EDGE Autumn 2007 –

Welcome

Offer everyone a drink / snack

Talk about the summer – what were your highlights? Perhaps play a game of Pictionary where people have to draw (or act out) something they did over the summer. Be as specific as possible… so not General Beach Activities (GBA’s) but “making a boat out of sand on a beach in Wales” or “relaxing on a beach reading the Harry Potter Book trying not to get sunburnt”

Worship

Read John 17:9-21

Then encourage people to praise God for what is in this passage

Word

There is a common phrase that we should be “in the world but not of the world”.

What do you think that means?

What do you understand by ‘the world’?

 (We are really thinking about the culture that we live in)

What specifically does the world or more specifically ‘the culture you are part of’ say to you…

Eg what is beautiful? What do you have to have? What is important? How should relationships develop? Keep going, come up with a big list

(Try not just to be negative. Note down the good things about the culture we are in too.)

What does it mean not to be of this world? Why do we need protection? (v12,15)

What does it mean to be in this world?

If we are in this world… what are the different ways we as Christians can respond to the culture we are in?

Encourage your group to come up with the following ideas (or similar)… and discuss what it means to do each of these actions and perhaps also suggest when it is the right action. (This may well be easier if you relate it to some of the cultural influences that you thought about earlier)

a) To distance ourselves form culture

b) To conform to the culture

c) To confront the culture

d) To transform the culture

 

 

Witness

One bit of John 17 we haven’t touched on is the unity bit – so pray for that amongst your group, the young people, the different generations in the church, different churches etc.