The Upper Room Fellowship

* What spoke to you directly or what did you feel impacted you in Beth's sermon?

* Is there anything that you would like to do or change or begin practicing in your life in connection to women, mothers, and daughters?

* The paradox of holding wonderful things that can also be very painful things in our lives can be experienced by all of us. Is there an area in your life where you're feeling that right now? How can the group pray for you?

* The power of a healthy family in the world is phenomenal. Discuss the importance of good, solid families in communities - what they offer, how they show up, etc. Discuss the things you've learned or taken note of when observing great families - how do they act, what do they give or require of each other. What do you believe is a really important aspect of a healthy family?

* Read Luke 11:1-13. Review what you need to work on or what really stood out to you as you were listening to Chris speak, whether it was about the knocking on the door, the good father portion, or the Lord's prayer.

* What does your prayer life look like? Did Chris touch on anything that made you think about changing how you pray? Do you see yourself knocking on the door for someone else's needs with shameless audacity?

* Discuss what an other-centered prayer life and faith life requires of a disciple of Jesus. (What do we have to give up? How does that look different from our culture?)

* Read Phil 2:13 - Pray together that the Holy Spirit would affect your will in order to work for Him! Pray that we would be really aware of the nudges of the Holy Spirit throughout our day, practicing being very present and aware that He's with us ALL the time.

* Review ACTS in prayer content ideas -

A - Adoration

C - Confession

T - Thanks

S - Supplication (Asking)

Sermon Questions -

* What is the danger of seeing scripture as a painting and not a window with which to see the world? What did Chris mean when he said the bible isn't the endpoint?

* Read 2 Timothy 3:14-17 together. Discuss how you've personally seen the power of scripture working hand in hand with community/people of faith/relationships. When is a moment where you've experienced the two working hand in hand?

* Chris said, "Turn all of your conviction (after reading the scripture) into conduct." What's the danger the comes if we continue to read scripture but never act on it personally? What are you working on right now in the area of turning conviction into conduct?

* Review how to use scripture in a relational fashion: Read it, clarify it, imagine it, pray it, meditate on it, discuss it, live it. How do you usually read the bible? Walk through a time in your life when scripture reading seemed dry and when reading seemed life-giving. Can you explain a difference?

* How did Chris encourage you to look at scripture differently?

Sermon Questions -

* When was the last time you were aware of God talking to you through another person, or talking to someone else through you?

* Read Thess 5:12-22.  Although quenching the Holy Spirit especially refers to the instruction immediately following the command (paying attention to God speaking through others), it would also include not following any of the instruction in these scriptures. What Spirit quenching attitude or activity in this passage is most commonly hard for you to avoid?

* The Holy Spirit is often likened to fire in the New Testament. See Matthew 3:11; Acts 2:3,2 Timothy 1:6 - Why is fire a fitting image for the Holy Spirit?

* What are you actively doing to make yourself more independent from technology and working towards sustained attention and relationship skills (with the Holy Spirit and people)?

* Do you see your role in the body of Christ, as necessary, having a job to do with and for other people? How have you been speaking into and encouraging others? If not, how will you work on that mindset change?

* Do you see other people in the body of Christ, as others who can give insight to your life, encouragement to your life, help and direction? Who at church have you given this opportunity?

Sermon Questions -

- What is your personal reaction to/how do you process having a God who wants to be your Lord and friend versus a God who only wants to be your Lord?

- Do you believe what Jesus said, that having the Holy Spirit around is better for us (John 16:7)? Do you live like the Holy Spirit is really alive and actively working in relationship with you?

- When was the last time you experienced the Holy Spirit undeniably at work in your life?

Questions -

* Have each person in group share their personal salvation story or how is was that they came to know Jesus.

* Discuss what comment or part of the sermon stood out to each person. Did you learn something new? Did anything catch your attention?

* This would be a really good opportunity to talk about the importance of being willing to share our faith with others. Has anyone in the group ever shared their faith with a friend? A stranger?

