Team builders, adventure games, initiatives—called by many names, these activities provide a wonderful environment for learning.  Team building activities can be used in many ways.  In this section, we will discuss the philosophy of team builders, give a few suggestions of how team builders could work for a youth leader, lay out a few pitfalls to avoid, and provide some challenges that one can use anywhere, with minimal props.

The purpose of Ironwood’s Jed’s Quest is to build unity in the group and to establish a way of thinking that applies spiritual truth to everyday situations.  In the process, groups also learn to work together and to communicate in order to complete a difficult task; personality traits are brought to light, leaders emerge, quiet individuals’ ideas are valued, and each member is included.  Some groups learn foundational principles and others “fine tune” their relationships.  All will realize anew the need for skills in communication, encouragement, planning, and cooperation.  Individuals must think through problems and formulate suggestions to overcome an obstacle.

Where did the name “Jed’s Quest” come from?  Jedediah Smith was one of the most important men in the exploration days of the Old West.  He packed in more achievements between his twenty-third and his thirty-third birthdays than most men do in a lifetime.  He was the first man to travel the length and width of the Great Basin, the first to reach California overland from the American frontier, the first to cross the Sierra Nevadas, and the first to reach Oregon by a journey up the California coast.  He saw more of the West than any man of his time and was familiar with the territory from the Missouri River to the Pacific, from Mexico to Canada.  He survived disasters and massacres.  His courage, character, and passion make him an authentic American hero.  But it goes deeper than that; he was known as a modest and unassuming man in an age of braggadocios men.  His testimony stands through the grueling test of time.  His Christianity is mentioned in secular history books. He had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that pervaded every accomplishment.  This balanced life is what we want to communicate through “Jed’s Quest.”  A self-sacrificing endurance, courage under fire, character in an era of indulgence, and the intelligence and leadership qualities that inspire men to follow no matter what the cost—this is the spirit of Jed’s Quest.

Aside from the satisfying and well-sought-after feeling of meeting a challenge, at Jed’s Quest we take time after each challenge to discuss the process.  Even more important than reviewing the process is the time for discussion of spiritual analogies:  “What spiritual or unseen truths can we learn from this crazy little event?”  As well as all the social, physical, and mental advantages being gained by the participants, using Jed’s Quest is important to the adult leaders.  It reveals attitudes and qualities of those in their group.  The single most significant factor of Jed’s Quest is that it provides a perfect setting for a multitude of spiritual, teachable moments for the participants.

The Need:  Why is team building important?

We are the body of Christ, and a self-sacrificing love is the foundation of the health of our “body” (John 13:34-35; 1 Corinthians 13).  This love is not a quality that comes without a daily “dying to self.”  Romans 12:1-2 are familiar verses to us:  “ . . . present your bodies a living sacrifice,” but we should not stop reading there.  The rest of the chapter deals with the how to.  Consider verse five:  “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.”  Being a living sacrifice involves serving people—giving up personal rights in order to promote the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4 also deal with the importance of caring for and building up each member of the body.   Our society, our schools, our churches, and our families will crumble if we do not practice teamwork.  But our sinful nature cries out, “Me first!”  Recent tragedies and violence involving young people give us an urgent reminder:  teamwork is a way of thinking that requires overcoming our sinful nature.

The Setup:  How Do I Begin?

Preparation

1. The challenge, or simulation, should include a bit of a story-line. Some creativity in the explanation will add to the group’s fun and level of participation. Most of the challenges involve a few props.  Keep a box or duffle bag with a few supplies, such as blindfolds, lightweight ropes of various lengths, tennis balls, and hula hoops. You can keep adding to it as you try new events.
2. The facilitator should think through the challenge from beginning to end and make sure to allow enough time for both the success of the group and the wrap-up/application time. Trying the challenge out on a test group of friends may be helpful, but do not let anyone who will participate later be part of the test group. Spend a little time thinking of the needs of your group and some potential applications for the challenge.  Pray for wisdom.  Keep a note pad and pen handy as you supervise the challenge; jot down comments that you hear and reactions you notice.  Keep a few “pats on the back” in your notes too.  The hardest task for the facilitator is silence.  Set up the challenge with your story-line, answer a couple of clarification questions, and then sit back and watch the group.
3. The group will need to be prepared. If you only have a short time available to you, your first team-building challenge should be a very simple one. Allow them an easy success with a minimal struggle.  Emphasize one aspect of teamwork at a time.  Communication is a good lesson to begin with.  Communication blocks, effective communication, destructive communication, non-verbal communication—all make up part of a big life lesson!  As your group learns some of the foundational principles of teamwork, you can increase the difficulty of the challenge.  A review of some of the lessons learned in the past will give the group a head start on the challenge of the day.

