Values

We always discuss COD4

Real Faithfulness

Agreed

When asked if we value honesty, family, friendship, faithfulness we all agreed we did.

Faithfulness

Faithfulness as a friend is more than not cheating on your girlfriend. It’s when a friend calls you when they are in trouble, your playing a video game while listening to them, that isn’t being faithful.

Why do we lie, why are we unfaithful

The question then is if we value honesty and being faithful to friends and family why do we lie, why do we let people down?

The answer

Money is not the answer

We value ourselves more than honesty and faithfulness. We lie to protect ourselves, like when our girlfriend asks if she is fat. Or when we get in trouble. Or when we have something to gain by a lie.

Friendship when it suits

Another student recognised that sometimes we don’t feel like being faithful. We may be tired, or having something else to do and don’t want to listen to a friends trouble. Or we may have a better offer on the weekend so we blow off our weekday friends to hang out with our weekend friends.

This isn’t real friendship : (

Money

Cameron shared that people with high incomes statistically don’t rate any higher that people who earn an above average wage. In fact some seriously rich people get depressed because they can have whatever they want but lose purpose and meaning.

Money is not the answer. In fact how do you know (if you are rich) whether people are just after your money rather than your friendship? Money, fame and power can be very isolating.

Health freak and going to school

Depends on beliefs

Why do some people eat rabbit food, jog and go to the gym? Because they believe that it will make them healthy. They also believe that being healthy is good. So why to high school students go to school? Because they believe that an education will increase their chances of finding work which will mean they will be able to provide for themselves.

Control

So what you believe influences your decisions. Why do some people not tie their shoe laces up? Lazy, slip on shoes and as a fashion statement were the answers. One student shared the conflict it would put him in if his friends smoked and wanted him to smoke. He shared that he wouldn’t smoke even if that meant losing his friends. So his belief that smoking is bad outweighs his belief that he needs those friends.

Origin and purpose

Original bang?

If a person believes that God made the world, how might that affect the way they live their lives. Students shared that a person would have a clearer faith, go to church, live to a higher moral standard because they feared God.

A person who believes the the origin of the universe is random might live for pleasure, who what they can get out of their lives.

Control

It is important to be aware of what we believe and where those beliefs come from, are they valid and worthwhile? Otherwise we will be controlled without realising it. Advertisers try and get us to believe all sorts of things like Lynx will get you chicks so that you buy their product.

In game advertising

Hey

RE was boring

Cameron (Gap Baptist), Dieter, Freddy, Teylore, Sam, Callum

Boring

Most students have been baptised but don’t go to church. Everyone agreed that RE was dead boring : (

Call of Duty 4

Somehow someone brought up Call of Duty 4 and because a few of us play it we got to discussing all things military. Cameron shared how he has fired many of the guns on his honeymoon and that his wife shot the crotch out of the target board. We expressed our concern about his safety which he took on board.

Spirituality?

Cool assault rifle

What is it?

• What we believe

• Religion

• Something that is concerned with eternal rather than the today here and now

• Something that is concerned about the non physical

• Something that people have had wars over.

Different interpretations

We differ in our interpretation of the data/facts

One student said he followed science, facts. I pointed out that everyone uses the same facts to come to different conclusions. We agree there is a world, that we live on this world, there are trees and people and building etc. Where we differ is when we seek to understand the world, its origin and its purpose.

Some say science explains these questions best. Evolution, big bang

Others say that God made the world

Each looks at the world but they differ in their interpretation.

So all the different religions represent and different explanation of reality.

That was heavy so I hope you didn’t bust a head casket trying to follow that.

Cheers, the Rev