Day 14: Talk it over

This week you read:

• Day 8, Psalm 13: How long?
• Day 9, 1 Kings 19:1-18: The only one left
• Day 10, Mark 10:17-27: Good, and lacking one thing
• Day 11, John 14:15-24: He shows Himself
• Day 12, Luke 10:38-42: Church-first or Jesus-first
• Day 13, John 6:60-69: To whom would we go?

If you meet with a friend or a group

1. Recap the week. Take turns retelling one of the passages. Which one stayed with you, and why?
2. Talk about the silence. Has God felt quiet to you? What did this week’s passages say to that?
3. Be honest about the quiet no. Is there anything you have been saying no to without calling it disobedience? Share only what you want to. This is a discovery, not a confession booth.
4. The honest question. Has anyone here asked, God, is the church really part of Your plan? How can this be Your will? Say it out loud if you have. What did Peter’s answer on day 13 say to it?
5. The mix. If some of the people who disappointed you may never have truly met Jesus, how does that change what you feel toward them? Talk about it without naming anyone.
6. Church-first or Jesus-first? What would change this week if Jesus were really first?
7. Pray together. Pray for each other by name.

For whoever is leading: receive what people say about the church without defending it, and without piling on. Let the passage do the teaching rather than explaining it yourself. If someone’s answer drifts away from what the passage says, gently bring the group back by asking, “Where do you see that in the passage?” Two things to keep in mind every week. If someone describes something in their church that is not right, such as abuse, manipulation or false teaching, the counsel in this class to stay does not apply to them; encourage them to talk about it with someone they trust. And if someone has felt numb or hopeless for a long time, gently encourage them to get help beyond this group as well.