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John 15:9–12 (NRSV)

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love… This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”

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Use this video provided as an example!

Opening Activity: The Yarn Toss: 10 minutes

For this activity, everyone has to stand in a circle. We toss the ball of yarn around but everyone holds on to a strand of the yarn. After everyone has had the yarn tossed to them  it goes back to the original person.

Supplies:

1–2 large balls of yarn or string

Quick Summary of Activity:

For this activity, everyone has to stand in a circle. Toss the ball of yarn or string around making sure everyone holds on to a strand of the yarn. After everyone has had the yarn tossed to them, it goes back to the original person.

Detailed Instructions:

1. Invite everyone (even 2-3 people is fine!) to stand in a circle.

2. The first person holds one end of the yarn, says their name, and answers a simple question (like “What’s one thing you’re thankful for about our church community?”).

3. They then toss the yarn to someone else, who holds a part of the strand before tossing it again.

4. In the middle of the circle, the yarn now forms a web.

5. Continue until everyone has been tossed the yarn once and the ball returns to the first person.

Debrief:

In the middle of the circle, the yarn now forms a web.

Explain:
“Look at the web we’ve made. Each strand represents a connection — a friendship, a shared story, or an act of kindness. This web reminds us that we are all connected to one another. That’s what community is: being woven together by God’s love. Today, we’ll explore what it means to be called to community — how it’s created, how it grows, and why it matters.”

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Theological Foundations behind Yarn Toss Activity

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Theological Foundations behind Yarn Toss Activity

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Theological Foundations behind Yarn Toss Activity:

While we were doing the yarn toss, did anyone pull on their piece of yarn to see what would happen?

(Answer: yes - If no one does it, I will)

What happened?

(Answer: Everyone felt the strain of one person pulling on the yarn)

What do you think this symbolizes for us living in community?

(Answer: We are there to support one another, if someone pulls on the string and needs help, we are all there to care for them and help them. etc.)

The yarn toss activity introduces us to the concept of being in community with each other as people of faith or the activity of being in koinonia.

- Koinonia is the Greek word for community but also has broader meanings than just being together with others.

Koinonia reflects God’s decision to be actively transforming the world. Therefore, the act of being in Koinonia with the Body of Christ means we are also reflecting God’s example.

Because God is in community with us, we are in community with others. We are all connected, just like we were connected through the web in the yarn toss. Our community helps us to support each other in our efforts to be disciples in the greater world around us.

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1 Corinthians 12:12-27

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

One Body with Many Members

12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

14 Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot would say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear would say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many members yet one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect, 24 whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, 25 that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

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John 15:9-12

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

9 As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

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Please use the comment feature to add your responses!

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Please use the comment feature to add your responses!

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1. When you think about the word belonging, what does it mean to you? What comes to mind?

2. Can you think of a time when you really felt like you belonged somewhere, or when you didn’t? What made this distinction between belonging and not belonging? How did it feel to belong?

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Connection Point to Art Activity:

During this activity, youth will explore what it means to truly live as the Body of Christ, or as a community made up of many different parts, yet united in love and purpose.

Through this creative art activity, youth will reflect on how God calls each of us to use our unique gifts, strengths, and hearts to serve others and build one another up. As youth draw and design their own “body figures,” youth will connect their ideas to the Apostle Paul’s image in 1 Corinthians 12, discovering that community is not about being the same, but about belonging, loving, and working together as one.

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Using the human body figure image above this, discuss the following questions with a family member or parent:

1. How are the different parts of the human body essential and interconnected?

2. What happens when one part of the body stops working or gets hurt?

3. How is this like the Body of Christ, the community of believers Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 12?

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Paul reminds us that the Body of Christ needs every part. Each one of us including all of our gifts, talents, and every person is essential to the body of Christ. When one person suffers, we all suffer. When one person rejoices, we all rejoice. God made us to work together, to care for one another, and to serve the world with love.

