7th/8th
gr. Axis Guide Sheet: Creation disrupted
10/27/21
Hi Guides
& families! This section will cover the events found in Genesis 3-9. It
also addresses how free will & sin come into play according to our faith
tradition. This will bring up lots of questions! Questions about human behavior
& consequences, God’s behavior, and the nature of right & wrong. It is
ok to not have answers to all of these questions, sit with them, wrestle with
them. Most importantly, wonder, in light
of what we can learn from these stories how are we called to live and act
today?
Small Group/Household (6:30-7:30)
v Highs & Lows
v Takeaways (share these to start & end)
1)
Although
sin & wrongdoing entered the world, God continued (& continues) to act
with love and care for God’s people. Often in ways we don’t understand.
2)
God
keeps God’s promises.
v Read the “Disrupted” & “Starting Over”
narratives.
From “Echo the Story”
copyright 2013 sparkhouse
Narrate for the group.
If time, or to close, allow a second reader to read it once more. Read with
emotion and inflection, bring it to life with your voice. Invite participants
to close their eyes & imagine while they listen.
SCENE ONE: LIFE
DISRUPTED
Adam and Eve lived under God’s care and protection in a
beautiful garden.
One day, a clever serpent came to Eve and asked her, “Did God really say you can’t eat ANY of the
fruit in this garden?”
Eve answered, “We can
eat any fruit we’d like-except for the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. God
said if we eat that fruit-or even touch it-we’ll die.”
The serpent replied, “You
won’t die! God knows that if you eat that fruit, your eyes will be opened- and
you will become as wise as God.”
Eve looked at the delicious fruit and thought, “This will make me wise.”
So she bit into the fruit. Then she gave some to Adam, who
was with her, and he ate it, too.
Instantly their eyes were opened, and they felt ashamed and
afraid. So they tied leaves together to cover up their nakedness. [pause]
Later on in the cool of the day, God came to spend time with
Adam and Eve. When they heard God walking in the garden, they hid behind some
bushes.
God called to them, “Where
are you?”
Adam answered, I heard
your coming and I was ashamed-because I’m naked-so I hid.”
God asked, “Why are
you ashamed of being naked? Did you eat the fruit I told you not to eat?”
Adam said, “It was the
woman you created…she gave me the fruit.”
God asked Eve, “Why
did this happen?”
Eve answered, “It was
the serpent…he tricked me into eating the fruit.”
So God said to the serpent, “Because you’ve done this, from now on serpents will slither on their
bellies, eating dust. Humans will be your enemies.”
God turned to Adam and Eve and said, “Your eyes have been opened to pain, struggles, and death. You’ll face
intense pain in childbirth. You’ll struggle through weeds and thorns to harvest
food. And you’ll fight for control of your relationship. At the end of your
life, you’ll return to the ground from which you were created. [pause]
After that, God used animal skins to make clothing for Adam
and Eve. Then, God removed them from the garden.
Mighty angels were stationed at the entrance, and a flaming
sword flashed back and forth, keeping Adam and Eve from returning to the garden
and eating from the Tree of Life. [pause]
SCENE TWO: STARTING
OVER
After leaving the garden, Adam and Eve started a family.
Tragically, their oldest son, Cain, attacked and killed his
brother Abel in a jealous rage-even after God warned him about his anger. Cain
was then sent away to be a wanderer of the Earth. [pause]
As humans populated the earth, civilizations formed and
cities were built. Craftsmanship, music, and the arts emerged.
But humans couldn’t live peacefully with one another.
Selfishness and greed turned into fighting; fighting turned
into hatred; hatred turned into muder; and murder turned into war.
Violence and chaos spiraled out of control. People’s hearts
and minds were filled with evil day and night.
Humans had forgotten that they were created in God’s image.
And God’s heart was broken.
God said, “Humans have
made me regret that I created them. I must start over.” [pause]
But there was one man named Noah, who still followed God’s
ways.
So God gave Noah a plan to protect his family and save each
kind of creature on the Earth.
Noah carefully followed God’s instructions and built a large
boat called an ark. When it was finished, Noah’s family and pairs of each kind
of animal boarded the boat.
Suddenly, water burst from the ground and poured from the
sky. The rain didn’t stop for forty days. Water rose higher and higher until it
covered even the tallest mountains.
Life was decimated. But Noah and his family and all the
animals with them were safe, floating in the ark on the surface of the water.
[pause]
After many months, God stirred winds that blew across the
waters, causing them to recede. The ark landed safely on a mountainside. Noah
and his family stepped out onto the damp ground.
And God said, “Even though
humans will still rebel, I promise never to flood the earth again. My love for
you will never change, and my promises to you will never be broken.”
At that moment, the sun broke through the storm clouds and
formed a spectrum of colors across the sky-a rainbow. From then on, each time a
rainbow appeared, it would be a reminder to God and all of creation, of God’s
promise-and a reminder of a new
beginning.
[allow some time for silence and reflecting…]
Discussion starters:
-
What stuck out to you from the story? What raised questions for
you? What made you wonder?
-
What does the garden look like to you?
-
How would you describe Adam and Eve?
-
Why do you think they ate the fruit?
-
What changed after they ate the fruit?
o
How did Adam and Eve’s relationship change? Their relationship
with God? With the Earth & animals?
-
How do responsibility and knowledge go together?
-
One way to look at this story is that God was protecting Adam and
Eve like children, from knowledge they weren’t ready to handle yet. What do you
think about this theory?
-
What do you notice about God/make of God from this story?
-
What glimpses of hope can be found in the midst of this tragic
story?
-
What do you think this story says about us (humans)…about you?
Bible talk: The events from our story take place in Genesis 3-9.
-
Find Genesis 3:1. Highlight/underline
o
What causes you to question God’s word for you/for us?
o
When
is it hard to listen to authority/instructions?
o
Go
back to Genesis 2:16 & see God’s actual instructions. See how the serpent
rephrased it in its question?
Activity ideas:
Act it/Animate it – Make the narratives a play & reenact these scenes together. (What did snakes/serpents do before they were cursed to slither on the ground?!). Or illustrate the story. For those on site, The Action Bibles are really cool or if you’re at home check out The Cartoonist Bible.
Re-animate it – What would a similar scenario look
like in today’s world? Who would be the players? What is forbidden/out of
bounds? Or an example from your own experience?!
God Still Loves – Divide a piece of paper in two. On
one half, write down the names of people who have shown you they love you even
when you’ve made a mistake…On the other half, write down the names of people
you’ve kept loving even when they’ve made a mistake.
Share with the
group - As humans, we aren’t perfect are we?! In fact, you may recall from the
story of Noah that the world got so bad that God wanted to start all over &
so he did with Noah’s family. These lists show us the kind of love that God has
for us & allows us to have for others!
Essential Ark – In the last year/year & a half
we heard the term “essential worker” a lot, or certain parts of society were
labeled “essential.” If we’re honest, what qualifies as essential can certainly
vary from person to person. So, take time to reflect together and share what
your essentials are…meaning if you had to simplify your life to the essentials,
what would be included? (This can be as literal or abstract as you want.)
People, things, activities, concepts…?
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