Relational: On Trial

(5–8 minutes, easy set-up)
Learners will share how difficult times have strengthened or weakened them in some way.

Encourage learners to share their responses to these questions in small groups of three to four people:

Briefly identify a difficult time that you have faced in the past.
In what ways did that time strengthen or weaken you as a person?
In what ways did that time strengthen or weaken your relationships with other people?
In what ways did that time strengthen or weaken your relationship with God?

Call groups together to discuss: Why do the trials of life provide opportunities to make us stronger or make us weaker? What can we do to turn a trial into a time of growth instead of a time of defeat? Explain that today’s lesson will challenge learners to consider how the trials and temptations of life can strengthen their faith in God.