The Process:  What Should I Do Next?

The challenge should be physically safe.  If there is a potential of physical risk, teach the group to “spot” each other and to value each other’s well-being.  There will be a few risks in each challenge.  These risks involve the participants allowing themselves to become vulnerable physically, emotionally, and socially.  Address this vulnerability briefly before a challenge that you believe will cause them stress.  Have them commit to each other verbally.  This could be done as a part of a “time-out,” if you need to step into the process because the group is headed down a destructive path and you are short on time.  Think of a few ground rules for edification.  These could be established by your group as part of one of the team challenges.

The facilitator has a difficult assignment.  It is a delicate balance to allow the group to struggle and yet to ensure a successful outcome.  The facilitator should not fear struggle and wrong behavior as a part of the process.  The teachable moments that such emotions allow are invaluable.  The balance is to keep the emotions from going over the edge where the damage done cannot be recovered in the time you have available.  The facilitator needs to patiently allow the participants to make mistakes, try various strategies, and learn to communicate.  There is extreme value in the group’s overcoming a perceived handicap.  Do not hurry the process.  It is more valuable to do one challenge well and take advantage of the teachable moments than to hurry through three or four challenges.

Some things to avoid:  1) adults or non-participants on the sidelines talking or laughing, 2) sideline observers offering suggestions, 3) a challenge that is inappropriate for your group (i.e. for guys and girls together, for a wide age range, or for a physically challenged person).

Level One Challenges

Begin with a challenge from this group to “warm them up.”  Stay at this level for most junior high groups.  Basic communication and cooperation skills are learned without having to struggle with complex planning or leadership issues.

Knots

The Story:  We’ve been taken hostage by a band of mischievous desert pygmies.  They don’t want to hurt us, only to keep us tangled up until they can escape with our valuables.  They arrange us in a circle shoulder to shoulder and instruct us to grab the hands of two different people.  No one can hold the hand of the person next to him, and no one can hold both hands of one person.  “No problem,” we think as they disappear from sight. “We’ll just let go—oh no!”  We discover that they have smeared some kind of super glue to our hands and we cannot undo our grip!  We must untangle this terrible mess, and then we can take off after them!

Props or Limitations:  No props are needed.  This activity is most effective for a group of seven to ten people of the same gender.  For larger groups or mixed genders, do several smaller knots.  If one group finishes very quickly, set them up for a second knot.

Rules: Each participant holds two hands belonging to two different people and not belonging to the person next to him.  The group must work together to untangle the knot.  The result will be one big circle.  Be sure to tell them to be gentle with each other and not to allow anyone to be hurt.  They may adjust a grip if someone is in pain, but they should not lose contact.  Sometimes a knot will result in two small circles instead of one large one; and on rare occasions, a knot that cannot be undone is left in the circle.  Tell the group they have succeeded in accomplishing something very rare!

Follow-up:  Ask the group some questions.  “What happened?”  “What made the challenge difficult?”  “What did you do in order to succeed?”  Other questions can come from your observations and notes.  For example, “I watched one time while James was trying to do what two different people were telling him to do at the same time.  What were you thinking, James?”  “Remember, Frieda, when your wrist got twisted and it hurt?  What were you thinking then?”  This time of discussion allows them to laugh, verbalize some of their feelings, and share in the victory.  After they have had a chance to do this, move the discussion to the spiritual application stage by asking a question such as, “Every time we do one of these challenges, I want you come up with some spiritual object lessons that we can learn about real life from the crazy little challenge that we have just done.  Can anyone think of an object lesson from this challenge?”

Spiritual Applications:  Do not be afraid to just wait a minute for them to think.  Silence is not a bad thing if they are thinking.  An example may help them think.

