To Save A Life Leaders Guide Sample by Outreach Inc

To Save A Life Leader’s Guide Copyright © 2009 by Jim Britts Published by Outreach, Inc. in partnership with New Song Pictures. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used or reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems without permission from the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. The To Save A Life youth curriculum is based on the movie To Save A Life © 2009 New Song Pictures. All Rights Reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations in this publication are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, TODAY’S NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 2001, 2005 by International Bible Society®. Used by permission of International Bible Society®. All rights reserved worldwide. “TNIV” and “Today’s New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society®. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society. Outreach, Inc., Vista, CA OutreachPublishing.com Graphic design and layout: Stephanie Larson and Alex Rozga Editing: Toni Ridgaway and Jennifer Dion Printed in the United States of America

t u o ab m l i f the

t u o b a m l i f the To Save A Life is a powerful indie movie about the real-life challenges of teens and their choices. In fact, this project is more than just a movieâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a feature-length film, a youth curriculum, and a teen devotional centered around the biblical concept that we are never more like Jesus than when we are reaching out to the hurting and lonely. Powerful things happen when a community gathers together behind a cause and a compelling story. Brought to life by a team of gifted Hollywood professionals and hundreds of volunteers, To Save A Life was written by Jim Britts, a seasoned youth pastor combining his film degree with a passion to reach youth. New Song Pictures is a team of filmmakers from Oceanside, CA, with a vision for life-saving entertainment. Outreach Films equips churches with film and visual media tools to reach their communities for Jesus Christ. They have been involved in important Christian films such as The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe; The Passion of the Christ; FIREPROOF; and End of the Spear.

About The Film

To Save A Life Movie Synopsis Jake and Roger grew up as best friends. But in high school, Jake becomes a star athlete who has it all: a college scholarship and

“The characters were realistic and, although the movie had meaning, it was really entertaining.” “It’s the story that seriously touched me. I see myself in so many of these people.” “A powerful movie that will challenge you to love radically.”

the perfect girl, an ideal life that comes at the exclusion of his childhood friend. Meanwhile, Roger no longer fits in anywhere and becomes tired of always being pushed aside. He makes a tragic

“A must see. Loved it. Great story with real struggles and actual problems.” - Youth Worker

“I know every one of the characters in the film—they just go by different names.” – Young Life Staffer

move that spins

“Very potent—important for teens and anyone who loves teens to see.”

Jake’s world out

– Counselor

of control. As Jake searches for answers, he begins a journey that will change his life forever.

“It deals with real-life issues that teenagers are going through. For me as a high school teacher, it makes me realize my purpose and reason for being there, and that people and relationships are the only things that matter.” – Seattle High School Teacher

About The Film

o d y Wh is th ? s e i ser

At some point, every teen has to decide what their life is going to be about. The To Save A Life curriculum will inspire students in your ministry to be Jesus’ hands and feet by reaching out to the lost, hurting, left out, and lonely on their school campuses. As you know, teenagers face more challenges than ever before. Their lives are fast-paced, wide-open, high-pressure, and full of relationship questions and temptations. In the midst of these challenges, many junior and senior high school students struggle with intense feelings of loneliness, rejection, and depression. Thousands of hurting teenagers all over the world have even considered taking their own lives. In the movie To Save A Life, students at Pacific High School deal with issues like teen pregnancy, suicide, divorce, and acceptance from their peers, even while they appear to “have it all together.” These same realities affect the teenagers walking the halls of your neighborhood schools and coming to your youth group. They are searching, and if you are willing to listen to their stories, they may listen to what you have to say about Christ. Their only lasting hope is found within a loving relationship with Jesus Christ, but statistics show if they don’t find Him by the time they graduate from high school, they probably never will. As you page through the Gospels, over and over you see Jesus reaching out to the hurting and the lonely. The truth is, we’re never more like Jesus than when we care for those in need. 14

Why Do This Series?

