Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend
Impacting MY SPACE with MY GOD

If you would like to download the Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend materials immediately, please see link at the bottom of this page. For more information about the Student Weekend please email Tim Yarbrough or call 770-410-6379.

The Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend is a ministry/mission event that provides churches the opportunity to help students live out Jesus’ challenge found in Acts 1:8:

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all
Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

By conducting an Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend, churches will begin a process of cultivating a love for missions and ministry in the lives of students resulting in students engaging in intentional mission and ministry actions in “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth.”

The Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend is modeled after a Disciple Now Weekend, which is a retreat-like event that takes place in the homes of church members. Guest leaders are recruited to lead small groups of students (6 to 12 per group) in a weekend of Bible study, fun, and in the case of an Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend, direct mission action. 

Like a Disciple Now Weekend, the Acts 1:8 Student Weekend will seek to accomplish a number of goals in the lives of students:

  1. Encourage non-Christians to receive Christ as their personal Lord and Savior by presenting the gospel in clear, simple terms.
  2. Challenge Christians to "grow up" in Christ by exploring the cost and meaning of discipleship.
  3. To provide a sense of "family" among youth of the same age. Create a family atmosphere by modeling examples of caring, sharing, and affirmation.
  4. Emphasize the importance of working on our relationship with God on a daily basis.
  5. Utilize the Bible as the basis for each study by creating opportunities for searching the scriptures and allowing youth to share the results of their search.
  6. Cultivate a love for missions and ministry in the lives of students resulting in students engaging in intentional ministry and mission actions in “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Impacting MY SPACE With MY GOD
  
This theme for the Acts 1:8 Student Weekend is Impacting MY SPACE with MY GOD.  Most everyone is familiar with MySpace pages, however, the MY SPACE this Bible study series focuses on isn’t a MySpace page. The MY SPACE this series references is the SPACE that makes up the individual worlds of students. It is those SPACES that are in need of impact.

It is in the Great Commission and Acts 1:8, Jesus challenged the early disciples and us to aggressively and intentionally go into our personal SPACES with His love. Through the Impacting MY SPACE with MY GOD series students will be challenged to:

  • Identify their SPACE (world) and evaluate how seriously they are taking Jesus’ commission and challenge.
  • Prepare themselves to fulfill the commission and challenge.
  • Accept the challenge and embrace the commission.

This is accomplished, in part, through the study of God’s Word in the form of the following Bible study sessions:

Session 1: MY SPACE
Teaching Aim: To challenge students to identify their SPACE and personalize the Great Commission.

Session 2: MY MINISTRY
Teaching Aim: To challenge students to view others as people of value as Jesus does, and to seek to develop attributes of Christ in their lives through the practice of spiritual disciplines.

Session 3: MY IMPACT NOW
Teaching Aim: To provide students with a “hands on” mission/ministry project that will help them become centered on others, and to cultivate a love for their “Jerusalem” (their SPACE).

Intentional Acts of Impact: Intentional Acts of Impact are an opportunity for students to begin the process of becoming centered on others during the Acts 1:8 Challenge Student Weekend. Individual groups will have the opportunity to conduct a Saturday morning ministry/mission project. After the project is complete, groups will gather for a lunch/sharing time to inform others about their Intentional Act of Impact experience.

Session 4: MY WITNESS
Teaching Aim: To help students to discover and implement their personal witnessing styles.

Session 5: MY PRAYER LIFE
Teaching Aim: To lead students to develop consistent, passionate prayer lives that includes praying for missions and ministries.

Five sessions have been provided for the weekend. These sessions can be taught as written, or they can be adapted. Guest leaders are strongly encouraged to bring their own thoughts and insights into the sessions. Teach the sessions in creative ways that encourage student participation. Also, be sure that the Impacting MY SPACE with MY GOD theme is supported throughout all teaching times.

If you would like to review and consider using these materials, please click on the link below. You will be asked for basic information such as your name, leadership role with students, church name, etc., in order to access the download. We will be sending a survey to selected users to get feedback on the effectiveness of the materials.

Download Now

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