When I grow up
20 minutes
Discuss what everyone wanted to be when they were older: firemen, doctors, superheroes etc. Show embarrassing photos of youth leaders / volunteers in fancy dress as kids for inspiration. Ask: are some jobs more ‘holy’ than others? Is God more likely to use a ‘professional’ Christian than someone doing another job or a full-time parent?
Say: Most of the Old Testament prophets were professionals who devoted their lives to speaking God’s message. Amos was a sheep merchant (the Hebrew word implies that he was a man of some authority and influence), or at the very least, a farmer or shepherd. What he certainly wasn’t, was a professional prophet: ‘I’m not a professional prophet, and I was never trained to be one. I’m just a shepherd, and I take care of sycamore-fig trees’ Amos 7:14 (NLT).
Like us, Amos lived an ordinary life but God saw that, although he had no prophetic credentials or ‘special powers’, he had a willing heart. He was also adamant that God had called him to speak to Israel – it wasn’t just something he had decided for himself. Amos 7:15 says, ‘The Lord called me away from my flock and told me, “Go and prophesy to my people in Israel.”’
You may feel like you don’t have much to offer God or that others in your youth group are much more likely to be used by him. But Amos is proof that whatever your talents and passions, God can use you powerfully to speak truth to a dying world and bring hope into the darkness.
Split into small groups (sitting in a circle) and ask each person to write their name on the top of an A4 piece of paper. Pass the paper to the person on your left and ask everyone to write something encouraging about the person whose name is on the paper, folding the paper over concertina-style so that no one else can see what has already been written (think of the game ‘consequences’). If they can, encourage the group to be specific about something they’re good at / a gift they clearly have. Keep passing the papers around until they return to the person whose name is at the top. Everyone can then keep their sheet of paper and remember that they have been given unique talents to serve God in a way no one else can.
KEY POINT 1
No matter how insignificant you feel, God can use you. If he can speak through a donkey (Numbers 22), he can speak through you!
What’s in the way?
15 minutes
Watch the ‘Confessions of a shopaholic’ clip (found here). Say: Many of Amos’ cries are against Israel’s ‘idols’. In this clip, Becky has prioritised shopping over everything else and likewise, Israel is seeking happiness in places outside of God – see Amos 5:5 and Amos 5:26. Ask: how much are we looking to other things for satisfaction? Give your young people a blank weekly calendar and ask them to fill in how much time they spend:
• On the computer / tablet / phone (excluding school work)
• Watching TV
• Doing hobbies
• Shopping
• Playing computer games
• Praying / reading the Bible.
Ask: Can you truly say God is the most important thing in your life? Is he all you need? Is he all you want? Does the way you spend your time reflect that?
Go against the flow
10 minutes
Get your young people to discuss this Ricky Gervais comment: ‘Don’t ever go with the flow. Stop the flow, go against the flow, start the flow, but don’t under any circumstance just go with the flow.’
Ask: What was the ‘flow’ or the world that Amos occupied (Amos 5:7–13)? How did he go against it? Say: Amos was disillusioned with the world around him. He knew that God’s plan was so much bigger, so much better. Split into small groups and discuss what our ‘flow’ looks like. What has become the norm in our society? How can we bravely stand up against certain practices or behaviours? What can we do to stand out from the crowd?
KEY POINT 2
Our lives should look as if God takes number one place in our hearts.
Stand in the gap
15 minutes
Ask your young people if anyone knows what intercession is (to act on behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble, to come between parties as a mediator). Show an example of intercession, such as Amnesty International urging people to stand up for victims, interceding with governments on their behalf.
Read Amos 7:1-6 together. Say: Amos had a good relationship with God and a good understanding of his character. He recognised God as all-powerful but also as loving and full of grace. Amos knew that God would listen to his request and, with this quiet confidence, he pleads with God on behalf of his people. Amos stands in the gap between them and God, praying on their behalf. Ask: who can we stand in the gap for? How can we stand in the gap?
Assign three prayer stations, encouraging the young people to work their way around each of them. At the first station, print Isaiah 62:6-7a on large paper, stick it on the wall and scatter bad news articles on the floor. Encourage your youth to plead with God for the people affected by the various situations. At the second station, print Ezekiel 22:30 on large paper, stick it on the wall with a map of the world. Ask your young people to place a sticker on a country and cry out to God for that nation.
Finally, at the third station print 1 Samuel 12:23a on large paper and stick it on the wall. Get each person to write a non- Christian’s name on a post-it note and stick them around the verse, asking God to reveal himself to them.
Wrap up
5 minutes
Say: Just think of what might start to happen if we regularly got down on our knees for people, situations and nations. Read Amos 9:11. Say: let’s stand in the gap and let’s go against the flow, urging our friends and family to come home; as Amos 5:4 says, ‘Come back to me and live!’
