YOUTH GROUP LESSON ON CONTENTMENT

Here’s a free youth group lesson on contentment based on Colossians 3:23, Proverbs 21:5, Matthew 6:31-33, Isaiah 26:3, and Proverbs 37:4. 

Includes a fun opening game to set up the lesson and small group discussion questions to use afterward. 

Enjoy!

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YOUTH GROUP LESSON ON CONTENTMENT

Bible: Colossians 3:23, Proverbs 21:5, Matthew 6:31-33, Isaiah 26:3, Proverbs 37:4

Bottom Line: True contentment provides peace and comes from trusting God and seeking His kingdom above all else.

GAME SUPPLIES:

• Large Bowl
• Variety of small candy (Skittles, M&Ms, Jelly Beans, Reese’s Pieces)
• Paper Plates
• Masking Tape or Chalk
• Sharpies
• Horn sound (on phone or air horn)
• Extra Large Prize (full-size candy bar, an unopened bag of candy, a gift card)
• Suspenseful music, optional

GAME PREP:

In the center of your space, place the bowl filled with the candy.

Measure and mark a circle using chalk or masking tape that is at least 7 feet from the bowl. 

If your space does not allow for a 7-foot circle all around the bowl, place the bowl at the front of the room with a line 7 feet from the bowl. 

The area beyond the circle or line is the “I’m Good” zone in the script.

HOW TO PLAY THE GAME: 

Students race to collect candy.

Students only keep the candy collected if they are touching their plate when the horn sounds.

You decide the length of time for the game and when the horn will sound.

You can set a timer for a random amount of time that allows students to collect a good amount of candy or watch the action and sound the timer strategically for best results.

Student with the most candy has the opportunity to trade the candy in for the extra-large prize.

Say: Today we are going to play an awesome game called “Sugar Sprint Showdown.”

You each will need a paper plate with your name on it.

Hand out the paper plates and have students write their name on a plate with the Sharpie.

Up here we have a bowl of sugary treats.

Point to the bowl of candy at the front of the room.

Who likes candy?

Interact with student answers.

You will have a chance tonight to get a whole lot of candy.

In a minute, when I say go, you will leave your plate in the “I’m good” zone, which is behind that tape/chalk, you’ll run to the bowl, grab ONE piece of candy, run back and drop it on your plate.

You’ll continue grabbing candy, ONE candy piece at a time, until the horn blows.

A couple of little rules I need to mention:

1. Your plate must remain in the “I’m good” zone at ALL TIMES.  A plate that crosses the line is dumped and the owner is disqualified.
2. You must not eat any candy during the competition.  Anyone eating any pieces of candy will be disqualified.
3. No candy may be thrown.  Candy throwers are disqualified.
4. No pushing, shoving, tripping, etc.
5. You cannot work together.
6. You may only grab ONE piece of candy at a time.

Sounds simple?

Great! Ready?

Ahhhh, but wait, there’s a bit more to this game.

To sweeten things up a bit, there’s one little rule you need to know.

You only keep the candy on your plate if you are touching your plate with at least one of your hands in the “I’m good” zone when the horn sounds.

If you are at the candy bowl or are on your way to or from your plate in the “I’m good” zone, you will lose all the candy pieces you have already collected.

In other words, you can only keep the candy on your plate when the horn sounds.

“So how long until the horn sounds?” you might be asking.

Well, that’s the thing.

You won’t know until it sounds.

Who’s ready to play?

Ohhhh, wait just one more little thing I need to mention.

There’s another little twist to this game.

The person with the most candy, inside the “I’m good” zone touching their plate when the horn sounds will have the opportunity to trade their plate of candy in for this Extra Big Prize.

Hold up the Extra Big Prize.

Ok. Who’s ready to play?

Go!

Blow the horn and have students with eligible plates count their candy.

Allow the top candy plate the opportunity to trade it for the Extra Big Prize.

If that person does not want it, go to the next highest collector until the Extra Big Prize is taken.

TEACH:

Say: That was a challenging game.

What made it tough?

Allow students to answer.

Yeah, it was hard to know if you had time to go get more candy or if you should stay at your plate and be satisfied with what you already had.

And if you wanted the chance at the Extra Big Prize, you had to check out what everyone else was doing too.

It was hard to be content with what you had.

And that’s what we’re going to talk about today – being content.

I think sometimes it’s easier to talk about the opposite of contentment first. 

Discontentment is the feeling that you need something else … or you need something better … or you never have enough.

You need different clothes, different friends, different vacations, more money, more followers, more likes, better hair, better cars, better grades.

Different … more … better … It’s a chase that never ends.

Can someone read Ecclesiastes 6:9 for us please?

Have a student read the verse to the group.

“Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind.” 

Chasing the wind.

Have you ever wanted something really, really, really badly?

I have.

Tell a personal story or use the one below. (If you tell a personal story, skip to the *)

Every time a new phone comes out, I really want it.

