Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, North Gower is taking 2026 to read through and preach through the Bible using the "One Story That Leads To Jesus" Bible reading plan (created by "The Bible Project").

To this end, Pastor Nate and Pastor Dan are recording their usual "sermon prep" conversation as a podcast so you can get a bird’s eye view of the process, and perhaps grow in your own understanding and faith. This conversation is rough and unfinished, and not everything we talk about will make its way into the final teaching. But it hopefully gives you some additional food for thought.

You can find the Bible Project here

https://bibleproject.com/ 

You can find Cornerstone's Bible reading plan on YouVersion at bit/ly/bible2026 

If that link doesn't work, try this one:

https://bible.com/reading-plans/63058/together/77575397/invitation?token=2fhhVCf64-7PERhIujBwQA&source=share

Or you can scan the QR code on the Podcast thumbnail!

We have two growgroup Bible study options based on One Story:

Tues morning: 9:30am - 11am at Cornerstone (6556 Prince of Wales Drive, North Gower)

Wed evening: 7 - 8:30pm at the Manse (next door to Cornerstone)

Weekly live worship service from Cornerstone Church, North Gower (Ontario) FOLLOW US #northgowercornerstone WEBSITE https://www.knowgrowshow.ca/ INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/northgowercornerstone/ FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/northgowercornerstone/ LINKTREE https://linktr.ee/knowgrowshow

Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, North Gower is taking 2026 to read through and preach through the Bible using the "One Story That Leads To Jesus" Bible reading plan (created by "The Bible Project").

To this end, Pastor Nate and Pastor Dan are recording their usual "sermon prep" conversation as a podcast so you can get a bird’s eye view of the process, and perhaps grow in your own understanding and faith. This conversation is rough and unfinished, and not everything we talk about will make its way into the final teaching. But it hopefully gives you some additional food for thought.

You can find the Bible Project here

https://bibleproject.com/ 

You can find Cornerstone's Bible reading plan on YouVersion at bit/ly/bible2026 

If that link doesn't work, try this one:

https://bible.com/reading-plans/63058/together/77575397/invitation?token=2fhhVCf64-7PERhIujBwQA&source=share

Or you can scan the QR code on the Podcast thumbnail!

We have two growgroup Bible study options based on One Story:

Tues morning: 9:30am - 11am at Cornerstone (6556 Prince of Wales Drive, North Gower)

Wed evening: 7 - 8:30pm at the Manse (next door to Cornerstone)

Weekly live worship service from Cornerstone Church, North Gower (Ontario)

FOLLOW US #northgowercornerstone

WEBSITE https://www.knowgrowshow.ca/

INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/northgowercornerstone/

FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/northgowercornerstone/

LINKTREE https://linktr.ee/knowgrowshow

15 Mar 2026 | Growgroup Discussion Starters One Story - The Samson's Mum Sermon (Judges 13)

Know (head – understanding God and the story)

1. What does Judges 13 show us about who God is in a time when “the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight” and were oppressed for forty years?

2. Why is it significant that the angel of the Lord comes specifically to Manoah’s unnamed, barren wife, and what does that tell us about the kind of people God notices?

3. From this chapter, what do you learn about the “angel of the Lord” and how God can be both above us and yet personally present with His people?

Grow (heart – personal faith and formation)

4. Samson’s mom is asked to change her lifestyle (Nazirite-related restrictions) before she even sees the miracle. How does that challenge the way you respond to God’s word before you see results?

5. Manoah and his wife move from fear (“We will certainly die”) to trust (“If the Lord were going to kill us…”). Where do you see God inviting you to move from fear to trust in your own story right now?

6. God chooses to begin a rescue plan for Israel through an ordinary couple in a broken time. How does that encourage or confront the way you view your own potential role in God’s purposes?

Show (hands – living it out)

7. If “God comes to the ordinary to do the extraordinary,” what is one very ordinary area of your weekly life where you sense God might want to work through you? Be specific.

8. Samson was “set apart” from birth; in what concrete way could you live as someone set apart for God this week at school, work, or home?

9. Manoah prays, “Lord, please let the man of God come back to us again and give us more instructions.” What is one step you can take this week to actively seek God’s guidance, not just coast spiritually?

Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, North Gower is taking 2026 to read through and preach through the Bible using the "One Story That Leads To Jesus" Bible reading plan (created by "The Bible Project"). To this end, Pastor Nate and Pastor Dan are recording their usual "sermon prep" conversation as a podcast so you can get a bird’s eye view of the process, and perhaps grow in your own understanding and faith. This conversation is rough and unfinished, and not everything we talk about will make its way into the final teaching. But it hopefully gives you some additional food for thought. You can find the Bible Project here https://bibleproject.com/ You can find Cornerstone's Bible reading plan on YouVersion at bit/ly/bible2026 If that link doesn't work, try this one: https://bible.com/reading-plans/63058/together/77575397/invitation?token=2fhhVCf64-7PERhIujBwQA&source=share Or you can scan the QR code on the Podcast thumbnail! We have two growgroup Bible study options based on One Story: Tues morning: 9:30am - 11am at Cornerstone (6556 Prince of Wales Drive, North Gower) Wed evening: 7 - 8:30pm at the Manse (next door to Cornerstone)

Weekly live worship service from Cornerstone Church, North Gower (Ontario) FOLLOW US #northgowercornerstone WEBSITE https://www.knowgrowshow.ca/ INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/northgowercornerstone/ FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/northgowercornerstone/ LINKTREE https://linktr.ee/knowgrowshow

The Passage: Joshua 9:1-27 (focus v14)

The Inquiring of God Sermon

Growgroup Discussion Starters 

Know

K1 What part of Joshua 9:1–27 or the sermon stood out to you most today, and why?

Grow

G1 In Joshua 9:14, the Israelites “sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the LORD.” Why do you think they skipped seeking God at this moment, especially after everything they had just experienced with Him?

G2 The Gibeonites’ deception seemed convincing. What are some modern situations where circumstances or appearances might lead us to make decisions without seeking God?

G3 The Israelites had just heard the blessings and curses from Deuteronomy 28:1–2 at Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. What does their failure to inquire of God reveal about the gap between knowing God’s word and actually living it?

G4 The leaders kept their oath to the Gibeonites even after discovering the deception (Joshua 9:18–20; Numbers 30:2). What does this teach us about integrity and keeping our word?

G5 The sermon asked several reflective questions: Do you believe God loves you, knows what is best for you, and cares about your decisions? Which of these is hardest for you to believe in practice, and why?

G6 The sermon described taking time to quiet your heart, ask God a question, and listen in prayer. What practices help you seek God’s guidance when facing decisions?

S1 Think about a decision or situation in your life right now. What would it look like this week to intentionally “inquire of the LORD” (Joshua 9:14) before moving forward?

A PRACTICE OF LISTENING PRAYER (INQUIRING OF THE LORD)

Step 1: Enter his gates with Thanksgiving

Ask: Holy Spirit, show me something I can be grateful to you for in my life.

Listen.

Write down what you sense the Spirit saying:

_______________________________________________________

Step 2: Write down a specific guidance question for God.

Example 1: What should I do about situation X?

Example 2: Should I choose A or B?

Example 3: What do you think of when you think of me?

Listen.

Write down what you sense he is saying.

You can turn over and practice this on the other side of the sheet.

You sheet might look like this:

Me: God what should I do about X?

God: _____________

Me: _____________

God: _____________

When you feel the conversation is done close in a moment of quiet or spoken gratitude or by reading out loud Thomas Merton’s prayer.

Thomas Merton’s Prayer

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”

We will be practicing this on Tues 9:30-11am - Cornerstone.

Wed 7-8:30pm – Manse

Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, North Gower is taking 2026 to read through and preach through the Bible using the "One Story That Leads To Jesus" Bible reading plan (created by "The Bible Project").

To this end, Pastor Nate and Pastor Dan are recording their usual "sermon prep" conversation as a podcast so you can get a bird’s eye view of the process, and perhaps grow in your own understanding and faith. This conversation is rough and unfinished, and not everything we talk about will make its way into the final teaching. But it hopefully gives you some additional food for thought.

You can find the Bible Project here

https://bibleproject.com/ 

You can find Cornerstone's Bible reading plan on YouVersion at bit/ly/bible2026 

If that link doesn't work, try this one:

https://bible.com/reading-plans/63058/together/77575397/invitation?token=2fhhVCf64-7PERhIujBwQA&source=share

Or you can scan the QR code on the Podcast thumbnail!

