New Christians Booklet

WHAT NOW? A Soul Survivor guide to starting out with Jesus GOSPEL | BIBLE | WORSHIP | PRAYER | CHURCH | MISSION

You’ve been given a copy of this booklet because you’ve made the life-changing decision to follow Jesus. We believe this is the best decision you’ll ever make!

CONGRATULATIONS!

The Bible says you are now a new creation, that all your previous mistakes are forgiven, that you are part of God’s family and that you have been given eternal life - those are just a few of the things that are worth celebrating!

After saying a prayer to offer your life to God and accept him as your Lord and Saviour you might be wondering what you’ve done and what it means to be a Christian, so we’ve put together some thoughts that we hope will provide some helpful stepping stones for you over the next few days, weeks and months as you start your journey of faith.

WE’LL BE LOOKING AT

In each of these sections we’ll give you some verses to read from the Bible, some thoughts from us, and some things to think about. There are also some questions to help you go a bit deeper that you might want to discuss with some friends, a youth leader or mentor, or in a small group. We’ve also pointed you towards some extra resources that we hope you’ll find helpful.

You’re at the beginning of a life-long journey of getting to know God and discovering how much he loves you. The more time you spend together the deeper your relationship with God will grow and our prayer for you is that this is the start of the greatest relationship and adventure you’ll ever have.

Love from

Mike, Ali and Andy

— What the gospel is

Been given this somewhere other than a Soul Survivor event?

— Why the Bible is crucial to our relationship with Jesus

Find out more about who we are and what we do at

— What it means to worship God

www.soulsurvivor.com

— What prayer is — Why belonging to a church is vital — What God’s mission is

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WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? 4

WHAT NOW?

For God so loved the world that

he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” John 3:16-18 So you’ve become a Christian – that’s fantastic!

But what does it actually mean? Being a Christian means accepting the amazing truth that you weren’t an accident but were created by God for a purpose. You’re not just a collection of atoms and molecules coming together in a strange scientific phenomenon but a loving God created you to be in relationship with him.

Since the beginning of time people have been choosing to live life selfishly and that selfishness is what we are talking about when we talk about ‘sin’.

Sin means us choosing to do things our way rather than God’s way and each and every one of us has done that. Many of the problems in our world are caused by us choosing to put our own needs and desires ahead of each other’s well being.

This sin gets in the way of our relationship with God. In his holiness he couldn’t look at us because of our selfishness but in his love he couldn’t look away from us. How would you solve this dilemma?

God did something amazing: he came to earth himself as a baby called Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem (you’ve probably heard that bit of the story once or twice at Christmas!). He grew up to be a man and as a human being he showed us what God is like in his kindness truth and mercy. He demonstrated how we would act if we were more like him; Jesus showed us God in human flesh.

The other bit of the story you’ve probably heard is that when Jesus was 33 he was hung on a wooden cross to die because the authorities didn’t like the things he was saying. It looked like the end of the story but it was actually the opportunity for us to have a new beginning. On that cross Jesus took all of our sin, selfishness, pain, hurt and shame, on himself so that we could be in relationship with God again. He rose from the dead three days after he had been crucified; conquering death once and for all so that anyone who chooses to put their faith in him would have eternal life.

Lots of people think Christianity is just about that – about knowing you’ll go to heaven when you die. That’s an incredible and mind-blowing thing, and certainly a reason to celebrate, but being a Christian has a huge impact on our lives while we’re here on earth too.

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WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

Being a Christian means allowing God to be King and have his way. Saying yes to him means saying that he can be in charge! He gets to choose where we go and what we do, how we spend our time and money. If that sounds strange, remember he’s not a dictator wanting to boss you about for fun! He’s a loving father who knows what is best for you and wants to guide you in all your decisions. He’s the best friend that you’ll ever have. He’s perfectly faithful, perfectly loving, perfectly compassionate and perfectly kind. He is always with you and will never abandon you.

Which areas of your life do you think you might find hard to give God control in?

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.

Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:1-10

When you think of God as a father does that conjure good images or bad ones?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17

What things have you done that you feel most sorry for?

Talk to God about them and then thank him that he forgives you completely.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

THINGS TO DO Tell someone! It’s really important to share your faith with others and not to be embarrassed that you’re a Christian.

