February 26 Discussion Guide

This guide can be downloaded as a .pdf here.

Life Group Discussion Guide : Sunday, February 26, 2012 (JXG)

Sandy Lake Wesleyan :: Pastor Shawn Cossin

Not So...Modern Family, Week 8 | “Great Hope”

Use this as a guide to help your Group process what God is teaching them.  Be sure to pray for, encourage each other, and share the victories God is giving your Group.

------------------------------------------------------

Even though we want to put our best foot forward when interacting with others, the truth is family can be more crazy and difficult than we let people know. How has this been true even in how you interact as a Group? What can you do to foster genuine conversation and open communication among the members of your Group?

This was the last message in our “Not So...Modern Family” series; take some time to share with each other some of the things God has taught you over the past eight weeks. What have been some great victories? Where have you seen significant struggle? How have you been able to help each other navigate these things?

Read Genesis 50:15-22; discuss…

• ...when Joseph heard from his family through messengers, he wept. This takes place 17 years after the initial reconciliation; why would Joseph weep now? 
• ...have you ever felt that even though God has brought healing and hope to relationships, there are times when the pain and frustration resurfaces? How do you handle that?
• ...how is Joseph’s response evidence that he has a clear sense of his identity and of his sense of ‘belonging’ to God?
• ...Joseph insisted his journey was one of God using human manipulation and evil for God’s own purposes; how can we develop an awareness of God’s activity even in painful, difficult, impossible circumstances? 

Read Romans 8:28

• ...how have you/your Group members seen the truth in this Scripture at work in your lives?
• ...what are some areas in your Group members’ lives where this is an unfulfilled promise?
• Take time to thank God for the ways he’s been faithful in fulfilling his Word in this way and to pray for him to have his way in the ‘unresolved’ areas mentioned above.

We were told the “great hope for our families is knowing who we are and whose we are.”

...how are these issues of identity & awareness vital to the health of our relationships?

 This reminded us of the need to ask, “Do you know WHO you are and WHOSE you are?”

• How can we make sure we’re answering this question out of genuine awareness rather than a rote, rehearsed response?
• What are some of the evidences that will be present in our lives when we recognize who we are? 
• How can we become more aware of our true identity?
• How is understanding ‘whose we are’ directly related to submission and obedience?
• What are areas in your Group that have been consistent areas of God leading you to submission and obedience? Pray for those common needs/areas.

Pastor Shawn reminded us “all it takes is one person to offer grace and forgiveness…” to bring a new trajectory to & begin the process of healing in relationships... 

• ...what are ways you have seen this take place in your own life & relationships?
• ...what are some of your biggest roadblocks to offering grace and forgiveness in some of your dysfunctional relationships? 
• How can your Group members encourage each other in these areas and help them move forward in these areas?

Read 2 Corinthians 5:14-17

• What are some ways we regard others from a worldly point of view? 
• How does this impact our relationships with them?
• How does this move into a place of brokenness and sin in our relationships?
• What are ways we tend to see Christ from a worldly point of view?
• What is the impact for us if we have operate out of improper view of Jesus?
• How can we view others the way God does? What are evidences that we see people in the right light?

Throughout this series, we have been reminded that while we have a responsibility in our relationships (that God wants to use US in those relationships), the Holy Spirit is the one who does the ‘work’ of changing hearts, lives, and families. Take time in conclusion to pray for each others’ families, that Group members would be faithful in being in a place to be used by God...and that He would be faithful. 

Pray specifically, identifying particular needs and people… 

then follow-up in the months ahead to see how God has answered your prayers.