Melissa talks with Ann Wilson about the power of words in marriage and the importance of speaking life to one's spouse.

Ann recounts a memorable turning point in her 45-year marriage when she realized her many attempts to help or “tweak” her husband were having the opposite effect than intended. They talk about recognizing that every marriage has peaks and valleys and give practical advice for getting through the hard seasons.

Recommended Resources:

• How to Speak Life to Your Husband: When All You Want to Do Is Yell at Him by Ann Wilson
• The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller

Related Content:

• The Deep Dish: Married for Good
• Tim and Kathy Keller on Marriage in Gospel Focus
• A Biblical View of Marriage

Discussion Questions:

1. Share a bit of your story—if you’re married, how did you and your husband meet? If you’re single, what relationships or experiences have shaped your view of marriage?

2. How have you seen yourself and your husband grow or change over the years?

3. How has God used marriage (or relationships) as a tool to shape your character and deepen your walk with Christ?

4. In what ways would you like to use your words more wisely, especially in prayer and in communication with your husband (or with others in your life)?

5. How do you discern when to extend grace and overlook an offense versus when to gently address it? How can you communicate truth in love in those moments?

6. What are some intentional ways you can encourage your husband, honor him, or “fill his tank” (or the “tanks” of others in your life) this week?

7. How can your discussion partners pray for you and your marriage?

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Melissa and Courtney talk with Becky Pippert about how to develop godly confidence to engage in evangelistic conversations with love. Becky tells stories about sharing her faith with her own parents and talks about how to go from a natural conversation to a spiritual one. She emphasizes the need to pray for opportunities, to rely on the Holy Spirit, and to be a good listener. 

Recommended Resources:

• Behold and Believe
• Stay Salt
• Seeker Bible studies: Uncovering the Life of Jesus and Discovering the Real Jesus

Related Content:

• Inadequacy Is Compulsory in Evangelism
• Let’s Talk: Sharing Your Faith
• Talking About Jesus Without Sounding Religious

Discussion Questions:

1. How comfortable do you feel talking about your faith with others? How has your comfort (or discomfort) changed over time?

2. What fears, hesitations,  or uncertainties hold you back from sharing your faith with others?

3. What examples of blessing others, participating in sustainable outreach, or engaging in evangelism can you think of? Which of these comes most naturally to you?

4. What opportunities do you have to connect with people outside Christian circles? What would it look like to engage with people on “their turf” instead of making them come to yours?

5. What common ground have you found with people who don’t yet know Jesus? How might your shared interests or experiences become a bridge to spiritual conversations?

6. What role does prayer play in our evangelism? How could prayer become a more intentional part of sharing your faith?

7. What next step would you like to take in sharing your faith with others? How can your discussion partners pray for you?

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Melissa and Courtney talk with Megan Hill about how God’s Word helps us understand the deep hurts that can come from God’s own people. They discuss why church hurt is so painful as well as why we shouldn’t run from church when we’ve been hurt. They talk about how to know when it might be right to leave a church and how to find comfort in God’s word. Listen to this episode if you’ve ever experienced church hurt or want to care for those who have.

Recommended Resources:

Sighing on Sunday: 40 Meditations for When Church Hurts by Megan Hill

Related Content:

• Let’s Talk: Overcoming Church Hurt
• Understand Church Hurt’s Source
• We’re Hurt, and Healed, in Community

Discussion Questions:

1. When you hear the phrase “church hurt,” what comes to mind? How would you define it in your own words?

2. What makes church hurt different from conflicts in other areas of life, such as work or friendships?

3. How did the biblical examples of church hurt that were shared encourage or convict you?

4. How can you come alongside those in your church who are healing from past hurt? In what specific ways can you pray for them?

5. How would you discern whether it’s time to leave a church community? Who could you turn to for wise, godly counsel in that process?

6. How does understanding God’s perfect justice equip you to encourage and reassure those struggling in the wake of church hurt?

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Melissa and Courtney talk with Jackie Hill Perry about the sin of covetousness and why it’s so hard to recognize and admit. They discuss signposts that tip them off that they are coveting, the relationship between covetousness and other sins, and why we desire for others to covet what we have. Listen in if you want to get serious about putting to death the sin of covetousness in your own life.

