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What? Stay up all
night visiting those who work while you sleep (hospitals, bakeries,
airports, factories, etc.) It's a cross
between the established workplace visit activity (Take Your Pastor to
Work) and the traditional youth lock-in.
Why? The evening will provide a caffeinated introduction to
God's nightly work (through the vocations of the laborers they visit).
How? Gather
destinations, drivers, caffeinated drink. . .and go!
GETTING READY. . .
- Identify persons in the congregation to shadow
- Try to find a variety of jobs
- Send youth in pairs, or groups of three
- Coordinate with the persons being shadowed so that the youth will
observe during a time on the job that is typical of their workday
- Determine if there are any restrictions to the activities that can
be observed during the visit.
- Plan to spend about an hour on the visit
- Gather youth back at church after the visit to discuss together
SENDING PRAYER
Lord, what a curious way you have of bringing life and hope into your
world, of working peace and justice, of showing compassion and love
for all of your creatures. No hands but the hands of us, your
servants: no feet but ours; no protection but such as we provide; no
money but ours; no friends unless it be we; no shelter except we build
it; no institutions unless we found them. Since it does seem to be so:
Lord, be in our minds and in our understanding; Lord, be in our hearts
and give us compassion; Lord, be in our feet to run your service;
Lord, be in our eyes and be our insight: Lord, be in our plans and be
our hope; Lord, be in our present and give us a future. Amen. -
Wendell Frerichs
MAKING VISITS (THINGS TO WONDER ABOUT)
- Tell me about a typical day on your job.
- What is the mission of your workplace?
- What is your personal mission in this workplace?
- How did you prepare to do this work? (education, training,
apprenticeship, other job experience)
- What is the hardest part about your job?
- What do you like best about your job?
WRAPPING UP (AFTER THE FACT, REFLECTING ON THE NIGHT TOGETHER)
- Describe your visit to the workplace. What do they do there? What
does the workplace look like? - How many people work there? What
surprised you about your visit?
- What do you think would be the hardest part of this job?
- What skills, strengths and abilities did this employee need to do
their job?
- Would this be a job that you would want to do? Why or why not? Do
you think you could do this job? Why or why not?
- How do you think God is at work through this person as they do their
job?
More Ideas (Thanks to Paul Hill,
Vocational Mentor Coordinator,
Children Youth & Family Ministry at
Luther Seminary)
Help the kids make up a questionnaire before hand to be
used as an interview guide. If the host workers consent, the
kids could even snap a digital photo or shoot some video. When
the kids return to the
church they could then share stories and images describing the people
and places they met. At the end of the night (early morning)
these collected images could be gathered together into a wrap-up slide
show. Also, the kids might wish to select
some music (bring their iPods) that captures the mood of the
experience. During this closing ceremony -- and here parents, arriving
to pick up their kids, might join in -- play the media collage,
pausing to offer up prayers for the people met throughout the evening
and to dwell in Biblical texts that speak to the varied gifts and
vocations through which God is at work in the world.
SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
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When do you sleep? Is it hard to sleep during the day? When do
you sleep when it is your day off?
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Do you listen to music? What kind?
-
Why did you choose this work?Do you make more/less money by working at night?
-
What’s the strangest thing they have seen happen when
you were
working at night? What is the best thing that has happened on this job?
-
Who do you meet when they work at night?
-
What do you think about in the quiet of the night? Is it quiet?
-
Do you ever look at the stars?
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Do you ever think about God when you are working?
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Do you get bored? Scared?
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Would you mind if we prayed for you?
SAMPLE REFLECTION QUESTIONS
-
What kind of people did you meet? Old? Young?
Ethnicity? Male? Female? Rich? Poor?
-
Did you see any patterns in the kinds of people you met?
(i.e. they are mostly low income…or…they are minorities…etc.)
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Who could you not find working at night? Why? (Teachers, corporate
executives, etc.
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How does working at night affect family life and other
relationships?
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How did the people you met like working at night? Do they do this by choice?
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