Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
Journey of Faith
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For Every Action…
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
01/14/24 • 32 min
This year will be full of opportunities to respond to other people’s poor decisions, unkind words, and unwise actions. But what if we didn’t wait for the moment of those events to see what our response would be? What if we prepared for our inevitable stresses by practicing Jesus’ upside-down way of living? This week, we’ll explore what it means to really put Christlike characters into action and prepare to share God’s love at every opportunity.
Watch Full ServiceGroups Discussion Guide
To view the Leader Guide for this week, click here.
To view a .docx version of this guide, click here.
Introduction
Take a few minutes to chat as a group! Are there any new faces in the group? Get to know them. How did everyone’s Christmas and New Year holidays go?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse for the Week
*Read this verse, then encourage the practice of memorization throughout the week.
Matthew 11:28-29
“Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls”
**When practiced consistently, memorizing Bible verses can be an important spiritual practice that centers your mind around the truth that God has given us.
Connect
- How are you feeling about 2024 so far? Are you hopeful, concerned, or doubtful? Reflect on the past few years and compare that to how you feel about 2024.
- 2024 is an election year. During the last election year, 2020, we were in the middle of a global pandemic, dealing with various sociopolitical conflicts, tensions, and controversies.
- Take a moment and discuss with your group. How did you handle what was happening in the world at that time?
- How did you reflect Jesus’ life and teachings well through your thoughts as well as your actions? How did you not?
- How did this affect your outlook on the following years?
- How do you think we can approach this year with a hopeful and positive attitude?
Opening Thought:
Each new year always brings new challenges, many of which are fueled by uncertainty, which can cause stress. Add onto this that the year 2024 may potentially have some specifically challenging situations politically, socially, or even personally for some. Thankfully, Jesus has given us some guidelines to build a foundation for how to think and act this year, both in how we prepare ourselves to live and how we can react to those around us who may live or think differently than us.
This leads us to our big idea for this week:
Big idea for the week:
We should let Jesus change our lives this year and
reprogram our negative responses into love with Jesus’ help. Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses, then discuss the connected questions.
Read Matthew 5:1-9
These verses are from a section referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount.” It was one of Jesus’ first major sermons in his ministry. Pastor Jason, in the introduction of this series, talked about how this specific section is referred to as “The Beatitudes”, which translates to “the blessedness”, meaning this section is what Jesus taught will make you blessed by God if you do them.
- Why do you think Jesus chose to start his first public sermon this way?
- Which of these characteristics or “beatitudes”, as they are called (humility, gentleness, purity, peace, etc), are easy, and which are difficult?
- Why do you think Jesus taught that these characteristics are so important to being a follower of God?
- How do you react to being offended? How does that match up to what Jesus taught in these verses?
Jeremiah 17:7-8
Philippians 4:5-9
1 Peter 3:8-9
- When you are stressed, which character traits arise in your life that affect others negatively? How can you reprogram yourself to react with love instead?
- What does it look like to trust in God when difficult circumstances come? Why is it important that people see you living this way?
- Why is it so difficult to love people who don’t love you back? How can we bless these people in a sacrificial way instead?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss ...
Believe the Good News
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
10/15/23 • 32 min
What is the Christian Faith really about? Put simply... Jesus. We tend to make it complicated. We find Jesus and then we start adding things on – cultural traditions, politics, personal preferences – and by the time we are done, we might be following a different Jesus! This complicated faith is not only spiritually exhausting, but it makes it harder to get along with other people. In this first message of our Simple Faith series, we look at the basic message of the Christian Faith, what’s called the Gospel and start the process of removing the religious “add-ons” that we’ve collected along the way.
Watch Full ServiceGroup Discussion Guide
To see the Leader Guide for this week, click here.
To see a .pdf of the discussion guide, click here.
Introduction
Last week we discussed commitment to God and how we can make the effort to stay connected to him. Spend a few minutes discussing how your group put their personal action steps from last week into practice.
