We started off by having everyone pile into a small cardboard hut we set up outside and talked about living spaces in other, poorer countries. Chris read a few Bible verses about how we, God and others treat (or should treat) the needy and poor. There was some good brainstorming about how we can better serve the needy we are surrounded with, such as give more to the local food pantry.Then we talked about chores and how things are a little different, especially when you don't have running water at your house. Our simulation wasn't exact, but carrying a 2 gallon bucket on your head for the length of the house gave them the idea.
Then we talked about food and water and money. I randomly gave a couple of teens play money and we talked about jobs, cost of living and what's available. I had some dirty water they could have for free, semi-clean water for somewhat cheap and expensive filtered water. And not all of them had money...Then we watched the video, read the letter from our child and wrote one back to her. We also had one of our teens talk about the mission trip he took over the summer. He gave us a brief overview and some impressions he had.
Hopefully this lesson has a bit of an impact and we'll be able to think about how blessed we are, and what would we hope for if suddenly the U.S. weren't quite so blessed...
Sorry for picture blurriness...I had to move fast!
Book recommendation: The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
Recipe recommendation: Super Crisp Oven-Fried Fish
Television recommendation: Fringe
3 comments:
I think that's a fabulous idea to get the attention of the teens. Sometimes it is easier to show them than just telling them. You don't always get the full picture when you just read about it!!
Yeah, since we can't actually go *visit* Vicky... that would be cool.
I am so impressed! When I read the first sentence of your blog post, I was like, "Okay, so how did they do this?" Way to go! Excellent demonstration.
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