Over The Top Week 3- Caring

WHAT? What are we talking about today?

ACTIVITY | Ice In My Veins

Welcome back to our series Over the Top, where we are broadening our understanding of what it means to be generous. As we have seen over the past few weeks, it is important to be generous with our money, but generosity is also much more expansive.

We can be generous with other stuff, like our time, and by sharing the good news of who Jesus is. We have also seen that this more comprehensive view of generosity is essential for those who want to follow Jesus. Like so many things in our lives, it can be tricky to focus and live out what is most important. For extreme athletes and stunt artists alike, the ability to focus on the most critical skills at the right moment is the thing that separates good performers from great ones.

Being able to drown out the noise in clutch moments is one of the most critical skills for stunt artists and extreme athletes. In addition, the pressure they feel to focus is multiplied when someone else, like a teammate or a partner, relies on them. An extreme athlete could have all the ability and talent in the world, but none of that skill matters if they can't focus in high-pressure moments.

VIDEO | A Clip of Kerri Strug 1996

One of the most clutch moments I can think of in sports history happened a few years before most of you were born. But instead of telling you how focused this extreme athlete was, watch this.

INSTRUCTIONS: As a teaching tool, play a short clip from a video like this one (0:28–3:37) of Kerri Strug focusing through an injury and helping her team win its first all-around team Gold in Olympic History in 1996. Read this for more information on legally using copyrighted material for educational purposes!

Kerri Strug focused on her skill, thought about supporting and caring for her team, and came in the clutch after missing her first vault. At that moment, she displayed something that many of us wanted. But in an age of phone notifications, viral trends, and continual family or friend drama, we find it hard to come by: focus. It wasn't just a focus for herself but on behalf of her team! How do we develop our focus in a way that helps us and allows us to support others? Just because someone doesn't perform or come in clutch in a pivotal moment doesn't mean they are not focusing or want their team to win. Like we saw with Simone Biles a few years ago, having an extreme athlete's focus could mean knowing when you can't help your team, and the best thing you can do is give someone else an opportunity. Knowing your limits is as important as pulling through in a big moment. As we continue to broaden our view of what it means to be generous, we see that it includes following Jesus well. He says if we focus on just two things, everything else falls into place.

SO WHAT? Why does it matter to God and to us?

SCRIPTURE | Matthew 22:36–40

If we want to focus on what matters most, it is crucial to keep what matters most in front of us. And there is a passage where Jesus shows us exactly how to do that. A religious leader asked Jesus to summarize or prioritize the most important part of Scripture and check out what he said.

INSTRUCTIONS: Read Matthew 22:36–40

Matthew 22:36–40 NIV

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Jesus says that these two commandments sum up all of the Scriptures. He says you can boil down the entire Christian life to loving God with everything you have and all you are and by loving others well. If you do these things well, everything else falls into place. Notice that for Jesus, both commandments carry the same weight. They aren't multiple-choice questions where you choose one or the other, but an opportunity to hold both at the same time. It's what Jesus asks us to focus on.

VIDEO | An Extreme Reading of 1 Thessalonians 3:12–13

SCRIPTURE | 1 Thessalonians 3:12–13

Paul wants to give this young church community the tools to help them focus on the things that Jesus wants them to focus on. The Thessalonians were under enormous social pressure to abandon their faith and were constantly tempted to lose focus on the things that mattered most. Paul wanted them to be like Keri Strug and Simone Biles (Well . . . he probably didn't think that exactly, but you get the point). So, Paul reminds this community of something simple and foundational to help them do it. And whether or not you grew up in church or are a Christian or not, I bet you will roll your eyes at how simple it is.

INSTRUCTIONS: Read 1 Thessalonians 3:12–13

1 Thessalonians 3:12–13 NIV

May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

Paul gives them a detailed description that essentially says, "Be over the top or extreme in caring for one another." And then he prays for them, asking God to increase their love for each other. This prayer acts as a reminder to them that when they lose focus on what is most important, they can ask God to increase their love and strength to overflow. As we do this, we, too, can become over the top in our love for one another in the same way that Jesus would love us.