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse for the Week
*Read this verse, then encourage the practice of memorization through the week.
Romans 12:2
“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
**When practiced consistently, memorizing Bible verses can be an important spiritual practice that centers your mind around the truth that God has given us.
Opening Thought
Often, when people talk about what is necessary for faith in Jesus, it can be visualized as a three-ring target or a bullseye: The beliefs we can discuss without it affecting our faith are in the outside ring, the beliefs we should defend and have serious discussions about because they are important live in the second ring, and the most core foundational beliefs we should die for find themselves in the center ring. When we think about how to live a life for Jesus, it can be easy to listen to many different sources: people, traditions, music, popular culture, etc. Most of these sources fall into the outer ring of the bullseye, and while they are not bad things to think through, they can make our thoughts convoluted sometimes when we’re trying to pinpoint how to follow God best. Jesus didn’t really pay attention to these outer circle beliefs when it came to people’s faith. His words implied a much humbler kind of life and faith: believe in Jesus and follow him.
This leads us to our Big Idea for the eek:
*Big Idea for the Week*
We can follow Jesus best by holding strongly to a simple faith.
Connect
- What are some simple aspects of your life that you find yourself making more complicated?
- Which customs or traditions did you grow up with that became too important? What about in your faith?
- What do you think are necessary elements you need to prioritize to make sure you follow Jesus?
Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses, then discuss the connected questions.
Read
Galatians 1:1-12
Discuss
In this section, the Apostle Paul is addressing the churches in the region of Galatia (Modern-Day Turkey) because he has heard they are listening to a different teaching than he taught them about the good news of Jesus.
- Why do you think Paul is upset about this? Why is it important to pay attention to the original source of information?
- How can it be helpful to listen to other people’s perspectives on faith? When can this become negative?
Discuss
During Pastor Jason’s message on Sunday, he described how sometimes we like to place
“add-ons” to our faith in Jesus–meaning we make aspects of faith important which are not actually part of what Jesus taught.
- How do you measure what is an add-on versus what is essential in your faith?
- Why do you think we make these add-ons in our faith? How can this be harmful to our faith and to those we share our faith with?
- What aspects of your faith have you complicated by adding on to them?
Read
John 14:23-27
Discuss
- How can we rely on the Holy Spirit to remember the teachings of Jesus?
- Why is holding strong to t...
The Door of Big Decisions
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
09/18/22 • 32 min
We’ll start our series this week by looking at what we need when making BIG DECISIONS in life. Big Decisions can make us nervous and anxious, but Jesus teaches that God is ready to give us the wisdom we need!
Group Discussion Guide
Memory Verse
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. James 1:5
Opening
- Begin your time with prayer.
- Go around and do basic introductions. Try not to spend too much time on this. Share name, and one fun fact.
- Our Big Idea for today: God wants to be part of your decisions!
Watch the Video Connect
Discuss together the following questions:
- What brought you here? What do you hope to get out of this group?
- What is one of the most important decisions you’ve made in your life? What makes that decision stand out to you?
- What kind of decisions do people make that they wish they could have a “do-over” on?
Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses. Don’t comment specifically on each one, but rather use the questions below to guide your responses as you consider all of the verses.
READ
- Proverbs 3:5
- James 1:5
- Proverbs 11:14
- Philippians 4:6
- 2 Timothy 3:16
DISCUSS
- What do these verses teach us about God?
- What do these verses encourage us to do?
- What do these verses encourage us NOT to do?
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses. Don’t comment specifically on each one, but rather use the questions below to guide your responses as you consider all of the verses.
READ
- Proverbs 3:5
- James 1:5
- Proverbs 11:14
- Philippians 4:6
- 2 Timothy 3:16
DISCUSS
- What do these verses teach us about God?
- What do these verses encourage us to do?
- What do these verses encourage us NOT to do?
Which application sticks out most in your life as you think about your current decisions?
