Music Discussions

Everything Glorious

November 22, 2010

Dynamic Image Main Point of Discussion:
The adolescent experience is dominated by self–esteem struggles that often lead to negative behavior. Jesus Christ offers a better way to deal with these issues— through His promise of making our lives into something beautiful and glorious when we offer them to Him.

The Song: “Everything Glorious” by David Crowder Band

Introducing the Song:
While passing out the lyrics, say: “We’re going to listen to a song by David Crowder Band called, “Everything Glorious.” This song has some deep insights about who we were created to be. Here are the lyrics.

The Music Video:
The song’s video can be found at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81dK2Vu1IUs

Song Lyrics:

The day is brighter here with You
The night is lighter than its hue
Would lead me to believe
Which leads me to believe

(chorus)
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours
What does that make me?

My eyes are small but they have seen
the beauty of enormous things
Which leads me to believe
there's light enough to see that

(chorus)
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
And I am Yours

From glory to glory
You are glorious You are glorious
From glory to glory
You are glorious. You are glorious
Which leads me to believe
why I can believe

Transitional Statement:
It seems that not a week goes by that another Disney star checks into rehab. Sadly, Demi Lovato has been having some emotional struggles lately. Although there are conflicting reports about whether or not cutting was the primary reason she checked herself into a rehab center, the fact that she is struggling emotionally and physically is very obvious. And just like her, many of us sometimes struggle with self-esteem and if we matter to anybody. This song by David Crowder Band is great reminder of a truth from God’s Word that we’re going to unpack tonight.

Divide into Small Groups:
Let’s go ahead and split up into our discussion groups, and then afterward we’ll come back together for a final word.

CLICK HERE for a quick training article on how to maximize your small groups using our small group format—a great resource to equip your small group leaders.

Discussion Questions:

AROUND THE CIRCLE: Before we dive in, everybody talk about your favorite Disney show/movie and why you like it.

ASK A FEW: How could someone as popular and successful as Demi Lovato have enough problems to seek professional help?

ASK A FEW: Do you believe Demi Lovato is struggling with self-esteem? Why or why not?

ASK A FEW: How do we sometimes deal inappropriately with our feelings when we struggle with self-worth?

ASK A FEW: How does “Everything Glorious” relate to the whole idea of self-image and worth in God’s eyes?

ASK A FEW: How would you answer David Crowder’s question, “what does that make me”?

ASK A FEW: How can a relationship with Jesus make the day and night “brighter”?

Read the following passage from the Bible:

Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold. We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/Matthew-Henry/2Cor/Preaching-Apostle-Suitable)

ASK A FEW: What is the “veil” that is taken away when someone turns to Jesus for eternal life?

ASK A FEW: What kind of things does the Holy Spirit free us from? (leader—one answer you might be looking for: basing our self-worth on what people think about us)

ASK A FEW: How do we “see and reflect the glory of God”?

ASK A FEW: How does God make us glorious?

ASK A FEW: How does knowing that God is making you ‘glorious’ impact your self-esteem?

ASK A FEW: What are a few specific ways you can start giving your life to Jesus so He can change you more and more into His “glorious image”?

Transitional Statement:
It is always sad to hear about people we admire when they experience deep emotional and physical issues that are probably related to self-esteem. But we should also be reminded by these kinds of stories that we are not immune to some of the same struggles. And if we do experience them, we can either act out in destructive ways, or we can remember that when we give our lives to Jesus and focus, God considers us glorious in His sight.

Wrap Up:
Give students a pencil and 3X5 card, then ask them to fill in their answers for the following prompts:

One reason I sometimes struggle with self-image is:
One way I deal with it inappropriately is:
One area of life that I need to give to Jesus is:
One way that Jesus is making me glorious is:
One way I can glorify God is:

Encourage students to put this card somewhere they can look at often and remember what God is doing in their lives.

Close in Prayer:
Close in a prayer that gives students a chance to trust Christ, then ask God to remind us to base our self-image and worth on the fact that Jesus died for us, and that God sees us as glorious.

Written by Lane Palmer