My Sunday group really focused in on 1 Corinthians 9. In the process we answered most of the other questions very naturally. For us the big issue concerned fitting in, and being able to confess Christ. We noted that Paul is not simply a great chameleon, but is able to find common ground with people in order to gain an audience. We also noted that in order for Paul to mix in with different groups, he needed a clarity about his faith and his role. This comes up in his opening statement: "Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone to win as many as possible." In order for us to feel comfortable enough to bridge the gap, we have to have this confidence in Christ and the freedom he gives us.
Another point was that Paul talks about Jews and and those without the law. He speaks in the plural, but we might wish to focus more on the individual. What I mean here is that our culture has so many sub groups that there is no way for us to be accepted by groups as they are. Rather we gain trust with individuals who then vouch for us with the group. This ultimately doesn't change Paul's approach, but ours is nuanced for our context.
Another advantage to working on the individual level is that we don't need to "fit in" so much as find points of connection. If we are focusing on youth, it is highly unlikely that any of us can become just another part of the group. But we can build relationships with individuals based on common ground, and following through on our promises. We essentially become all things not by changing who we are, but by meeting people where they are.
All of this brought up the question of the fine line between adapting to culture and living unholy lives. For example, Steve and Linda brought up this producer who has been very successful in the rap industry. You may want to ask them about this, but the general thrust I got was that sometimes self-expression can come about in ways that seem less than sanctified to us. We are called to be all things to all people, but we're also called to live holy lives. There is no easy answer for this, but we recognized two helpful points in navigating the dilemma. 1) God judges those outside the church, and we have often gotten this backwards. We judge those outside and ignore each others sins. If anything this should be reversed. This clarifies what it means to be the body of Christ and also what it means to relate to those outside. 2) If we're going to make an effort to interact with those who live radically different lives, we don't need the body of Christ judging our interaction, but helping us to maintain our identity in Christ even as we attempt to be in the world. The church then supports it's missionaries with direction, prayer and fellowship.
This was a very fruitful discussion. I look forward to hearing about yours.
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Well here we are; I thought more interested in planning for our Y/A event, than continuing the Study. That's good, and here are our thoughts. Over the next week we want to put together a punch list of what needs to be done to pull off the "Game Event" that is planned for 19 April. A new member of the group added to our previous ideas by suggesting that we make a place for the Ys to teach the As, specifically suggesting that Ys are so good at electronic games and the As so poor as a whole that we need to make some time/space in this event for the Ys to teach the As using eletronic games (hand held was the idea). The overarching idea was to provide a part of this venue that would capitalize on what the Ys have to offer vs creating an opportunity where the Ys do not have equal footing with the As. All that said, Dawna will create a slide for the screens that asks everyone to hold the date and invites everyone to get involved. We, the Sunday Group 2 don't have what we need in our little band to carry this off, but intend to interest others to participate with us. In a pinch, I suppose we could do it ourselves, but not so successfully than if we invite more As and Ys to come along.
Ok - 1 Cor - We talked about being non-judgemental as part of what Paul was describing in these verses. We also talked about the example of the homeless, who are beautiful behind the faces of need and loss. If we look at the Ys the same way, we may find that there are beautiful people behind the sometimes bizarre manner in which Ys present themselves.
Similiarities/differences between doing a mission trip and spending a week with Ys. We'd find that they have a different language, customs, music, food and values, whether we were in a foreign country or just spending time with Ys.
How is Y culture different from A culture? Our group commented that Ys are a mass of contradiction, they are at one time insecure, yet at the same time, unaware of consequences, they are fearless risk takers - like riding on top of a moving car, getting a tatoo etc.
Points of connection between A and Y cultures. We need to remember that we have all been there. We tried foolish dangerous things as do Ys today. We have all made mistakes; it's the nature of life. I seems so simple, but Ys can be more open and responsive with As that are not their parents. I talked about how Fran Lardie was what I called my Son's Church Daddy. These opportunities to make non-parent Y connections require nothing more than opportunity, availibility and willingness.
Thanks,
Louisemarie
Great work. I have one suggestion which you may choose to ignore. I see Cary's group planning an event which is speed-dating and a vision day for the OC and our youth. Would it be beneficial if you were to harness Cary's group and combine at least the game/ get-to-know-each-other aspects into a single night? We could also make this a big multi-group event that gives us a chance to celebrate each other and encourage the individual groups (this last idea came from Cary).
In response to combining similar activities into one larger whole, I think it is a good idea. I’m wondering what the Youth are thinking of and how we might include any of their ideas. The proposed activity has morphed into an after Church (afternoon) event, but that shouldn’t stand in our way unless another group is set on a night-time affair. We’re planning on advertising the date and time this Sunday with an on-screen slide, so if we want to change the time or date we should make up our minds as soon as possible; or we could make the details a bit less specific.
All that said, it would be helpful if we could do a ”Story Board” to put all the pieces into a framework so that it would all come together. Each group may need to save some aspects of their plan for another time so that we’re able to fit the right number and combination of activities together. Do you suppose we might use one of the Sunday morning sessions to do some strategizing? What other venues could we use to do this kind of thing? I think in a couple of hours could we could walk away with a complete event plan, to do lists, commitments, etc.
Open for more input,
Louisemarie
My post for World Beneath Part 1 is under the Week 4 posting. Just in case you were having trouble finding it...
Juliette
Also, in case you're wondering what PYRO did on week 5...we took a break from the vision study and did something a little different.
We talked about the Psalms. Then, I had them look through the Psalms individually and pick one (or a part of one) that was meaningful to them. I told them how Psalms can be used as prayers. Everyone wrote theirs on a poster and read them to the group. I encouraged them to start memorizing their Psalm. It was a nice change of pace for us as a group.
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