Close your time in prayer.
Daily Bible Reading
Use the S.O.A.K. method to reflect on the verses below.
Scripture: Read the verses several times out loud.
Observation: As you read the scripture, what do you observe?
Application: What is God wanting you to believe, do or feel based on what you have read?
Kneel: This is a chance to pray about what you have read and learned.
- Day 1: James 3:17
- Day 2: Proverbs 12:15
- Day 3: Psalm 25:4
- Day 4: 1 John 5:14
- Day 5: Romans 12:1-2
- Day 6: Hebrews 11:6
God is Speaking to You
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
06/18/23 • 33 min
When is the last time you received a letter that encouraged you... or challenged you? A powerful letter from an important person can have an amazing impact on what we believe and how we live! This is why much of the New Testament is made up of spiritual correspondence from Christian leaders to everyday people like us! This week, as we finish our series the genres of the Bible, we’ll learn how to read and apply the Letters or “Epistles” in the Bible. We’ll see how these ancient letters can help us to follow Jesus and find spiritual community with others!
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week click here.
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
Psalms 32:8
“The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’”
Opening
Part of the difficulty of growing up is how many decisions we need to make as an adult. Now, we learn and get better at handling these choices but that doesn’t make the world less confusing, we just get better at navigating. Thankfully, through the genre of Epistles (or Letters), we are given some directions for how to live our everyday lives, making it a little easier for us to know which decisions we should make as we go.
Big Idea For The Week
Through biblical letters we can see God’s direction for our everyday lives.
Connect
- What is the value of a letter? Are there meaningful letters you’ve gotten?
- What is the typical structure of a letter? What are some different types of letters and what is the purpose of them?
- How can knowing someone’s writing style help you understand what they are trying to communicate?
Unpack
This week, we will be reading an epistle the way its authors intended: as a letter. Similar to when we went through the genre of narrative together, spend some time reading through the given epistle. Take turns, make notes about which parts stick out to you, but mostly, just listen and try to understand what was being communicated to the original audience. Afterwards, discuss the connected questions together.
READ
- Philippians 1-2
DISCUSS
- What can we learn from the introduction to this letter?
- What is the author trying to communicate so far in this epistle? What does this say about his perspective on life?
- What belief is Paul trying to encourage his audience to have?
READ
- Philippians 3-4
DISCUSS
- Now that you have read the entire letter, what is the author’s main point? What are some ways they illustrate this point to the audience?
- How is your understanding of Philippians different than it was after only reading part of the letter? Why do we only read pieces of epistles then?
- What are a few ways that Paul is calling the church in Philippi to live? What does this say about how we should live today?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss these questions as a group to decide what your personal action steps for the week can be:
- Paul is encouraging the Philippians to not only believe but to live out their belief in his letter. What is one way you can do this from now on?
- How can you live your beliefs out in spiritual community in a new or more intentional way from now on?
- What is one way your group can grow more like Jesus together over the course of this summer? How will you keep each other accountable in this goal?
Closing
The writers of the epistles wanted other believers around them, not only, to understand but to apply the teachings of God. Jesus taught that for his lessons to be understood and lived out well, they must be done in community with others because the love his disciples show for each other will prove that they follow Jesus. The life of a Christian cannot be done apart from others. As we learn how to live everyday life through the genre of Epistles, let’s do it together to show those around us that God is the one giving directions to our lives!
Daily Bible Reading
Use the S.O.A.P. method to reflect on the verses below.
Scripture: Read the verses several times out loud.
Observation: As you read the scripture what do you obse...
God Speaks Truth
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
06/11/23 • 37 min
What can we do when we see suffering and injustice in the world? In ancient times, God chose special messengers called “prophets” to call people to live with compassion and fairness. This week, we’ll explore the genre of biblical prophecy and see how it guides us to remember what God has said, repent from sin, and ready ourselves for God’s good future with Jesus!
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week click here.