We pray the Holy Spirit will use this curriculum to: ✚✚ Reveal the needs of teenagers who are hurting, and equip ministry leaders to offer them real support ✚✚ Facilitate open and transparent communication between students and ministry staff ✚✚ Cast a vision for teenagers in your ministry, showing them how they can make a huge difference by

Teen Suicide & Depression A study conducted in 2007 by the Center for Disease Control found that 14.5% of students in grades 9 to 12 had seriously considered suicide in the previous 12 months. The National Institute of Mental Health reports that suicide is the third leading cause of death among children ages 10-12 and adolescents ages 15-19. Studies show that four out of five teen suicide attempts have been preceded by clear warning signs. Experts estimate that depression strikes about one out of eight teenagers. (www.teensuicide.us)

reaching out to the hurting and lonely ✚✚ Provide an incredible opportunity for teenagers to invite others to church who normally would never come ✚✚ Bring teenagers to Christ

Why Do This Series?

From the r o h t au Hey, my name is

Jim Britts.

In addition to being the author of the new film To Save A Life, I’ve also been a full-time youth pastor for the past 10 years out in California. That’s just to say—I am one of you. I care deeply for the students in my ministry. I’m passionate about reaching the thousands of students in our area who don’t know Christ, and I’m leery of all programs, conferences, and events that promise to revolutionize our youth ministry. So, I’m not going to tell you any of that, but I do want to share what’s happened in our youth ministry. A while back, I attended an event at a local high school called Challenge Day, where a secular group took 100 students through reconciliation training. It was awesome! I’m an experienced youth pastor, but I had never seen anything like this. In the course of a couple hours, students were changed, sharing their deepest fears, embracing former enemies, and committing to reach out to the hurting and lonely on their For more information on Challenge Day, go to …

campus. Best of all, the principles that transformed these teens are all found in Scripture!

Why Do This Series?

At one point in our training, we did a 30-minute exercise in which we listened to a set of statements, and if one of them applied to us, we were to walk across a line 10 feet away. Statements included, “My parents are divorced,” “I have felt judged because of the color of my skin,” and “I don’t like the shape of my body.” The final statement was, “Please walk across the line if you or a close friend has ever attempted suicide.” I was shocked—more than 75% of the students walked across the room! A few months later, we adapted that same exercise for our youth ministry, and I asked that same question to a large group of high school church kids. More than 75% of my students silently walked across the room. Again, I was blown away. We created this curriculum based on the premise that: We

are never more like Jesus than when we are reaching out to the hurting and lonely. We deliberately connected it with the themes from the film To Save A Life, and it was easily the most powerful series I have ever been part of as a youth pastor. During the seven-week series, I saw: ✚✚ More unchurched students join our ministry than during any other series ✚✚ More students enter into relationships with Christ and get baptized than during any other series ✚✚ Students share more honestly and intimately with each other and with our adult leaders than ever before ✚✚ Excitement in our ministry like I had never experienced before ✚✚ Our ministry come together around a cause like I had never seen before Why Do This Series?

Our passion was to find a way to communicate to hurting kids, in the most relevant way possible, the greatest message ever told. God clearly told us we could accomplish this through producing this film and creating this curriculum. When we started, we hoped local kids would get a copy of the film because they or their friends were in it; we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even dream that God had much bigger plans. So, this curriculum was created by an ordinary youth ministry, one that has been blown away by Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s extraordinary results when we simply obeyed Him and reached out to suffering people. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will use this curriculum to reach a hurting generation that desperately needs the truth to set them free.

Why Do This Series?

Contents Foreword �� 5 About the Film �� 9 Why Do This Series? �� 13 Using This Curriculum �� 19 What’s All This Stuff? Preparing for the Series Important Things to Do Throughout the Series Volunteer Job Descriptions Week 1: Lowering the Waterline �� 39 Week 2: You’re Not Alone �� 53 Week 3: Say Something…Do Something �� 65 Week 4: What’s Your Logline? �� 75 Week 5: How To Save A Life �� 85 Week 6: Agape Feast �� 97 Week 7: Stepping Into the Bigger Story �� 101 Handling the Tough Stuff �� 111 Speak Up: Join the To Save A Life Community �� 119 Acknowledgments ��122

1 k Wee aterline W e h t g Lower in

e h t g n i r e low terline wa Week 1:

Help students realize that if they are going to love the hurting and lonely, then they first need to know how much God loves them.

