Rotten :: The Thorny Soil
Clean hands and cover their mouths when they cough. :) // If someone is clearly under the weather notify Chad, Jimmy, or Heather.
Take a second and have a student read the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4:3-8
Now have a student read Mark 4:14-20
Have a discussion as a group where the students put in their own words what the Thorny Soil is.
One of the biggest areas where we can find thorny soil in our lives right now revolves around our technology and how we use it.
So lets get super practical:
First you are what you eat. The thing about the thorns are that the more they distract us the more we start to think we are also the thorns. Whatever we consume has a serious impact on who we are.
When we feed a different hunger, a righteous hunger we are also what we eat.
Have a student read Psalm 34:8
Have another student read 1 Peter 2:2
What do these two verses tell us about our hunger and our satisfaction?
Here are some simple agreements you as a group can go through to help prune the thorns technology may be growing in your soil.
I will strive to avoid bad - mouthing anyone or making fun of anyone online.
What are some ways we do this and can we as a group make an agreement to stop?
I will guard my eyes and my heart against images and content online that designed to stir in me unhealthy desire and pride.
This is imagery that makes you feel unhealthy in any way whether it is sexual in nature or even just makes you compare yourself to someone else.
Name one account or search you do that you can agree to strike from your life today?
I will not send compromising photos of myself or anyone else to anyone for any reason. In the same way I will not ask anyone to send me compromising photos to me and if anyone does without me asking I will loop an adult I trust in my life so I can stay protected.
Why is this important?
I will not be so per-occupied on my technology that I never use it for Kingdom work or it keeps me from situations and people around me that I could be building genuine relationship with.
Who is one person you should be actively building relationship with by putting your technology away?
Close by praying as a group.
We will know we have hit our target if:
-Students retain the parable of the sower including the 4 soils.
-Everyone has an understanding of how our hunger for pride grows thorns in our soil.
-Everyone starts living this out immediately. Not tomorrow or next week but right now.
-Prayer and scripture are earnestly employed in our discipleship walk with our groups.