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Seminar Participant
Another Object Lesson
Submitted by
Karen M Pennington
Lay Leadership Director
The Salvation Army
USA, Western Territory
Last month, we ran an activity that was a little different - it was an object lesson, a quick-hitter with a particular message that it was trying to illustrate. While object lessons are different than other experiential activities in that it points you to a particular meaning rather than inviting you to explore and determine the meaning in the activity (you know, kind of like the difference between open and closed questions), they can be very useful and are often easy to insert and quick to do. In that vein, we have another this month.
Purpose: In a Christian context, to show that each person is unique and valuable as a member of "the Body of Christ." Can also be used in a non-religious or other-religious setting to show the importance of each part in any system.
Set-up: None.
Activity (in Karen's words) I am not sure if you have heard this one before, but I have a simple little one for you (I think I may have made it up, though I'm sure others have thought of it as well.) The first time I taught this was as an introduction to an ecology class I taught to 2nd graders. I now use it in connection with teaching about "The Body of Christ," found in I Corinthians 12. The idea is that every person, everything, every part of something (nature, the body, a group) plays an important role. Here's the challenge:
- Tie your shoes and time yourself to get a baseline.
- Now, Tie your shoes... without using your thumbs. -OR- tie your shoes without using your index finger, or your middle finger. It is possible, but definitely more difficult.
Debrief Pointers:
- How well the system works when all parts are filling their roles.
- How challenging when we are missing all of the players or when we have to operate outside of our competencies.
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