1. To Save A Li fe Resource D VD 2. Loud musi c 3. To Save A Life Resourc e CD • Week 1 Po

werPoint slid es • Attenda nce sheets • Challeng e Cards • Mail Card s

4. Your messa ge

Key Scripture:

notes

5. One or tw o volunteers for the “If You Really Knew Me, You Would Know…” ex ercise.

Get Ready (15 minutes before start time) Gather your adult staff to pray. Despite the temptation to immediately hang out with students, prayer is vitally important and gives you the opportunity to inform the team of any last details. 40

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Get Started (5 minutes) Rockin’ the Gauntlet Set the tone for the evening by having all your adult leaders line up just inside the door to the youth room. When it’s time to start, have every student run through the line of excited leaders giving high-fives. Play energizing music in the background. As they “Rock the Gauntlet,” every student receives words of encouragement before you even start!

Welcome Use the Week 1 PowerPoint slides, available on your To Save A Life Resource CD. You can print the slides and use them as handouts for your leaders, or you can project them on screens in your youth room. Open this week’s session by welcoming everyone, and then: 1. Give a short overview of the night, including what you’re going to do as a group and the topics you will be covering. 2. Explain the rules, which are: ✚✚ Be real ✚✚ Take risks ✚✚ Confidentiality is crucial ✚✚ Show lots of love. Explain and demonstrate the sign-language

sign for love (shown below). Tell students they should use the

sign for love when: • Someone has been open and vulnerable • Someone needs encouragement • Someone is new

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Breaking the Ice (25 minutes) You Took My Seat Have students sit in a giant circle with the seats very close to each other. If you have fewer than 10 students, leave one seat open; if you have 20 students, leave two seats open. Use a similar 1-to-10 ratio for larger groups. ✚✚ Have one or more students stand in the middle of the circle. The number of students should match the number of open chairs (e.g. two students for two open chairs). ✚✚ The goal for the students in the center of the circle is to grab an open seat. ✚✚ When you say “Go”, all of the students should begin moving from seat to seat, going around the circle to their right. While the students are moving, those in the middle of the circle will try to grab a seat. ✚✚ If someone takes the seat to a student’s right, and they can’t move into that seat, they go to the middle of the circle. As the students shift quickly from seat to seat, they will move like a wave around the room. Students frequently end up sitting on each other’s laps, so there should be lots of laughter!

Pause and Reflect After “You Took My Seat,” ask the students, “How did it feel to lose your seat and have to stand in the middle of the circle? Did you feel angry, alone, embarrassed, or rejected?” Then add, “This session helps us identify with the hurting and lonely, and to experience God’s love for them.”

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Dance and Share Before starting this activity, explain to your students that people often don’t get to know each other that well. This next exercise is to help them learn some new things about the other people in the group. ✚✚ Begin playing loud music. When the music starts, the students all need to find a partner and dance crazy with them. ✚✚ When the music stops, the students

Use different styles of loud music to make this activity even more fun, and have your leaders (and you) participate.

must ask their partner an icebreakerstyle question. Each time you start the music, tell them the question they will need to ask during the next break in the music. Some examples are below. • One dream I have for my life is… • One thing that I am proud of is… • My best childhood memory is… (and why is this their

best memory?)

• One thing that I am afraid of is … • One thing I rarely share about myself is… ✚✚ Students must find a different partner each time the music stops.

Pause and Reflect Ask the students, “Were the first three questions on the list a little easier to share than the last two? Did you hesitate a little before sharing that deeply? If so, why?” Then add, “True friends take the risk of being deeply known by one another, and then realize they can be both known and loved.”

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Movie Time (4 minutes)

Watch the Week 1 movie clip on your To Save A Life Resource DVD.

Jake and Chris in the Car (4 min) In this scene, Chris (the youth pastor) picks up Jake after Jake becomes drunk at a party. As Chris drives Jake home, they begin to talk about Roger’s suicide, and they realize they’re both living with regrets over not being able to save him.

“There was a kid at the party tonight, and they didn’t let him in because he wasn’t cool enough. How messed up is that—that he wasn’t cool enough?”

– Jake in To Save A Life

Large Group Time Start the discussion by asking, “What do we know about icebergs?” (Someone will inevitably share that the largest part of an iceberg is under the water.) Continue the discussion by sharing that, “I think we do that a lot in our own lives. We only allow people to see a small part of who we really are. In just a moment, we’re going to have a couple people share some stories about their lives, so you can see an example of who we really are.”

