Greetings to Confirmation Class Members and Sponsors!

Welcome to "cyberspace"!

Here are some things you can do as a sponsor/student team.  This will take you some time...you might want to tackle these questions one or two at a time, or do them independently and trade your answers.  Some things may seem hard, and some are easy.  Have fun working on these together...

Activity #1:  Learning more about the Bible:

On this same church website, you can click on “Online Bible Study” (which Jeff wrote), and find a lot of information that will give you a basic, overall understanding of what is in the Bible.  It would be good for each sponsor/youth team to take time to read what is found on those pages, and then answer the following questions:

1.  According to the Online Bible Study (also found in this website), which books of the New Testament are included in the category of "history." 

2.  What four books of the Bible are called the Gospels?

3.  If you wanted to read about the history of the Jewish people, which of the following books would you want to read in the Bible?
     A.  Proverbs
     B.  Exodus
     C.  Acts
     D.  1 Corinthians
     E.  Matthew

4.  If you wanted to find something that Jesus said, what book in the Bible would help you the most?
     A.  Proverbs
     B.  Exodus
     C.  Acts
     D.  1 Corinthians
     E.  Matthew

5.  If you just wanted to find your Bible, how hard would you have to look?
     A.  I can’t even remember where it is in my house!
     B.  I remember where it is, but that’s about it.  I don’t know where to find anything in it.
     C.  I can find a few places, like Psalm 23 or the Christmas story, but that’s about it.
     D.  Name any book of the Bible, and I’ll find it for you pretty quick…if I have a table of contents.
     E.  I have a pretty good understanding of what the overall Bible is about, and what each book of the Bible has to do with the overall Bible.

6.  Truthfully, if I could name one goal for this time together, I’d like to:
     A.  Keep my understanding of the Bible just the way it is.
     B.  I’d like to learn more about the Bible…
     C.  I’d like to become familiar with at least 20 new scriptures that might help me to know in my life, and be able to find them pretty easily (either by marking them or remembering where they are).
     D.  I’d like to learn a lot more about the Bible, and make that an important part of my lifelong continuing education, so that I’m always growing in this area.
     E.  I’d like to go to seminary and become a Bible scholar; maybe write some books or a Bible encyclopedia or something.

7.  Pick YOUR favorite Psalm from the following choices (not Psalm 23—that’s too easy!).  Tell each other what it means to you. 
Psalm 1, 8, 51, 63, 103, or 139

In the Online Bible Study, read the "Deluxe" version of the Quick Tour of the Bible, and the 30 second version of each of the Ten Easy Lessons that follow it.  Then continue with the following questions:

8.  The "Seven Headed Monster":
     A.  is the devil in the Garden of Eden
     B.  is a code word found in the book of Revelation
     C.  is the name of a famous horror movie filmed in Georgia in the 1940's
     D.  can be found in Genesis 3:23-30

9.  The Apostle Paul:
     A.  Drove a horse and buggy, wore baggy clothes, and ate locusts and honey
     B.  Wrote many of the books in the Old Testament
     C.  was there when Jesus was crucified
     D.  Persecuted Christians
     E.  Preached and converted many people to the Christian faith
     F.  Both D and E

10.  In only three sentences, try to summarize the life of Jesus so that someone who knew nothing about him would understand the things that are most important to know about Jesus. 

11.  Based on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (found in Matthew chapters 5-7), which of the following are things that Jesus taught? (could be more than one answer below)
     A.  Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.
     B.  An eye for an eye, and tooth for a tooth. 
     C.  Do for others what you want them to do for you.
     D.  If you give money to God, God will give you back 100 times as much money as you gave away.
     E.  It’s not polite to fool mother nature.
     F.  Clean your plate.
     G.  Don’t judge other people.
     H.  Don’t try to grow in faith; some people are always asking, seeking, and knocking, but it is better to just sit back and wait for God to inspire you somehow.
     I.  Your heart will always be where your riches are.
     J.  Love your friends…and your enemies too.
     K. God helps those who help themselves.
     L.  In mission work, we should “take care of our own” first, and then if there is anything left over, we can send it overseas to foreign people.
     M.  Don’t do religious things just to show off how religious you are; do them because they are right, and not so that other people will think you are real religious.
     N.  If you pray for God to forgive you of your sins, you should also be willing to forgive people who have sinned against you.
     O.  It is just as wrong, from God’s point of view, to hate somebody as it is to kill them.
     P.  Don’t worry.  Chill out.  God’s got it all under control.

