Click below to download the Cornerstone Connections leader’s guide and student lesson. This week’s resources also include two lesson plans and a discussion starter video which offer different ways of looking at the topic. Each lesson plan includes opening activities, scripture passages, discussion questions, and real-life applications.
Supplies:
• Poster board or large sheets of paper
• Red and green sticky notes
• Multicolored pens or markers
Place large poster boards or sheets of paper around your room. Label each with one of the following headings:
Provide the students with multicolored markers or pens and invite them to visit each sign. Instruct them to write comments on each sign. The goal is to describe, define, and illustrate each of these types of popular culture. (For example, on “movies” they might write titles, genres, and their thoughts on certain movies; on “social media” they might write Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, pictures, insults, political views, etc.) They may also wish to estimate how many hours per week they spend on each item listed.
After your students have contributed to each poster, provide red and green sticky notes and ask them to add additional comments on the pros (green) and cons (red), attaching the sticky notes to the appropriate sheets.
Supplies:
Place objects weighing a total of 5 pounds into one bucket and label it “God Time.” Place objects weighing a total of 15 pounds into another bucket and label it “Leisure Time.” Make a 10-15’ masking tape line on the floor. Then ask the kids to walk a straight line, toe to heel, arms outstretched, holding one bucket with the left hand and one with the right.
Variation: Let the students adjust the weight in the buckets to represent their own time spent with God in devotions or nature vs. their free time spent on other activities.
These days our phones and computers track our screen time. Some of your screen time may overlap with your time with God. You may read the Bible and your Sabbath School lesson online, or follow your youth group on social media.
What happens when you compare the amount of time you spend learning about and talking with God compared to free time spent in other ways? We are influenced by the ways we choose to spend our time and attention. We are also influenced by the people in our lives. Even wise King Solomon was not immune to these facts.
Let’s open our Bibles to 1 Kings 11:1-13 and see what distractions led King Solomon far away from God’s plan.
Read today’s passage: 1 Kings 11:1-13.
You might remember from English class that alliteration occurs when words begin with the same letter or sound. (Examples: Peter Pan, Brooklyn Bridge, monsters of mayhem, date with destiny.)
Here are some examples of two-word alliterations:
And here are some examples of three-word alliterations:
Based on our chapter for today, what alliterations can you think of?
Let’s read the short, sad story of Solomon’s fall from God as he filled his life with other cultural influences in 1 Kings 11:1-13.
APPLICATION
Put yourself in Solomon's place. He loves God and he also loves his wives. God asked Solomon to avoid marrying women from other nations, but Solomon did it anyway. Solomon surrounded himself with people who believed in different Gods and held different values. As a result, he adopted a new mindset. How would you rationalize this if you were Solomon?
What about you? Do you follow God completely, or are there areas of your life that you have not yet entrusted to him? What impact do others have on you? What impact does culture have on you? Is it fair to say that you love the people and culture around you?
Proverbs 2:1-5 is believed to be either collected or written by King Solomon. Let's look at this text as if it were written after the events in 1 Kings 11. We will break these verses down to learn the lessons Solomon teaches us about keeping our focus on God.
Throughout scripture we are cautioned to keep our focus on Jesus rather than our own abilities.