Ezekiel 28:11-19, 25-26
News Story Summary
On Friday, December 31, 2021, the college football playoff games will be played. Alabama is favored to defeat Cincinnati (the only undefeated team to play in these games), while Georgia is favored over Michigan (even though Michigan comes into the game with the higher rank). Most prognosticators see Alabama winning easily and Georgia winning a close game. (Note: by the time this lesson is taught these games would have been completed). The winner of each game will play each other on January 10 in the National Championship game.
For more about this story, search “college football playoff”.
Focus Attention
To supplement the Introduction activity under Focus Attention, to illustrate that people sometimes celebrate themselves and lose sight of the goal, point to the results of the college football playoff games played on December 31. Emphasize that both winning teams celebrated their victory but that they could lose sight of their larger goal if they remained focused on their recent victory. Ask: What are the dangers of dwelling on our past victories? Complete the step as written, explaining that Ezekiel addressed a prideful king who counted his victories only to discover he had no reason to confidently claim to be the eternal king.
Summarize and Challenge
Adding to the Respond idea under Summarize and Challenge, we recall the story about the two winning teams. Let’s propose actions the coaches of the winning teams could take to safeguard the players from getting arrogant or prideful about recent victories. Question: How do these actions compare to actions we may need to take when safeguarding ourselves from arrogance and pridefulness?