Story Time (5-10 minutes) If You Really Knew Me, You Would Know… Have two students (or adult leaders) share very honest and powerful stories. Talk with some of your student (or adult) leaders as you prepare for this session, and choose poignant and transparent stories that will inspire the rest of the students. 44

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

See the To Save A Life Resource DVD for an example of an “If You Knew Me, You Would Know…” story. Before having your volunteer(s) share their stories, tell the whole group, “It’s not easy to get up and share honestly in front of lots of people. I want us to make two commitments to each other:”

Have your small group leaders read Five Keys to Leading Great Family Groups. This handout is on your Resource CD.

1. What is shared in this room, stays in this room. No gossiping about this at school tomorrow. 2. We commit not to think less of someone after they share. Then ask, “How do you think these two commitments will help as we share with each other over the next seven weeks?”

Family Time (15-20 minutes) How to Form Effective Small Groups (“Families”) Give each leader a number, and then number-off students (guys and girls separately) so that each group has both guys and girls. The ideal group size is between four and six people, with one adult leader for every four students. The groups should all stay in the same room, and members of each group should sit so closely that their knees touch. After the “families” are seated all around the room, have your adult leaders make sure there are no lone girls or guys who are surrounded by a group of the opposite gender. Make last-second group changes if you need to. Also, intentionally avoid having your “Family” Groups include dating couples, best friends, or siblings. Take a few moments to have students fill out an attendance sheet (available on your To Save A Life Resource CD) and learn people’s names. WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

You’ve now formed the To Save A Life groups for the next seven weeks. Have the leader go first and really lead by example by taking a risk and sharing from their heart. Some groups will probably have one more person than the others. If so, during their last two-minute time, the

After groups have formed, give these instructions: Each person has two minutes to finish the sentence, “If you really knew me, then you would know…” Have someone in the front of the youth room keep time and give five-second warnings when time is up. At the end of two minutes, the

families that are done can

group thanks the person for sharing

share prayer requests.

(group hugs are popular). The person sharing is the only one who can talk—if they are silent, either let the time be silent or others can ask questions to help them.

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Large Group Teaching (8-10 minutes) See the To Save A Life Resource CD for the Week 1 message: Lowering the Waterline. The text for this first session is given below. Feel free to customize the message to meet the needs of your youth group and fit your personal style. During this part of the session, have students turn their chairs toward the front but stay in their families.

Week 1 Message How many of you have heard of Alexander the Great? He really wasn’t that great. He was a Greek ruler who lived from 356 to 323 B.C., and whose goal was to take over the world. (Much like my own goal!) He truly believed that the Greek way of life was far superior to the way the rest of the world lived. As the Greeks would invade other countries and take over, Alexander really believed he was doing the conquered nation a favor. The Greeks were huge into beauty. They were known for building incredibly beautiful buildings and had museums full of art. They were especially focused on the human body and believed it was the ultimate image of beauty. They started the Olympics and would have gymnasiums where the rich could come and show off their bodies (kinda like 24-Hour Fitness). This process of changing nations into the Greek way of living was called “Hellenization.” They wanted to Hellenize the world. Well, they almost succeeded, but like all good things, the Greeks’ time of power ended. You know who took over? The Romans. The Romans were not that creative, so they really just copied the Greeks’ plan, but they took it to another level. Not only did they glorify the human body, but they also would strongly look down on those who had any type of deformity or imperfection or blemish. If a part of you was not “acceptable” by their standards, you would be pushed to the margins and seen as a lower-class citizen. WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

The Romans took it to even a higher degree than that. If someone had a baby that was born with a deformity (for example, the parents wanted a boy and were given a girl), people could go to a specific mountain outside of the city and leave their newborn there to die. Here is where it gets even crazier: People would go out to this mountain and take these babies and raise the boys to be slaves and the girls to be prostitutes. When the child was old enough, he/she would be brought to the brothel so they could make money; the common reason was that it was easier to raise a slave or prostitute then to purchase one. Can you imagine growing up, knowing your parents left you to die because you were “deformed,” and the only thing you could offer of worth was slavery or prostitution? There was this city called Ephesus that was especially known for these practices. This guy named the Apostle Paul visited Ephesus, and we learn that he led a wide variety of people to become Christians. He led rich people as well as slaves and prostitutes. Churches back then met in houses, so this eclectic group of people would have come together simply because they had one thing in common: Jesus. So Paul writes these house churches in Ephesus a letter, and many of the people listening were these slaves and prostitutes. They would not have been able to read three lines into this letter without falling out of their chairs with tears of joy. Listen to Ephesians 1:3-6: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons and daughters through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” God was saying to this group: ✚✚ “I chose you before the creation of the world. I know you think that nobody ever wanted you, but that could not be further from the truth. I chose you before you were even left on that mountain.” 48