1. The team cannot succeed without everyone participating. If we hurt someone in the process, it slows the team down while we wait for him to recover or maybe even coax him into continuing. Our youth group is that way too.  If we do not take care of each other, we will not accomplish our purpose of winning souls and edifying the body.
2. Success requires us to sometimes stoop down and sometimes step over. Our lives are like that; we sometimes serve others, and sometimes other people serve us. We need to be quick to see which is appropriate.
3. When we started, the knot looked terrible; you might not have believed that it was even possible to untangle it! But we succeeded by taking it one step at a time. Sometimes life’s problems are like that.  They can often look impossible or hopeless, but we just take them one step at a time, doing the next thing; and pretty soon we come out victorious.

Silent Sorting

The Story:  We are a group on a mission to recover our stolen valuables from the dreaded desert pygmies.  As we approach a large gateway, we recognize a trap.  The pygmies have cleverly rigged the gate to only allow a group arranged in chronological order to pass through.  We suspect that they have hearing devices hidden somewhere in the area.  In order to continue on our mission, we must arrange ourselves in order from youngest to oldest, by birth date.  We must do so without making a sound.

Props or Limitations:  No props are needed.  This activity works for a group of any size.

Rules:  Arrange the group in order by birthday—year, month, day.  This must be done silently.  You can eliminate other established forms of communication as they are introduced—for example, no sign language if a large portion of your group knows it, no paper and pencils for writing, no pointing to a calendar.  When the group believes they have finished, you can break the silence and go down the row having the participants say aloud their birth date.  If you discover someone out of order, you can allow them to make adjustments.

Variations:  A variation would be to have them do this in alphabetical order by middle names.

Follow-up:  Ask the group some questions.  The same questions work to begin most discussions.  See the follow-up for Knots.  Some more specific examples:  “I watched one time while John was using the number of fingers to show his birthday and people were ignoring him.  John, what were you thinking?”  “Remember, Floretta, when several people grabbed you and pulled you out of line?  How did that make you feel?”  Remember, this time of discussion allows them to laugh, verbalize some of their feelings, and share in the victory.  It is a very valuable lesson to learn to verbalize your frustration with people who have offended you.  Take time to teach them how to do so in a way that builds the body.  After you have pointed out some of the various strategies used for communication, move the discussion to the spiritual application stage by asking a question like, “Every time we do one of these challenges, I want you come up with some spiritual object lessons that we can learn about real life from the crazy little challenge that we have just done.  Can anyone think of an object lesson from this challenge?”

Spiritual Applications:  Remember, give them a moment of silence to think.  Here are some possible directions these applications can go.  Take the time to be specific with your group.

1. Communication requires understanding. Just because I am talking does not mean I am communicating. When I am trying to explain the gospel to someone, the words that I use may not make sense to them.  I should try to find words that they understand, or at least take the time to help them understand the words.
2. Just like there were several people with ideas of how to communicate, I need to be willing to listen to others’ ideas of how to organize a project. There can be several strategies going on at once.  This has some advantages and some disadvantages.  Encourage them to think of specific examples.
3. If someone in the group did not try to communicate, the efforts of the whole group would fail. That is just like our youth group; if one person does not communicate, we cannot succeed at building up every member and presenting him faultless before the Lord.

Spelling Bee

The Story:  Our adventure has taken us far from home, but we may have a chance to communicate with our friends back home by advanced satellite telemetry.  We need to form words and letters with our bodies.  These letters should be large enough to be identified.  At this point, consider the age and size of your group.  For younger kids, assign them letters to make and divide them into small groups to make words.  Move from one word to the next to create a phrase.  For older kids, you can allow them some creativity to decide what message to send and how to send it.

Props or limitations:  No props are needed.  This is a very good challenge to use for younger participants.  You can give them enough structure to enable them to succeed and yet be creative in their implementation.  If you have a spot above the group where you can be in order to read their message, it would be fun to take a photo of it.

Rules:  If you have a very large group, break them into smaller groups before you begin, in order to save some time.

Variations:  A variation would be to have them do this without speaking or while blindfolded.

Follow-up:  Ask the group the basic questions listed in the previous challenges.  Continue with questions from your observations and notes, for example,  “I enjoyed watching Jerry really put himself into the letter G.  What made that so much fun for you, Jerry?”  “Frances, you were trying to build that letter and had a good idea, but the group started building the letter without you.  Was that frustrating for you?”  Remember to bring out any conflict that occurred and to deal with this conflict in a biblical way.  Move to the spiritual application from this discussion.

Spiritual Applications:  This activity can illustrate many principles.

