Most Likely To Week 3-Integrity
Notes
Transcript
WHAT? What are we talking about today?
ACTIVITY | Don't Let It Hit The Ground
Welcome back to the third week in our series Most Likely To . . ., through which we're discovering what it really means to be a leader.
INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you will need a few blown-up balloons. To play, call a few students up to the front, and tell them they will be challenged to keep their balloons in the air by hitting them. The last person standing wins. If their balloon touches the ground, anyone else's balloon touches someone, or they talk, they must sit down. If they look anyone in the eyes, or accidentally touch another contestant, they both sit down. Play until one player is left or a few minutes have passed.
Yearbooks include different feature pages, and most of them include superlatives. They are categories that are often voted on, and people are given a title that starts with "Most Likely to . . . " Tonight, we want to crown someone as "Most Likely to Succeed." This game requires honesty, so let's see who can succeed and be honest at the same time! How tempting was it to cheat during this game? For the people playing, maybe you wanted to keep going after someone's balloon touched you. Perhaps you looked at someone, and you both pretended you didn't. Big, small, and even seemingly insignificant decisions all matter. In the same way, our choices can affect our leadership. When we aren't honest, it can cause a teacher to lose trust in us, parents to question us when we tell them where we are going, or even friendships to deteriorate. How can we be known as a leader who can be trusted when our choices don't match up with who we say we are or what we value?
QUESTION | "How do you respond when someone cheats, lies, or cuts corners?"
INSTRUCTIONS: Ask the following questions and give a few students a chance to respond. Highlight answers emphasizing that cutting corners or telling white lies may get them results in the short term but erodes trust.
How do you respond when someone cheats in a game or in school?
How does it affect your trust in them?
If you have done any of these things, how do you think your actions impacted the way people see you?
We've all had times when we cut corners to get ahead or get things done. Maybe you had a parent help you with a project you procrastinated on. Perhaps you heard from a friend that an answer key to a test was being passed around, and you asked if they could send it to you. We've all had times when we make mistakes, have a lapse in judgment, or take the easy way out of a problem or situation. But is this the best way to lead? We all know it erodes trust. How can we be leaders whose actions match who we say we are?
Cutting corners and bending the truth can help save time and may even help us get ahead, but it can damage our relationships and makes us question the trust within our friendships. Scripture points out incredible wisdom for us to learn what it means to lead in ways that build trust rather than destroy it.
SO WHAT? Why does it matter to God and to us?
SCRIPTURE | Philippians 4:8–9
We've met a couple of leaders in the Bible over the last few weeks. Today, we're going to meet another one — the Apostle Paul. To the Early Church, Paul was someone to steer clear of, but he later had an encounter with God that changed everything for him. He became one of the church's most influential early leaders. You can imagine this was a pretty wild journey. Paul went from someone who sought to persecute Christians to being someone Jesus' followers trusted. Can you imagine how Paul's decisions and the way he caused pain in the past affected his relationships with other people who were following Jesus? Imagine how much energy and time it would take to rebuild trust. Paul eventually joined a small community of Jesus' followers in modern-day Greece and said this:
INSTRUCTIONS: Read Philippians 4:8–9
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Paul's life was so different from what it had been like before, and Paul was so consistent with this church community that the people trusted his actions more than they did his words alone — so much that he could say, "Watch and learn from my life!"
Anyone can say they've changed, but the only way someone would believe leaders like Paul is if they saw a difference in how his actions lined up with his words.
Paul's actions matched his words, showing us what great leadership looks like. He regularly and consistently lived out the things he believed in every part of his life. As he lived with integrity, he earned the trust of the people he used to want to harm. This was a crucial part of earning trust. Scripture encourages us to be someone who lives out the good, beautiful, and noble things we say we believe not only when we're alone but also when we're with a small group of trusted friends and family and when we live our lives publicly, like at work or school. This was how Paul modeled what it means to live with integrity. We're invited to do the same and lead in a way that reflects who we are. As we do this, we become leaders with integrity — leaders people can trust.
IMAGE | A Boat's Integrity
INSTRUCTIONS: Show an image of a boat, like this one.
If I asked you to take a ride in this boat, would you? Maybe you'd say, "Sure! It looks stable!" Well, can I ask you a few questions?
