choices

INTRO

Tell people the assembly is about choices. The choices we make will make a difference. There is nothing you will do that does not affect someone somewhere. So let's take a look more closely.

Get 3 volunteers up to the front. These 3 are asked to hold hands and twist themselves up into a complex position that is basically impossible to get out of. Then get them to untangle themselves but say that only one of them is allowed to move at any one time. As the exercise continues, you can stop that person moving and ask someone else to.

Give them a clap, a bar of chocolate each and get them to sit them down.

Point - No matter what happens (even if they get untangled) you can make the point that you cannot move or do anything in the exercise without it affecting someone else. You can affect people in a good way or a bad way. You can't be inactive or not affect people by your choices.

QUOTES

So let's look at some of the choices people make: (from worldquotes.com and thinkexist.com)

It's choice - not chance - that determines your destiny. (Jean Nidetch)

Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. (William Jennings Bryan)

If we could raise one generation with unconditional love, there would be no Hitlers. We need to teach the next generation of children from Day One that they are responsible for their lives. Mankind's greatest gift, also its greatest curse, is that we have free choice. We can make our choices built from love or from fear. (Dr Elisabeth Kubler-Ross)

Life is a sum of all your choices. (Albert Camus)

In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility. (Eleanor Roosevelt)

The time comes in the life of any nation when there remains only two choices - submit or fight. That time has now come to South Africa. We shall not submit and we have no choice but to hit back by all means in our power in defence of our people, our future, and our freedom. (Nelson Mandela)

I believe that we are solely responsible for our choices, and we have to accept the consequences of every deed, word, and thought throughout our lifetime. (Elisabeth Kubler-Ross)

DVD / VIDEO CLIP

Watch a DVD or video clip here from a movie about choices. Some ideas are Fighting Temptations when Darren leaves the choir but then chooses to go back. Or Finding Nemo when Nemo has another attempt at blocking the tank up by putting a stone into the fan. Or in Finding Nemo when Marlin goes back to rescue Dory. There are many clips from The Simpsons too. Just watch a vid and you'll find a clip I'm sure!

SO WHAT ABOUT YOU?

You have a choice. Your life can affect you and other people positively or negatively. As a Christian I have made a choice to follow Jesus. Now I can look at the life of Jesus and the Word of God called The Bible and learn how to make good choices. I made this choice not because I'm stupid, inadequate or weak. I made it because I believe it's the best choice you'll ever make.

But there are other choices. Know that you have the choice to do good, to make a difference. It doesn't matter who you are, where you come from or who you know, you can make a difference. Make the right choice today and every day.