We living in a world that is full of people who will do anything to know our business:
Nosy
So they can sell us stuff
For gossip
Care about us
So tonight we are going to ask: Do we have a right to privacy?
There is a great movie based on this theme and that is EdTV
[Play EdTV 16 minute (day 1) - 26 mins (start of day 3)]
The middle bit
Would you like to live your life in front of a camera like Ed?
Later on in the film, it becomes quite clear that it is difficult to live your life when
everybody knows your business
People offer you advice you don't want
Friends and family hear things that they shouldn't
This can cause problems…
Many of us grow up with brothers and sisters, which makes it hard to get time and space
for ourselves
Do you feel like your brothers / sisters and parents respect your privacy?
Do you have to share a room with anyone?
Do they ever 'spy' on you?
When I was younger, I used to read my sister's diary. Have you ever done anything like
that?
Listened in on a conversation
How would you feel if your parents / brothers / sisters read your mail or diary?
Why do you think they would do that?
Check to see if you're behaving. Drugs / boyfriends etc.
For a laff
Do you think we all have a right to privacy?
The Bible bit
If you look in the Bible you will not find anything that specifically says we have the
right to privacy, however, we read:
When John the Baptist died:
Mat 14:13 P934 "When Jesus heard what had happened to John, he left in a boat and
went to a lonely place by himself…."
When we pray:
Mat 6:6 P918 "When you pray, you should go into your room and close the door and
pray to your Father who can not be seen"
Jesus spent time alone
Matthew 4:1 Jesus was lead into the desert and tempted
Matthew 26:36 Jesus prays alone
Luke 9:18 Jesus prays alone
But we also read
Acts 2:43-47 P1100 "…All the believers were together and shared
everything…".
What do you think that means?
To me, this suggests that there is a time and a place for privacy. For many people it's
a good time for:
Spending time with God
Sorting your head out
Taking a break
But we must not forget that we are supposed to live as one big 'happy family', and that
means spending time with each other…
Conclusion
Privacy is a big deal to many people
So for our prayer tonight, I thought it would be good for us to spend a moment, and note
down (give out post-it's) when and where we would like more privacy in our lives.
Could be at home
Could be at school
Job
When you have done that, may be you would like to tell us about one of the things you
have written down