Recommended Resources:

• The Envy of Eve by Melissa Kruger
• How to Deal With Dark Times by Tim Keller on Psalm 88

Related Content:

• Cultivating Contentment in a Covetous World
• Let’s Talk: Battling Discontentment
• Is My Desire Sour? 4 Questions To Consider

Discussion Questions:

1. Where in your life are you most tempted to feel discontentment?

2. Describe a time when something you pursued or received left you unsatisfied? What did you learn from that experience?

3. How did this discussion help you better understand the connection between covetousness and idolatry?

4. What warning signs alert you that idolatry or discontentment may be creeping into your heart?

5. In what ways have you seen God set “boundary lines in pleasant places” (Ps. 16:6) in your own life? What does this reveal about His sovereignty and love?

6. What daily practices or rhythms could help you cultivate a deeper sense of gratitude and contentment in Christ?

7. How can your discussion partners pray for God to reshape your heart and desires as you grow in contentment?

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Melissa and Courtney talk with Lisa Whittle about how a whole body theology can keep us from obsessing or neglecting our bodies. They discuss the need for a foundational view of our bodies drawn from the whole of Scripture rather than isolated verses. Whether we struggle with accepting imperfections in the way we look or we get frustrated because our bodies don’t function the way we wish they did, recognizing that our bodies exist for the glory of God can lift the weight of worrying about what others think of us.

Recommended Resources:

Body and Soul: A 6-Session Study of the Whole Person God Created You to Be by Lisa Whittle

Related Content:

• The Deep Dish: Aging Is a Discipleship Issue
• As You Start that Diet: 3 Truths About Body Image
• Five Lies About Your Body
• Let’s Talk: How to Spot and Let Go of Shame

Discussion Questions:

1. In what ways are you tempted to measure your worth (or the worth of others) by physical appearance or ability?

2. Describe one way you would like to have a healthier relationship with your body? What might need to change for that to happen?

3. Share a time when you felt physically limited. How can experiences of frailty or weakness give us opportunities to glorify God?

4. In what ways does Jesus’ own experience of physical weakness (hunger, fatigue, suffering, death) comfort or challenge you in your view of the body?

5. How do you discern whether pursuing improved form and function is healthy or problematic?

6. What would it look like for you to pursue health and strength with a “glory mentality” rather than a self-focused one?

7. How does the reality of spending eternity in a glorified version of your body influence the way you view and care for your body now?

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When we treat gossip as an “excusable sin,” we ignore the corrosive power it has in our lives and relationships. In this conversation, Melissa Kruger and Courtney Doctor talk about why we’re so drawn to gossip, how to avoid it, and how to repent of it when you fail. They discuss some telltale phrases that are red flags for gossip, how to turn the conversation to something else, and when and how it’s right to confess gossip. Listen in as Courtney and Melissa spill the tea on gossip.
 

Related Content:

• How to Shut Down Gossip
• Let’s Talk: Fighting Sin
• Taming the Tongue: How the Gospel Transforms Our Talk

Discussion Questions:

1. How did the verses shared expand your understanding of what gossip is and how it’s harmful?

2. How have you experienced the repercussions or damage of gossip?

3. What recent opportunities have you had to use healing, life-giving words? When have there been opportunities for your words to be potentially damaging?

4. In what situations are you most prone to engage in gossip? What motivations might be driving this desire?

5. What redirection strategies would be helpful for you to have in mind as you try to guard your conversations against gossip?

6. What things unite your current friendships? How do they affect the quality of those relationships?

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Melissa Kruger and Courtney Doctor talk with Jen Wilkin about how to make decisions regarding good opportunities in light of our finiteness. They talk about why quitting is sometimes wise, how to think about decisions that will affect your family, and why it’s better to think of God's will as a field rather than a maze.

Recommended Resources

• Leadership on the Line by Ronald A. Heifetz and Martin Linsky
• Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices by Thomas Brooks

Related Content

• Should I Prioritize Family or Work? Neither.
• The Busy Christian Family 
• 6 Lessons for Tending Your Time

Discussion Questions 

1. What is your attitude toward change? Are you more prone to embrace or resist changes in your life?
2. Who has God positioned in your life to help you process significant transitions or decisions?
3. What could a regular practice of “taking the temperature” of your current commitments look like? How can you assess the way they’re affecting your relationships with the Lord and others?
4. In what ways are your current commitments influencing the amount and quality of time you spend with the Lord?
5. Describe a time when you’ve decided to commit to a “sacrificial yes,” “necessary no,” or “not right now.” How has God used that experience to teach you about stewarding time?
6. What attributes of God do you need to be reminded of as you make decisions about commitments in this season of life?

