We decided tonight was the perfect night to do some team-building. Even in ZG, there has been some dissension among the youth at times...mostly boys vs. girls, but nonetheless, it has happened. With the dynamics of our group having recently changed with Michaela leaving and Brandon C. joining us, we couldn't think of a better time to talk about how we are supposed to treat each other and relate to one another.
First, we showed the kids a mirror and a pane of glass. We told them that both were made from glass, but quite different. We asked them to name some of the differences. We also asked them if, as they go through their days, are their thoughts more on themselves or others. We asked them to imagine living in a house where all of the windows were turned into mirrors. Would they like living there, never being able to see outside...the sun, the clouds and trees, their friends. The house would be very dark inside too as no light can get through a mirror. The same thing happens when we think mostly about ourselves. Life gets dark for us. We don't see the beauty around us or the ways we could help other people because we can only see ourselves.
Next for some games to build upon this lesson. First, using a ball of yarn, we asked the kids to sit in a circle. We started by holding the end of the yarn and rolling the rest of the ball to one person in the circle and then complimenting or encouraging them in some way. It had to be a real compliment too...not a fluffy, "I like how you dress" compliment. We asked the kids to dig a little deeper than that. Then, the one complimented held onto a piece of the yarn and rolled it to someone else. We repeated this until everyone in the circle had been encouraged or complimented. By now, our yarn circle looked like a spider web of sorts. We are all, as brothers and sisters in the Lord, intertwined with one another. It's not all about us as individuals!
Then we did something similar. We stood in a circle and everyone was asked to hold hands with two different people who were NOT standing next to them. The game is called Human Knots and the object of the game was to become untangled from one another WITHOUT letting go of our hands! It is possible! We need each other and again, are all connected in the body of Christ.
Our last game involved two groups and two separate twin bed sheets. The sheets were laid out on the floor and the two groups were then asked to stand on their team's sheets with no one touching any part of the ground not covered with the sheet. Once accomplished, the teams stepped off their sheets and we folded them in half and asked them to do it again. We continued to fold the sheet in half again and again to see if the kids could work together to fit each team member on their respective sheet. At times, it took team members picking up and holding other team members to get everyone on the sheet without touching the uncovered ground!
Lastly, we showed the kids a YouTube of teammates not thinking about themselves, but others...even others on the opposing team. It's a championship game between two college girls' softball teams and you really have to see it to believe it. I still can't watch it without getting tearful! It's such a great example of selflessness and giving up one's rights.
We also drew names for new accountability partners tonight and worked on our notebooks...another way to emphasize that we're here to pray for and encourage one another in Christ.
