TeacherAide
A weekly
teaching aide for student developers
Case For
Freedom
SESSION 8
ILLUSTRATING THE POINT
There
are many stories of adoption of children. Here is the story of Lyndell, who
wrote this article for the website, www.powertochange.com.
I was just three months old when my
parents adopted me. Lying in a motel dresser drawer that very first night, I
looked up at my new parents with distrust and suspicion, as if to say, ‘You
just try to control me!’ My ornery streak was obvious from day one, but
incredibly, I was now in a home where firm and loving parents would put me in
touch with my Maker.
Thanks to my new parents, I wasn't very old by the time I understood that life
is short. After that comes an eternity in one of two places, heaven or hell. It
was easy enough to decide which was the better place. When I learned that
receiving Christ was the only way to heaven, I knelt with my father, and asked
Jesus to forgive my sins and give me eternal life.
I lived smugly in the safety of this newfound ‘fire insurance,’ because that
was all Christianity was to me at that point, until a certain question began to
haunt me: What is the purpose of life? It haunted me because the only answer I
had carried alarming implications. I believed that life was basically
meaningless. What are we here for anyway—to live, make babies and then die?
Simply perpetuating the human race did not appeal to me. Nor was I interested in
chasing after material riches only to leave them behind in 70 years. There just
wasn't a good reason for living anymore. Nothing I could do was going to matter
in a hundred years anyway, much less for eternity.
Surprise! When I was 14, I learned at a summer Bible Camp that there was a
purpose for my life. It came from God. After all, He made me, so who would know
better than Him what that purpose is? I learned from the Bible that God made me
to relate personally with Him, to know Him and to love Him. I learned that
completely giving my life over to Him for His purposes was the key to an
abundant and meaningful life. Suddenly, my life had purpose and significance. I
was created to know God and to glorify Him for eternity.
It was only minutes after realizing my purpose that I also discovered the plan
that would bring eternal significance to my life. I was to share the truth and
meaning that I had found in Christ with others. I realized that pointing people
to Christ helps to change their destiny for eternity, just like my adopted
parents helped to change my eternal destiny. Now that's making life count in a
lasting way!
My nature is to be selfish and proud, so I have a natural tendency to
continually take the steering wheel of my life away from Christ. Inevitably,
that's about the time I end up in a ditch or down a blind alley. Thankfully, He
is always forgiving, and graciously resumes control when I give Him back the
wheel. In my life, Christ has replaced the meaningless races and goals I could
be chasing in this world with one that has an eternal significance. Christ also
wants to give you life in all of its fullness. With Jesus, you can find the
meaningful life you were meant to have.
I
THOUGHT I HEARD YOU SAY
“Adoption
is not about finding children for families, it's about finding families for
children.”
Joyce
Maguire Pavao
“Regard
your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest
valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even
unto death.”
Sun
Tzu
“Never
cease loving a person, and never give up hope for him, for even the prodigal son
who had fallen most low, could still be saved; the bitterest enemy and also he
who was your friend could again be your friend; love that has grown cold can
kindle.”
Soren
Kierkegaard
“Good
fathers make good sons”
Anonymous
THE
MORE YOU KNOW
Many
in the Church are now talking about the future.
How will post-modernism, a new generation, technology, and other factors
affect the church? A word that
you’ll hear in these discussions is “emerging.”
Is a new church emerging that will look different than the modern church?
Many people say that one is.
At
the end of session 16, the students will have a few minutes to discuss what they
think the church of the 21st century will look like.
Spend some time thinking through this issue before your discussion.
As mentioned, there are numerous books devoted to this subject, as well
as websites. One of the most
popular is http://www.theooze.com. There
are countless others, many of which are listed at http://www.zondervanchurchsource.com/clip/postmodern.htm.
Read from some of these sites and see if you have an opinion on the
subject.