MAN IN GOD'S CREATION

Lesson Twenty
CARE OF THE MIND, FEELINGS, AND WILL (2)

Burden to Impart:

In this lesson we see how God gave man a free will, so he could choose and make decisions. As we grow up we need to learn how to make the proper decisions and to carry them out. When we are with others we need a flexible will go go along with them. We should never have a stubborn will that cannot learn to be guided. When we are tempted to do anything wrong we should have a strong will to resist, even praying and asking the Lord to help us. When we are trying to carry out a right and good decision we have made, but meet with frustration and discouragement, we should have a strong will to persevere and press on.

Memory Verse: "I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man according to My heart, who will do all My will" (Acts 13:22).

Facts to Teach:

  1. The will"
    1. God created man with a free will, not as a robot with no will of its own. God gave Adam the freedom to choose which tree he would eat of, the tree of life or the. tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
    2. Plants have no mind, emotion, or will. The animals have some mind, emotion, and will. Man has the highest mind, emotion, and will of all of God's creation. Because man has a will he is able to govern his own life and even to determine his destiny.
    3. With our will we can choose or refuse, we can make decisions, choices, and even determinations. Although our thoughts and feelings influence us a lot, eventually we decide and act according to our will's decision.
    4. For this reason we need to take good care of our will so that we will make the right decisions and choices, and will be strong enough to stick to them.
  2. Taking care of our will:
    1. We should make our decisions and choices based upon what is right and best, not on our feelings, likes, and dislikes. We know what is right because of our parents' instructions, the laws of our society, the Bible, and our conscience. (We will cover the conscience later.)
    2. Our will should be flexible regarding most matters (things that are not bad, sinful, or harmful). We should be able to go along with others. When we do things with others we should learn not to have a stubborn will or a selfish will, always making others do the things we want to do, or the way we want to do them. We should allow others the same freedom of choice that we ourselves like to have. We should not make ourselves others' "boss."
    3. We should have a strong will to do what is right, even if our "friends" make fun of us or try to convince us not to. After we have made a good and proper decision, we often get discouraged, tired, or bored and want to quit or give up. At these times we should not give in to our weakening thoughts or feelings, we should be strong in our will and determined to carry out our original decision. If we pray to the Lord and ask Him to help us, to strengthen us so that we will not be moved, He will meet our need and answer our prayer.
    4. Because the friends we are with can influence us a lot, we need to make very careful and wise choices regarding who we have as friends. Otherwise, even if we have the desire to live rightly we may not be strong enough to overcome the influence of our friends and may eventually do things we do not really want to do.