Hip Hop artist Pharrell seems to regret inking himself. What's there to say? He changed his mind. It happens. He'll be getting an expensive and painful procedure that involves applying new skin over his old body art.

"It's going to be pricey, but worth it," he says. "I got fire on my arms! I'm a grown man!"  -Vogue, July 1, 2008

Almost half of all Americans under age 30 have tattoos right now, and 40 percent of adults age 26 to 40 have one (CBNNews.com, October 7, 2007) ... the question is... do they regret it later?

According to the same CBN article, 17 percent of people regret their tattoos. That's almost 1 in 5.

Johnny Depp is a famous case of this. After breaking up with girlfriend Winona Ryder, he realized that his "Winona" tattoo was probably rather silly. So rather than becoming a die-hard Winona Judd fan, he had the tattoo altered to read "Wino." 

Nice.

Although some people in the church try to point to Biblical reasons for not getting inked... I think stories like Johnny Depp's and Pharrell's speak louder to this generation than any stats when considering getting inked (especially if you read the details of Pharrell's procedure. Ugh! Shudder.).

 

The Bucket List
If you've got students who need a reminder that life is fragile, check out this MOVIE CLIP DISCUSSION from the new release, The Bucket List. The clip follows the dialogue of two terminal patients as they discuss faith. This resource has everything you need: Bible passages, small group questions, and an evangelistic wrap up sure to impact your kids.

Main Point of Discussion: When we face death, it forces us to make a decision about faith in Jesus

The Movie Clip: "I just have faith."
The Bucket List is the story of two very different men who are facing the same inevitable death, brought on by cancer. They both realize that their lives are incomplete, so they write out a list of things to do before they kick the bucket, hence the title of the film.

Living Water
Many students wonder whether Jesus is truly satisfying for life, or if He has no relevancy to their lives. You can use this OBJECT LESSON to show them one way Jesus meets needs in their lives.

The Opener: How many of you believe you have set records for the most drink refills ever while you are at a restaurant? You know how it works. Either you keep going up to the fast food refill station and filling your glass again and again.... or you sit down at a restaurant and the waiter just keeps bringing drinks and setting them in front of you and before you know it you have had 3 glasses, then 5, then 8? Here's the thing... no matter how many refills you get, you will always still be thirsty later.

Paper Airplane Toss
Basically, this game is played like a water-balloon or egg toss, only you use paper airplanes instead. So you'll need plain paper or construction paper for this game. Here's how you do it.

Have every person find a partner, and give each pair a few pieces of paper. Give them 5 minutes to fold their own paper airplane, and you can even let them design it if you want.

When the time for designing the planes is up....