See your group, and subsequent leadership, as the loving kick in the pants your people may need to bring Jesus and his way into the foreground of their life. Don't let it merely be a "follow your dreams" conversation, but a vision toward what it would be like if we all loved enough to listen for God's voice and follow it, no matter where it led.
A good idea for leaders is to have a journal out, or some note cards, and as yo
u listen to some of your group members' responses about what God might be challenging them to do, write it down. Months from now, if your members seem to be at an impasse, or are feeling that unfulfilled hollowness that comes from a season of dryness, you'll be able to better lead them by reminding them of God's voice and helping them stay on track with what he has been leading them toward.
Thaw
- Picking up on last week, has there been any forgiveness offered, or dealt with that anyone would like to share? (Whether it's resolved or not!)
- What was most challenging about this weeks message?
- How would your life look in one year if you responded to the challenge of the message the way you sensed you should?
Read
- Luke 15
- Thoughts?
- Is there anything in this passage that you haven't noticed before, big or little?
- Would you have entitled the last parable, if not the traditional "The Prodigal Son"
- Does this parable (or parables) run counter to your deeply held beliefs about God?
- With whom in the story, the Father, the older son or the younger, do you think people most associate you? Why?
Read
- Matthew 23:23
- 1 Corinthians 13
- What is Jesus trying to get into the heads of his listeners?
- What is Paul saying about the role of love?
- How have you seen what they are speaking against play out in your life?
- Are you guilty of forgetting to love powerfully, sacrificially and for the sake of others more than self in your faith in God? How so?
Application
- The church has been largely turned into a weekend event, rather than living, breathing body of Christ. The creator of the Universe has put together a people and a movement, empowered by his Spirit, and we've made it a hobby that some find boring and/or irrelevant. If each LifeGroup were comprised of unified individuals ready to go and pursue what God pursues, how, realistically, would our corner of the world be different?
- Our families?
- Our places of employment?
- Our health?
- What's holding us back?
- What can we do about what's holding us back?
Leader note: In terms of "what's holding us back", help the group get past vague notions of a pep rally, and key in on things that have been shared over time. You may want to call out different members and say, "John, how would your marriage be different if you loved and pursued your wife and family in a whole new way?" "Mary, what do you think God would do through your faith if you quit this job you can't stand, and freed yourself to do what he made you to do?". Help them hear what God may have already begun to whisper, but disallowing the conversation to be so vague the wriggle out of hearing.
Additional texts
- Revelation 3:14-20
- 2 Corinthians 6:4-10
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