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GOING DEEPER

RESOURCES If you’ve got a Soul Survivor Youth Bible check out the following articles:

What is Christianity?

By Andy Croft

The Big Story series

By Bishop Graham Cray

The Life of Jesus

By J John

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Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God .”

Matthew 4:4

WHY READ THE BIBLE?

We love food. English, Italian, Mexican, Chinese, Greek… it’s all good with us! But because we’re more than just physical beings, we need more than just physical food to survive. We need spiritual food in order to grow and be healthy.

The Bible is amazing spiritual food and here are four reasons why it’s good to read God’s word every day:

Our feelings aren’t very trustworthy but

God’s word stays the same. You might have noticed this but feelings come and go - ever fancied someone like crazy one week and then can’t stand the sight of them the next?! In our relationship with God there may be times he feels so close to us and other times when he seems distant. There may be days we can see his goodness and others when we wonder if he really is loving. It’s not God who changes but our feelings so God’s word reminds us of the truth no matter how we feel. It tells us that God is close even when we feel like he is miles away. It promises us that he will never leave us or forsake us so we can read and hold to that promise on good and bad days.

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It’s how we hear God’s voice. Every time you

switch on the TV, watch another YouTube video, turn on some music or log on to social media,

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you’ll hear someone’s opinion about how you should be living. Sometimes it feels like we’re being shouted at from all directions! So how do we hear God in the midst of all that noise? We come back to the Bible.

Here God has laid out for us the timeless truth about who we are and how we should live.

It leads us to God. We don’t read the Bible

as though it’s a text book; we’re not trying to learn more to pass the entrance exam for heaven.

God’s word isn’t about facts, it’s about a person; throughout the whole book God is showing us who he is. Memorising verses is really helpful, not so you can repeat them like a parrot but so that the truth can live in you. For example you can repeat 2 Corinthians 12:9 which says ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’ as much as you like but it’s not until you let those words sink in that they will change your life. When you dwell on them, allowing God to show you the truth in them, then you’ll be able to use them when that nagging voice tells you you’re too weak for God to use.

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There’s always something new to learn.

No matter how many times we’ve read it there’s always something new to be discovered.

Even theologians who have dedicated their lives to studying the Bible find fresh meaning time and time again. We can overeat physically but never spiritually.

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WHY READ THE BIBLE?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT What first comes to mind when you think about reading the Bible? Chat to a youth leader or friend about your positive and negative thoughts.

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

Whose voice is currently loudest in your life in terms of telling you how to live?

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 2 Timothy 3:16

THINGS TO DO Make space each day to read the Bible. You might want to start by reading through one of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) that tell you about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

Join a small group where you can talk about the Bible and don’t be afraid to ask questions! It can sometimes be hard to make sense of God’s word on your own so speak to some people who’ve studied it and can help you understand what it means for you today.

Try different ways of reading the Bible such as — Take one book and read it as a story — Study one particular passage or verse — Study a theme that runs throughout the Bible, looking up each verse that relates to the topic — Meditate on and/or memorise a verse — Studying the same passage in a number of different translations

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GOING DEEPER

By your words I can see where I’m going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path.

Psalm 119:105 (The Message)

RESOURCES

Soul Survivor Youth Bible. An NIV translation Bible with over 500 extra bits from our team and friends including overviews of each book, articles on the big themes that run through the Bible, and lots of interesting stuff on what the Bible has to say on issues like suffering, money, relationships, and our identity.

Storylines by Mike Pilavachi and Andy Croft. Storylines looks at the main themes of the Bible (covenant, kingdom, salvation, presence, worship, and Jesus) and is a bit like chatting to Mike and

Andy about why they love God’s word!

It’s also got some really helpful stuff like a summary of the whole Bible and info on how the books of the Bible became the books of the Bible.

Free Soul Survivor ‘Bible in One Year’ app. We post an Old Testament and a New Testament reading each day and a video for each that explains how we apply it to everyday life. If you read around 15 minutes of the Bible every day you’d be able to read the whole thing in just 12 months!

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WHAT IT MEANS TO WORSHIP GOD?

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.

At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.”

