Wednesday nights @atonement 6th-8th grade



6th-8th Small Group TimeJanuary 13th, 2021 @7:15-8 pmLord’s Prayer 1: Holy NameInstructionsBe sure to start on a positive note. Welcome each learner by name. Let them know you're glad they're here! If anyone is absent, mention you'll be praying for that person together. Small Group Time is for give-and-take discussion. Your main job is to draw learners out and get them talking about the theme. Ask open-ended questions that will provoke responses. Once the conversation begins, intervene only to bring it back on track or to stimulate more talk.Isaiah 29:22–23Big Idea: We honor God's name with our words and actions.Learning Goal: Learners will understand prayer as a way to honor God's name and equip them for their everyday life.Key Words: HOLY, GOD’S BRAND IDENTITY, HYPOCRICY? God gave God's name to Moses as "I AM WHO I AM." It's a verb-word (action) rather than a noun-word (person, place, or thing). In the Hebrew, what God did was more important than who God was.? Our Hebrew ancestors believed that if you knew the name of someone you held a part of them—you were in relationship with them.? There is power in knowing someone's name.? Martin Luther believed that God's name is already holy. We pray this prayer to help remind us of our part in making God's name holy.? In the Large Catechism, Luther talked about how our words and actions can contribute to the perception others have of how holy God is.? Christians have a mixed history when it comes to contributing to others' sense of God's holiness.? As a community of faith and as individuals, Christians have been known to sin, both by actions we commit (sins of commission) and actions we should have done (sins of omission).Discussion Time1. Help students dive into the Key Words by asking for definitions and/or providing these definitions:-HOLY describes a person, object, or thing that is related to God.-GOD'S BRAND IDENTITY describes how people think about God and God's followers.-HYPOCRISY is when someone says one thing and does another.2. What does the word holy mean? (Affirm all responses. The essence of the word holy is that something is set apart, special in and of itself, and redemptive. For example, the command to remember the sabbath day and keep it holy.)3. In the news today, how many different people use the word Christian? How can so many people with opposing views all claim to be following Christian teachings? (Affirm all responses. Discuss ways that Christians could constructively discuss their differences.)4. Come up with a title for God that would appeal to each of these people: a young child, a prisoner, a combat soldier, a teenager, a person who is dying, a mayor, and a thief. (Affirm all responses.)5. What's in a name? Encourage youth to think about their own name, and share this information with the group. How does a person's name impact the way they live their lives? Invite conversation with their parents about why their name was chosen and what it meant to them when they chose it.6. Describe a person you know who deserves the name "Christian" as you understand that title.7. What is your favorite name for God?8. How would you respond to someone who pointed out the hypocrisy of Christians throughout the centuries?Open the Catechism1. Think of a time and a place where you were in awe of God, and invite learners to do the same. Draw a picture of this place (or write a paragraph or two describing the experience) and share your experiences with the group. What did you see, hear, feel, smell, taste? Who else was with you? Did you feel like saying wow, beautiful, amazing or were there no words? How did it make you feel?2. Invite youth to find the First Petition (request) in the Small Catechism (p. 17). Luther points out that God's name is already holy—there is nothing we can do to change that. However, we do have the power to make God's name holy in all that we say or do. Think of situations from the last week. In which situations was God's holy name honored? Dishonored? (Use the second part of Luther's explanation to help you in this task.) Open the Bible1. Instruct learners to open their Bibles to Isaiah 29:22–23. Remind learners that God's name is glorified before the nations by the faithful witness of God's people.2. Direct learners to Isaiah 5:16. Tell them that as God's people witness to others through their covenant faithfulness, God's name is made holy.3. Turn with your learners to Luke 9:18–20. Ask learners to pretend they met someone who had never heard of God. Who would they say God is? With their words? With their actions?4. Lead learners to Isaiah 6:2. Explain that there is a deeper meaning to what is happening when believers sanctify God's name; they form here on earth a community of worship that joins the heavenly court in crying out Holy, Holy, Holy in unceasing worship. ................
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