Small flames of fire dispersing through the upper room.
A revival in the streets of Jerusalem that has continued to spread for 2,000 years.
Pentecost is this Sunday. And even though its presence on our calendars is much smaller than Christmas and Easter, its meaning is massive. Where would we be without the gift of God’s Spirit to fill our sails and guide our paths?
But sometimes, we get stuck in storms that threaten to capsize our course forward. What do we need to know about the winds that seems to blow directly against the direction of God’s calling?
In Luke 8, Jesus’ words will help us discover the answer.
DOWNLOADS
See It Be It Video Notes (download pdf) Audio iTunesSEE IT // BE IT
(WEEKLY COMMUNITY GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE)
DATE: June 4, 2017 Unstuck: Storms and Stories //
Scripture: Luke 8:22-23
ARRIVAL / SOCIAL TIME 15-20 minutes
Spend the first 15 minutes or so of your time together catching up and socializing with one another. Also find time to catch up together on how the assignments from last week turned out.
SERMON REVIEW 5-10 minutes
This week we continued our series Unstuck—looking at places in the Gospel where Jesus helped people who were stuck in their lives get unstuck. In Luke 8:22-33, we find two stories joined together that testify to the authority and power of Jesus to calm the chaos and struggle of evil that tries to prevail against us as the people of God in the world. As people on mission, constantly and consistently being called to the “other side of the sea”, there are moments when storms break out in our midst. Through these storms Jesus invites us to allow Him to grow our faith and even find peace in the midst of the storms.
THE MAIN THOUGHT keep this in mind as you facilitate discussion.
Who do you call to in your crisis?
SEE IT – Questions 10-15 minutes
Picture (What is the story saying?):How were the disciples stuck in this passage? Where had the disciples been? Where were the disciples going? How did the storm the disciples encountered on their way affect their journey? How was the man in Garasene stuck in this passage? What was the storm in his life? How did Jesus calm his storm? What connection do you see between the two stories being told in this passage?
Mirror (Where am I in the story?): Jon talked about three different kinds of storms that we go through in life—what were those different kinds of storms? (storms we create with our own disobedience, storms from living in a broken world, or storms stirred up by evil forces trying to destroy us) How have you encountered these different kinds of storms in your life? How has Jesus calmed these storms? What storms are you going through now? How might Jesus invite you to rest in His peace through this storm?
Window (How does the story change how I see those around me?): How does this story challenge the way you handle storms in your life? How does this story challenge the way you deal with the storms of those around you in their lives? What would it look like for you to move from identifying with the disciples or the man from Garasene and choose to identify with Jesus in this story?
BE IT> – Practice
Change UP //Commission
This week we sent out our mission team to Kosovo. Take some time to pray for the mission team with your group. Then take a few moments to invite people in your group to think about where and how they are “being sent out” this summer. Commission the group to all the places they might be heading with the mission of Jesus as their foundation.
Change IN // Community
This summer Grace is providing lots of opportunities for our church to both live with purpose and to play together. We do this because we believe Missional Family is built by doing these two things. Take some time to make a plan to do both purpose and play together as a group. You may want to find a night to serve with Generation Salaam or your group can partner with the SE Gwinnett Coop. You might want to think about how your group might participate in Movie Night, Man Night, Couples’ Night and Ladies’ Night. Use these nights to help your group balance purpose and play and form your Missional Family.
Change OUT // Calling
Take a moment to think about each of your “other side of the lake” places you might be being sent to in your life. Hand each person a 3×5 index card and have each person identify what the “other side of the lake” looks like in their life. Then place those cards face down on the wall. Then sit the group down and have each person walk across the room to the wall and pick out a card that is not their own. As they walk across the room invite the group to think about the call for all of us to cross over to the other side. Then use the card you chose to pray for that person’s journey.
CLOSING PRAYER 5 minutes
Take a few minutes to gather any prayer requests and pray for each other to SEE IT and BE IT this week.