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Creating the Mosaic by:

Reflecting & Drawing

Think about practical ways you can live as the Body of Christ in your daily life. Do this by labeling different parts of the human body figure with your creative ideas.

Think about how you would describe each person's unique gifts and roles that they can contribute to our church community and world (e.g., “Listener,” “Encourager,” “Helper”) as it relates to each body part.

For example:
Hands – to prepare a meal, volunteer at a homeless shelter, or help a friend/ neighbor in need
Heart – to show compassion, offer friendship, or give generously
Feet – to walk alongside those who are sick, grieving, or lonely or go where help is needed
Eyes – to notice those who are hurting or left out and include them
Ears – to listen to others’ stories and offer compassion and comfort
Mind – to think creatively about solving problems, doing justice, and helping others
Mouth – to speak kindness, share encouragement, and proclaim the Gospel news

Youth are welcome to add their own creative ideas. They can write single words (like “serve,” “listen,” “encourage,” “pray”) or short phrases near each body part.

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Debrief & Discussion Questions

Which part of the body was easiest for you to think of how to use? Which was hardest?

What surprised you about how interconnected we all are?

How does this activity remind you that being Called to Community means using what we have including our time, gifts, and hearts to love others?

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Each of us are a vital part of the Body of Christ. When we use our hearts to love, our hands to serve, our ears to listen, and our feet to go, the community becomes stronger and more like Jesus.

“Now you are the body of Christ, and individually members of it.” — 1 Corinthians 12:27

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We don’t just talk about God’s love and living in community; rather, we live it out.

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We don’t just talk about God’s love and living in community; rather, we live it out.

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READ THIS: After exploring how we are all part of the Body of Christ and how each of us has a role to play in loving and serving others, we now move from talking about community to living it out and acting in a manner of love, reflecting God's love.

This is because a true Christian community is built not just on words, but on actions that reflect God’s love in real and tangible ways.

In our scripture passage, John 15:9–12 - Jesus tells his disciples, ‘As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.’

This is a love that is steady, selfless, and enduring and a type of love that does not depend on what we do, but on who God is. It’s the kind of love that forms the foundation of real community, calling us to love one another with the same grace and generosity that Christ has shown us.

When God’s love takes shape in our lives, it looks like love being more than just a feeling; rather, it looks like love being action, compassion, and care. Every time we show kindness or lift someone up, we reflect Christ’s love to the world. That’s what it means to be Called to Community and to belong to one another through a type of love that gives, serves, and never ends.

Jesus reminds us that love isn’t something we earn; rather, it’s something we receive and then share. Real Christian community is built when we choose to love others in real, practical, everyday ways.

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What we can do, even if we're snowed in... 

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What we can do, even if we're snowed in... 

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Even when we’re snowed in, we can still live out our calling to:

Love deeply

Serve faithfully

Build relationships that reflect God’s inclusive love

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Choose EITHER of the following ways to share God’s love this week:

Write or Create Something Encouraging

Create a card, note, or drawing for:

A teacher

A neighbor

A younger sibling

Someone who might feel lonely or overlooked

Pray for Someone Intentionally

Set aside 2–5 minutes to pray for:

Someone who is struggling

Someone who feels lonely

Someone at school who needs encouragement

You can write their name down or say a short prayer like:

“God, help _________ (name of person) feel your love today.”

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Discussion Questions

(You can write your answers down and contribute them to the group by commenting on this column or you can think about them quietly and then discuss them with a friend or family member)

1. What stood out to you from John 15:9–12?

2. What do you think it means to “abide” in God’s love?

3. Why do you think Jesus connects love with action, not just words?

4. Which activity did you choose from the "Living it Out" section of this lesson plan, and why?

5. How did it feel to show love in a small but intentional way?

6. Where do you see opportunities this week to love like Jesus at school, home, or online?

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God, We thank you for loving us first. Help us to stay rooted in your love and to share it with others through our words and actions.
Show us how to be your hands and feet, in our community and world. Amen.