Day 3 Virtue Demo: FORTITUDE
You’ll need:
- Small table
- Fan
- Feather
- 5 lb weight
Ask:
Who can tell me what the word “fortitude,” means? I’ll give you a hint: you can hear the word fort in the word fortitude.
(Being brave and strong in the face of trials, similar to courage, etc.)
You can practice fortitude by standing up for what’s right and not be afraid to show your faith.
The opposite of fortitude is when we give into our fears. When someone doesn’t practice fortitude they are easily afraid and they don’t persevere in hard times.
Demonstrate:
What am I holding? A weight.
How would you describe this weight? Solid, heavy, unmovable, unshakeable, etc.
Now, what am I holding? A feather.
How would you describe this feather? Light, weak, movable, shakeable, etc.
The weight represents someone who practices fortitude, and the feather represents someone who lacks fortitude.
Put the feather and weight beside each other on the small table. Plug in the fan.
The wind from the fan represents the hard times, challenges, temptations and trials that we might experience in our life.
When I turn on this fan, we’ll see what happens. Turn on the fan. Start on low speed and work your way up to high speed. Shut it off after it’s been on high for a couple seconds.
It’s easy to see that the feather didn’t stand a chance against the strong winds, but the weight remains solid and untouched.
Ask:
Which object do you want to be; the weight or the feather?
We need to remain strong and anchored like the weight; standing solid and unshakeable in our faith. When we have fortitude, it will help us remain strong during temptations. We need to stand firm and face our struggles, and not run from them.
How can you practice fortitude in your faith?
Share Jesus with others, stand up for what is right, resist temptations, let go of fear, etc.
Explain:
Sometimes, we may feel like giving up. We need to remember every situation is a chance to grow. We waste the opportunity if we try to run from the struggle. We need to remember that Jesus is always with us and will help us stand strong.
