To kick off today’s lesson, I presented our students with three bags. One was a backpack full of Bibles, one full of camera equipment, and another full of drawing supplies, manga, and a Nintendo Switch. The students had to examine the bags and try to figure out what the purpose of the bags was.
Each bag was prepared for a specific purpose. For example, if you were going to be doing a photoshoot, you wouldn’t take the bag full of manga and Bibles. Similarly, if you were spending an evening relaxing with video games, drawing, and reading, you wouldn’t take the camera bag. Purpose defines preparation. But if we aren’t prepared, we can’t fulfill our purpose.
In Matthew 25, Jesus is teaching his disciples about being prepared, specifically for His return. But this parable also has a principle about being prepared for what God has for us.
Read Matthew 25:1-13
ASK: What is the difference between the two groups?
One group was prepared for the long wait, while the other was not. They both started with good intentions. They were ready for a single moment, but one group wasn’t prepared for that moment to take a while.
The five foolish women rushed around begging for help at the last minute. They tried to borrow resources from their fellow partygoers, but doing so would have made it so that they couldn’t do what they needed to do. So they rushed off to find help elsewhere, but by the time they had what they needed, it was too late; the moment was gone.
There are things God has called us to do. Some of those things require very specific training and preparation. For example, this weekend, one of our students is teaching in the Kids Church. Because of that, he must do extra things to be ready to minister. But at the same time, we will all be present to help serve. Just because we aren’t the specific speaker doesn’t mean that God doesn’t have something specific for us to do, too.
Moving forward into this Summer we will have Hero Academy. Once again, some will have very specific jobs they must prepare for. But at the same time, there are still some specific basics we all must have in preparation, regardless of our role.
There is this concept of the “Everyday Carry.” These are the items that people bring with them every day because they are essential. Some of those items are specialized according to what those individuals do; at the same time, there are some basics that carry over.
At this point, I pull out my personal backpack for the students and the contents of my pockets. Some of these are items that I use daily for my job as a Media pastor: my tablet, my laptop, hard drives, and connectors. I carry some things because they are needed for everyday life, like my wallet, my keys, and a watch. Then there are some things I carry every day because of my relationships and commitments, such as my wedding ring, which symbolizes my relationship and commitment to my wife. My Bible and journal are because of my relationship with and commitment to God.
As Christians, there is a spiritual bag that we need to have packed and ready to go whenever the Lord calls us to do things. But these aren’t things that are prepped for a short time; they need to be in it for the long haul of life. Some of these things in our spiritual backpack are things that we have to maintain.
Ask: What kind of things do we, as Christians, need to have packed away in our spiritual backpacks?
Some basic things we need to be intentional about preparing are our understanding of the Scriptures, our interaction with the Scriptures, our relationships with God through prayer and meditation, and confession and fellowship in the community. These are all aspects that lead to one major thing, our walk as Christians. Matthew 5:16 relates our walk with God as a light that shines, pointing people back to God. But if we aren’t prepared, our light can not shine.
At this point I handed all of the students a flashlight.
These flashlights are small, kind of bright, but not super bright. If you look at lists of what people say every person should have, one thing listed is a flashlight. It doesn’t have to be big, but one that shines. Everyone of us is called to be a light. The more we work together, the brighter of a light we become in our community. At the same time, we have to maintain that light. The problem with the 5 women in the scripture we read was that they didn’t prepare well enough. These flashlights will only last for 2 hours before you need to change the batteries. They’ll last a bit. If you don’t use them but for a few minutes at a time they may last you a few months. But eventually, you’ll find that the power and shine is gone from them. If all we do is come to church once every few weeks, our light will fade. If all we do is come once a week, our light may shine, but not as bright if we intentionally fill our spiritual go bag daily.
Over the next several weeks, we will discuss the essential “everyday carry” items that go in our spiritual go bag. This isn’t just in preparation for Hero Academy or Reset the Deep but for anything God has for us.
Adventures in Student Ministry 