12.  Jesus called Christians the “salt of the earth.”  This means:
     A. We should like all kinds of spices, including both salt and pepper.
     B.   It is a sin to be too “sugary,” like calling people “honey” and “sweetie pie” all the time for no reason.
     C.  We should live by oceans and other bodies of salt water.
     D.  We should think of ourselves as people who bring about a big change for the rest of the world, like just a little salt changes the way a whole piece of meat tastes.
     E.  It is an ancient misprint; the first three letters were actually turned around by a scribe who suffered from dyslexia, so the word should have been “last” instead of “salt.”  This is why Christians should let other people go through doors first, so we can be “last.”

13.  What does John 3:17 mean to you?  How would you put that in your own words?

14.  Find a map of Paul’s journeys in a Bible.  Estimate about how many miles he traveled.  Skim through some of his letters (Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and/or some of the others) to see if you can find places where, in his own words, he explains his motivation for doing all that traveling.

15.  Make a list of things that you think Christians should do—how they should act.  Then, when you are done, read Romans 12.  How similar or different is that list to your list?  If there are three things on that list you would like to work on over the next year, what would they be?

16. If I take Jesus' teachings and the Christian life seriously, it would mean that I should probably _____.  (fill in the blank with as many words as apply to you).  On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highly motivated and 1 being not willing to change at all), my willingness to grow as a Christian in this way would be rated at about a ____. 

Activity #2:  Learning more about the Local Church

Get a copy of the Officers and Committees of the church.  See if you can figure out the following questions:

2.  If Jeff decided that he would really rather have church at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, could he just make that decision by himself?  Who would he need to ask, if anyone?  Which of the following things could Jeff (as the pastor of the church) decide to do without asking a committee's approval?
     A.  to paint the walls in the parsonage (the house he lives in) a different color.
     B.  to start a new program for people in the community
     C.  to give $500 from the missions fund to a family whose home just burned down
     D.  to find a person to be a chairperson of a committee or hold any other office in the church
     E.  to buy a new computer for the office
     F.  to ask the Janitor to work more hours
     G.  to have communion a different way from now on
     H.  to have a special fund drive for missions
     I.  to put a sign up at the edge of town asking people to come to church
     J.  to invest the church's money in a different bank account because it pays better interest

3.  Which things could the chairperson of the Administrative Council decide to have the church do without asking for the approval of any other person or group?
     A.  to paint the walls in the parsonage (the house the pastor lives in) a different color.
     B.  to start a new program for people in the community
     C.  to give $500 from the missions fund to a family whose home just burned down
     D.  to find a person to be a chairperson of a committee or hold any other office in the church
     E.  to buy a new computer for the office
     F.  to ask the Janitor to work more hours
     G.  to have communion a different way from now on
     H.  to have a special fund drive for missions
     I.  to put a sign up at the edge of town asking people to come to church
     J.  to invest the church's money in a different bank account because it pays better interest

4.  Which of the following things must be decided by a whole committee of people in the church, and cannot be decided by any one individual, including the pastor?
     A.  to paint the walls in the parsonage (the house the pastor lives in) a different color.
     B.  to start a new program for people in the community
     C.  to give $500 from the missions fund to a family whose home just burned down
     D.  to find a person to be a chairperson of a committee or hold any other office in the church
     E.  to buy a new computer for the office
     F.  to ask the Janitor to work more hours
     G.  to have communion a different way from now on
     H.  to have a special fund drive for missions
     I.  to put a sign up at the edge of town asking people to come to church
     J.  to invest the church's money in a different bank account because it pays better interest

5. Who elects these people to be the officers?  How long do they serve in the positions they are in?  As an "extra" activity, interview someone who is a chairperson of one of the church's committees.  Ask him/her what their committee does, how often they meet, and what the church would be missing if the committee did not do any work.

