Discouragement Buster

SCRIPT TITLE:

Discouragement Buster

AUTHORSHIP:

John 5:1-15

SCRIPT THEME:

Jesus can help when I am discouraged.

KEY VERSE:

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13)

CHARACTERS:

Jane (or Jake), an elementary school student and would-be poet

Tony (or Tina), a helpful friend

PROPS:

Spiral notebook, pen or pencil, wastepaper basket

COSTUMES:

Casual, modern-day dress

SETTING:

An elementary school classroom

INTRODUCTION
What does it mean to be discouraged? (Allow kids to make suggestions.) You're right. When you're discouraged, you start feeling like things will never change, things will never get better no matter how hard you try. If you stay discouraged long enough, you'll end up totally hopeless.

You know, we all go through discouraging times. We don't know what to do, and nothing we can think of will help. We may even start wondering if anyone can help us. One of the people in this morning's drama is feeling pretty discouraged. Let's see if there's anyone who can help.

DRAMA

As our story begins, JANE sits at a desk, writing feverishly in her spiral notebook. Wads of discarded notebook paper fill a nearby wastepaper basket to overflowing. Jane glances at the ceiling, as if for inspiration and writes some more. She pauses to review what she has written and scowls. Angrily, she rips the page out of the notebook, crumples it up and throws it toward the wastepaper basket. With a frustrated sigh, she stares again at the ceiling, waiting again for inspiration.

At this point, TONY enters and surveys the scene.

TONY:     Hey, Jane. It's recess! Aren't you coming out to the playground?

JANE:     (still staring at the ceiling) Naw. You go with without me, Tony.

TONY:     (curious, following Jane's gaze to the ceiling) Uh, Jane? Why are you staring at the ceiling?

JANE:     (frustrated) Tony, please stop interrupting me. I'm an artist! I can't work under these conditions!

TONY:     (confused) An artist? Are you planning on painting the ceiling like that guy ... uh ... Michael the Angel?

JANE:     I think you mean Michelangelo. And, no, I'm not going to paint the ceiling. (a bit haughty) I'm trying to write a poem.

TONY:     A poem? About the ceiling?

JANE:     (slamming her notebook on her lap in desperation) Of course not! I'm trying to write a poem about .... about .... ah ... anything! Anything at all! And I just can't do it! I've been working all morning! I give up! I'll never be a famous poet!

TONY:     You know, Jane, you seem kind of discouraged.

JANE:     No, duh, Einstein!

TONY:     Hey, ease up, will you? Maybe I can help.

JANE:     Forget it. It's useless.

TONY:     You know, you remind me of this guy at the pool.

JANE:     The lifeguard wants to be a poet, too?

TONY:     No. A guy in the Bible.

JANE:     Oh, you mean David? The one who wrote all those poems, those psalms?

TONY:     No. I'm talking about a guy who spent 38 years sitting near a pool, hoping someone would help him in.

JANE:     Why didn't he just dive in?

TONY:     Well, that's the problem. He couldn't walk or move or anything.

JANE:     Wouldn't it be dangerous for someone like that to go swimming?

TONY:     Well, yeah. But he had heard that, every once in a while, an angel would stir the water of the pool. He believed that if he got into the pool at just the right time, he could be healed. Trouble was, there was no one who was willing to help him get into the water. He waited there every day, day after day, for 38 years!

JANE:     I feel like I've spent 38 years trying to write this poem! So, what happened? Did the guy find someone to help him into the pool?

TONY:     Well, that's when Jesus came by. He asked the man if he wanted to get well.

JANE:     Wasn't that obvious?

TONY:     Not to the man by the pool. He had been focusing on getting in to the pool for so long, he must have forgotten what he really wanted was to be healed. He told Jesus he wanted someone to help him into the pool, but Jesus had something even better to offer him.

JANE:     A raft? An inner tube? I know! A pair of floaties!

TONY:     No! Jesus told the man, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!" He healed him right then and there!

JANE:     That's cool, but how's this supposed to help me write my poem?

TONY:     It just seems like you're focusing so much on writing the poem that you're forgetting the whole point.

JANE:     The point?

TONY:     Yeah! Why do you want to write a poem? Why do you want to be a poet?

JANE:     Well, to express myself, I guess. To let the world know what I'm thinking.

TONY:     Seems to me like you're focusing on the poem instead of focusing on what you really want to say.

JANE:     Hmm. You could be right. (She returns her gaze to the ceiling.)

TONY:     Oh no. Here we go again!

JANE:     No, no! Wait! I think I feel a poem coming on. (tossing him the notebook) Quick! Write this down!

TONY grabs her pencil and gets ready to write.

JANE:     (hesitantly) The lame man thought folks were quite cruel;

TONY:     (writing feverishly) yeah ... go on ....

JANE:     (inspired) They wouldn't help him to the pool.

TONY:     uh huh ... uh huh ...

JANE:     (quickly, with rhythm and growing enthusiasm) Then Jesus walked by (beat) And healed the poor guy. (beat) Now, isn't that totally cool!

They give each other a high five!

JANE:     I did it! I wrote a poem!

TONY:     Awesome!

CONCLUSION
Jesus can help us all when we're discouraged. We can always turn to Him for help. What's the most discouraging problem or situation you are facing today? Have you talked to Jesus about it? No matter how big your problems might be, Jesus is always there for you. He's in control and you can trust Him. I'm going to close in prayer. While I pray, why don't you ask Jesus to help you with your discouragement?

PRAYER POINTS

Lord Jesus, we thank you that you know everything about us. Thank you that you know what makes us happy, what makes us worried, and what makes us discouraged.
I pray that you would help each of us with the specific problems or situations that we are facing today. Help us to rely on your help today and every day.
Help us all to help others who are discouraged.