YOUNG ATHLETES
RESET: Week 1
Warmup: GAME: Ninja
“STOP FIGHTING, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD, EXALTED
AMONG THE NATIONS, EXALTED ON THE EARTH.” —PSALM 46:10
WELCOME:
Today we are going to learn that when Christ resets my perspective, I’m free in Him.
WARMUP:
When we played Ninja, how did we start this game?
That’s right: you had to freeze and be still.
It’s important to learn how to be still when you get overwhelmed in life and your sport.
Right now, sit down and close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and stay quiet.
I want you to think about this saying, “With Christ you can be free.” This is called a reset.
Even people in the Bible needed to pause and make some changes.
Peter is a great example of someone who decided to let God help him reset his life.
WORKOUT
BIBLE STORY: Jesus calls Peter
Luke 5:1-11
As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God’s word, he was standing by Lake Gennesaret.He saw two boats at the edge of the lake; the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, which belonged to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the land. Then he sat down and was teaching the crowds from the boat.
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
“Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night long and caught nothing. But if you say so, I’ll let down the nets.”
When they did this, they caught a great number of fish, and their nets[c] began to tear. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them; they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’s knees and said, “Go away from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!” For he and all those with him were amazed at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, Zebedee’s sons, who were Simon’s partners.
“Don’t be afraid,” Jesus told Simon. “From now on you will be catching people.” Then they brought the boats to land, left everything, and followed him.
Raise your hand if you have ever been fishing? Tell me, are you supposed to be quiet and still or loud and active while fishing on a boat? Show me how you should act. Correct. If you were loud and active, you would scare away the fish, but when you are still, you have a much better chance of achieving your goal.
In our Bible story we meet Simon Peter, one of Jesus’s future disciples, but he was just a fisherman at the time. We read that he and his friends had been fishing all night and had not caught a single fish. it didn’t sound like they were meeting their goal, did it?
They were tired, exhausted and sad, and then Jesus showed up, asking to use their boat to preach to this crowd. Peter and his friends decide to stop and listen to Jesus. They choose to be still and take a break.
WRAP-UP:
Answer the following questions with your group leader.
BE STILL: “THE LORD WILL FIGHT FOR YOU, AND YOU MUST BE QUIET.” —EXODUS 14:14
Q: What is a goal you have?
Q: What is something you are worried or fearful about?
It’s okay to be fearful, but know that the Lord fights for you even when you are scared.
BE OPEN:
“I PRAY THAT THE GOD OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE GLORIOUS FATHER, WOULD GIVE YOU THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM AND REVELATION IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF HIM. I PRAY THAT THE EYES OF YOUR HEART MAY BE ENLIGHTENED SO THAT YOU MAY KNOW WHAT IS THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING, WHAT IS THE WEALTH OF HIS GLORIOUS INHERITANCE IN THE SAINTS” —EPHESIANS 1:17–18
Q: What does the word peace mean to you?
True peace can only come from GoD
After Jesus spoke, He told Peter to go back out and fish. Peter didn’t think anything was going to happen, but he was open to try again after being quiet before Jesus.
Peter and his friends ended up catching so many fish they needed more boats!
Peter didn’t catch any fish on his own, but he was open to trying again with Jesus on his side. After they caught all the fish, Peter knew that Jesus was special and that he needed to change his goal from catching many fish to helping “fish” for people with Jesus as one of His disciples.
PRAYER
Dear God,
Thank You for always being with us.
Help us remember to be still and know You're God, especially when we're feeling worried or things don't go as planned.
Just like Peter learned to listen to Jesus and found a big surprise, help us listen to You and find joy in following Your way.