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
1 Corinthians 14:33
“For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people.”
Opening
The world can be confusing and difficult sometimes, especially when we don’t pay attention to God and his design for our lives. Similarly, this was the problem the people of Israel found themselves falling into throughout much of the history we read in the Bible. As a result, God sent his messengers, or prophets, to remind his people of what he wanted the design of their lives to look like. While this genre was written in a specific context in time, the truths we can learn from them about God and his future for the world are still just as perfect today as when they were first written.
Big Idea For The Week
Through biblical prophecy we can see God’s vision for the world.
Connect
- When you think of the word “prophet”, what comes to mind?
- What stereotypes does our culture associate with the word prophecy?
- What is your experience with reading biblical prophecy? What do you think the purpose of this genre is?
Unpack
This week, we will be looking at some examples of prophecy in the Bible to see how God used messengers to get the attention of his people. All the verses this week were written when the people of Israel had disobeyed God and/or been attacked and exiled by other nations. God used prophets in these times to send messages to the people of Israel to communicate how he felt about their actions, remind them of who he is, and call them to follow him. Try to identify the purpose of each prophecy as you read the following verses. After, discuss the connected questions together.
READ
- Hosea 13:4-6
DISCUSS
- Why was it important that the people of Israel remembered that God took care of their ancestors and brought them out of slavery?
- How can remembering what God has done in the past help people follow him?
READ
- Jeremiah 7:1-7
DISCUSS
- What is this prophecy communicating to the audience at the time?
- These verses speak about justice to those around them. Why do you think it was important that the people of Israel lived this way?
READ
- Isaiah 49:8-12
DISCUSS
- What does this section of prophecy communicate to the original audience?
- A section like this is common in prophetic writings. Why do you think it was important that God said these things to his people?
- How does Jesus fulfill some of the prophecies in the Bible?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss these questions as a group to decide what your personal action steps for the week can be:
- How can you take practical steps to remember what God has said and done for you this week?
- What is one area of your life you need to turn back to God in this week?
- How can you take a step to be prepared for what God is going to do in your life this week?
Closing
Prophetic writings can be difficult to read because of the language but also because sometimes we might relate to the people of Israel in the way we are. It can be easy to forget what God has done for us and be focused on our own life. At times, we can get caught up in some sort of sin that we do not want to give up. Even if those cases aren’t true in your life, there can be times we look around and notice that we haven’t been preparing ourselves very well for what God wants to do in our lives. Either way, while the genre of prophecy was written to a specific people and time, one of the good news about God’s Word is that they are timeless in the truth they hold. This week, try to apply these truths to your l...
God Makes All Things Beautiful
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
06/07/23 • 33 min
Great poetry awakens the imagination and appeals to our emotions. Simple artistic writing and imagery can surprise us with life changing wisdom. God is the creator of all things beautiful and speaks to us through Psalms, Proverbs, and other “wisdom books.” This week, we’ll learn how to read these genres of the Bible and how can help us express ourselves to God and wisely follow Jesus.
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week click here.
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
Matthew 7:24
“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.”
Opening
Expressing ourselves can sometimes be a tricky practice. Even with the many ways people are invited to share their experiences in our culture, it can come with a measure of fear that we will not be accepted for who we are. God, however, through the inclusion of poetry and wisdom literature in the Bible, shows that he is always inviting us to be fully human. Reading the genre of biblical poetry gives examples of how we can be vulnerable or praise God for the good things of this world through creativity and art. Wisdom literature gives instructions that start and end with how we can live well if we live through the love of God, inviting us to be genuine and share what we learn through our experiences in life. Both poetry and wisdom are forms of writing that can inform us of the invitation that God gives for us to be real and expressive and to follow his wise direction in life at the same time.
Big Idea For The Week
Through the lens of biblical poetry/wisdom, we can see God’s accepting love for us.
Connect
- Growing up, how were emotions and/or creativity viewed in your home or church? How was wisdom viewed?
