Another Fresh Start
Chances to start again.
by Claire Law
Suitable for Whole School (Sec)
Aims
To connect with the idea of a fresh start and feelings commonly associated with fresh starts.
Preparation and materials
- You will need the PowerPoint slides accompanying this assembly (Another Fresh Start) and the means to display them.
- You will need the clip ‘Burnley’s Pastor Mick’ and the means to display it. This can be found at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09vm35c
Assembly
- Show Slide 1. Welcome students to the assembly.
- It’s the start of a new academic year! Many of us will have new uniforms or new shoes; we’re all getting ready for new exercise books, new timetables and new teachers.
- The idea of a fresh start can be both daunting and reassuring at the same time. It can be daunting to be in new classes, get to know new teachers and find our way round a new timetable. It can be daunting for Year 7 students starting a new school or for other years starting GCSE courses etc. Many of us could be feeling apprehension and nervousness.
Whatever year we are in, we may well be feeling the weight of responsibility about using this ‘new start’ wisely. A fresh start allows us to try again and move on to a brighter future, regardless of what the last school year was like for us. - Show Slide 2.
It might be helpful for us to remind ourselves at the end of each day, as we settle down to sleep, that tomorrow’s a new day. Each day is an opportunity to start all over again. A fresh day, a fresh start. No matter what has happened the day, week, month or year before, each day offers opportunity to start all over again. - Show Slide 3.
The idea of a fresh start, a new beginning is something this man knows well. This is Mick Fleming, now known as Pastor Mick. As you can guess from his outfit, he is now an ordained priest and leads a church called Church on the Street, helping people struggling with life. This wasn’t always the case. He was once a dangerous, violent drug user and dealer. - He worked as an enforcer, using extreme violence to force people in debt to drug dealers to pay up. Then one day, when Mick was in his early 40s, Mick was in a stolen car, with the engine running, with a gun in a plastic carrier bag on the passenger seat. He was waiting to use violence against a man. It was when he saw the target he was waiting for was with 2 young children that changed Mick’s life forever.
- Mick says:
‘I watched him walk out of the gym. But this time was different. He had two kids with him, two young children, blonde girls, around five years old. I got out of the car, and walked, my hand reaching into the plastic. But then I looked again at the children, again at their faces, their blonde hair, innocent kids. Then it happened. I collapsed, then struggled back to the car. I felt sick, I was shaking, sweating, and my heart was beating fast. I could hear my pulse as if it was in my head. I didn't know what was happening to me.’
Mike says that he pleaded with God to help him. Shortly after, Mick met someone willing to chat and pray with him, someone who encouraged him to help others. From this turning point, Mick went on to study. He worked hard to gain a degree and trained as a priest. Today, Mick spends much of his time with those most in need; the homeless, the drug users, the hungry. - Let’s hear from Mick himself. Show the clip ‘Burnley’s Pastor Mick’ It can be found at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09vm35c
- Show Slide 4.
This is a Bible verse found in the book of Lamentations 3:22-23, encourages us to think about fresh starts.
‘His mercies never end, they are new every morning’.
Christians believe that this verse reminds us that God’s love and forgiveness is new each and every day - we get a fresh start each day.
Time for reflection
The changes at the start of this academic year are not likely to be as dramatic as the change in Pastor Mick’s life, but any decision to make a positive change should be celebrated.
Let’s pause for a few moments to take stock of what we want to be different this academic year.
As we consider the following questions, let’s take time in silence to consider what feelings and thoughts emerge in response.
Firstly, what do you want to do differently this academic year?
Pause to allow time for reflection.
How do you feel about the idea of a fresh start? What do you think about the fresh start in Mick’s life?
Pause to allow time for reflection.
What positive changes have you already begun to make today, or this week or month?
Pause to allow time for reflection.
Finally, what helps you to stick at something when you want to make a fresh start and have positive change in life?
Pause to allow time for reflection.
Prayer
Dear God,
We have thought about the idea of a fresh start today.
At the beginning of a new academic year, we recognise that we have the opportunity for a new beginning.
Please help us when we feel daunted or nervous by the prospect of a fresh start.
We ask for encouragement so that we can persevere in the fresh starts that we are making.
Please help us to be inspired by others who have made fresh starts.
Thank you for the people who encourage us and give us opportunities for fresh beginnings.
Amen.
