Weekly Content for P.A.C.K. MeetingsP – PRAYERPray for your time together. Ask God to give you open hearts and ears, and a willingness to be open and honest with each other.
Wrap up your time together by having guys share additional personal prayer requests and pray specifically for one another.
You can also pray this prayer as a follow-up to the topic: Heavenly Father, fear often holds me back from obedience and stepping out in faith. Help me know when You’re leading me to do something, and please give me the peace and confidence I need to go for it. I ask for Your strength and power to overcome my fears. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
A – ACCOUNTABILITYAsk guys how their week was. Follow up on last week’s topic about having fun!
Also, it can be an opportunity for guys to share any struggles or challenges from the week that need to be confessed or held accountable for.
If married, ask how everyone is intentionally serving their spouse…and if a parent, what the biggest challenge is right now.
C – CONVERSATIONTalk about weekly content that connects sports to life and faith.
UNPACKIN’ IT DEVOTIONAL CONTENTThe SandlotThe Sandlot is one of the best movies to capture what it’s like to be a kid in the summer.
Categorized as a baseball movie, it’s also about friendship, growing up, getting into trouble, and soaking in the special season of life when you can play sports with your friends all day, go to the pool, and go on rides at the amusement park.
Although very entertaining, one core theme found throughout this movie is the boys wrestling with fear. As you probably know, the story centers around “Smalls” moving into the neighborhood and trying to fit in with the other boys while learning to play baseball.
Smalls takes a baseball signed by Babe Ruth from his stepdad’s office without realizing its significance. After the ball gets hit over the fence where a scary dog lives, the boys tell him about Babe Ruth’s legendary baseball career, and Smalls realizes he has to get it back before his stepdad finds out it’s gone.
The boys are in quite a predicament when faced with the ball being on the side of the fence where the scary “beast” or “giant gorilla-dog thing that ate one kid already” lives.
Thankfully, the group leader, Benny Rodriquez, has a dream where Babe Ruth speaks to him and says, “Let me tell you something, kid. Everybody gets one chance to do something great. Most people never take the chance, either ’cause they’re too scared…or they don’t recognize it when it spits on their shoes. This is your big chance, and you shouldn’t let it go by. Remember when you busted the guts out of the ball the other day? Someone’s telling you something, kid. If I was you, I’d listen.”
The next day, Benny puts on his P.F. Flyers shoes, jumps over that fence, faces his fears, experiences some craziness, and saves the summer! Of course, this leads to a happy ending to the movie but also brings up a comparison to overcoming fears in our own lives.
Fear always attempts to creep into our thoughts, and we tend to worry about what is on the “other side of the fence.” However, we’re allowing fear to hold us back until we jump over it and embrace what we must do.
Like Babe Ruth told Benny, “Most people never take the chance, either ’cause they’re too scared…or they don’t recognize it when it spits on their shoes.”
What “beast” or “giant gorilla-dog thing” are we scared of today? What fears are crippling us? In what areas of our lives do we sense God is telling us to do something, but we’re not obedient because we’re too worried about what’s on the other side?
Thankfully, as followers of Jesus, we have the power and strength to step out in faith and jump over the fences in life. In these moments, we can remember the following two verses:
“The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” (Psalm 118:6; NLT).
“The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” (Psalm 27:1; NLT).
Today, let’s not be consumed with fear or worry but cling to the comforting words of Jesus:
“Peace I leave with you; My [perfect] peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. [Let My perfect peace calm you in every circumstance and give you courage and strength for every challenge]” (John 14:27; AMP).
I’m Bryce Johnson, and you can UNPACK that!
PODCAST:ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER OR EMPHASIZE OR OTHER DIRECTIONS TO GO:* In other places, fear shows up in the movie. * The ways we overcome fear in order to jump over the “fence” and experience what’s on the other side. * How there are so many blessings on the other side of the fence, but we allow fear to hold us back. * The story about the dog in the movie proved to be a lie. So often, we buy lies that feed our fear and prevent us from moving forward. * When we know God has called us to do something, we have to do it; we know we need to obey, but it often requires overcoming fear.
ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:2 Timothy 1:7 (AMP): “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control].”
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:1. Who is your favorite character from The Sandlot, and why?
What is your favorite baseball movie, and why?
What were your favorite summer activities as a kid?
What were some of the fears you had as a kid?
How have your fears changed as you’ve grown older?
Why do you think that God has commanded you not to fear? (Why is it such a big deal?)
How can you prepare to not live in fear before you actually face circumstances that might cause you to worry or be afraid?
How do we live fearlessly but not recklessly? Is there a healthy fear?
What are some truths from the Bible that help you experience peace whenever you are prone to worry or fear?
What other sins could actually be the root cause of the fear and worry you experience in your walk with God?
K – KICKING Around Interesting and Relevant Sports Stories and Topics (You Can Start with This)Go around the room as each guy shares a thought, a hot take, an observation about their favorite team, or a big story happening. Save the conversation about the sports topic from the devotional for later.
THIS WEEK’S SPORTS HEADLINES/TOPICS:* The Olympics coming up. * Cooper Flagg practicing with the USA basketball team. * Baseball at the midway point * NBA Free Agency and recent moves * The ESPYs
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