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Department
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Journey
Retreat
Third Talk - Day Two, afternoon
Opening song:
"Sometime in our lives, we all have pain, we all have sorrow.
But if we are wise, we know that if there’s always tomorrow.
Lean on me, when your not strong, and I’ll be your friend, I’ll help you carry on.
For it won’t be long, ‘til I’m gonna need someone to lean on.Please, swallow your pride, if I have pain, you need to borrow.
For no one can fill both of your needs that you won’t let show.You just call on me, brother, when you need a hand,
We all need somebody to lean on.
I just might have a problem that you’ll understand
We all need somebody to lean on.Lean on me, when you’re not strong, and I’ll be your friend, I’ll help you carry on.
For it won’t be long, till I’m gonna need someone to lean on.
If there is a load you have to bear, that you can’t carry.
I’m right up the road, I’ll share your load, if you just call on me.
If there is a load
Lean on me…Just call on me brother …Lean on me …According to Webster’s Dictionary, a steward is defined as “one employed in a household or estate as a manager or supervisor.” At first glance you may ask, “what does being a steward or manager or supervisor have to do with my life?”In Psalm 24 we read, “The earth, and all that is in it, is the Lord’s.” Everything we possess – our time, our talents, and our treasures – are gifts from God. Through stewardship we are asked to be stewards, or managers, of the gifts God has given us and use them to serve others.Give an example of a unique gift with which you have been blessed. How do you use it to serve others?Each of us has talents and gifts that differ.Ask the candidates to make a list of their unique talents and gifts. When they are finished ask several of them to share what they’ve writtenThe gifts we possess help us to serve others. A selfish person is only concerned with his or her welfare; a steward uses his or her gifts to help others through their journey through life.Jesus Christ was the perfect example of a steward. Even though He was God, He came into the world to serve us. He says so Himself: “I came not to be served, but to serve you.” He is our model for serving others. Listen to the challenge He gives us: “If a person strikes you on the right cheek, turn and offer him the other. If a person takes your shirt, give him your coat as well. If a person forces you to walk one mile, go with him two miles. Give to those who beg from you. My command is this: love your enemies. If you want to avoid judgment, stop judging others. Treat others the way you would have them treat you.” With these words, Jesus challenges us to live for others as well as ourselves.To serve others we must love them as Jesus loved us. Saint Paul tells us, “Your love must be sincere. Hate what is evil, cling to what is good. Love on another with the affection of brothers. Outdo each other in showing respect. Look on the needs of others as your own; be generous in offering hospitality. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Have the same loving attitude toward all – live peaceably with everyone. The commandments are all summed up in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”There are many people in today’s world who need the gifts we possess. Give some examples – homeless people, abused and abandoned, individuals, the hungry, etc. Christians love to talk about serving others and using their gifts for the well being of others. But it often seems that we spend little time actually feeding the hungry or sharing our lives with those who are abused, abandoned, or alone.As we listen to the closing song, reflect on the list of gifts which you possess. Think of ways you might use your time, talents, and treasures to serve those who need you.
Closing song
At this time ________ will divide the candidates and team members into groups to visit the service institutions at which the candidates will “put in time.” Care must be taken NOT to tell the candidates why they are being divided into groups or where they will be going. They should know nothing about what they will be doing until they arrive at their place of service.
Lunch
Begin by relating how you, as the group leader, feel after spending some time serving others at your particular place of service. Share with the candidates where you performed your service, how you felt about it, what thoughts went through your mind, etc. Spend a few moments reflecting on how serving others made you appreciate all the more the gifts you possess. After you have finished, ask each candidate to share his or her feelings about the visit. When everyone has spoken say:
Every day we face opportunities to serve others. It is not always necessary to go to a soup kitchen, nursing home, or homeless shelter. There are countless people around me whom I can serve.
Give an example of someone you know who is in need of concern, compassion, or friendship. How might you better serve this person?
Ask the candidates to mention a person who is in need of help and how they might reach out to this person.
Pass out paper and envelopes.
Sometimes a brief note offering a few kind words of encouragement and love is a good way to serve others. Spend a few moments writing a note to someone you know is feeling down, alone, or confused. Perhaps you may wish to write to someone with whom you have experienced a conflict or disagreement. By offering words of encouragement, you will be serving the person to whom you are writing while sharing the gift of your thoughts, your concern, and your love.
When the candidates have finished, ask them to write the person’s name on the letters, as well as their own names. Collect the letters.
Since last night we’ve added a lot of new destinations to our life’s journey. We’ve spent some time reflecting on the changes we’ve encountered. We’ve discovered how we need one another and rely on others as we journey through life. We’ve spent some time writing to those who have served us and to those whom we’re called to serve. And we’ve shared our time and our talents – and our very lives themselves – with those whom we visited and served this morning. I think it was during our visits that the following words of Jesus Christ came alive the most.
Read Matthew 25:31-46, slowly and thoughtfully.
Jesus tells us that in serving others we are actually serving Him. He tells us that when we come face to face with those in need, we come face to face with Him. Jesus serves us when we serve the least of His brothers and sisters. Right now I feel __________. I visited __________ where I __________.
Here relate a little about your visitation, emphasizing the people you served rather than the tasks you performed.
I’d like to ask each of you to share, in a few words or a phrase, how you felt about your experience this morning as you served Jesus by serving “the least of Jesus’ brothers and sisters.”
Allow everyone to speak.
As we listen to the closing song, spend time reflecting on the many people who serve you in so many ways – ways we often take for granted. Think of your parents who, like Jesus, so often make sacrifices for us; your family members who, despite the day-to-day arguments and misunderstandings we may share really love you; your friends, classmates, co-workers, and neighbors who have picked you up time and time again. Whenever they’ve helped and served you, Jesus helped and served you. How we’ve responded to them is how we’ve responded to Jesus.
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Department
of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry |
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