Pressed Into a Mold (Group/Introductory Lesson)

Open with Prayer

Opening Story:             

              Tiffani was a head taller than me and meaner than anyone in my kindergarten class. She never smiled and always picked fights. I avoided her like the plague. Until I couldn’t.

              I slid down the slide and there she was waiting for me at the bottom. Fear filled my tiny frame as Tiffani walked around me. She sized me up and I never said a word. Realizing I wasn’t going to take her bait, she pushed me backward onto the slide and said, “You’re weird.” Then she walked away.

               That afternoon I came home in tears. “Mama, Tiffani called me weird.”

              “So what? It’s okay to be weird.”

              My mom’s logic had me flabbergasted. Weird was a good thing? “But I don’t wanna be weird.”

              “Too bad. You already are. Weird is the best thing to be. That means you are your own person and not like anyone else.”

              That advice became my secret motto throughout my schooling. I saw the lemmings in middle and high school and did everything within my power to act differently. The fake words and hidden gossip about their friends opened my eyes and I refused to be like that. If their behavior modeled true friendship, I wanted nothing to do with it.

              I picked out unique prints from the fabric store and asked my mom to make me shirts and shorts. I wore tall, crazy socks with shorts and nothing matched. I dyed my hair bleach blond and cut it off short. Purposely, I refused to play their game, and confidently paraded my defiant uniqueness. If weird was okay, then I made sure to exemplify it.

              My senior year, I was called to the office for a yearbook picture. My classmates voted for me as Most Unique for our Senior Superlatives; and I couldn’t have been prouder.

              Looking back, I’m sure I drove my mom crazy with my mismatched wardrobe, but at the time, I didn’t care. All I knew was weird was okay and I needed to be my own person.

              Fast forward to my first year in the classroom. I was filled with tons of creative ideas and couldn’t wait to put them into practice. Until I was told I couldn’t. It had to be this way or done like that. Fun wasn’t a priority, testing needed to be the focus.

              I tried to press into their mold, I really did. I did the test practice worksheets. I sat the kids in rows. I followed the pacing guide. I taught them how to bubble things in answer sheets.

And I was completely bored out of my mind.

              So, I stopped trying to fit the mold. I researched the standards and pacing guide. And I found ways to meet the criteria the school expected while utilizing creative methods.

              My students made gains and were excited about learning. They took ownership for their part of the learning process. And I used the unique gifting God gave me to become a creative, fun teacher in the classroom.

Scripture Reading:

Read Jeremiah 1:4-10 (NIV)

The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

“Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

  Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.

              Can you imagine a call like Jeremiah’s? Of all the people in the world, God looked down and saw Jeremiah. Called him. Set him aside. Because God made Jeremiah in a unique way for this particular time in history. God had a job that was created especially for Jeremiah to do.

              Being uniquely created and equipped is a piece of our identity in Christ. He created us on purpose, for a purpose. And he knew where we’d end up in life and the responsibilities we’d hold.

Discussion

1. In what ways do we downplay the uniqueness God has given us?

2. Do you embrace your weird or unique qualities? Or do you find yourself trying to fit into a mold?

3. How do we compare ourselves? Is it too God and his standards or the others around us and their standards?

4. Are you okay existing in your uniqueness? Explain.

5. How does the uniqueness of the students in your classroom create a perfect place for learning?

Homework     

Read Numbers 22:21-39. This is the story about how God used a talking donkey to get Balaam’s attention—talk about weird. God is the creator of our uniqueness. He fashioned each one of us intentionally and desires us to offer our weird, different, or unique qualities to him.

Personal Reflection

              Think about the students in your classroom and the special gifts, talents, and weirdness they possess. Do you encourage them to grow in their own unique gifts? Are your students safe to express their true self in your classroom? Mentally go through all the kids in your classroom. How can you encourage them in their uniqueness this week?