- What kind of creative activities did you like to do as a child? Why did those specific activities appeal to you? How do you still find time to be creative?
- When do you take time to listen to the wisdom of others? Why do you allow your life to be guided by this wisdom?
Unpack
This week, we will be looking at some examples in the genre of biblical poetry and wisdom to see how we can grow in our relationship with God better through our interaction with them. Read the following verses, paying attention to how the author expresses themselves within them, then discuss the connected questions together.
Read + Discuss
- Psalms 18:1-15
- Sometimes, biblical poetry expresses an experience that, most likely, did not literally happen; however, the author expresses the way an experience felt, in the moment to relay truth about God and to praise him.
- What do you think the author was trying to explain about how they felt in the verses you just read?
- If you are comfortable, share a time in your life when you have felt like the author.
- How can expressing yourself in a vulnerable and/or creative way be beneficial in growing your relationship with God?
Read + Discuss
- Proverbs 3:13-18
- What do you think the author of these verses is trying to explain? Why did they use poetry to express this?
- What do you think the relationship between emotional expression and wise living is?
- How often do you try to “embrace wisdom”, as it says in verse 18? How has this affected your life?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss these questions as a group to decide what your personal action steps for the week can be:
- What is one way you can begin to express yourself creatively to grow in your relationship with God this week?
- What steps can you put into place to embrace Godly wisdom this next week?
- How can the group help make these action steps a priority in our lives from now on?
Closing
Thankfully, God is multifaceted and has given us examples of how to follow him in many ways. He wants us to be fully human and be able to be creative and express ourselves in ways that are healthy, while also listening to wisdom that will help us obey him better. This week, try to use both poetry and wisdom literature as a basis for how to see his love and grow closer to him.
Daily Bible Reading
Use the S.O.A.P. method to reflect on the verses bel...
God Tells the Ultimate Story
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
05/28/23 • 33 min
What keeps the world from spiraling out of control? Laws! From the laws of nature to the laws we create, the purpose of law is to help us live well in God’s good world. As we begin our series looking at different genres of the Bible, we start where the Bible starts. God gave a specific set of laws to the Jewish people to help them live in a unique way. We’ll see how the laws God gave them encouraged freedom, not legalism, and reflected God’s concern for all areas of life! And we’ll also see how, through Jesus, we can honor the principles of those laws by loving God and loving others!
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week click here.
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
Isaiah 54:10
“’For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken,’ says the Lord, who has mercy on you.”
Opening
Sometimes the world can seem chaotic. Events around us seem to not always make sense, which can lead us to worry that everything is meaningless at times. The good news is that God has given us a way to see how he has worked in the past with his people so we can see how he can work in the future. This comes through reading and studying the stories we find in the genre of “historical narratives”, which is found in the books of Joshua-Nehemiah. These books have stories that can teach us about the God’s mission to take care of his people, despite their faults. This genre can help us see God’s faithfulness and how he continued to use his people to bring about the good news of redeeming the earth. God is the main character and we are just pieces of his story.
Big Idea For The Week
Through the lens of story, we can see God’s grand narrative.
Connect
- What kind of stories have you heard that stuck with you the most? Why do you think this was such an effective way to communicate information?
- Who is the best storyteller you know? What makes them a good storyteller?
- Why do you think humans interpret themselves into stories that may not be about them? How could this practice be problematic?
Unpack
As a group, decide on one of the following stories to read. Think of it as a “choose your own adventure” game. Each one of these stories will be a longer section of verses than normally provided each week so take turns reading. Make observations along the way of what stands out to you as your group reads. After finishing the stories, discuss the questions provided.
Choose one of the following to read:
- Elijah and the Widow: 1 Kings 17
- The Fall of Jericho: Joshua 5:13-6:20
- David and Bathsheba: 2 Samuel 11:1-12:15
- King Hezekiah: 2 Chronicles 32:1-26
DISCUSS
- Summarize together what you have read. What happened?
