THE BIG SURPRISE
15 mins
Begin this session with a surprise. Depending on your group, this could be an unexpected treat or a sudden shock. One old routine is to switch off the lights suddenly, and simultaneously fire a starting pistol! As people recover from their surprise, explain that you are starting a series on Christmas, examining what it must have felt like to be some of the characters involved in the Christmas story. Say that tonight’s focus is on Jesus’ mum and dad.
Ask what else could have happened tonight that would have surprised the group. Give them a list of possible surprises (eg the roof falls in, the youth leader is arrested by armed police, the meeting is stormed by terrorists) and ask them to grade these possibilities from zero (not very surprising) to five (cataclysmic).
Then ask: how would you grade the surprise Mary and Joseph felt when they found out Mary (probably aged 14) was pregnant? (Joseph was probably 18-20.) Ask boys to write down three words describing how they’d have felt if they were Joseph and the girls if they were Mary. Then ask them to read Matthew 1:18-25 (Joseph) and Luke 1:30-38 (Mary) and choose three words to describe the couple’s actual response.
The Christmas story starts with a big surprise and a major challenge to two young people. Can they trust God through all this? This series will show us that it’s when we believe that God knows best, and in faith do what he asks, that we make massive discoveries and enable God to use us powerfully. We will look at three big surprises that Joseph and Mary had to survive...
SECOND BIG SURPRISE
10 mins
Read Luke 2:1-5. After they had recovered from the shock of impending parenthood, along came surprise number two: Mary and Joseph would have to travel to Bethlehem just before the birth (80 miles – get somebody to work out the equivalent distance using Google Maps on their phone). Wasn’t that a bit risky for such an important birth? (For the difficulties of the trip, see premieryouthwork. com/links.) Was God still in charge?
Ask your young people to solve the old ‘Fox, sheep, cabbage’ puzzle or, if that’s too familiar, the more difficult ‘Missionaries and cannibals’ (both available at premieryouthwork.com/links). Point out that solving it depends on one move that seems stupid: sending the sheep back when you’ve already taken it across and sending back a missionary and a cannibal when they’ve already reached the other bank. It looks as if you’re going backwards – but sometimes, the seemingly nonsensical move can be the solution of the puzzle.
That’s also true with God’s actions. We can’t always see why he does things, especially when he isn’t telling us directly, but it all makes sense and brings results. Read Micah 5:2-4, where the Messiah is prophesied seven centuries earlier. Why did Joseph and Mary have to be in Bethlehem?
KEY POINT 1
Joseph and Mary were really just kids, but God singled them out for this awesome responsibility because they knew how to trust him – whether he guided them directly through messages or indirectly through events.
THIRD BIG SURPRISE
10 mins
After Jesus’ birth and the visit of the shepherds and angels, there was another surprise. Read Matthew 2:13-15 and, in groups, discuss:
- Why was this an unwelcome shock? (Clue: what had just happened earlier in the chapter? The new baby had just been worshipped by wise men – it looked as if success was on the way – but now the king wanted to kill him.)
- How did Joseph have to show faith and trust yet again? (By going immediately, trusting God’s warning and waiting in Egypt for an unspecified time.)
- Was God still in control of the situation? (Yes: again prophecy was being fulfilled, although Mary and Joseph probably didn’t realise it then.)
Share results and summarise. Joseph and Mary might have thought they were through the worst of it, but the shocks weren’t over.
KEY POINT 2
When you’re trusting God, you need to be prepared for the unexpected. There may be one more challenge than you’re expecting!
RISKY LIVING
15 mins
Looking back, it’s clear that God’s plan wouldn’t have worked out without Mary and Joseph and their willingness to trust that he knew best. In small groups, look at these case studies (one each). How did these people demonstrate the same pattern of risky trust in their lives? What was their big challenge, how did they meet it, and what did God do as a result?
Gladys Aylward was a poorly educated London housemaid when God called her to China. Turned down by mission agencies, she spent all her savings on a ticket across Russia, then ran an inn and sheltered orphans. When the Japanese invaded they set a price on her head. Undaunted, she led 100 children over the hills to safety; a 12-day trek. More information at premieryouthwork.com/links.
• William Carey was a Northamptonshire cobbler who decided God wanted him in India. Despite daunting obstacles and great personal misfortunes, he got there and stuck at the job for 41 years. He translated the Bible into the six main languages of India, battled social abuses, worked to bring prosperity to Indians and founded a renowned school. More information at premieryouthwork.com/links.
• Andrew van der Bijl was an ex-soldier who knew about risk-taking. So, as a young Christian in 1955, he started smuggling Bibles into communist countries, had many hair-raising adventures and saw many people come to faith. Worldwide organisation Open Doors now continues his work. More information at premieryouthwork.com/links.
WRAP UP
5 mins
Ask the young people to sum up all they’ve learned from the three surprises in Joseph and Mary’s story. How far would they be prepared to trust God? Finish by praying for faith to make their lives count by trusting him more.
