A New World

Note to the Teacher

The key phrase in this scripture for this lesson is “love one another.” The icebreaker invites youth to decipher what “love” is in a silly way. The discussion encourages students to discuss love in a more serious manner.. The activity helps youth understand that who someone loves may cause them to suffer housing insecurity - and what can be done about it. Times are based on a fifty-five-minute lesson period but may be adjusted.

Icebreaker (15 minutes)

In a room with space, tape the floor into three sections that will represent “love,” “like,” and “dislike.” Read the following list (or one like it) and have youth arrange themselves in the room according to if they “love,” “like,” or “dislike” each thing.

• Chips
• Pizza
• Ice cream
• French fries
• Church
• Their friends
• Their families
• School
• Sports
• Science class
• Math class
• Pop music
• Singing
• Summer
• Winter
• Spring
• Fall
• Jeans

READ SCRIPTURE (5 minutes)

Today’s scripture reading involves the idea of “loving out loud.” Read John 13:31-35 (CEB preferred, but multiple translations welcome).

Discussion (15 minutes)

Jesus tells us to love one another as he loves us and that his followers will be known by the way they love others. We perhaps jokingly said we “love” chips in the icebreaker. It’s sometimes easier to say you “love” a food than to say you “love” a person. Do you find it easy or hard to tell people you love them?

If you don’t often tell people you love them, how do you show them? Do you think they know?

How might our actions change depending on the kind of love that we are feeling or wanting to demonstrate?

What kind of love do you think Jesus meant when he says to love others as he loves us?

Do you think you’re good at that? If not, how can you practice it or grow in it?

What makes someone hard to love?

Do we show love to nature around us, or do we pollute/litter without thinking about it?

Are there areas where we could increase our show of love for creation?

Think back to previous weeks, love for our space and others re: accessibility, love for our neighbors by wanting to help keep them fed, love for others by intentional inclusion, etc.

Have you known someone who has dealt with being unhoused? What behaviors do you think are obvious in loving families? What kinds of behaviors, situations, or choices might test a family’s love for each other?

Activity and Discussion (20 minutes)

Take this lesson to the next level by planning a way to show love to people who feel unloved.

The sermon focus this week was about LGBTQIA+ inclusion and its intersection with creation justice. If you do not feel equipped to discuss LGBTQIA+ topics, this article from Discipleship Ministries can be helpful. Also, as the sermon focus should also have touched on the topic, having a discussion with the pastor/preacher who preached might be useful as well.

According to research done by the Trevor Project, “28% of LGBTQ youth reported experiencing homelessness or housing instability at some point in their lives.” Unfortunately, some homelessness services are not available to all, one of the issues often being gender identity or sexual orientation. That is part of why LGBTQIA+ youth are more affected than other youth. Being homeless is definitely an intersection with being out in nature.

Use this time to plan a service project for how to serve the youth homeless population in your area or nearby:

Ask questions like:

• What would I want if I didn’t have a stable home?
• What kind of foods can be kept for a little bit/saved for later?
• How would I keep up hygiene?
• How would I keep warm?
• What would it be like to be out in the weather?

Think about how/where the group would source these items:

• Could the group ask the church for donations of items?
• Could the group raise funds to purchase the items?
• Could the group find an agency that has the items but needs help with organization/distribution?

Think about how/where the group might distribute these items:

• Is there a space at their schools for these kinds of things?
• Could the church have a space to keep them?
• Are there direct service organizations in the area that the group could help?

If you have time, logistics, and funding/donations to create hygiene bags during this time instead of just planning, that’s even better. Do your homework and check with local agencies about what practices are already in place and what types of donations they accept.

Points for discussion:

• With just a “yes” or “no” answer, do you feel that LGBTQIA+ students at your school are discriminated against by other students or by the school?
• What can we pledge to do to help show Jesus-love to anyone who is left out at school?
• No need to answer out loud, but something to think about: Are we willing to go out on that limb to show people that kind of love?
• What might it look like to show Jesus-love to someone who is often left out?

TOTAL TIME: 55 min.

NEEDED RESOURCES:

• Paper/writing implements for brainstorming
• OR Items to create hygiene bags or other needs as sourced from a local agency dealing with homelessness in the area.