You Are (Extra) Ordinary | Learning Guide

November 13th, 2022

10:15m I Facebook Live & Zoom

Watch last week's message here

Worship Lyrics

Title

You Are (Extra)Ordinary

Text

Genesis 1 (NET)​

Introduction:

In Max Lucado’s children’s book, You Are Special, he tells the story of the Wemmicks, small wooden puppet-like people carved by their maker, Eli. The Wemmicks spend their days judging each other, placing stickers on other Wemmicks as a form of social currency. They give gold stars when they see another Wemmick who is beautiful or talented and gray dots when another’s wood was nicked, or their abilities were seen as ordinary. When they received stars they felt good and it made them want to keep performing to receive more. Then there were Wemmicks who were only given gray dots. They would try to do or say what they saw the Wemmicks who received the gold stars do, but each time they failed they just received more gray dots, making them believe the judgment was deserved, that they truly weren't good enough. There was one Wemmick who had no stickers because any placed on her, stars or dots, fell off. In a world where everything they do earns stars or dots, what does it mean to not have any? How does this happen?

You Are Special is an allegory where we can easily place ourselves in the Wemmicks wooden shoes, and we don’t even have to imagine what it feels like to receive metaphorical stars and dots, because our likes, clicks, invitations, and other forms of social validation are all too real. In a world that tells us we should be striving for gold stars, what does it mean to have gray dots or no stickers at all? What does it mean to be ordinary? Join us Sunday as we find out together.

Grace and peace y’all,

Laura Holland and the teaching team

Prayer/Practice:

Pray this: “Creator, when I am feeling unsatisfied with the ordinary, remind me of who you created me to be and guide my actions out of that truth. Amen.”

Big Idea:

Each of us was made in God’s image to be extra ordinary—fully who God made us to be, purposely living our ordinary lives.

Take Away:

We are all unique reflections, image bearers, of God. When we trust we can be just that without comparing ourselves to others, we are able to rest in the freedom of being ordinary. Extra-ordinary, even.

How does this fit with Belong, Become, Believe?

You belong. We are a community of ordinary people doing ordinary things and we need ordinary you. We won’t stop being ordinary as we become or through what we believe, but we just might grow to be even more comfortable with fully being our ordinary selves.

What's Next?

We’ve looked at what it means to be a saint, sinner, and ordinary person. Next week John Ray wraps up the series with a closer look at Jesus.

Resources:

• You Are Special

• A Blessing For If You Happen To Be Having an Ordinary Day

Contact Grace Church NWA here