- What are your first thoughts when you read this story? Share any observations you made.
- What do you think is the point of this story? What is the author trying to explain about God and his character?
- What is the author trying to communicate about how God works in the lives of his people? How can this story and what it communicates about God affect your life?
- How can this story point you to Jesus and his teachings?
Apply
Take a moment to discuss this section as a group to decide what your action steps for the week can be:
- What steps can you take to view your life as a part of God’s grand story this week?
- How can we continue to point ourselves to Jesus and his teachings as we live out the story of our lives?
- How can we encourage each other to live like Jesus over the course of this week?
Closing
The law was made to show people their need to rely on God and to worship him because of it. As we learn more together about this law given, we can see God’s goodness better because we know all it was fulfilled and summed up in the teachings of Jesus: Love God and Love People. Jesus then modeled what a life devoted to loving God and people looks like. This week let’s try to do our best to be actively taking steps to live like Jesus.
Daily Bible Reading
Use the S.O.A.P. method to reflect on the verses below.
Scripture: Read the verses several times out loud.
Observation: As you read the scripture what do you ob...
God’s Heart for the Spiritual Life
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
05/14/23 • 36 min
Whenever we go the doctor, they check our vitals to see if we’re healthy. What are the vital signs of a healthy spiritual life? This weekend, we’ll look at four teachings of Jesus that can help us check our spiritual vitals so we can have a healthy and growing faith!
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week CLICK HERE
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
2 Timothy 2:15
“Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.”
Opening
There are times when it can be easy to go through the motions of life because life is just “normal” and not much seems to change. If we are not careful, however, this can lead to us becoming stagnant in certain parts of our life that need to consistently be evaluated. Just like we should be making sure we are physically and mentally healthy, we should also be training ourselves to grow in our spiritual life. The first step to this is by evaluating where we’re at, which can be difficult by ourselves. The good thing is that God loves us and wants us to grow in our relationship with him so we can be confident that he will help us along the way.
Big Idea For The Week
God wants the best for your spiritual life.
Connect
- What do you think it looks like to be healthy?
- On a scale from 1 to 10, how important is personal health to you and why? How does this affect the way you live your life?
- How do you take your pulse for how spiritually healthy you are?
Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses, then discuss the connected questions.
Read + Discuss
- Mark 1:16-18
- Matthew 28:18-20
- What invitations has Jesus extended to you lately? How have you responded to them?
- On Sunday, Jason said that one way to be spiritually healthy is to have an “invitational spirit” like Jesus, meaning we embody his dedication to inviting others to do the spiritual life together.
- How have you had an inspirational spirit in your life? What are some ways you can be more inviting to others?
Read + Discuss
- 1 Peter 4:8-11
- What do these verses say about how your spiritual life should be lived out? How could living like this affect your faith?
- How are you growing in your spiritual life with others?
Read + Discuss
- 1 John 3:16-18
- How can we serve with the love of Jesus? What ways do you serve and sacrifice for the good of others?
- What should our mindset be when we are serving and/or giving to others?
- If you are comfortable, share a time when someone has served you with this mindset. How did this affect you?
Apply
Take a moment to discuss this section as a group to decide what your action steps for the week can be:
- What steps can you take this week to evaluate your spiritual health?
- What areas of your spiritual life do you think need to be focused on?
- vHow can you address these areas over the next few weeks?
- How can your group be a part of your journey towards more intentional growth with Jesus?
Closing
Putting in the effort to evaluate how you are doing in your spiritual life can be difficult. Unlike physical or mental health, you can’t always tell how spiritually healthy you are by looking in a mirror or thinking through it. As a result, you have to evaluate by looking at your life and how you life with people around you.
Take this week to evaluate your spiritual health. How is it doing? Lean on your group for support in how to approach and carry out this goal together. If you do this, you can realize which areas need more work and which ones you can develop further. We can all do this together with Jesus as our guide!
