In my time as a youth ministry leader, I’ve lead many Bible discussion groups for high school aged kids in the Bay Area. Most of them have been fun and engaging, but many have been dull, lifeless, and uninspiring. I’ve learned a lot from those not so great sessions, and what I’ve come to realize is that inspiring teens to want to learn about God means you really have to speak to the heart.A teenager’s life is filled with insecurity (how do I look to my friends?), fear (I don’t know if I’m going to make the team!) and worry (so much homework…), so they want to hear something that will speak to what they’re going through. Also, the word needs to be packaged in a way that is attractive to them. Consider Jesus’ approach to teaching:

This is why I speak to them in parables:

  “Though seeing, they do not see;

  though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

Matthew 13:13 (NIV)

Jesus realized that people needed illustration and animated discussion to get points accross. Unless we’re in a lecture hall that we paid thousands of dollars to sit in, we all need stimulation to understand deeper insights.

The following are 3 questions that should help stir discussion in your smaller groups (6-12 kids). A good approach to take would be to open with a question, engage in conversations with several kids giving answers, before looking at a scripture that relates to the topic, or an issue that relates to the questoin.

1. What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?

This is a great question because the answers will almost certainly be up the wall. It’s usually not a bad idea to ask the question, then open with your own crazy story to give teens the time to think of their own. Don’t be afraid to set the bar high with some wackiness…just make sure it’s not too outlandish.

The spiritual concept you’d want to drive here is that your true self comes out in crazy situations. It isn’t always negative…sometimes crazy stories illuminate instances of courage or love. Try looking for scriptures that talk about being real.

2. What is the hardest thing to talk to parents about?

Parents will always, always be a sensitive and emotional issue for teens. One thing to be wary about going into a time with teens is to get an idea of the backgrounds of some kids in the group, so you can be sensitive to their tougher situations. For example, this may not be a good question for a group that largely consists of kids from broken homes.

Scriptures that talk about love, honesty, and being freed up from guilt would be good for this question after 10-15 minutes of discussion. James 5:16 comes to mind, which talks about getting things out on the table in order to feel refreshed.

3. What do you look for most in a friend?

A goal everyone should always have is how to be more loving. In high school, teens are constantly plagued with insecurity, and are always wondering what people are thinking of them. Getting a group together and talking about great qualities will inadvertedly encourage everyone when they start seeing ways they’ve exhibited them already, and how there can be hope for a confident and secure high school life.

Scriptures about loving one another would be great to bring up here. John 13:34 is a great passage that talks about how taking the initiative to love will actually attract people to you. The best way to get friends (which everyone in high school wants more than anything) is to be active in loving people. You could also look at 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, which talks about changing yourself to win people over.

Mike Query is a web dude for http://www.bacc.cc and contributes to various Christian, technology and community service blogs.