We have two growgroup Bible study options based on One Story:

Tues morning: 9:30am - 11am at Cornerstone (6556 Prince of Wales Drive, North Gower)

Wed evening: 7 - 8:30pm at the Manse (next door to Cornerstone)

Weekly live worship service from Cornerstone Church, North Gower (Ontario)

FOLLOW US #northgowercornerstone

WEBSITE https://www.knowgrowshow.ca/

INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/northgowercornerstone/

FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/northgowercornerstone/

LINKTREE https://linktr.ee/knowgrowshow

01 Mar 2026 | Growgroup Discussion Starters One Story - The WIlliamson Turn Sermon (Deut 21)

Know

K1 When you first heard Deuteronomy 21:10–14, what was your honest reaction — discomfort, confusion, anger, curiosity, something else? Why do you think that was your response? (Deut 21:10–14)

Grow

G1 The sermon encouraged us to “take off our Nike shoes and put on Ancient Near East sandals,” and to bring good assumptions about God’s character into hard texts. Why is understanding cultural context — and remembering who God has already revealed Himself to be — essential when reading difficult passages? (Deut 4:32; Deut 8:1; Deut 9:7)

G2 The idea of the “Williamson Turn” described a slow, redemptive shift in culture — God gradually steering His people away from brutality toward dignity and protection. Where do you see redemptive movement in Deuteronomy 21:10–14 that may not be obvious at first glance? Why do you think God didn’t simply impose His ultimate design all at once, but instead worked progressively within a broken culture?

G3 The law says, “you have dishonored her” (Deut 21:14) — placing responsibility on the man. What does that detail reveal about accountability and God’s concern for the vulnerable?

G4 Jesus intensifies the heart-level ethic regarding women and lust (Matt 5:27–30) and consistently honors women in His ministry (Luke 7:44; Luke 10:41; Matt 28:10). How does Christ complete and fulfill the redemptive trajectory we begin to see in Deuteronomy 21?

Show

S1 In light of the “God’s Son Turn,” how might we reflect Jesus this week in the way we speak about, protect, honor, and advocate for women and vulnerable people in our own community?

Resources mentioned in today's podcast:

Weekly live sermon service from Cornerstone Church, North Gower (Ontario)

FOLLOW US #northgowercornerstone

WEBSITE https://www.knowgrowshow.ca/

INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/northgowercornerstone/

FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/northgowercornerstone/

LINKTREE https://linktr.ee/knowgrowshow

22 Feb 2026 | Growgroup Discussion Starters One Story - The Giant Sermon (Deut 2)

Know

K1 What part of the message stood out most to you — the idea of giants, the “turn north” moment, the geography, or the way God retold Israel’s story? Why?

Grow

G1 In Deuteronomy 2:1–3, God says, “You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north.” Where in your life might God be saying, “You’ve circled this long enough — it’s time to move forward”?

G2 In Deuteronomy 2:10–12, 20–22, Moses explains that the Moabites, Ammonites, & Edomites (Israel’s relatives) had already driven out formidable peoples like the Anakites, Rephaim, and Horites. Why do you think God intentionally led Israel past these examples of victory before they faced their own battles? What might that teach us about how God builds courage in us?

G3 The first generation saw the giants and retreated (Numbers 13:27–33), but the second generation was surrounded by evidence that giants could fall. How does the story you rehearse — failure or victory — shape your faith and obedience?

G4 The sermon suggested that Israel’s battles were part of a deeper spiritual conflict (see Genesis 6:4; Numbers 13:33; Ephesians 6:10–13). How does understanding that our struggle is “not against flesh and blood” affect the way we approach temptation, fear, or long-standing patterns in our lives?

G5 Some scholars (like Michael Heiser) argue that the references to the Nephilim and Rephaim point to corrupted bloodlines and a larger spiritual rebellion narrative (see Genesis 6:4). Whether or not we fully understand the details, what does this perspective suggest about the seriousness of spiritual compromise and God’s commitment to preserving His redemptive plan through Israel — ultimately leading to Christ?

Show

S1 Who are the “giant killers” God has placed in your life — people whose testimony shows that freedom, healing, or breakthrough is possible? What practical step can you take this week to lean into those voices and step toward your own “turn north” moment?