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

✚✚ To be holy and blameless in His sight. In some translations, it says without blemish. “You have been told your whole life that you are deformed, but I’m telling you that you are absolutely perfect according to me, and I made you.” Later in Ephesians 2, Paul refers to the people as God’s masterpiece—they were His “work of art.” ✚✚ In love, He predestined us to be adopted as His sons and daughters in Jesus Christ. These people, who had been left by their parents, now learned that they did have a Father who had adopted them gladly. Do you get this? Those people would have been dancing around the room in gladness after only the first couple verses of this letter! (My guess is your normal reaction in reading Scripture is not so dramatic.) Why is this important today? HELLENIZATION IS ALIVE AND KICKING IN OUR WORLD! Go to the supermarket and just look at the covers of the magazines telling you how you fall short and showing you ways to hide your blemishes. Just look at the commercials showing us what beauty really looks like and what we need to compare ourselves to. Just walk on your campus, and you know the game: people constantly checking each other out and playing the game of comparisons. We’ve got tanning salons, implant surgeries and more diet plans than you can imagine. How many people here have ever felt self-conscious about the way they look? Can I give you some great news? Jesus came to this earth 2,000 years ago to let us know that He loves you exactly the way you are. You are perfect and blameless in His sight. You are His work of art; you are not some accident—you are His masterpiece. You can’t begin to look out into a world of hurting and broken people and truly love them for who they are until you realize in your heart and soul that God loves you exactly how you are. So check this out: you glorify God when you act exactly as you are. The Church (His people) WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

is supposed to be the best picture of God to our world. When you come here, it should be one long reminder that we and God love you for exactly who you are, and not just with your physical blemishes but your internal ones, too. You’re a member of the family of Jesus Christ, and you’re accepted.

Experience It (10 minutes)

Appreciation Instruct students to find a partner within their family group and move their chairs so they are directly facing each other. When the group leader says, “Go,” one person has 30 seconds to explain to their partner several of the great qualities about themselves—while remembering that God created them with those qualities! When the leader says, “Time,” the other partner will respond by going crazy and celebrating that person for 15 seconds (shouting and standing on chairs is allowed). Then the partners switch roles and the second person shares. Have the group leaders ask students what it was like sharing good things about themselves and having the other person celebrate them. Now, share the following with the whole group: “What if instead of sharing great things about you, you shared the stuff you are most ashamed of? How would God respond to those who have entered into a relationship with Him?” Stand on a chair and shout: This is my child, whom I have loved before the creation of the world. Out of everyone in the world I chose him. I chose her. They are holy and blameless in my sight. They have no blemishes. I adopted them and want nothing more than to be with them. I’ve got incredible plans for their life. I’m crazy in love with them and I’m not afraid to say it. Give everyone in the group an opportunity to accept Christ into their lives, right then! 50

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline

Challenge Card (2 minutes) Place Week 1 Challenge Cards at the front of the room. (See your To Save A Life Resource CD for Challenge Cards. Print and cut them before each session.) This week’s challenge: Say “hi” to ten people tomorrow that you normally would just walk right by. Announce that a Challenge Card is left in the front of the room— students can take the cards as a step of faith and then apply this week’s lesson by following the challenge. They don’t have to take the card, but if they do, then they must commit to doing what’s on the card. Don’t share the Challenge Card out loud—have students take them as a step of faith.

Mail Time (2-5 minutes) As students are excused, give them To Save A Life Mail Cards as a tool to encourage them to write notes to others they met that night. (See your To Save A Life Resource CD for Mail Cards. Print and cut them before each session.) Students should fill out Mail Cards and give them back to adult leaders before leaving. Pass out the Mail Cards at the beginning of next week’s session.

WEEK 1: Lowering the Waterline