When you were younger, do you remember getting a balloon for your birthday or some other special occasion? The person giving it to you probably warned, “If you don’t hold onto it tightly it will blow away and you’ll lose it!” So you wrapped your little fingers around it, gripping it with as much strength as you could. You didn’t want to lose what was valuable to you, so the way to keep it was to clench your fist and close your hands.
Now that we’re older, balloons don’t mean as much. But we still have things that are important to us that we don’t want to lose. Maybe it’s a friendship, or our popularity. Maybe it’s our phone, or our position on the team. We’ve lived long enough now to realize that it’s easy to lose a lot more than just a balloon. We may not literally wrap our hands around what we’re trying to hold onto, but our hearts are still gripping them tightly.
This summer at camp our theme for the week is Openhanded. There are so many things God has given us to be thankful for. He wants us to enjoy the things he has given us and take good care of them – whether they’re relationships or literal things. The Bible says, “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father.” (James 1:17a) While we enjoy his gifts, he wants us to share them with others, remembering that they’re from him to do with whatever he wants. Sometimes, we forget that and start worshiping the gift instead of the Giver of the gift. That’s when we might notice our grip getting tighter on the gift. We’ll hold onto it no matter what. And sometimes we grab things that aren’t good gifts but sinful ones, and we don’t want to let them go either.
During camp, God wants you to look at the things in your life and see what you’re holding onto.
- Make a list of some of the good gifts God has given to you.
- Are your fists closed around any of those gifts? (Ex: A test might be to think “Am I willing to sin – in my heart or by my actions – to keep ahold of it?” or “Would I be OK without it?” Imagine if a new student moves to your school and takes your starting spot on the team. How would you respond? Imagine your parents take away your phone privileges. How would you respond?)
- What are some sinful things you have grabbed hold of that now have a hold on you?
- What are some things God might be asking you to loosen your grip on in your life?
If you are a Christian, Jesus has you in the palm of his hand and nothing and no one can take you away from him. “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me.” (John 10:28) He has you tightly in his grip!
- Explain what it means to be a Christian. Have you trusted Jesus to forgive you of your sins and have a relationship with you? Why or why not?