Seriously. It's that simple. When we lose focus or are distracted while looking to care for another person, ask, "Jesus, how can I abound in love for this person right now?" We don't need to complicate things. When you lose focus, use that as an indicator to ask God for help to care for others like Jesus cared for you. If following Jesus were like an extreme sport or stunt and relying on God's help to care for others was how we got good at it, it isn't a surprise that Paul is reminding them to re-focus on what Jesus says here. God has always hoped we would live and be part of what he is doing in the world, including generously loving and caring for each. If we want to be clutch, we will have to overcome distractions and rely on God to help us be generous and care for the people in our lives. This is what Jesus hoped for too. We don't need to overcomplicate it. Paul reminds us of one of the core ways Jesus' followers are called to live. When we lose focus, ask God for strength and love to overflow so that we can be generous by caring for each other.

NOW WHAT? What does God want us to do about it?

STORY | When I Lost Focus

Losing focus tiktok video

Just because something is simple or central to how we are supposed to live doesn't mean it is easy to follow through on. Here are a few ways to help you focus on what matters this week.

COUNTER DISTRACTIONS WITH PRAYER:

When you lose focus on what you want to pay attention to, use that as a prompt to say a brief prayer for others. Often my prayers are about me. My problems, my issues, and the ways I am falling short. And God wants to hear about that stuff. But this week, anytime you want to focus on something, like homework, your chores, or reading a book, and you find yourself distracted, say a quick prayer asking God for strength to focus not only on what you are doing but also on how to love others well.

EXAMINE YOUR DAY FOR GENEROSITY:

Could you imagine if Simone Biles or Kerri Strug only focused on what went wrong? What if they only watched footage of the times they failed? Instead of fixating on how you haven't been generous in caring for others or can't care for others, examine moments in your day where you were. Think about what happened at that moment to be successful and try to replicate it.

KEEP IT SIMPLE:

Try not to overthink what it means to be generous in your love for people. It may take some practice, but here is a simple question: "If Jesus were in this situation, what would he do if he were me?" Don't overcomplicate things. Think about how Jesus cares for others and replicate it. This could look like sitting with someone who you know doesn't want to be alone or talking to a teammate that is constantly criticizing themselves.

BAIL ON BAD HABITS:

There are endless things that can distract us from being present with our friends and keep us from being generous in our care for them. Like, notifications on our phones – something that may feel urgent but isn't all that important. Or other things that are, in the grand scheme of things, neither important nor urgent, like binging shows on Netflix. These are not bad things, but they can take us out of the moment and steal our ability to care for others when it matters most. Try taking a break from something less important this week and use that energy to focus on using your gifts to love others.

ACTIVITY | Four Ways To Focus

Let's spend some time focusing on things that matter. This will help us make a tangible shift in how we are generous in our care toward others.

INSTRUCTIONS: There are four stations with reflections and exercises for this activity. Use any or all of them. We recommend setting up all four as different stations and letting your students choose the ways that would be best for them to respond to what it means for them to "Be generous by caring for each other." We suggest playing some contemplative music as people respond at the stations.

PRAYER | Counter Distractions With Prayer (Station 1)

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you will need to print the sign with instructions included in this week's series materials. Before your program, pick up tea-light candles, lighters, and a table. Create enough space where students have room to pray in solitude. Spread out the candles on the table, put the sign instructions to help guide the students and encourage them to pray for others by lighting one for someone they are praying for.

REFLECTION | Examine Your Day For Moments Of Generosity (Station 2)

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you will need to print the sign with instructions included in this week's series materials. Before your program, purchase some small wood craft rings for your group like this and spread them out on a table. Have a volunteer stationed at the table to help students walk through this augmented version of a Prayer of Examen, where they will look for opportunities in their day that God was inviting them to care for the people around them.

RESPONSE | Bail On Bad Habits (Station 3)

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you will need to print the sign with instructions included in this week's series materials and print and cut the handout. You will also need a box of push pins and a corkboard on a stand. Before your program, place a few stacks of the precut cards on a table with something to write with, open the box of push pins, and set up the cork board for students to attach their cards.

REFLECTION | Keep It Simple (Station 4)

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you will need to print and cut the handout in this week's materials, something to write with, and a table to hold all o fit. Before your program, place a few stacks of the printouts on a table with some writing utensils.

RESPONSE | Over The Top Challenge

INSTRUCTIONS: This is a great time to remind people or introduce the Over the Top Challenge, the fall discipleship event. The instructions and files can be found in the Fall Discipleship section of your curriculum dashboard. I hope you continue letting God lead you into so many opportunities this week in the "Over the Top Challenge" that we can be generous by caring for each other.