✝️ Lesson 1 – Created in Love: Who God Is and Why You Exist

📍 Lesson Goals

By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Understand the nature of God as Creator, Father, and Source of all life.

• Recognize the purpose of human existence.

• Reflect on what it means to be created in the image and likeness of God.

• Begin building a personal connection with God as a loving Father.

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🪔 1. Opening Prayer

“Heavenly Father, we come before You with open hearts. Help us to understand who You are and why You created us. Reveal Your love to us and teach us to walk in the purpose for which we were made. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.”

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📖 2. Who Is God?

Before we talk about faith, we must understand who God truly is.
God is not just a distant being or a powerful force — He is a loving Father, the Creator of everything visible and invisible.

• God is eternal – He has no beginning or end (Revelation 1:8).

• God is love – His very essence is love (1 John 4:8).

• God is all-powerful and all-knowing – Nothing is beyond His knowledge or ability (Jeremiah 32:17).

• God is personal – He knows you by name (Isaiah 43:1).

💭 Think about this: The Creator of galaxies and oceans also knows how many hairs are on your head (Luke 12:7). That’s how deeply you are known and loved.

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🌍 3. The Creation Story: Designed With a Purpose

In the beginning, God created everything out of nothing (Genesis 1). He spoke the universe into existence — the stars, earth, animals, and finally… human beings.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…’” – Genesis 1:26

This means that every person is a reflection of God’s own nature. You are not an accident. You are not a mistake.
You are willed, loved, and necessary.

God gave humans:

• Reason – to think and understand truth

• Will – to choose love and goodness

• Soul – an eternal spirit destined for heaven

💡 Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 27):

“The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God.”

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🪞 4. What Does It Mean to Be Made in God’s Image?

Being made in God’s image (Imago Dei) means more than just having intelligence — it means you are created for relationship.

• You were made to know God (intellect)

• You were made to love God (heart)

• You were made to serve God (action)

Just as a mirror reflects light, your soul was created to reflect the love, wisdom, and goodness of God in the world.

🧠 Discussion Question:
How does knowing you are made in God’s image change the way you see yourself and others?

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🍎 5. The Fall: Why We Feel Lost

If God made everything good, why is there evil, suffering, and sin?
The answer is freedom. God gave us the gift of free will — the ability to choose love. But humanity misused that freedom.

Adam and Eve chose to trust themselves instead of God. That disobedience, called original sin, broke humanity’s relationship with God. As a result:

• Humanity became separated from God.

• Sin entered the world.

• Death became part of the human story.

Yet God never stopped loving humanity. From the moment of the Fall, He promised a Savior — and that promise is fulfilled in Jeshua, the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

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🫀 6. Your Identity: Loved Before You Were Born

It’s easy for teens to feel lost in a world that says your worth depends on appearance, popularity, or success.
But the truth is this:

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.” – Jeremiah 1:5

God thought of you before time began. He placed you in this world for a reason.
Your existence is not random — it’s part of His eternal plan.

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🕯️ 7. Reflection & Activity

Reflection Questions (write or discuss):

1. What does it mean to you that God created you out of love?

2. In what ways do you see God’s image in yourself? In others?

3. Where do you feel you’ve been searching for purpose outside of God?

Activity:
Write a short letter to God starting with:
“Lord, thank You for creating me because…”
(Be honest — this is between you and Him.)

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✨ Closing Prayer

“Father, thank You for creating us in love. Help us remember that our lives have meaning and purpose in You. Heal the parts of our hearts that forget who we are, and lead us closer to You. In the name of Jesus, Your Son, we pray. Amen.”

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✅ Summary of Key Takeaways

• God is not distant — He is a loving Father and Creator.

• You were made in His image, for relationship with Him.

• Your life has meaning and purpose.

• Even when sin entered the world, God’s plan for salvation never stopped.