Have
ya heard yet? ...
 You are unique!
by Liz
Harding
What does
it really mean to not only accept our own uniqueness, but also that of
others? On Nov. 5, 150 11 to 15-year-olds and their leaders spent
the day in Fredericton exploring this question at Manna '05.
Wearing t-shirts emblazoned with the theme of the day "Have ya heard
yet? You are unique?" we explored our uniqueness through creation.
 We talked about what
it really means to not only accept our own uniqueness but also that of
others. Do we really believe what scripture says -- that we are created
in the image of God and that God knew us before we were born? If we
truly believed these two statements, how might our lives be different?
It appears to me that accepting one another's uniqueness is a
challenge, but it shouldn't be if we truly see others as created by
God. In Genesis, God's response to his creation is to acknowledge that
it is good. Because God created me he must delight in my unique
characteristics which others often find difficult. Should it be enough
to know that God delights in his creation of me? Maybe, but many
studies reveal the deepest need of every human being is to be loved and
accepted by others around us. God created us to be in
relationship with one another. An authentic relationship, however, can
only happen when there is acceptance and respect for each other's
differences. I have some very strong opinions and I have been blessed
to work with others whose differing opinions are equally strong and
sometimes even stronger than mine. What makes our relationships work is
our respect for each other's giftedness and the understanding that  everyone deserves to be heard.
We explored these ideas and themes throughout a day of fun at Christ Church
(Parish) Church. The day began with worship. ReJOYce,
a contemporary music group led us in singing. Then Captain Bonnie Hunt
and I appeared in a skit that challenged the notion of
discrimination based on differences. Our last line was: "Life is like a
garden full of beautiful things."
After a delicious lunch the young people attend a power hour where they
rotated through five different talks exploring uniqueness through
looking at God's creation of dirt, twigs, leaves, flowers and rocks.
They then were given the opportunity to build a wall which described
them personally using these same components from creation.
 One young girl explained that she put flowers all around
her wall because she was so happy.
The young
people then went on a scavenger hunt around Fredericton looking for 15
disguised leaders. They had to ask the question "Have ya heard yet?" If
they found a leader the response was "Yes, you are unique."
The closing worship contained a multimedia presentation which consisted
of the components of creation and pictures of the kids themselves
celebrating their uniqueness. The presentation also displayed Bible
verses that encouraged the young people in their daily lives and
contained music declaring God is great.
The day ended with a time of play at the Fredericton Indoor Pool.
We hope the t-shirts each participant took home will be a constant
reminder of the message of our Manna day.
Liz Harding is
Director of Christian Education
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