Daily Bible Reading
Use the S.O.A.P. method to reflect on the verses below.
Scripture: Read the verses several times out loud.
Observation: As you read the scripture what do you observe.
Application: What is God wanting you to believe, do or feel based on what you have read?
Pray: This is a chance to talk to God about what you have read, and ask him for help in living out what you’ve learned.
- Day 1: 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
- Day 2: Galatians 5:13-14
- Day 3: Matthew 6:1-4
- Day 4: ...
Your Local Faith-Building Club
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
05/05/23 • 33 min
Constructing or reconstructing our faith is not a solo project. We must connect with and rely on each other for input and encouragement. This week we’ll look at a biblical example of how people on the journey of faith can form a solid team that keeps them stay motivated, disciplined, and focused on the goal of building a strong faith.
Group Discussion Guide
To see the leader guide for this week CLICK HERE
Introduction
Spend a few minutes discussing with your group how their application of last week’s group discussion went. What were the highs and lows of their last week?
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse
1 Corinthians 3:9
“For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building.”
Opening
One of the tensions of living as a follower of Jesus in America is that we have a highly individualistic culture. There’s a sense that we need to go through our faith alone because it’s “between me and Jesus”. This could be because we are a private person or do not want to be influenced or judged by others for one reason or the other. Inherently, there is nothing wrong with being private or needing less social interaction with others; people are different in their social needs. When we read the teaching of Jesus, however, we can understand that Jesus taught the opposite of that. The first followers of Jesus were taught for faith to be practiced and constructed well then it must be done alongside others.
Our big idea for the week
We can build our faith as a team.
Connect
- When was a time where you thought you should do something alone but later realized you needed other people to help you?
- When has a group experience been positive when you thought it might be negative?
- Do you believe that God works when you ask?
- Share a time when God worked in a meaningful way in your life.
Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses, then discuss the connected questions.
The first verse we will read in this section is from a letter that the Apostle Paul (one of Christianity’s first missionaries) wrote to the church in a place called Ephesus. This was a thriving port city that had many different ethnic communities, and the Ephesian church was no different. There were Jews and Gentiles (non-Jews) together worshipping God in one place, which was a huge deal at the time. Notice how Paul refers to these two groups of people as you read these next few verses.
READ
- Ephesians 2:19-22
DISCUSS
- What are some reasons we tend to want to do faith alone or privately?
- What experience do you have working through your faith with people that are different than you? Share an example or two, if you’re comfortable.
- Why does Paul refer to the people in these verses as “family”? How does this change your view of how Christians should think of each other?
READ
- Hebrews 10:23-25
- Matthew 18:20
- 1 John 4:10-12
DISCUSS
- How have you had your faith nurtured by other people?
- Is there a place in your faith that you need to bring people into? What barriers do you have that would prevent you from doing that?
- What are some practical ways you can love those around you well to help build their faith?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss these questions as a group in order to determine what your personal action steps for the week can be:
We’ve talked about how faith is meant to be a communal or team effort, not individualistic.
- What steps can you take to practice your faith with this perspective from now on?
Pastor Jason talked on Sunday about making goals for building your faith. This group you are in right now should be a place for you to ask for help in those goals.
- What are some of your “faith-building goals” you have that you can share with your group today? If you don’t have any, work together as a group to come up with some goals together.
- How can you as a group help each other carry out these goals together?
Closing
As we grow in our relationship with other followers of Jesus, it’s important to remember that our faith was never meant to be done alone. God made us as communal and social beings. This doesn’t mean we cannot spend time alone; in fact, being alone with God is an extremely healthy spiritual prac...
Compassionate Candor
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast
09/24/23 • 36 min
Sometimes good leadership means treating everyone the same. But great leadership that bring true justice and transformation is often more nuanced than that. This week we’ll explore the underutilized power of candor and connection, learning to treat people as individuals and adapting our influence to be the most helpful in each unique situation.
