The Spirit Who Guides Us

Can one team produce an exact copy of another team's creation without seeing it? Remember, the power of the Holy Spirit guides us in truth, if we only listen.
 

Topics: Cooperation, Guidance, Holy Spirit, Teamwork, Listening Materials: Two paper plates (any type will do) Five small items (You will need two of each item and they must be identical. For example, you can use two paperclips, two paper cups, two pencils, two coins, and two spoons.)  Curtain (optional) Duration: Approximately 15 minutes

What you will do:

Get into two teams. Give each team a paper plate and one set of the five different items. Let the students know they will be creating a work of art using these items, and give them a few minutes to study them. The two teams must face the opposite way, or you can also place a curtain between the two teams. 

The object is for the members of team "A" to place the items on their paper plate in a creative way, and for the members of team "B" to duplicate the same design the best they can without looking. They can only receive verbal instructions from team "A."

First, let the members on team "A" work together to create a design. Then have them tell the members of team "B" what to do. The members of team "B" can ask as many questions as they want to get a better understanding of how to place the items on their plate. The ultimate objective is for both creations to end up looking identical.

After everyone believes the items are in the right place, have the teams compare the two plates and see how well they did. Then switch sides, and let team "A" attempt to duplicate a different design created by team "B" in the same way. 

Discussion Questions:
1. Which team, "A" or "B" was able to recreate the design closest to the original?
2. How much was the success of this team due to getting clearer instructions?
3. How much was the success of this team due to asking the right questions?
4. What do you think was most important, asking good questions or listening? Why? 
5. What other times in our life are we asked only to listen?

What you will say:

In this exercise, we discovered how important it is to listen. Are you listening to the Holy Spirit? Jesus said, "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you." John 14:16-17