Initiative is seeing what needs to be done and doing it.

Memory Verse: “Work at everything you do with all your heart. Work as if you were working for the Lord.” Colossians 3:23a, NIrV

Week 1:
Today we  began with the first chapter of Nehemiah. Nehemiah was working for King Artaxerxes when his brother brought news from the exiles living in Judah. When he heard about the devastation in Jerusalem, Nehemiah was heartbroken. He recognized the huge need and before he did anything he prayed. He knew he needed God’s help.

Bottom Line: When you see something big to be done, ask God for help. 

Week 2:
We’ll check out Nehemiah 2:1-9 and 11-18. Nehemiah took initiative and set out to fix the wall. When no one else would step, he went straight to King Artaxerxes and took action. And it’s that initiative that inspires the entire community to get involved.

Bottom Line: When you see what needs to be done, don’t wait for someone else to do it.

Week 3:
We will focus on a different part of Nehemiah’s story in Nehemiah 5:1-12. While everyone was building the wall, an issue arose. Some of the Israelites were severely mistreating each other. Even though Nehemiah was in charge of rebuilding the wall, even though he was the leader, and even though he was in charge, he stopped the building of the wall to confront the issue. He cared enough about the people to stay to help them figure out a solution.

Bottom Line: When you see people in need, don’t wait for someone else to help them. 

Week 4:
We’ll look at several passages through Nehemiah and that throughout the whole process of building the wall, Nehemiah demonstrated some amazing truths about initiative. He demonstrated how to see what needs to be done and did it. He demonstrated how to care for others. He even demonstrated something that’s very important to recognize when talking about initiative—Nehemiah realized that the ability or strength to do what needs to be done comes from God. We cannot accomplish the task on our own. We have to lean on God to do His part as well. The most powerful part is seeing that when they did their part, God stepped in and did something that only God could do.

Bottom Line: You can trust God to help you do what needs to be done.

Week 5: 
Week 5 we will wrap up our Life App on initiative. Together we will have a chance to show initiative and work together on a  special project for our community. Colossians 3:23 tells us to work for the Lord with all our hearts and we are going to put God’s word into action!

Bottom Line: Work hard for the Lord.

Wisdom is finding out what you should do and doing it.

Memory Verse: “Choose my teaching instead of silver. Choose knowledge rather than fine gold.” Proverbs 8:10, NIrV
Week 1 
We will look at 1 Kings 3:4-15 and discover one of the wisest men who ever lived—Solomon. As Solomon got ready to take on the weight of leading a nation, he had an incredible dream. God came to him and asked: “What is it that I can give you, if I could give you anything, what is it that you would choose?” And Solomon picked wisdom.
Bottom Line: If you want to be wise, ask God for wisdom.
Week 2 
We will look at what happens when you listen to foolish people and take their advice. In 1 Kings 12:1-15, we’ll see what happened with one of Solomon’s sons, named Rehoboam. He was a young man who, once he got the advice of his elders, disregarded and ignored the advice and listened to his peers and friends—the consequences were devastating.
Bottom Line: If you want to be wise, hang out with wise people.
Week 3 
We will look at Proverbs 12:18 where Solomon wrote, “The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” Words can be powerful. With a word, we can cut people down or we can encourage them.
Bottom Line: If you want to be wise, think before you speak.
Week 4 
We will look at Proverbs 22:3. “Wise people see danger and go to a safe place. But childish people keep going and suffer for it.” We don’t want children to simply think about what’s right and wrong; rather, we want them to understand what is wise. And wisdom is connected to the words given to them by a loving God, who has their best interest in mind.
Bottom Line: If you want to be wise, look before you leap.