Extraordinary Pt. 3

This past Sunday, we discussed the Joseph story a little more and looked at his brothers more closely.

In the story of throwing Jospeh in the pit, we see quite a few characteristics of people we might run into when we are either in a pit or thrown into a pit by someone.

It sounds kinda harsh, but being thrown into a pit can be quite subtle.

Anywhere from verbal bullying to a friend continuously ignoring us without knowing the reason, the reasons can vary as to how we end up in our pits.

One thing is for certain, we will end up in a pit at some point....they are unavoidable.

There are 2 types of people (generally speaking) that you encounter when you are in a pit.
1. The "informer" - those that stand at the top and holler things down at you. They love to tell you reasons why you are in your pit, the offer suggestions as ways to get out of the pit and usually their efforts ted to keep us in our pits.
2. The "jumper" - those that jump down in the pit with you, get their hands dirty and get messy in your mess.

Last week we ended the session with pieces of cut rope that were selected from an adult who was holding a cup of ropes. Students then prayed with an adult and left these pieces of rope at the foot of the cross, to symbolize they were ready to break free from their pits...Christ has extended the rope and is our rescue from our pits. His death and resurrection overcome any obstacle we go through in life. By His power we are healed!

This week, the students were asked to identify a friend who they know are in a pit. They also identified through the types of people we encounter when we are in a pit, which ones they were most like....the "informer or the jumper."

Spending time in prayer, the students came to the altar, dug their hands through buckets of dirt we had placed around the altar and grabbed a piece of rope that was placed down at the bottom. This was to symbolize that Jesus calls us into the messes of those around us. If they felt led, during the week, they could give this rope to a friend going through a tough time to let them know they weren't going to go through this alone.

The call to be Christ like in the life of a teenager can be really tough to figure out. It is hard enough for a seasoned believer to fully embrace because of the continued battle against the flesh we all go through. Ephesians 5:1-2 calls us to follow God's example in Christ, as living our lives sacrificially. to me, that absolutely indicates a call to get messy. Philippians 2:1-11 calls us to be imitators of Christ....looking out for the interests and needs of others....

When someone is in a pit, don't you think one of their main interests is to get out? I know it is for me!

Next week, we will tie everything in to Christ.....we will show how this passage in Genesis is not ultimately about Joseph even though he is the most talked about individual in this story. Joseph is only the subplot to the main Plot.