Alive Q&A this Friday

Alive is this coming Friday (Feb. 28) and instead of a sermon, the youth leaders are hosting a Q&A session! As you probably know, we are spending this last half of the school year talking about gender, dating, marriage and sex. We have done three sermon weeks so far - gender roles, girls and guys. Now that we are done that theme, students can submit questions they have about those topics - both what we explicitly covered as well as any remaining questions they have related to gender.

Here is a short recap of the three sermons:

Jan. 10 - Gender Roles
How God created males and females differently but complimentary - what does that mean for how we view ourselves? Treat one another? Approach friendships, relationships, and marriage? How are worldly views of gender roles similar and different to what the Bible teaches?

I preached on how we view gender and talked about how some "markers" of gender change throughout time and culture (e.g. fashion), but other things, such as the way we are wired, don't change. We talked about how God created men and women equal but different, meant to work together for God's glory instead of as enemies to one another and challenged the kids to view one another as brothers and sisters in Christ, our primary identity.

Jan. 24 - Girls
What does the Bible say about women? What do godly women look like compared to what the world wants women to look like? What are the major issues young girls and women are facing today? How can females fight negative messages, and how can males help their sisters in Christ grow into godly women?
I preached on the biggest issues teen girls face - self image. I went through how TV, movies, music, magazines, ads and cosmetic companies portray women and beauty and then contrasted it to God's true creation of beauty.

Feb. 7 - Guys
What does the Bible say about men? What do godly men look like compared to how men are portrayed in our culture and media? What are the major issues and temptations young men are facing today? How can boys grow into real men instead of adult children, and how can females help their brothers in Christ grow into godly men?

Daniel preached about what it means to be a man and talked about the insecurities guys face and how media makes muscles and dominance so important, which is not God's intention for men. He talked about the importance of integrity, leadership, and treating girls right.


Students will be able to submit their questions in writing or by text on the night of the event. They can also anonymously submit their questions online in advance (cut off is 6:30pm on Friday). The questions are slowly rolling in and there are some really good ones! Remember, even if we did not cover it in a sermon, if it's related to girls, guys, gender issues, the way we're wired, etc., ask away! We will also be hosting Q&A Nights after we talk about dating, and then once again after we talk about marriage and sex - so if you have questions that relate better to those themes, you can still submit now and we will just hang on to them until later.