6.  How does a person become a pastor?  What are the educational and training requirements, and what do churches expect pastors to do?  What is an average day like for a pastor?  Of the things a pastor does, what task do you think would be the most interesting?  What would be the most difficult for you to do? Who decides how long the pastor stays, and who our next pastor will be?  If you wanted to consider being a pastor, who would you talk to in order to find out more about it?

7.  What is an "Annual Conference," a "District," and a "Jurisdiction," and how does our church fit into these?  Who represents our church at Annual Conference, and about how many people would be delegates there?  Of those present at Annual Conference, what percentage of them are ministers, and what percentage are laypersons?  What are some examples of things that this group might do that could effect our church?

8.  What is a Bishop?  Who is our Bishop right now?  What are the main responsibilities of a Bishop?

9.  What is a District Superintendent?  Who is our District Superintendent right now?  What are the main responsibilities of a District Superintendent?

10.  Our church has begun to discuss the possibility of getting a new elevator.  Who is in charge of checking into it?  Who will finally decide whether or not we do that?  If you have a chance to vote on it, what are your opinions about whether we need it or not at our church?  What if it cost $250,000?  Would that change your point of view, and if so, why?

11.  Get a copy of the church budget.  Figure out the following:
     A. What does the money go for?  Is that what you expected?  What would you want to change (increase or decrease) in our church's budget? 
     B.  The budget is for the "LCN" (Local Church Needs) fund.  What are the other main funds of the church?  How does money get into those funds?  Who spends the money, and decides what to spend it for?     C.  If everyone present on an average Sunday morning (our average attendance for the 52 Sundays of 2005 was 155 people) gave an equal amount every Sunday morning, without ever missing a Sunday, then how much would it take per person per week to meet our LCN budget (not counting mission giving, building fund, etc.)? 
     D.  How many dollars does it take per week in the offering to keep our church going?  What happens if we don't get that much money on a given Sunday?
     E.  What does it mean when the church is "in the red"?  How about when we are "in the black"?
     F.  What part of the money stays in the community?  What part of our money leaves the community?  What kinds of ministries happen with the money that we "send to the Conference"?
     G.  What is an "Advance Special?"  If you contribute to one, what percentage of your gift goes to pay for advertising, office costs, or other "expenses" besides the purpose you gave it for?
     H.  Why would Christians give money away at all?  Why do we take up an offering, and what are the various kinds of attitudes that people might have about the church needing or asking for money?
     I.  If you could decide what you wanted to do with your money (which you can), what difference in the world would you like to make with your money?  (for example, go on more personal vacations, feed the hungry, provide scholarships for poor youth, build Habitat for Humanity homes, etc.).   
     J.  When you consider the goals of the church, how similar or different are they than the things that you would like to see done in the community and world?  In other words, if the church just closed down, would it make any difference in accomplishing the goals that you would like to see happen in the world today?  Why or why not?
   
12.  One of the topics Jesus spoke most frequently about was our "stewardship" of money.  What does "stewardship" mean?  What does "tithe" mean?  Does Jesus expect us to pay a "tithe," or more, or less, or "it depends"? 

13.  Read some of the following scriptures together.  Talk about how a Christian can decide how much money to give to their local church.
     A.  Luke 12:32-24 (Heart will always be where your riches are).
     B.  Luke 16:19-31 (Rich man and Lazarus)
     C.  Luke 18:18-31 (The rich man who wouldn't sell everything he had to follow Jesus)
     D.  Luke 19:1-10 (Jesus and Zacchaeus, who gave half of his belongings to the poor) 
     E.  Luke 20:9-18 (Question about paying taxes:  "Give to God that which belongs to God")
     F.  Luke 21:1-4 (the poor widow's offering of two small coins)

14.  What are some other ways besides giving money that Christians can worship God, and support the work of the church?