10/08/2026
Hey Grounded YTH Parents and Gaurdians,
I hope you’re doing well! We Kicked off a new four-week series last night called "Collide". We wanted to give you a heads-up about what we’ll be covering so you can stay connected to the conversation at home.
The series title says it all. Jesus doesn’t just give us inspiring ideas; He invites us into a completely different way of living. Over the next four weeks, we’ll explore the Beatitudes and discover how Jesus’ vision for life often clashes with the values, priorities, and pursuits of the world around us. As we do, we’ll wrestle with what He says, what we truly value, what we’re chasing after, and who He created us to be.
Below is a brief overview of what we’ll be discussing each week, along with a few questions you can ask your student to keep the conversation going at home.
Series Overview
This four-week series will help students see the Beatitudes not as a list of church rules, but as a direct collision between what Jesus says matters and what their world tells them to chase every day.
Session 1: Blessed Are the… Losers?
This week, we’re looking at how Jesus opened the Sermon on the Mount by saying the Kingdom belongs to exactly the people His culture had decided God wasn’t interested in. The overlooked. The mourning. The humble. We’ll talk about why that’s still a collision today, and what it means that God specifically moves toward the people the world moves past.
Big Idea: Jesus says the kingdom belongs to the people the world overlooks.
Primary Scripture: Matthew 5:3-5
Questions for Discussion:
• Think about a time someone unexpected showed up for you when you needed it. What was that like?
• We talked about how most of the people in that crowd had been told their whole lives that God wasn’t for them. What does it feel like to carry that kind of belief about yourself?
Session 2: Hunger for the Right Things.
This week, we’re talking about hunger, and not just for food. Whatever your student reaches for when they’re restless, bored, or something goes wrong tells them something real about what their heart is organized around. We’ll look at what Jesus says about hungering for the right things, what mercy has to do with it, and what it means to have a heart that’s focused instead of divided.
Big Idea: What you crave reveals what you worship.
Primary Scripture: Matthew 5:6-8
Questions for Discussion:
• When you’re stressed, bored, or something goes wrong, what do you usually reach for first?
• What’s the difference between hungering for righteousness and just trying harder to be a good person?
Session 3: The Peacemakers and the Persecuted.
This week, we’re talking about what it costs to choose peace in a world that rewards conflict. Peacemaking isn’t passive, and Jesus never pretends it is. We’ll look at what it means to work for peace, why following Jesus faithfully will sometimes cost your student something socially or relationally, and why that friction is evidence they’re doing something real.
Big Idea: Following Jesus means choosing peace even when it hurts.
Primary Scripture: Matthew 5:9-12
Questions for Discussion:
• What’s the difference between keeping the peace and making peace?
• Jesus said following Him faithfully will cost something. What has it cost you personally to do the right thing?
Session 4: Salt, Light, and the Collision.
This final week, we’re wrapping up the series by talking about what salt and light actually do, and what it means when they stop working. Blending in doesn’t usually happen in one dramatic moment. It happens slowly, one small compromise at a time. We’ll talk about what it looks like to keep being who your student was made to be in a world that keeps asking them to be someone else.
Big Idea: You weren’t made to blend in.
Primary Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16
Questions for Discussion:
• We talked about blending in as a slow fade rather than one big decision. Where have you noticed that happening in your own life?
• Looking back over this whole series, the overlooked being blessed, hungering for the right things, choosing peace, and now being salt and light, which week has stuck with you the most and why?
Our hope is that the discussion questions above will lead your family to open conversations about things your student is carrying and what it looks like for faith to show up in their daily lives. As always, please feel free to reach out anytime with questions.
Blessings,
Levi
