Middle School Week 6 (April 29): Mindset #6
Mindset #6: God has given me everything I need for the season I’m in.
Action Step: Embrace your now.
Read Do the True You chapters 22-25 before your group meeting.
Watch the video: Encourage students to take notes on what stands out to them and what they want to remember.
What’s On Your Mind?
If you could instantly fast-forward your life to any age, what age would you choose? Why?
Optional activity: Let’s Trade Lives
Read these “lives” out loud. If students would be curious to “trade lives” with that person for a day, they’ll give a thumbs-up. If they wouldn’t want to, they’ll give a thumbs-down.
A famous athlete who is constantly criticized publicly and online.
A straight-A student who’s under extreme pressure from their parents.
A popular influencer with tons of followers but no close friends.
An adult with their own house and freedom, but they have to go to work all day.
A movie star with lots of money but who is always unhappy.
Tell youth every person and every season has pressure. But this week’s mindset reminds us: God has given you what you need for THIS season.
Shift Your Mindset
Review the previous mindsets with your group before jumping into this week’s discussion:
Mindset 1: I’m not stuck unless I stop. (Action: Commit to progress.)
Mindset 2: Christ is in me. I am enough. (Action: Accept your Self.)
Mindset 3: With God there’s always a way, and by faith I will find it. (Action: Focus on possibility.)
Mindset 4: God is not against me, but he’s in it with me, working through me, fighting for me. (Action: Walk in confidence.)
Mindset 5: My joy is my job. (Action: Own your emotions.)
We all go through “seasons” of life. What kind of season would you say you’re in right now? (e.g., lots of success, struggling with school, too busy to focus on anything, making memories with friends, confused about your next step, etc.)
What does it mean to you that God has given you everything you need for the season you’re in? Where do you feel like you don’t have what you need? (e.g., intelligence, money, talent, friends, influence, etc.)
On a scale of 1-10, how afraid are you of failure? (1 is not at all, 10 is terrified) Talk about a time when you failed, but you learned something from it.
How can fear of failure keep us from “embracing our now” or trying things? Read Proverbs 24:16. How does this verse strengthen your faith when it comes to failure?
What’s something about your life right now that you wish would hurry up and change? (e.g., getting to high school, dating, making your own money, more freedom, etc.) Instead of wishing it away, what would it look like to show up and give your best right now?
Pray: God, thank You that You are intentional with every season of our lives. Help us stop wishing away the moment we’re in. Teach us to trust that You’ve equipped us for right now — not just someday. Open our eyes to the growth, lessons, and opportunities in front of us. Give us peace about the future and confidence in the present. Help us embrace our now. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Go Further
“God has given me everything I need for the season I’m in.” What’s the difference between everything we need and everything we want? Give some examples.
How can waiting on the next season make you dislike the season you’re in right now? Why is that dangerous?
Read Matthew 6:34. What is this verse telling us? How can focusing on today help us have more joy and peace?
"Don't fear your mistakes, your weaknesses, your limitations. If you let God be strong through them, you'll grow because of them. Failure done right is not failure at all. It's just another step forward as you do the true you." (pg. 232) What does “failure done right” mean to you? How does this thought encourage you to trust God with your failures?
WEEKLY CHALLENGE: Go and DO the True You
“God made the day I’m living—but I choose what to make of it.” (pg. 242)
This week, instead of wishing you were older, better, more popular, or somewhere else, choose to embrace one part of your current season.
Be fully present in a conversation instead of thinking about what’s next.
Thank God for one responsibility you normally complain about.
Develop a skill that fits where you are right now.
Stop comparing your timeline to someone else’s.
Write down three things God has already given you for this season.
Be grateful that although you may not have all the freedom you want, you have less responsibility than many people who do.
Ask God to help you focus on what He wants you to.
You don’t need a different season. You need faith and focus in this one!