small groups a safe place where members can be real and honest about their lives, and get help from each other to become more like Christ.

Sometime this week, take a moment to ask a few questions to generate some discussion with your teenager about connecting with others:

• Share about how you’ve been shaped or “sharpened” by your involvement in a small group or church fellowship. Then ask: How do you think you’d benefit from being involved in a small group?
• What are some moments in your life when you felt completely accepted for who you are? What factors helped you experience that freedom?
• How can you become a more encouraging person to others?