Leader Guide

Objective
Your group will understand what they are capable of when they join together towards a common goal and what they are capable of personally when they choose to live differently.

Warm Up
Tell them the story of Nathan Mitcham. Search on the web for his name or #DressNathanOut.

Say something like, "The whole thing about this story depended upon the teenagers to jump-start this. With Twitter, all it took was one share from each person! It garnered national attention from new outlets and celebrities."

Transition
Say something along the lines of, "Have you ever thought about how you could impact the world around you? Or, how your youth group could make a difference in your school or community? Take a listen to this song by Derek Minor and Hollyn, and make sure you catch the chorus!"

The Song
Say, "As the song is playing, check out your handout and try to fill in the lyrics, specifically the chorus." (Because we aren't able to print lyrics, you will have to look up the lyrics ahead of time to have an answer key.)

Transition
Say, "Derek Minor and Hollyn rap/sing about changing the world—we can find news stories about changing the world, but are there examples in the Bible of people changing the world? There sure are!"

Bible Study
Say, "God sent an Angel to speak to Gideon (He was going to use Gideon to deliver the Israelites from the enemy), and Gideon pretty much told the angel that he had the wrong guy. Gideon was the youngest and weakest in his clan, and his clan was the smallest. Imagine totem pole that ranks people top to bottom - Gideon's clan was at the bottom of the totem pole, and Gideon was so far down in his clan that you can't see him because the grass has grown up over him. That's Gideon. Yet, God called him. Gideon tested God to verify the call, because he didn't believe it, and God confirmed it every time.

Ask for a volunteer to read Judges 7:1-7. Pause. Say, "So far, Gideon has taken lead of a group of Israelites, and God tells Gideon that he has too many soldiers. So Gideon sends 22,000 men home. Still too many. Gideon sends 9,700 men home, and ends up with 300 men. He starts with 32,000, and ends up with 300. That's less than 1% of what he started with - insane, but God says he is good to go!"

Ask for another volunteer to read Judges 7:15-23. Say, "With 300 men, Gideon leads an attack and routes an entire army. Don't miss this - the victory was because God was in control. By blowing trumpets, smashing pottery, and yelling, they routed an entire army of soldiers. It's estimated that the fighting force of the Midianites was 135,000. That's 450 Midianites to 1 Israelite. Unbelievable odds! But, those men changed the world for the nation of Israel, in a HUGE way."

Wrap Up
To close, say something like, "So, what needs to change for you? How can you change the world? In the story with Nathan Mitcham, it was the Point Guard, Jaylen Lowe, of the team who started something that made an impact. For the players and students around Lowe, they had to make the decision to jump on board to make an impact. For Gideon, he had to believe and trust in God, who was calling him to something huge, even when the odds and the tactics were ridiculous. So, how can you change the world? How can we change the world?"