1. Cooperation—There are many destructive behaviors that might occur. The group can sometimes succeed without the help of each individual. It is more fun, less frustrating, and usually quicker if everyone is involved.  Our youth group is like that when it comes to things such as fundraisers, service projects, and special activities.
2. Others-first thinking—Sometimes there is a spot on the letter that everyone wants. But we cannot succeed if we are all the dot above the i. The body of Christ is like that.  We can take turns being in the spotlight.  The Bible says that we should think about others before ourselves and that we should enjoy it when others are happy.
3. Maturity—This activity gets easier with practice. The first letter we did took more time as we established our strategy. But by the end, we were racing from one letter to the next!  The Christian life is like that.  When we start _____ (fill in the blank:  being kind, being honest, obeying mom, etc.), it is really hard; but with practice, the basics become easier.  We begin putting the basics to work in more complicated issues.

Level Two Challenges

These challenges are not difficult, but the group does have to be able to spend some time in planning—a difficult step for seventh and eighth graders or a group without basic communication skills.

Sightless Touring

The Story:  We need to pass through a small, very paranoid foreign country.  The desert pygmies have gone around the country, and we need to make up some time if we hope to catch them.  The country is long but very narrow, and we just want to pass straight through. The leader of the country is usually quite unreasonable, but we have managed to persuade him to allow us to pass through his country.  However, he has given us some very strange stipulations:  we have been given two guides, but neither one speaks our language or cares to learn it; and we are required to wear blindfolds as we travel.  (They must have some secrets to hide!)  The guides have been told that we have a deadly disease that they will contract if we touch them; they will not stay with us if we attempt to touch them!  If we hurry, we may reach the other side quickly enough to catch the pygmies!

Props or Limitations:  You will need one blindfold for each “tourist.”  You need an area with a few obstacles to go over, under, and around.  The group size adds quite a bit to the difficulty.  The larger the group, the less individual responsibility the members feel.  Some group-destroying humor will usually take place.  The lessons are powerful; do not avoid them if you believe you have time for the process.  Position silent observers along the route, especially at positions where spotting may be necessary.  Consider allowing some minor bumps or stumbles as part of the process, but prevent serious harm.

Rules:      Hand out the blindfolds.  Ask the group to put on their blindfolds and plan some strategy.  You can give them a great deal of help by simply asking them to come up with a strategy for keeping the group together and communicating what they learn to the others.  This step is not necessary but will greatly reduce the time necessary for the challenge.  While this is going on, choose one or two group members to be the foreign tour guides.  Tell them that they have to get the group from where they are, through the route you describe, and to a designated end point.  They cannot speak any known language.  Give them as much or as little help as you like.  If time is short, give them suggestions about using different sounds, the pitch of their voices, or making up a nonsense word for a direction.  They have a difficult task, so choose a member with imagination or a person who considers himself a leader and whom you want to stretch.

Follow-up:  Ask the same type of questions as in the previous section.  “What happened?”  “What made the challenge difficult?”  “What did you do in order to succeed?”  Continue with questions from your observations and notes, for example,  “Jeff, you were the leader.  What frustrated you the most?”  “Is humor helpful or hurtful?”  Because humor is a tool that is often used incorrectly, spend a little time on this topic.  “Flora, I watched you bump your head on that branch.  What happened to your involvement after that?”  This discussion may flow right into the spiritual application section.  Try to deal with all the wrong behaviors that you witnessed, especially if you can get the kids to confront each other.  Facilitate this process so that it is done the right way, with love and respect.  This is a great opportunity to teach biblical confrontation.

Spiritual Applications:  This challenge usually lends itself well to lessons on maturity, the special gifts of the body, and communication.  You can direct the applications in a specific direction by making an observation and asking a question.

1. Maturity—The tail end of the group usually ends up not having to be part of the struggle to communicate. They benefit from the work of the front of the line; but because they have not been part of the process, they often begin doing their own thing to the detriment of the group.  This is the same problem we face today in youth group, families, and society.  What does the Word of God have to say about this?  Maturity can be defined as “doing the right thing at the right time with the right attitude.”  Gratefulness and a sense of others’ first are part of knowing what is the right thing or right time.
2. Spiritual gifts of the body—Do you see how different people served the group in different ways? The gifts of discernment, exhortation, mercy, etc., can be seen in how we worked together to accomplish this task. How can these gifts be used in our homes and in our youth group?
3. Communication—This happens on many levels in Sightless Touring: guide to group leader, group leader to followers, followers among themselves, followers to group leader, and group leader to guide. Some communication will not even be conscious effort.  Think of the things that break down effective communication and things that enable effective communication.  Can you think of some biblical principles that apply?