Group Discussion Guide
To see the Leader Guide for this week, click here
Introduction
Last week we talked about how we can have a positive influence by pushing forward, despite the obstacles. Spend a few minutes sharing how your personal application from that discussion has gone.
After your time of connecting, begin your meeting with prayer.
Key Verse for the Week
*Read this verse to your group first, then encourage the practice of memorization through the week.
Proverbs 16:21
“The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive.”
**When practiced consistently, memorizing Bible verses can be an important spiritual practice that centers your mind around the truth that God has given us.
Opening Thought
When it comes to telling the truth, we can often go to one of two extremes. We can either keep silent and keep things to ourselves while letting it be someone else’s problem, or we can choose to tell the truth in order to cast harsh judgement on someone that benefits us and not them. Admit it, we’re often a mess at this! Thankfully, Jesus gives us a great model on using the perfect mix of real candor, or real truth-telling, and compassion to be a benefit to others.
This leads us to our big idea for the week:
Big idea for the week
Following Jesus’ example, we can become people who partner truth with authentic connection.
Connect:
Take about 5-10 minutes to discuss a few of the following questions. Afterwards, move into the unpack section:
- Why is it necessary to tell the truth to those around us? What purpose is there to being sincere in our interactions with others?
- What usually prevents you from telling someone the truth, even when they’d benefit from hearing it?
- Share an example of when you told someone a truth that was hard, and it ended up working out to be a positive thing?
Unpack
Go around your group and have someone read each of the following verses, then discuss the connected questions.
Read
1 Corinthians 13:4-6
1 Peter 1:22
Discuss
- What do compassion and love have to do with telling someone the truth?
- How can compassionate truth-telling be an example of modeling God’s heart well in your relationships and communities?
**The next two sections of verse we are going to read provide two different examples of how Jesus showed compassionate candor to those he spoke with. Pay close attention to the difference in tone Jesus uses in each interaction.
Read
Luke 13:10-13
Discuss
- Verse 12 from this section reads, “When Jesus saw her, he called her over...” Why do you think Jesus did this? How does Jesus show compassion in the way he speaks truth to this woman?
- How does Jesus’ interaction with this woman challenge you to act?
Read
Luke 13:14-17
**In the verses we just read, the leader of the synagogue was using a common tactic of that day by debating with Jesus because he doing a healing on the Sabbath (the day God established for his people to rest). See, the law was viewed as a type of “fence” in Hebrew thought. God’s intended rationale was that if his people didn’t cross the “fence” (the law given), they wouldn’t come into contact with and, therefore, violate the true offense within the fence. Therefore, the heart of the law concerning the Sabbath was to keep the Sabbath holy and set-apart and avoid getting distracted from focusing on God. The synagogue leaders had missed the point of the law, however, instead considering all work on the Sabbath to be sinful. Jesus knew this and responded to the leader in the same debating style the leader was used to as a result.
Discuss
- Why do you think Jesus responded in these verses this way? What factors could cause him to interact with the leader how he did?
- How was Jesus compassionate in how he spoke truth to this synagogue leader? How can we learn from his example?
Apply
Based on the verses we just read, there are some things that we can do in response. Take a moment to discuss these questions as a group to decide what your per...
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FAQ
How many episodes does Journey of Faith Messages Podcast have?
Journey of Faith Messages Podcast currently has 115 episodes available.
What topics does Journey of Faith Messages Podcast cover?
The podcast is about Christianity, Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Journey of Faith Messages Podcast?
The episode title 'How We Talk About the Christian Life' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Journey of Faith Messages Podcast?
The average episode length on Journey of Faith Messages Podcast is 33 minutes.
How often are episodes of Journey of Faith Messages Podcast released?
Episodes of Journey of Faith Messages Podcast are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Journey of Faith Messages Podcast?
The first episode of Journey of Faith Messages Podcast was released on Sep 18, 2022.
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