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The Challenge: The Rich Young Man (Matthew 19:16-30), page 12
Songs: "Where He Leads Me," "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus,” “Take My Life and
Let It Be”
Sound: “I Will Follow” (Iworship CD)
Visual: Invite youth to empty their pockets and purses of all change and bring
it to the altar as a sign of the first step of answering the call to follow
Jesus. (Decide afterwards to what ministry you will give the money.)
Have students reflect on the questions in View U and write on a 3 x 5 card
something they will commit to as a next step of following Jesus.
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You Have the Power: Feeding the 5,000 (Mark 6:30-44), page 26
Songs: “Jesu, Jesu,” “Here I Am Lord,” “I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me”
Senses: Fresh-baked bread; Holy Communion
Visuals: In 2002, 34.9 million people in the United States lived in households
that were food insecure (12.5%). This number includes 13.1 million children.
Use statistics such as these from http://www.bread.org/. (Visit this Bread for
the World website for updated statistics and more information.) Display the
statistics in some graphic way—a chart, a poster of children’s faces with the
statistic, and so on.
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Caught in the Act (John 7:53–8:11), page 40
Songs: “Something Beautiful,” “God, How Can We Forgive,” “If It Had Not Been
for the Lord”
Visual: Large rocks piled on the floor
Touch: Make symbols in the sand. (See Worship Feast Ideas #78)
Movement: If you have one or more youth with a gift for liturgical dance,
invite them to interpret the Scripture through movement. An interpretive dance
could focus on the woman’s being freed. She might begin in semi-darkness,
huddling on the floor, covering her head. Then her movements would change to
reflect her astonishment of her accusers leaving and then her joy at being
forgiven.
Or have the whole group begin worship in the semidarkness, crouched down, and
covering their heads. As someone tells the story or reads the Scripture, invite
the youth to rise, to stand tall, and to leave, going forth “to sin no more.”
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Go Straight to Jail: Paul and Silas (Acts 16:16-39), page 52
Songs: “O God, Our Help in Ages Past,” “We Shall Overcome,” “Lord, Listen to
Your Children Praying,” “Freedom Is Coming” “In the Lord I’ll Be Ever
Thankful,” “How Can I Keep From Singing”
Sounds: Read the Scripture as a readers theatre, having the readers create the
drama through their voices. Use earthquake sound effects.
Visuals: Invite students to create posters or montages that illustrate and
include the words from Romans 8:28. Post these in the worship area. Project
images of people in situations of injustice.
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Dying and Rising With Christ (Romans 6:1-20), page 62
Songs: “Amazing Grace” “Since Jesus Came Into My Heart” “I’ve Got Peace Like a
River,”
Sound: “You Are My All in All,” “Let the River Flow” (Iworship CD)
Altar Visual: Decorate with cocoons and butterflies, made of paper or wire.
Visuals: Project images of butterflies or water. Or show the clip from the movie
Oh Brother, Where Art Thou with the music “Down to the River to Pray.”
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Behave Yourself! (Romans 12:9-21), page 78
Get artsy. Give everyone large sheets of paper and access to colored pencils,
paints, or markers. Invite them to paint or illustrate some scene or symbol
that relates to “Paul’s Laundry List” on page 71. Then sit in a circle with
each person holding his or her creation. Have each one talk about his or her
painting.
Songs: “Living for Jesus,” “Lord, Be Glorified,” “I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use
Me,” “Just a Closer Walk With Thee,” “Sanctuary”
Sound: “I Will Follow” (Iworship CD)
Altar visual: After each person has spoken, begin singing and have the youth
place their paintings in the altar area.
Continue singing and close with a prayer of commitment to live so God can use
each one.
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Teamwork: Unity of Faith (Ephesians 4:1-16), page 90
Consider worship in the style of the Taize´ community. If your students are not
familiar with this kind of worship, you will need to prepare them. They need to
know that the songs repeat, that they will observe silence, and that they may
leave when they choose during the closing song. Students may also sing or read
the Scripture both in English and in whatever other languages they are familiar
with. Often the songs are printed with more than one language
Songs: “Come and Fill (Confitemini Domino),” “In the Lord (El Senyor),” “Ubi
Caritas (Live in Charity),” “Give Peace (Da Pacem Cordium),” “Lord of All
Goodness (Domine Deus)”
Altar visuals: In advance ask students to bring pictures of themselves as babies
or children or young teens as well as current photos. Arrange various size
boxes or make different size stacks of books. Then drape the altar with cloth.
Stand up the photos so they can be seen. Intersperse these with candles and
icons or reminders of Christ (crosses, paintings, and so forth).
The altar visual is to remind students they are a community (emphasizing the “unity”
within the word “community”) and that they also are to continue to “grow up in every way”
into Christ.
Light the candles before the youth come to the worship space. Have them enter in silence.
Sing one or two songs from Taize´ for two to three minutes each. Read the Scripture aloud
and then observe four to seven minutes of silence. End the silence with a brief prayer or a
rereading of a portion of the Scripture. Then sing again. Allow students to leave individually
as they choose. Play the music and continue singing until all have left.
