Training Camp - Joker

Joker believes in chaos. As the Clown Prince of Crime, he always has some scheme that is completely bonkers. He lives in a world where life has no meaning, so he doesn’t care what kind of suffering he brings. Sometimes he will hurt others just to prove that life has no purpose. No one can protect you.
Is the Joker right?

Sometimes it’s easy to believe. Look around; there’s all sorts of terrible things happening in the world. Is everything meaningless? Is he right to want to watch the world burn? Is life just a big joke?

At one point, the Israelites thought that life was a big joke. They had been taken away from their homes and forced to live far, far away. They had no stability in their lives anymore. And into this chaos, God arrives and he says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Even in this place, God planned to give them a future. It wasn’t all chaos. It wasn’t some joke. And God didn’t want to watch them burn.

In fact, he had every plan to make sure they would never, ever burn. He had a plan to send them Jesus. And everything led up to that plan. Jesus lived the perfect life we don’t. Nothing interrupted that plan. Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Nothing interrupted that plan. Jesus rose from the dead. Nothing could interrupt that plan.

And there’s more.

Your life isn’t chaos. It’s not just one big joke. God has a plan for you as well. He’s already started it. He made sure that in all of history, you were born at just the right moment so you could know who Jesus is. He brought you here to this camp so you could grow in how much you know Jesus.

Your life isn’t meaningless. Jesus has reached out to you. You’re not a joke to him; you’re his brother or sister.

Life’s a whole lot better than the Joker lets on.

Discussion Questions:
1.       When does it feel most like your life has no plan or purpose?
2.       What does God say about the chaos in your life?

3.       Have you ever seen God’s plan in action in your life? Share the story. 

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