Faithfulness: Week 23 (Apr 3-Apr 9)
Faithfulness Practice: Week 23| April 3 - 9
Communities @ Grace
Goal for Week: Understand how God showed faithfulness to Abraham and David.
Lesson 2 of 4
45 minutes: Welcome, Pray, Eat + Mingle
What was the last thing you did that was daring for you?
What would you try to do if you knew you couldn’t fail?
15 Minutes : Review of last week’s practice experience
How did this practice go for you? What is the Holy Spirit doing in your heart as a result of practicing this last week?
Review:
What feelings come up when you consider if God is always faithful? Think deeply about where you might harbor doubts. Pray, asking the Holy Spirit to reveal how he is being faithful and how you can wait actively in the situation. Record what you learn and how the situation evolves.
Are you cynical with God or others? - “I’ll believe it when I see it?”
Take time each day to ponder thoughts and conversations each day and see if there are ways you don’t have faith.
What does it mean that faithfulness is a “Fruit of the Spirit”? (Another way we are transformed to be more like Jesus) What are ways you can strengthen this in your life?
45 Minutes : Introduction of Practice + Discussion Questions
Let’s look at God’s covenant with Abraham and Sarah
Genesis 16: 1-4
Genesis - 17:1-4, 15-16 God makes his promise
Gen. 18:9-15 God tells Sarah his plan
Gen. 21:1-2 Plan fulfilled
Questions for passages:
Have you ever given up waiting for God to act on something but later you received it?
Have you or are you tempted to take matters into your own hands to get what you want? How did it turn out?
How can you tell when you are supposed to act and when to wait?
Is there a current area in your life where you struggle to see God’s faithfulness?
David gives us another powerful illustration into how God can be trustworthy in the hardest of situations with unbelievable odds against winning. David thinks he’s going to the battlefield to deliver food to his brothers but then realizes his mission when he hears and sees Goliath.
Read I Samuel 17:24-26, 36-40, 45-50
What did the soldiers miss by not confronting Goliath?
(Seeing and being a part of God’s faithfulness in a fearful situation.)
What motivated David to fight Goliath? (He trusted that God would defeat Goliath, he wouldn’t tolerate Goliath’s mocking of God and his people)
Tell us about a time when you were able to embrace the idea, “the battle belongs to the Lord”?
5 minutes: Group Practice
How do we practice faithfulness when we are fearful?
5 Minutes : Practices for Week Ahead
View next week’s Practices on the last page of this document.
Make copies for your group if appropriate.
10 Minutes : Pray for One Another + Close
Consider praying as a whole group or in triads for personal prayer requests.
End on time in order to honor everyone’s time.
Faithfulness
The practices for the next 4 weeks will be the same. You can choose to use one option for all 4 weeks or try several.
What feelings come up when you consider if God is always faithful? Think deeply about where you might harbor doubts. Pray, asking the Holy Spirit to reveal how he is being faithful and how you can wait actively in the situation. Record what you learn and how the situation evolves.
Are you cynical with God or others? - “I’ll believe it when I see it?”
Take time each day to ponder thoughts and conversations each day and see if there are ways you don’t have faith.
What does it mean that faithfulness is a “Fruit of the Spirit”? (Another way we are transformed to be more like Jesus) How are ways you can strengthen this in your life?