Church Of Christ - Youth Group

We are harvesting our grain right now, so this will be a quikie - but a goodie. Read Colossians 3:1-4 for starters.

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

Our text tells us about setting earthly possessions over our Lord. Setting Him last in our lives or putting another thing in front of Him is against the First Commandment.

My friend Jim is a work-a-holic. He never has time for God, so he says, and that really bothers me. Jim is working every day and the whole day on Sundays. When he works, he doesn’t do it to glorify his Lord. All he cares about are his “fat” paychecks at the end of the pay week. Then he wastefully spends his money on things he desires. His whole life is based on how much money he can make and what he can buy with it.

I was getting upset seeing him lose his faith. Fortunately, he was off of work one night and I sat him down and talked to him. I told him that it appeared to me that he was putting too much of his trust in his money instead of God. He said he would ask God for forgiveness and would focus more on Him than on his desires.

Many times, as Christians, we put our belongings over God. We totally take our blessings for granted and forget about the one who gave them to us. We need to remember our God who loved us enough to send His own Son to die for us, and gives us forgiveness even for all those times we put things over Him

Points To Ponder: How often do you forget about God and set your mind on earthly desires? What should you do if you are trapped in a particular sin? What or whom do you put your faith in?

Prayer Possibilities: Pray for those who struggle with a sin. Ask God to strengthen your faith when you are trapped. Thank God for all your blessings.

As we watched the Veggie Tale movie, Jonah, once again I got thinking about Jonah’s life and thought I’d post up a bit of a devo regarding him. Read Jonah 2:2-9 as we begin.

“He said: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry. You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’ The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God. “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD.”

Maria has experienced a death in the family! Her aunt has died. This might have seemed like a nightmare for her, because she was very close to her aunt. Her whole family went to the funeral. She didn’t want to go, but her mother told her that she would regret it. She went and was very glad that she did, because it made her feel much better. Does this sound familiar? Has anyone in your family, that was very close to you, ever died? I know that it is hard to deal with at times. This is just one of the many hardships in front of us in our lifetime. God also wants us to remember what is said in Romans 8:28a, “And we know that in all things God works for good of those who love Him!”

Always remember God helps us in our hardships as Jonah says in Jonah 2:2, “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.” God will always love you. In return, we should love Him also.

Points To Ponder: What hardships have you faced? What do you do when there are hardships for you or your friends? What would you do if you feel like you can’t handle them anymore?

Prayer Possibilities: Pray to God to help you get through all of the hardships you face. Thank God for helping you through all of the hardships. Go to God in times of need and tell Him what is troubling you.

Read Matthew 25:31-46 before you carry on. I’ve quoted verses 31-33 below.

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.”

When I was younger, I loved to go trick-or-treating. After the hard day of collecting candy, I would dump the contents of my bag on the living room floor and sort it out. I would throw all of the gross candy in one pile, and the yummy candy in another.

When Jesus comes again on Judgment Day, He will separate us like I separated the candy. Matthew 25:32-33 states, “All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.” He will take those on His right, the believers, to heaven with Him and those on His left will be sent to hell. There will be no “in between” place.

Later on in this section Jesus tells us, “…whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Those without faith in their heart cannot understand this truth. If you have faith in your heart, you will be sure of where you are going and it will shine throughout your life.

Points To Ponder: Are you a sheep or a goat? How can you prepare for Christ’s coming? Who do you know that is one of the least of Jesus’ brothers? What can you do for them?

Prayer Possibilities: Thank the Lord for choosing you to be one of His children. Pray for those who are lost. Ask Him to keep you strong until Judgment Day.

Everyone has a gift. Some of our gifts are much different than other people’s gifts and maybe we’d rather have a different gift. Regardless, we all have gifts and they are are special in their own way. Take a look at 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 today as we look at these gifts.

“Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant. 2You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.”

When Billy got cut from the freshman baseball team, he was crushed. Why was it that he had gotten cut from every sport that he tried out for this year? He questioned why God hadn’t blessed him athletically like Jake. Jake was Billy’s best friend and an incredible athlete. He made and started on both JV football and basketball as a freshman, and now made the baseball team.

Billy wanted so badly to be like his friend, but he was forgetting about his own special talent. God blessed Billy with outstanding intellectual ability. He had an accumulative GPA of 4.0, was a wonderful student, and would soon see God’s plan for his gift—his special gift.

God has given each and everyone of us different talents and gifts. I Corinthians says, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.”

As scripture says, we all have been given very different and unique gifts. Although different from one another, they work together to build up the body of Christ. These gifts are evident of the Spirit working in our lives to make us one in Jesus.

Points To Ponder: What is your special gift? When have you felt like you wanted to be somebody else? Why wouldn’t God want you to try and be somebody else?

Prayer Possibilities: Thank God for your special gift. Ask God for guidance in using your special gift.

Today we are not looking at what we can do for God specifically. Today we are looking at a reminder of what God has done for us. Take and read Psalm 45 to get things started.

“My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. You are the most excellent of men and your lips have been anointed with grace, since God has blessed you forever. Gird your sword upon your side, O mighty one; clothe yourself with splendor and majesty.”

How often do you thank God for all He’s done for you? Probably not as often as you should! Every time I pray, I always thank Him for something. Let’s think about how blessed we are, so the next time you pray, you can’t say you couldn’t thank Him because you had nothing to thank Him for.

There are countless blessings to be thankful for, such as family and friends or having a place to live. These are things we take for granted. Other blessings might be a good school, a new car, money in your pocket or places to go. These things were given to us by God for a reason.

All of these blessings are great, but there are more important blessings given to us that we should be thankful for, such as your church and pastor. But most of all, I’m thankful for the greatest blessing God has given us, which is the forgiveness of sins.

Next time you pray, remember to give thank for your blessings. The Lord says in Psalm 45:2, “You are the most excellent of men and your lips have been anointed with grace; since God has blessed you forever.”

Points To Ponder: How often do you thank God for your blessings? Why do you think God gives you everything you have?

Prayer Possibilities: Ask God to forgive your sins. Praise and thank God for the forgiveness He has given to you and to others.