As students enter today, have each student share one courageous thing they did last week. Allow plenty of time for volunteers to share their responses.
Courage can take on a lot of different forms. Being courageous isn’t just for firefighters or police officers, although they are definitely very courageous. Athletes, students, musicians, performers, family members, neighbors, and friends all can live courageously.
Share the following video [2:46]:
Valley teens awarded Carnegie Medal for brave water rescue
Ask the following questions related to today’s video clip.
- How did these Zach and Jake show courage when the girls were struggling to hang on and could have drowned? (Answers may include the following: the boys chose not to assume the little girl would be okay, they risked their own safety to help, they didn’t even have to think about whether or not helping was the right thing to do, etc.)
- What might have happened if Zach and Jake had become too afraid to act or to call for help? (The girls could have been seriously injured and may have very well drowned.)
- What did the little girls’ mother have to say about the teens’ bravery? (She was so deeply thankful they rescued her daughters.)
- What do you think it means to be courageous? (As students respond, write their answers on the whiteboard (or screenshared document). Some examples may be: saving a life, being brave and trying something new; standing up for something or someone; going out of your way to do something to help another person; taking a risk [physical or emotional or spiritual]; praying for someone who is facing a hardship, learning something new; giving of your time; etc.)
Courage comes in a lot of different forms. Sometimes we feel helpless to act—perhaps out of fear. But we can be courageous with God’s strength. Today we’re going to talk about someone who tapped into God’s strength to act courageously, saved God’s people, and joined in their fight.