I’m sure that it will make my life so much better, I’ll be cooler (as if I could get cooler) and my life will finally be complete.

I must get that new phone.

I dream about getting it, I plan how I’m going to get it, I look at it every single free moment I have during my day, I go to Target and hold it lovingly at the display counter, until that day when I can actually buy it.

And then exactly 5.7 seconds after I have set it up and made my first post to social media, I see an even newer phone with a better camera and more power.

Ugh!

And I decide I just have to have that new one.

*

Chasing the wind.

Discontentment.

Influencers and commercials are designed specifically to tap into our discontentment and keep us wanting more, more, more!

And they do!

That new makeup?

Want it.

More vacations to really cool places?

Want it.

More money?

Want it.

Cool clothes, shoes, and accessories?

Want it.

Clean new hairdo?

Want it.

Better grades?

Want it.

More PR’s in my sport?

Want it.

And what can make all of this kind of tricky is that often the things we desire aren’t bad things.

There is nothing wrong with travel or good grades or looking nice!

In fact, you shouldn’t want bad grades, horrible outcomes in your sport, or terrible body odor.

The Bible tells us that we should do our best, take care of our bodies, and set plans and goals for the future that line up with God’s will. 

Would someone read Colossians 3:23 for us please?

Have a student read the verse to the group.

“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”

When we do schoolwork, chores, participate in a sport, or work an afterschool job, we should treat that work as if our boss is the Lord.

We should always strive to do our best.

Would someone read Proverbs 21:5 for us?

Have a student read the verse to the group.

“Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.” 

We are told there is wisdom in good planning, setting goals for the future, and working hard.

Contentment isn’t about not having any ambition.

Contentment is about no longer chasing the wind because you’ve already got all you need in Jesus.

Jesus told said it like this in Matthew 6:31-33:

31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

In other words:

• Don’t stress about what you’ll wear or drive.
• Don’t look at what everyone is posting on social media and wish it were yours. 
• Don’t chase after a bunch of things that will bring you no lasting joy. 

God knows exactly what you need.

Chase after God, worship Him alone, and live the way He wants you to live … and He will give you exactly what He knows you need.

But how can we know if we’re chasing things other than Jesus?

Here’s a quick way to know if we’re chasing the wrong stuff.

If what you’re chasing after right now makes you anxious, stressed out, worried, sleepless, or out of your mind, then it’s something other than Jesus that you’re after.

Chasing Jesus and seeking His kingdom produces calm and peace. 

Will someone read Isaiah 26:3, please?

Have a student read the verse to the group.

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”

Fixing our hearts on Jesus leads to perfect peace.

And will someone read John 14:27 for us?

Have a student read the verse to the group.

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

Jesus gives us peace of mind and heart.

The world cannot provide these.

I know you know that feeling of seeing that new thing and wanting it so very badly that you’re definitely not at peace.

You’re amped up, trying to figure out how to get it and imagining what wonderfulness awaits you when it becomes yours.

I know because I can get that way too.

Discontent.

It will always cause anxiety, worry, and stress.

The last part of that verse from Matthew is pretty popular.

Maybe you’ve heard it before:

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

Chase after God’s things (love, forgiveness, generosity, humility for example) and He’ll make sure that we have the things that we need.

Put God first in your life and not only will you have peace and calm, He’ll also make sure that your needs are taken care of.

Now you might be thinking to yourself, ”Yeah, that’s great and all, but what about some of those goals I have for my life, those things that I really want?”

Let’s look at Proverbs 37:4:

“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.” 

Our needs are taken care of, and our heart’s desires that are in line with God’s will are given to us as well.

Jesus knows that we are prone to chase the wrong things.

And He knows that chasing the wind can lead us away from His perfect peace.

Jesus doesn’t want to deny us good things! In fact, He wants us to have what we need and our heart’s desires also.

And He wants us to have peace.

We are secure in Him – our current needs, our heart’s desires, and our future too.

Contentment in Him reveals a heart that is seeking Him and satisfied with the things that He provides.

Let’s pray.

Close in prayer.

SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. During the game, how did you decide whether to get more candy or stay at your plate?
2. Can you share a time when you felt discontent, wanting something more or different? How did that make you feel?
3. How do social media and advertisements contribute to feelings of discontentment in our lives?
4. How do we know if we are chasing after the wrong things in life? What are some signs that we might be focused on the wrong priorities?
5. How does the idea that “contentment is about no longer chasing the wind because you’ve already got all you need in Jesus” relate to Ecclesiastes 6:9‘s message about enjoying what you have instead of desiring what you don’t?
6. Proverbs 37:4 says that God will give us the desires of our hearts if we delight in Him. What does it mean to delight in the Lord, and how can we ensure our desires align with His will?
7. How can we support each other in our group to stay content and focused on God’s promises rather than getting caught up in chasing material things or societal pressures?
8. What are some practical steps you can take this week to cultivate contentment in your life? How can you focus more on seeking God’s kingdom and trusting in His promise to provide all your needs?

End lesson.

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