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Melissa and Courtney talk with Mark Vroegop about the gap moments of our lives when we have to wait. They discuss why waiting is so frustrating, what it means to wait on the Lord, what the Bible says about waiting, and how to recognize the sinful patterns we should avoid in times of waiting. No one likes to wait, but waiting is where we learn to walk by faith and where God does some of his best work in our lives!

Discussion Questions: 

1. How are you currently experiencing waiting?

2. What expectations are you bringing to that situation, and how might those be shaping your thoughts and actions?

3. How has God used past seasons of waiting as “fertilizer” to strengthen your faith?

4. How does knowing that God both commends and commands waiting change your perspective as you wait?

5. Of the 3 A’s mentioned (anger, anxiety, apathy), which are you most prone to feel in your “gap times”?

6. Which attributes of God are most comforting or helpful for you to be reminded of in your “gap times”?

7. Which biblical example of waiting was most meaningful to you? What other encouraging examples come to mind?

Resources Mentioned:

• Waiting Isn’t a Waste by Mark Vroegop

Related Resources:

• How God Uses Our Waiting
• Hope for Waiting Hearts
• God’s People Are a Waiting People
• Seasons of Waiting: Walking by Faith When Dreams Are Delayed by Betsy Childs Howard

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Recommended Resources

• Chosen Together (TGC25 keynote by John Piper on Ephesians 1:3–14)
• In View of God’s Mercies by Courtney Doctor (Bible study book)

Related Content

• How to Organize and Orchestrate a Bible Study
• 3 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Bible Study
• Four Types of Questions NOT to Ask in Your Small Group Bible Study
• Need a Fall Women’s Bible Study? Try One of These.

Rubric Questions for Choosing a Group Bible Study:

• Does this study require me to have my Bible open?
• Are the questions rooted in the text?
• Does this study account for various learning styles?
• Is it accessible to the women I'm leading?
• Does it speak to a current need in our church?

Five Levels of Communication:

1. Small Talk

2. Facts

3. Opinions and Ideas

4. Feelings

5. Deep Emotion

Discussion Questions

1. Which book of the Bible could you study over and over without ever getting tired of it?

2. What unique aspects of doing Bible study within the local church have you experienced?

3. When have you been part of studies that were aligned with what was happening in other areas of the church? What benefits did you experience from that alignment? What opportunities exist for future alignment?

4. What locations do you usually study in (home or church)? What benefits could come from hosting your group in different settings?

5. How prone is your study group to using “Christianese”? How can you be more intentional about using language that would make unbelieving friends comfortable joining your discussion?

6. How has prioritizing time in God’s Word and in prayer helped you love others better?

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Melissa Kruger talks with her friends Hunter Beless and Laura Wifler about the role social media has played in their lives, both positive and negative. They talk about temptations that can arise from social media—from neglecting other good pursuits to inspiring covetousness. They discuss why it can be helpful to take breaks and what red flags they look for in their own lives that show social media is doing them more harm than good.

Recommended Resources:

• Journeywomen podcast
• Titus: Displaying the Gospel of Grace

Related Content:

• Social Sanity in an Insta World
• The Danger of Self-Soothing Through Social Media
• Why I’m Staying on Social Media
• The Disaster and Delight of Social Media

Discussion Questions:

1. What one word would best describe your current relationship with social media?

2. What benefits or positive experiences have you had from engaging with social media?

3. In what ways does your social media consumption feed comparison or discontentment in your life?

4. What would it look like to engage with social media in ways that glorify God and allow you to love others well? What would you start and stop doing?

5. What practices or boundaries could you put in place to be a wise consumer of online content?

6. Have you ever taken a break (or considered taking a break) from social media? What was the experience like?

7. How can your discussion partners pray for you as you consider how to engage with social media in healthy, God-honoring ways?

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