source: www.youthwork-practice.com | 2000 Games, Devotions, Themes, Ideas and more for Youth Work
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Holding – carrying – trust

Games:

A strong (large strong person) carries a weaker (less heavy person).
(One person carries the other person’s load)
Swap over: the weaker (small person), carries the strong person (large person)
(Overload – or what can we stand)
Ropes are crossed over in criss-crosses and are tied/held and a person lies on them.
(A network offers support)
The ropes are removed one after the other until the net can no longer hold the person.
(Support is lost – when things in life break down)
A person lets him/herself fall into the arms of the person standing behind.
(Trust – how do you feel when you let yourself fall? Do you trust that the other person will catch you when you fall?)
Conveyor belt: A person lies on the others arms. The others stand opposite each other holding hands
(Friends carry you - trust)
A person is carried through an obstacle course on a stretcher
(Friends give everything for your – who has friends they can trust?)
Build a card house from lots of beer mats or playing cards. Remove 1-2 cards. What happens?
(Sometimes it just takes one pillar to break and everything falls down)

Material:

approx. 10 ropes, stretcher (table or board), playing cards or beer mats

Length:

you will need approx. 30-45 minutes for the games. Not all of them must be played. I would suggest approx. 30 minutes for thoughts and discussions. This is dependant on the openness of the group how a discussion will get going.

Thoughts for a discussion:

What is your support in life?
What supports you?
Who supports you?
Do you need support?
When do you need support?
Can you give support?
What is the prerequisite for this?
How can you provide support?

(In order to get a discussion going the answers/ideas on the individual questions can be pinned to the wall on cards.)

Devotion:

The paralytic – his friends carry him on a mat to see Jesus (Luke 5, verses 17-26).

They apply themselves
They do everything
Nothing seems to be impossible
They are full of ideas
It’s great to have such friends

In the discussion, not everyone will take part in the discussion and not everyone will take part and talk openly but this can never be fully expected. A lot depends on the group and their openness and trust among each other. However it is sometimes important to show that there are “crisis” in life and that “support” is important. It is also important that we do not talk around with our eyes closed and oversee others who might be looking for our support. However it is also represented by the games that this can sometimes lead to us being over asked.