Acts 16:25-26 Worship isn’t just about singing songs, it’s about the way we live the whole of our lives. A life of worship is one that gives adoration to God through words and actions. So we can worship while we’re doing our homework, while we’re playing football and while we’re hanging out with our mates because anything we do, that’s done with praise and thanks giving, is an act of worship. Plus throughout the history of God’s people they have come together to offer thanks and praise through song and music. Worship is praising God for who he is and thanking him for what he’s done both through specific acts of devotion and through the whole of life.

Acts 16 shows us how the apostle Paul and Silas were singing worship songs even though they were in jail. With chains on their wrists and ankles they choose to sing praise to God and this teaches us some key things about worship:

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Worship doesn’t depend on circumstances.

It can be easy to tell God how amazing he is when life is going our way but so much harder when things are going wrong. Paul and Silas show us that even in prison, even when we face the worst and most unfair things life can throw at us, we can choose to praise God. When we’re feeling low it can be helpful to read the Psalms; these were hymns that God’s people used in worship and they are written by people during good and bad times. They show us that we don’t have to pretend we’re happy when we’re not but that whatever our circumstances we can still choose to worship.

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Paul and Silas were worshipping when God

intervened and set them free from their prison chains. We all have different ‘prisons’ – things we face that have a hold on us like problems at home or school, physical or emotional pain, anxiety about the future or trauma in our past.

Whatever you’re dealing with, choose to worship God in the midst of it and trust him to set you free.

Your problems won’t magically disappear but you’ll find they don’t have the same power over you when you come before our God who is king and sovereign.

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Not only did Paul and Silas have their chains

broken but the prisoners around them were set free too. When we worship God’s presence comes and it is by his presence that people get set free.

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WHAT IT MEANS TO WORSHIP GOD?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT Is life good or bad right now? How does that impact how you feel about offering worship to God? Where could you show God your love and praise through your actions? Think about different areas of your life (home, school, friendships, hobbies, church) and how you could worship God through your everyday tasks and interactions.

THINGS TO DO Being a committed member of a church is really important to have times of corporate worship.

Make time and space to worship alone – you might want to sing your own songs to God, sing along to some worship music, speak out your praises, use an instrument or write down why you love him.

Try to read a psalm every day - these are a great way to worship God using words that have been used in worship over centuries. You might find it helpful to write your own psalm expressing how you feel about God and the things that are happening in your life.

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GOING DEEPER The Greatest Commandment Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Hebrews 4:12 Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvellous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. 2 Timothy 3:16

RESOURCES Soul Survivor Youth Bible Articles

If you have a Soul Survivor Youth Bible, check out the series of articles that Beth Croft has written on the theme of worship.

Chord Charts

Check out the ‘Resources’ section of our website too for chord charts, worship song demos and info about songs we use in the summer.

Albums

Most years we produce a live album from our summer events featuring the songs we’ve sung. Check out our website (shop. soulsurvivor.com) for details of past and present albums plus CDs from others that we think are great worship resources too.

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One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.’

He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:

WHAT IS PRAYER?

Father, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.”’ Luke 11:1-4 You don’t need to be an expert to know that good relationships thrive on good conversation.

Whether in friendship, family or marriage, communication is vital and prayer is simply communication with God. We often think it’s a one way street where we tell God what we need but it should be two-way communication where we speak and we listen. If the idea of hearing God speak seems strange, it can be as simple as reading the Bible or making space in silence to see if there’s anything he wants to say.

One model that Jesus gives us of how to pray is using the Lord’s Prayer. If you’re struggling to know how to pray you might find this breakdown helpful: “Our Father” Jesus is reminding us that we’re not talking to a distant God but to a father who knows us better

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than we know ourselves. He is our dad and we are his kids.

“Hallowed be your name” Here we’re asking for God to be glorified and honoured in our world.

“Your kingdom come” When we pray it shouldn’t just be about we want but we’re asking that God would have his way on the earth so that things would be as he wants them to be. You might want to pray specifically for God’s kingdom to come in your life, your street, your school, your family, and your friendships as well as around the country and the world.

“Give us each day our daily bread” This reminds us that there is no need that is beyond God. We don’t need to keep prayer for emergencies when we need something big but we can talk to God and ask him for everyday things whether that’s our next meal or help getting through an exam.

“Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us” None of us is perfect so we all hurt other people and find that other people hurt us. This part of the Lord’s Prayer reminds us to say sorry to God for the things we’ve done wrong each day. When we’ve been the one that gets hurt we can get bitter but God wants us to forgive those who hurt us for our own sake.

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WHAT IS PRAYER?

“Lead us not into temptation” The key to living the Christian life is not about trying really hard but about depending on God and asking him to help us to live for him.

Remember that you can pray anywhere at any time about anything. God is listening to us 24-7 and nothing is too big or small to chat to him about.

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT Chat with someone who has a good relationship with Jesus about how they pray and hear from God What is communication like in your family and friendship groups? What’s good and what’s bad? How might these examples of communication impact how you talk to God and the ways you think he might communicate with you?

THINGS TO DO Make space each day to pray – it’s good to chat to God throughout the day but also make time to sit and simply focus on being with him Find what works for you – speaking your prayers out loud, writing your prayers in a journal, sitting quietly, being creative… there is no right or wrong way to pray Think about praying regularly with one or two friends

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GOING DEEPER The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. Psalm 145:18

The Parable of the Persistent Widow Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

“For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.” Luke 18:1-8 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-8

RESOURCES We have a number of seminars on prayer from our summer events which can be downloaded for £1 on our website.

questions to chat through in a small group. www.prayercourse.org

Try the Prayer Course which offers six free video teaching sessions with

article on praying the Psalms in the Soul Survivor Youth Bible.

Check out the Prayer series and the

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WHY IS CHURCH SO IMPORTANT? 20

WHAT NOW?

Just as a body, though one, has

many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.

Now if the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be?

If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

1 Corinthians 12: 13, 15-20 God is all about community because he knows we’re much better off being together than we are when we’re on our own. Church can sometimes get a bad reputation – even amongst Christians! After all it’s made up of people like us with their good and bad bits. There’s no such thing as a perfect church but God says ‘love me, love my church’. The Bible talks about the church as God’s bride and he as the

bridegroom and says “as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5) – isn’t that an incredible picture of how much he delights in us?

It’s easy to look at a church, any church, and see its faults but God calls us to commit to a church community and to play our part. Even if we don’t feel like we have much to bring, we all still play a vital role. As 1 Corinthians 12 tells us we are like a body and each body has many parts. They don’t all do the same thing but without each other the whole body is in trouble, and any part of the body that gets cut off from the rest, cannot survive alone.

We’re not meant to do this life alone; we shine brightest when we’re together. Church isn’t a building or a service we go to on a Sunday it’s a group of people committing to loving God, one another and their community. Church shouldn’t be an inward looking thing, where we focus just on our own needs and wants, church should be outward looking and missional, seeking to bring God’s Kingdom outside of the walls of the church building to those who don’t yet know Jesus.

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WHY IS CHURCH SO IMPORTANT?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT Are you already part of a local church? What ways could you be more committed/get more involved? Who could you chat to at your church about ways you could be a blessing?

When you read Acts 2:42-47 what challenges you about the way the early disciples lived as a community?

THINGS TO DO Be committed to your church:

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:42-47 Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

Ephesians 5:25-27

— Go every Sunday that you can — Serve on a team — Give where you can with your time and money — Pray for your church and for your leaders Join the youth group and/or a small group Be committed to your friends from church and make time to hang out together regularly

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GOING DEEPER

FURTHER READING Soul Survivor Youth Bible Articles

Check out Andy Croft’s article on the Doctrine of the Trinity in the Soul Survivor Youth Bible (part of the ‘What is Christianity?’ storylines series). We have one God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit which means he models community and family. God invites us into this relationship with him as well as inviting us into relationship with each other.

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‘Lord, when did we see you

hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?

When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

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WHAT NOW?

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:31-40 Becoming a Christian is like starting a car journey.

It’s tempting to invite Jesus into the passenger seat whilst keeping a firm grip on the wheel ourselves, or to let him drive but be an annoying back seat driver, telling him where to go and how to get there.

That’s not the deal we signed up for. When Jesus comes into our lives he comes to be Lord and King and that means being passionate about the things he’s passionate about. The key thing he wants is for others to be in a relationship with him; this is the mission that we give our lives to as his followers.

