God and Church (Grades 6-8)
Curriculum Goals:
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To strengthen young people’s relationship with Christ
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To challenge young people to learn about and participate in
the worship and ministry of the church
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To
have young people make a plan for daily Bible reading and
memorize a creed or statement of belief or passage of
scripture
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To
provide the opportunity for young people to experience the joy
of serving others
General Description
The God and Church program will lead
young people on a journey. It will be a faith journey with three
parts: meeting Jesus, worshiping God, and witnessing and
ministering for Christ. Participants will create either a video
or a photo album to share what they have learned on their faith
journeys. Young people will have the opportunity to work with
their pastor or other Christian adult as they study the church's
structures and objectives and participate in service projects
that will give them a better understanding of the mission of the
church.
Outline:
Introduction
God Promises to be with Joshua as Joshua
Leads the People of God into the Promised Land – Joshua 1:1-9
Unit I – My Journey:
Meeting Christ
Lesson 1: Meeting Jesus, the Person
Students will be challenged to see Jesus as
a real person who shared our humanity. They will study scripture
to understand why it is important that Jesus was human
and become familiar with major events in the life of Jesus.
Lesson 2: Meeting Jesus, the Son of God
Jesus is more than just an historical
figure. Jesus was fully divine. Students will study what Jesus
said about his true identify and read the testimonies of people
in the Bible to understand that Jesus is the Son of God. They
will hear the Good News of Jesus!
Lesson 3: Meeting Jesus, the Head of the Church
Students will read about the birth of the
church at Pentecost and learn that Jesus invites us into
relationship with the church. They will then study the history
of their own congregation and denomination and be required to
memorize a creed, statement of belief, or significant passage of
scripture.
Project: Daily Bible Reading
The best way to get to know Jesus is to
read the Bible. Students will read their Bible every day for at
least three weeks. Their counselors will help them choose a
plan.
Unit II – My Journey:
Worshiping God
Lesson 4: Learning how Christ Worshiped God
Students will discover how Jesus worshiped
God in his everyday living. They will also learn about prayer.
Lesson 5: Exploring How My Congregation Worships God
Students will explore the different worship
opportunities in their congregation and attend a worship service
with their counselor. They will study the different parts of a
worship service and the special celebrations in the church year.
Project: Discovering How I Can Worship God
Planning an outdoor worship service,
visiting other churches, and preparing a devotion for a Sunday
school class are some of the choices that students have for
Project II.
Unit III – My
Journey: Witnessing and Ministering for Christ
Lesson 6: Learning How Christ Witnessed and Ministered to
Others
Witnessing and ministering go hand in hand.
Students will learn of Jesus’ compassion for people who are
hurting.
Lesson 7: Exploring How My Congregation
Witnesses and Ministers to Others
Students will study the structure of their
congregation and learn about the outreach programs of their
church.
Project: Discovering How I Can Witness
and Minister to Others
The final project requires young people to
do service hours for their congregation as well as for their
community. They are also required to invite a friend or
acquaintance to church (or to participate in a service project).
Schedule
The
God and Church program can take from three to five
months to complete. The program is very flexible and can be
structured in a number of different ways. Ideally, the youth
will complete this program in his or her own church under the
supervision of his or her own pastor. However, it is possible to
teach the course to a group of young people who belong to
different denominations. In this situation, the individual
churches should be contacted ahead of time. The pastors need to
be invited to the class sessions that deal with specific church
history and doctrine. The young people can benefit from this
type of comparative study and learn to appreciate the unique
aspects of their own denomination.
Interdenominational Resource
The God and Church curriculum was developed without
theological bias; yet it was designed to permit the introduction
of particular theological and denominational viewpoints on the
material being studied. It is the responsibility of the
counselor to provide this specific instruction. Therefore all
students use the standard God and Church curriculum regardless
of church membership.
It is at the
God and Church level
(when students study their specific denomination), that the
following denominational logos are available on 3/4" Pins to be
pinned into the ribbon of the God and Church medallion: African Methodist Episcopal, Baptist,
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Episcopal, Lutheran,
Pentecostal, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Presbyterian Church
in America, and United Methodist. Information on ordering these
recognition items is contained in the Student Workbook. (Note:
These denominational items are available only at the God and
Church level.)
Eligibility Guidelines:
Girls and boys in grades 6-8 are eligible to participate in the
God and Church program even if they do not belong to a
Girl Scout, Boy Scout or Camp Fire group (youth group and Sunday
School members are eligible to participate in this program).
This program requires that students have original workbooks and
present their work to the pastor for final approval.
Adult Mentor Program:
The God and Church Adult Mentor program is an optional
program for parents. Rather than having just their children go
through the program by themselves, parents may choose to work on
the program alongside their children. In the Adult Mentor
program, parents have a workbook with lessons and projects to
complete just like the child. Parents will be challenged to
learn more about their faith and to talk about their faith with
their children.
Materials Available:
#33599 God and Church Student Workbook –
required for each student
#33600 God and Church Counselor Manual –
resource guide for pastor/counselor
#33596 God and Church Adult Mentor Workbook
– optional program for parents if they want to participate in
the program alongside their children
Booklets may be ordered online at
www.praypub.org or call 1-800-933-7729. They may also be
available at your local council store.
#001CC – God and Church Counselor Patch
#002C8 – God and Church Counselor Pin