Do you know who made this boat? Do you know if it was made well? Have you seen anyone ride in this boat before? Why would you trust this boat to hold you when you don't know who made it, its quality, or if it will safely help you navigate those seemingly calm waters? Almost all of us would trust this boat to hold us. If you've ever gotten into a boat, you know that you likely wouldn't rigorously test it before taking it out into the water. It would be silly to spend more time testing the boat than using it. If we had this much skepticism, we wouldn't experience the fun we could have actually aboard the boat. So why do we trust it? Well, most of us have experienced a boat whose structure has the integrity to hold us as we go out into the water. This is kind of crazy to think about because when you're in a boat, water is constantly trying to get in. While in the boat, the person steering keeps watch through careful navigation and is aware of the possibility that the boat's integrity might be compromised.
SCRIPTURE | Proverbs 11:3
Our leadership should be like this boat. Scripture invites us to be trustworthy in our leadership because, in our lives, the things we value are apparent to those around us. There are profound benefits when we lead with integrity, and when we don't, we are like a boat whose integrity has been compromised and is taking on water.
INSTRUCTIONS: Read Proverbs 11:3
The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.
This verse contrasts two ideas, saying that when we change how we act depending on our environment in ways that conflict with what we value, we are choosing the opposite of integrity. Will you be physically destroyed for being dishonest? Probably not. Will people question if they can trust you and your leadership? Probably.
I imagine we've all experienced someone who's kind to someone else in person, yet the moment they leave the room, they start talking about them behind their back. Do you trust they aren't doing the same to you? We don't want to be friends — much less led by — people who say one thing to your face but then another when you're not around. On the flip side, if we are people who live with integrity — people who attempt to live in the good, beautiful, and noble things we say we believe in all areas of our lives — we can expect to have tools that help guide us through life. Committing to being the same person, whether alone or surrounded by others, has a lasting impact on your leadership, friendships, and future. When we become people who follow through on what God calls us to be about, the next step is to learn how to do that in every place we lead. Followers of Jesus value follow through on what God asks of us and choose to lead with love. Whether we're by ourselves, with close friends, or leading in public, we make a choice to live out those values. As we do this, we live out the truth that great leaders choose integrity.
NOW WHAT? What does God want us to do about it?
The way we lead others is our attempt to show them the way God leads our life. When we do this, we show them what we value, and more importantly, who we value. Jesus is the one we are modeling our life after, and he is the reason we stand out.
This doesn't mean we will always get it right. Even after Paul started following Jesus, he got things wrong. Having integrity means that when we inevitably fall short, we own up to it.
REFLECTION | Making It Right
At times, we might miss the opportunity to live with integrity, but when this happens, we can attempt to make it right. So, when it comes to living with integrity, here are three simple ways you can do that:
ASK FOR GOD'S HELP:
We can't be dependable and trustworthy leaders on our own. The greatest leaders in Scripture leaned on God's guidance. Every week, we've talked about how great leadership depends on staying connected to God. This week, spend time with God in prayer and discover passages in Scripture that help you become a leader who follows through on what they promise. Ask God how you can be faithful and follow through.
INVITE OTHERS' HELP:
Let other people in on how you are choosing integrity. Share with them and celebrate your ability to follow through on your promises. This could be with a mentor or a close friend that you trust. Integrity includes how you are living with people close to you, so be honest with trusted friends who can encourage you to be a leader who chooses integrity.
KEEP GOING:
In the Bible, you'll see that so many leaders failed and made mistakes. We will, too! We won't always be the most trustworthy or dependable leaders. So if you mess up, own up to it, tell someone you trust, and ask them to help you learn how to follow through. Can you try that this week?
RESPONSE | Think About These Things . . .
INSTRUCTIONS: For this prayer, you will need to download the slides in Week 3 of the series material. These prompts take a few characteristics of Philippians 4:8 and ask students to reflect on them. Guide students through the prompts on the screen by inviting them to journal or pray silently. Use the prompts we have provided or make prompts that will work for your group's culture. Consider playing some reflective music as students pray.
Paul gave us a pathway to being great leaders who choose integrity.
He said we are to think about things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, and praiseworthy. So, we're going to spend some time doing that now. As we learn to live out our love for Jesus, whether alone, with others, or in public, we are becoming leaders who are most likely to make a lasting impact. So as you go, remember that
great leaders choose integrity.
great leaders choose integrity.