Another Boy From the Hood: Bible Studies for Urban Youth

These are random excerpts from Another Boy From the Hood: Bible Studies for Urban Youth.

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LESSONS:
Intro: Another Boy from the Hood EXCERPT
1. Family Funk EXCERPT
2. Whiz-kid
3. Born to be Wild
4. Anger Management
5. Homeboys
6. RIP
7. King with no Bling

Ever wonder what it would be like if God had waited until today to bring Christ into the world? If He had, Jesus’ life wouldn’t be too different from your own. The Bethlehem of Jesus’ time and inner-city neighborhoods of today have several things in common including:

• A lack of good jobs
• Low literacy skills

If Mary were pregnant today she’d be under a lot of pressure to abort; the highest concentration of abortion clinics are in impoverished areas. Since those same neighborhoods lack good medical facilities, Mary wouldn’t get proper pre-natal care, and Jesus would probably be born early and underweight. Being the son of a teen mom, Jesus would have a lower than average literacy rating, as well as a higher chance of ending up incarcerated. Mary would most likely have to drop out of high school to take care of Jesus like the other 41% of mothers who don’t complete high school due to getting pregnant before the age of 18. She would be stuck in the cycle of poverty. If Mary went to the Department of Child and Family Services for help, Jesus might end up in the foster care system. Social Workers could rule them mentally unstable, and therefore unfit to raise a child, once they heard Mary’s story that God was His Father. Joseph, being Mary’s husband, would have few places in which to turn for emotional support.

Did you know that there are 42 instances of the Hebrew word “orphan”, or “fatherless”, in the Bible? It’s yathowm, which is pronounced yaw-thome. God commanded His people to take care of the yathowm. If your dad wasn’t around, then you’re one of those yathowm. So don’t think Church isn’t a place for you. You might just find the love you are looking for...

“My dad didn’t even come to get me at the train tracks the first day we met. He sent someone else.”
Deon, South Chicago

35 Miles to Nowhere

Deon grew up on the south side of Chicago with his mom and sister. All his life, Deon wanted to know his dad... What does he look like? Where does he live? For years, Deon pestered his mom with questions. When Deon hit twelve, his mom gave him the lowdown. She told Deon that his father lived just a 35 mile train ride away. All this time, my dad’s just been down the tracks? Deon had to see him. His mom gave him the go ahead. Deon packed a suitcase with far more than his tighty whities; he packed it with his dreams. All those years of disappointment that came from not having a dad were about to change! He took the train to 115th Street, got off, and waited for his dad to pick him up. Deon waited... and waited. His dad never showed. Instead, a car pulled up to the station. Two teens were inside. “You Deon?” they hollered. “Yeah. What’s it to you?” “We’re your cousins.” Deon was blown away! I have cousins?? So, he got in the car and they proceeded to some man’s house; a man who didn’t seem to take much interest in Deon. His cousins called this man “Uncle Jack”, but Deon couldn’t see why they were wasting their time there. Soon enough, they left. Deon asked his cousins, “When are you gonna bring me to meet my dad?” “Knucklehead - that was your dad!” continued...

One Twisted Tree

If you think your family tree has a few interesting twists, then check out JC’s. Blow the dust off your Bible and take a look at the details:
Rahab - great-grandmother of Jesus was right out of a James Bond movie. She was a prostitute who helped some spies. Joshua 2
David - a great-grandfather of Jesus, was just as famous for sleeping with a married woman (whose husband he later murdered so he could have her all to himself) as he was for killing a giant.

Questions:

• What's one thing you like about your family?
• What's one thing you'd like to change?
• How does having a different father than your brothers and sisters change things?