*Do we have a role in talking about Jesus to people around us? What does it look like?

Sermon Questions/Discussion -

* If you’d like, you can review the main passage with the group - John 8:1-11.

* Reminder - Sin will generally feel good at the moment, but will always carry consequences. It will work to kill you and your soul. It will attempt to put out your light.

* Reminder - The story in John is a focus not in the adulteress woman, but in the men who respond to her sin with hate and spite, despite their own sin.

* Like the men who are ready to stone the woman for what she’s done and who she’s hurt, Chris asked us if we’ve ever seen ourselves like these people. Have you ever had a stone in your hand (obviously, this is a metaphor)?

* If you’re comfortable to share, discuss the situation where you’ve thrown the stone and what you’ve learned from that situation. Did God teach you anything in that?

* In Jesus’ writing in the dust, we are confronted by our personal blind spots - our focusing on others’ sin more deeply and spitefully than focusing and dealing with our own. At this point in your life, have you confronted the blind spots you’re aware of? How are you confronted with those?

* On the flip side, do you tend to be a person who throws stones at yourself? Did you see the respect and tenderness in which Jesus treats the adultress? Do you need to show yourself some of the same response?

* Chris talked about the fact that we are and have been damaged. However, God is a God of do-overs. In Jesus’ statement, "Go and sin no more", we see his approval to move on. Are you able to see yourself moving on in the situatione/attitude where you want to throw stones or in the situation where there’s sin in your life?

* Pray for the ability to move on and/or to let go.

Sermon Questions -

* Read John 1:3 - What should we assume about everything that lives? Do you see things in your everyday life this way?

* Did you try the 54321 grounding technique? Did it help you to focus in? What did you see?

* Did you try to be a rock hound for Jesus this week? How'd it go?!

* Weslie said, "When I realized there were things in my life that I wasn't responding to correctly, I told myself, 'You don't have to stay that way'." How does training our eyes to see beauty change us internally? How does it change our minds and the way we live?

* Read Psalm 8:3-6. Do you live out your day to day with the thoughts that God really likes you and prizes you really highly?

* Does that mindset change the way you live and believe?

Sermon Questions -

* Hey! Just a reminder - You'll never feel ready for the most daunting parts of your life. But that's ok. Jesus is ready.

* Read and review Matt. 28:16-20. Jesus is commissioning people who aren't ready to go. People who are disappointed. People who are doubting.

* What do you think Jesus is trying to say about the idea that He left the world with 11 disciples instead of 12? That he left with a quantity and quality problem? (**Risk, challenges and resistance**)

* Why does God like and use risk, challenges, and resistance? (Connect to Matt 28)

* You feeling ready for something is not an indicator that God is necessarily interested in. How do you personally respond to knowing this?

* Discuss an experience in your life or an example in the Bible where you or someone weren't ready but were called by God to do something.

Reminders -

* Chris said he has never seen a life of obedience built on real-time self-excused disobedience. We often say, "Not yet" or excuse ourselves because we have good intentions. But this is still disobedience and definitely not maturity.

Sermon Questions -

* Review Ephesians 4:14-16 - Read together and discuss your view of Christian maturity. What does that look like in light of 'blind spots'?

* Chris mentioned that oftentimes groups will collude to avoid blind spots and in turn will keep themselves from growth. Chris connected that it's sometimes caused by 'terminal niceness'. What is the result of 'terminal niceness'? What are some other reasons groups might not address blind spots?

*In order for people and places to be safe, in order to remove collusion and to keep from not addressing blind spots, what kind of people do we need to be? Discuss what safe people and places look like.

* Nice and kind are not the same. What are the true differences between the two?

* What is the importance of vulnerability and communication in the discussion of 'nice' versus 'kind'?

* Chris reminded us that we have to invite or have an invitation when we're discussing blind spots. In light of that, he left us with two questions:

1) How are you at the telling the truth when it's asked to be told? (truth and love!)

2) How are you at receiving the truth?