Adaptable Meeting Guide: Naomi - A Leader who grieved | Issues

THIS WEEK’S PASSAGE

Ruth 1:1-5, 19-21 .

BACKGROUND PREPARATION The nature of this session means sensitive information may be shared. Try to ensure you’re aware of any circumstances that might influence the way you conduct this session. Be prepared to listen and signpost young people to appropriate support organisations if necessary. You will need a selection of newspapers and magazines, some flipchart paper, pens, post-it notes and a window or mirror for the final activity.

Suffering in our world

10 mins

Provide a selection of newspapers and magazines and a large piece of flipchart paper. Explain to the young people that in this session they are going to explore suffering and hope and the place of grief in our lives. Invite the young people to look through the newspapers and magazines cutting out any words or images that represent suffering in the world before sticking them on the paper. The young people may wish to think specifically about their own lives or concentrate on the breadth of suffering in the world. When the activity is complete, look at what has been identified and ask the young people:

• What similarities are there between the images chosen?

• Which of these things are worldwide examples of suffering and which do we see locally?

• Ask the young people if they have any stories they are prepared to share about times when they or people they know have suffered.

Read the passage

10 mins

Read together Ruth 1:1-5 and 19-21 and then ask the young people the following questions:

• What problems did Naomi face after she moved from Bethlehem to Moab?

• What was Naomi’s response to her circumstances when she returned to Bethlehem?

• How would you describe Naomi’s relationship with God when she returned home?

Taking it to the life of Jesus

10 mins

Explain to the young people that we are all very aware that there is suffering in our world and one way we suffer in life is through grief. Grief is a natural response to the loss of something, commonly a person, but it might be the loss of a job, ill-health or the end of a relationship. When we lose something or someone it is like pressing pause in our lives. We need to remember as we work through grief, a process that takes a different form and timescale for each of us, that God sees the bigger picture and our faith can encourage us to cling onto hope. Split the young people into four groups and give each group one of the following passages:

• Matthew 1:1-17 – The genealogy of Jesus that shows a line of kings coming from Naomi through her daughter-in-law Ruth that leads to Jesus.

• John 11:17-35 – Jesus comforts the sisters of Lazarus in their grief and shows vulnerability by weeping with them.

• Mark 14: 32-36 – Jesus with his disciples in Gethsemane suffering mental turmoil.

• Mark 15:34-37 – Jesus dies on the cross and cries out to God in his suffering.

Ask the young people to consider the following questions in their groups as they think about the passages:

• What can we take from this passage that will help us to understand the story of Naomi?

• What do we learn about grief? What do we learn about Jesus? Gather the thoughts together as a group.

No arms, no legs, no worries

10 mins

Nick Vujicic is a Serbia-Australian evangelist and motivational speaker born with tetra-amelia syndrome. He speaks about his belief that God can use any willing heart to do his work and that God is big enough to overcome any and all disabilities. Show his short film ‘No arms, no legs, no worries,’ from the links section of the Youthwork website. After, discuss the following questions:

• What can we learn about suffering from Nick Vujicic’s story?

• What can we learn about hope from his story?

• What do you think Vujicic grieves for?

Hope in our world

15 mins

Return to the flipchart. Turn the sheet over and invite them to use the newspapers and magazines to identify examples of hope in our world. Encourage the young people to write words or draw pictures if they cannot find images reflecting what they wish to say about hope in our world. As with the earlier activity they may wish to identify what brings them hope personally.

There is hope…

5 mins

Make sure each young person has access to a pen and two post-it notes. Encourage them to write or draw on one post-it notes an area of suffering that they wish to lift to God and on the other an area of hope that they are thankful for. Encourage them to stick these prayers on a window and suggest that as the light from outside shines through the window, it will shine through their prayers just like the light of Jesus shining in our world and recognising our requests. If you do not have a window, find a mirror and encourage the young people to stick their post-it notes to the mirror and suggest that as light shines through their notes and reflects from the mirror it is like God seeing and recognising their requests. Create space to listen to young people at the end of the session.

For notes for adapting see the links sections of the Youthwork website.

KEY POINT #1

Sometimes life is challenging and difficult and we don’t understand the situation we are in. It is healthy to be angry with God at these times and to recognise that life sometimes feels unfair.