Part 4 of the series Thessalonians: Living in the Light of the End.

Part 3 of the series Thessalonians: Living in the Light of the End.

Part 2 of the series Thessalonians: Living in the Light of the End.

Part 1 of the series Thessalonians: Living in the Light of the End.

Hearing from God is good, but without any application it's largely useless. Jesus' brother, James, offers us a challenge to move from hearing into doing. Wes offers some practical tips and tricks for how we can do so. 

Discussion Questions:

Growing close to God comes with a ton of benefits, and the process is simple. But it's not easy. Wes explains barriers to our growth and offers simple questions we can ask ourselves to see if we are positioned in a place where we can easily hear from God.

Discussion Questions:

1. Where would you rate yourself in terms of spiritual growth? Infant? Child? Adolescent? Mature adult? Why?

2. When you think of spiritual growth, how do you define that? More knowledge? Experiences? Something else? Why?

3. Do you think you are postured and positioned in a place to grow spiritually? Why or why not?

Messing up is endemic to the human condition, but the guilt that often ensues keeps us away from connection and relationships. How do we deal with our feelings of guilt when we fall short? 

Discussion Questions:

1. Did you grow up in a religious environment or family environment that played up guilt and shame? How does that affect you today?

2. Do you have a hard time accepting God’s forgiveness of you? Why or why not?

3. Is there a relationship you need to undergo the work of making restitution on? What will you do?

Like a cleverly-conceived special ops attack, greed slithers into our hearts unnoticed and causes a lot of problems. Jesus gives us one word that  helps us to be aware of greed's attacks and stop greed from owning us. 

Discussion Questions:

Envy and jealousy are corrosive heart attitudes that destroy our relationships and steal our joy. James, the brother of Jesus, makes some observations about jealousy (and its cure) that challenge our assumptions and help us find freedom.

Discussion Questions:

We tend to think that the solution to worry is simply a change to our external circumstances. Jesus proposes a harder, but more effective, way to stop worry from being the boss of us.

Discussion questions:

1. On a scale from 1-10, how would you rate your natural “worry factor?” Why do you think that is?

2. What are you currently worried about? Why are you so worried about it?

3. Wes talked about three solutions to handle worry: Gaze on God, give up what we’re worried about, and to get help. Which of those do you need to start focusing on?