You: An Introduction Student handbook

you:

an introduction Being human in God’s world

Written by Vicky Jelliffe

STUDENT HANDBOOK

ICONS

This shows you where you will be reading sections from You: An Introduction by Michael Jensen, usually to answer questions.

This shows you where you will need to look at the Bible, usually to answer questions.

This suggests helpful questions for you to discuss with your classmates.

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Published December 2013

Copyright © Vicky Jelliffe 2013 National Library of Australia

ISBN: 978-1-922000-77-4

This book is copyright. Apart from fair dealing for the purposes of private study, research, criticism and review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part of this book may be reproduced by any process without the express permission of the publisher.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

Author: Vicky Jelliffe

Managing editor: Natasha Percy

Theological editor: Belinda Pollard

Pedagogical editor: Belinda Elliott

Cover design: Chrisy Savvides—Neo One Design

Internal design: Bethany Abbottsmith

WHO ARE YOU? THIS IS ONE QUESTION THAT IS VITAL FOR HOW YOU

LIVE YOUR LIFE, HOW YOU VIEW YOUR LIFE, AND THE DECISIONS YOU MAKE.

We are all trying to figure out the answer to this difficult but extremely important question. Particularly as you navigate life as a teenager, trying to figure out who You are and make decisions about who You want to be isn’t easy. In fact, it can be scary, especially with the onslaught of messages from TV, internet, movies, music, computer games and advertising. Everywhere you turn, you are exposed to more and more competing ideas as you seek to find your answer to the question, ‘Who are You?’

We make a statement about who we are by what we wear, what we buy, how we speak, and what we decide to put on Facebook. But how can we answer the question ‘Who are You?’ without a firm foundation? Michael Jensen’s book You: An Introduction explores this question in the light of who God is and who he has created us to be. As you read through this book and work on the activities, you too will explore what it means for You to be human and made in the image of God.

Chapter 3 Life

What would you do?

Read ‘Life in Kolding’ in Chapter 3 of You: An Introduction

Imagine you were standing in front of a goldfish in a blender in Marco Evaristti’s exhibition. What would tempt you to press the button? What would hold you back? PRESS THE BUTTON

DON’T PRESS THE BUTTON

‘... using the destruction of another living being for entertainment feels like a crime against life itself.’ You: An Introduction, page 18.

Do you agree? Mark your answer on the scale below 1 2 3 4 5

Explain your answer.

‘Usually human beings are desperate to preserve the life they have … It’s an instinctive perception we all have in us: life is better than not-life. The human survival instinct is remarkable.’

You: An Introduction, page 22

Read ‘Loving life’ in Chapter 3 of You: An Introduction.

Reflect on the amazing story of the Argentinian rugby team. IF YOU WERE A SURVIVOR OF THAT CRASH, WHAT THINGS DO YOU THINK WOULD MAKE YOU CLING TO LIFE? WHAT MIGHT TEMPT YOU TO GIVE UP?

Life as we know it

Imagine the writers of the Macquarie Dictionary have approached you to write a definition of the word ‘life’. What would your definition be?

LIFE NOUN 1.

Jensen points out a conundrum in the world’s thinking: we love life and will cling to it at any cost, but then we also destroy life, sometimes without thinking twice. Yet we read in Genesis 2:4–7 that God created all life.

‘You share life with the plants and animals, but you are not like them. Human life is a different sort of life.’

You: An Introduction, page 26

In groups, read different parts of Genesis 1–2. What differences can you see between the life that God gives plants and animals, and the life that God gives human beings?

PLANTS AND ANIMALS

HUMAN BEINGS

How does knowing the above influence your view of your own life? Has it changed anything for you?

‘To us has been given the role of tending and caring for other types of life.’ You: An Introduction, page 27

In the space below, draw as many instances as you can of how you see the above statement being lived out in the world around you. Think of the various jobs people have, for example, vets, park rangers, doctors.

Why is human life good?

Read ‘What’s so good about it?’ in Chapter 3 of You: An Introduction and write Jensen’s answer to this question below.

‘Life is full of misery, loneliness and suffering—and it’s all over much too soon.’ Woody Allen

‘Life is very interesting … in the end, some of your greatest pains become your greatest strengths.’

Drew

Barrymore

Pick one of the quotes above.

Do you agree? Why or why not?

‘I don’t believe in happy endings, but I do believe in happy travels, because ultimately, you die at a very young age, or you live long enough to watch your friends die. It’s a mean thing, life.’

George Clooney

‘You’re only human. You live once and life is wonderful, so eat the damned red velvet cupcake.’ Emma Stone

What aspect of the ‘goodness of human life’ has the celebrity addressed?

Write a diary entry to yourself, with the encouraging message that your life is special and that you want to live your life to the fullest. What advice will you give yourself as to how to make each day count?

GOD SAYS … your life is on loan, so use it well.