Especially for Younger Students: Aiming For His Goal

(10 minutes, moderate set-up)
Download the “Aiming for His Goal” activity sheet. Print one copy. Cut apart the various flags.

Ask: What goals have you made for yourself? Allow students to respond. Then ask: What makes your goals important to you? Remind students that their goals are unique to their own personalities. Ask: If I gave you my list of goals, would you be passionate about going after them? Why or why not? (Possible answers: We’re not passionate about the same things; our interests are different; our needs are different.) In Psalm 67, what did we learn about God’s goal? If this is God’s passionate goal, what should our goal be?

Direct students’ attention to the target that you have placed on the wall. Then ask: When you aim for a target, what are you aiming for? (the bull’s eye) Say: It’s interesting that we’re all standing here looking at the same target. We know what the goal is, and some of us might be able to reach that goal, but others of us need some time, practice, study, and maybe a change of values in order to reach it. Here’s a way to start! Distribute the flags that you’ve cut out from the “Aiming for His Goal” activity sheet. Share with students that they have an assignment for the week: They are to take their flags and look up the needs of the people who live there. Emphasize the necessity of praying for the nation’s need for Christ. Say: Let’s see how God begins to change our hearts as we allow Him to reveal His heart and passion for the nations of the world.