If your class is meeting online, invite your students to bring a pen/pencil and index card with them to class.
Before this step, write out the following on the whiteboard or on a screenshared document: Jeremiah 29:11— “ For I know the plans I have for you _____________ (add your name),” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you _____________ (by… fill in ways God prospers you) and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (which might include _______________________).
Jeremiah’s identity was determined before he was born—he was set apart. God came to him and told him lots of things about himself. Jeremiah’s reaction was, “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”
Saying, “Alas” would be a modern equivalent of saying, “Unfortunately” or “Too bad”—something we might say to get out of something … Jeremiah wasn’t too different.
Have students come up with some excuses they may make to try to get out of things. Invite humor and understanding into this. Let students know that God knows all their excuses before they say them and remind them that He has equipped them from before birth for the tasks He has for them to do.
God didn’t care that Jeremiah was young. He purposefully came to Jeremiah in his youth because He wanted this prophet to know He always had a plan for Jeremiah whether he was young or old. Jeremiah 1:51 says, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” Jeremiah was young when God first picked him, and the same applies to us!
When we were born, our parents loved and held us without much expectation put upon you other than to do what babies normally do! God, however, saw you at birth much differently.
Hand out index cards and pens/pencils to your students. If your class is meeting online, invite them to have those items ready. Have students fill in the blanks to the verse you wrote on the whiteboard: Jeremiah 29:11—“For I know the plans I have for you ____________ (add your name),” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you ______________ (by… fill in ways God prospers you) and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (which might include _______________________).
We may not actually know the exact plans God has for us. We may have some ideas or He may have shown us some things already in our gifts and talents, but really only HE knows His plan for sure.
Just realizing God does have a plan for us is huge. God’s words to Jeremiah were huge for him and helped him lead the nation of Israel wisely as their prophet. Have a volunteer read Hebrews 4:12a.
Encourage students to take their cards home and place them in a prominent place where they’ll be seen. If students want to, have them write today’s memory verse on the opposite side of their cards. Encourage students to seek guidance this week in their Bible reading and prayer times. Remind them that the Word of God is alive and active and using it properly will help them make wise determinations about God’s plans for their lives.
Be in touch with students when possible this week through email, text message, or a card sent to remind them of the unique love and care that comes from God the Father who created them with purpose.
Have students regroup and close the session in prayer. Ask specifically for help for students who may not feel they have found their identify, worth, and value in this world. Remind them that God knows their worth and wants them to know it also.