Transport Troubles

The Story:  I have a very valuable but very toxic substance for you to transport.  It is a vaccine for a rare strain of virus that has broken out in an extremely remote, dangerous territory.  The vaccine is so valuable that the government does not trust anyone to carry it himself.  It is so dangerous that no one can touch it directly.  The solution to these restrictions is somewhat awkward, but we do not have time to argue.  Dying people need this vaccine!  You need to carry the vaccine in this open container, on this specially designed platform, across this wide and dangerous territory.  No one may let go of the platform at any time!

Props or Limitations:  Divide your group into small groups of three to eight.  Each group will need a bandana and a plastic cup filled with water up to one-fourth inch from the top, or a cup filled with uncooked beans, if you do not want water spilled in your room.  The narrower and taller your cup, the more difficult the challenge will be.

Rules:  Give each group a bandana, and have them hold onto its edges with both hands.  The bandana should remain flat throughout the challenge.  When the bandana is stretched tight, place the cup on it.  Have the group follow you through a series of obstacles.  They should, of course, not spill the water or beans.  If they spill, they must start over.  When they reach the end of your route, have them place the bandana and the cup on the floor.  Following are some suggestions for obstacles:  through a narrow doorway, over a couch, up some stairs, or under a table.  Begin with easy obstacles such as going around a chair and over a box.  This allows them to establish their teamwork strategy.  You can have all groups begin at once, or have them observe the groups one at a time and learn from the mistakes of others.

Follow-up:  Ask the same type of follow-up questions as in the previous section.  Continue with questions from your observations and notes.  For example:  “What advantage did the last group have over the first group?”

Spiritual Applications:  This is a fairly simple task, but has some fun lessons about balance, compensating for people going through tough situations, problem solving on the go, and the value of communicating your needs.

1. Did you have any trouble balancing the cup when you were standing still? Some groups do. The application could be about temptation coming when we are not expecting it.  What made moving and balancing difficult?  How is that like life?
2. What could the cup full of vaccine be a symbol of? It makes a nice picture of the gospel.  What could the obstacles be?  What things cause us to not get the gospel to the people who are dying without it?
3. What spiritual truths are illustrated by the way we have to watch what each person is doing so that we can warn them about things in their path or compensate for them as they go over the couch?
4. Communication is not just something that is nice when it happens. If George does not tell us when he is needing help, he stumbles, the water spills, and we have to start over. Lives may be lost because of our delay!  What kinds of things do we need to communicate as a body of believers so that the gospel is not hindered?

Level Three Challenge

This challenge has proven very difficult even for a group that works well together and that has experienced success with other team challenges.  If you want to attempt it, be prepared to step in for a “time out” and guide them through an adjustment process.  Do not give them solutions; just point out some problems and ask specific individuals for their input on solutions.  Then step out and have them continue the process.

Directions in the Dark

The Story:  On a dark, moonless night we are called upon to send a message via satellite to our military headquarters.  The only symbol they will recognize is a perfect square.  Any other symbol will cause confusion, possibly disaster!  The satellite will be able to see the rope only if we all maintain contact with it.  Highly secret technology is at work!

Props or Limitations:  You will need one blindfold for each participant.  You need a very large open area and a long rope.  I use a 150-foot rappelling rope; the challenge would be easier with a shorter rope.

Rules: Hand out the blindfolds, and ask the group to put on their blindfolds.  After they have their blindfolds on, place a section of rope in each person’s hand.  Increase the difficulty by handing the rope out to the group in a very random fashion.  Leave the rope with two ends not secured together.  Leave a large portion of the rope in a pile on the ground and hand an end to one person.  No one may let go of the rope at any time.

Follow-up:  Ask the same type of follow-up questions as in the previous section.  Continue with questions from your observations and notes.  I would not have believed the difficulty of this challenge unless I had observed it myself.  The distances involved and the concept of constructing a square with equal sides make it a hard one for most groups.  I think this event has caused the most leadership crises of any I have tried.  Maybe having to shout over a distance and not being able to see what is going on caused this to happen.  Be sure to address specific issues and allow biblical confrontation to occur.

Spiritual Applications:  The lessons about communication, preferring others, and qualities of leadership can be applied in response to specific issues that arise with your group.