We call it evangelism and all that means is sharing the good news you’ve found about Jesus with other people.

We do this in two ways. One is with our words; we share our story of how we met with Jesus, what he means to us and what a difference he has made in our lives. The second way is with our actions as our actions must match our words. God is a God of justice and his heart burns for those people who no one else seems to care about. Throughout the Bible we see that God cares about us living a life of justice whether that’s giving food to someone who is going hungry, standing up for someone who is being treated unfairly, sending money so a child in an area of poverty around the world can receive food and an education, or going to an area in need ourselves.

Mother Teresa dedicated her life to serving the poorest of the poor in Calcutta. When she was asked why she did what she did, she replied, ‘I do it for Jesus’. She knew that everything we do for those in need, we do for Jesus. Sharing the gospel through our words and our deeds is one of the ways we worship and show our love for Jesus.

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WHAT IS GODS MISSION?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT What’s your story? How did you meet Jesus and what difference has he made in your life? Think through how you could share your story so you’re ready when someone asks.

What are the needs in your community? What types of spiritual, physical and emotional poverty are there?

THINGS TO DO Speak to your youth leader about how you could get involved in a church project serving your community.

Get involved with Soul Action (the bit of Soul Survivor that’s about helping each of us reach people living in poverty in the UK and around the world). We have loads of resources to help you explore mission and justice and you can take part in fundraisers to help us work with projects in some of the world’s poorest communities.

Pray that God would give you a passion for justice and eyes to see where you can make a difference.

Look out for ways you can stand up for justice – whether that’s sticking up for someone at school, signing a petition about trafficking, buying Fairtrade products or speaking to your favourite clothes brands about not using slave labour.

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GOING DEEPER What does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18-20 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Isaiah 58:6-7

RESOURCES Soul Survivor Youth Bible Articles In the Soul Survivor Youth Bible you’ll find a series on evangelism as well as articles on ‘Justice and mercy’ and ‘Faith in the world’.

‘Worship evangelism justice’ by Mike Pilavachi and Liza Hoeksma Worship evangelism justice looks at how we can let worship infuse every area of our lives, what evangelism looks like and what God’s passion for justice means in a broken and hurting world.

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We hope you’ve found this helpful as you start your journey with Jesus.

Here are some final thoughts from us:

SOME FINAL THOUGHTS...

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Enjoy it!

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Don’t expect yourself to be perfect!

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Keep going!

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WHAT NOW?

Following Jesus can be a huge adventure. The more you get to know God the more you’ll find out how much he loves you and the plans he has for you. Like any new relationship it takes time to get to know one another and the more you invest in it the deeper you will go.

You will make mistakes, you will mess up (all of us do) but don’t let that make you give up on being a Christian. God doesn’t expect you to be perfect; he is always gracious, loving and forgiving. Every time you get it wrong just come back to him, saying sorry and receive his forgiveness, love and mercy.

You’re at the start of a really exciting journey and you’ll be working out how to live for Jesus for the rest of our life. Don’t expect yourself to know everything now.

Don’t expect everything to be easy!

Being a Christian doesn’t mean that suddenly everything will go your way and your life will pan out exactly as you hope. Remember that God is with you whether life is good or bad, keep focused on him and he will help you come out of any hard times with a deeper understanding of who he is and how much he loves you.

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EXTRA RESOURCES We put lots of teaching (and a fair few fun and silly things!) on www.youtube.com/ soulsurvivoruk and post articles on the resources section of our website too. On our shop you can check out some books, CDS, and more that we think you might find helpful plus you can download any of our seminar or main meeting talks from our summer events for £1 each.

EVENTS Come and hang out with us at our events each summer and throughout the year!

Check out the website for more details and to book.

KEEP IN TOUCH We’d love to hear your story! You can email us and tell us what led you to becoming a Christian and how your life has changed since: testimonies@soulsurvivor.com www.soulsurvivor.com @SoulSurvivorGB Facebook /soulsurvivoruk If you’re 18 or over check out www.momentum.org.uk

Charity no. 1080720 Company no. 031111 | All Bible verses are from the NIV unless otherwise stated.

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WHAT NOW?

Charity no. 1080720 Company no. 031111

www.soulsurvivor.com