Willow Park Church

God’s Design and Desire for Worship We have been made to worship, and there is no one more worthy of our worship than God. Through His word, God teaches us how to worship and why we should worship. 

1) Worship is giving worth and devotion to something through your actions, your words, your priorities and so, essentially your whole your life in many different shapes and forms. Scripture tells us that we were created to give God our worship, love and devotion. Have you thought of worship in this way before? How does this look for you? 

2) A key part of worship and praise is thanksgiving. They are often linked together in scripture. We learn from the story of the cleansed lepers (Luke 17:11-19) that God is wanting and waiting for our response to who He is and what He is doing in our lives. Do you practice regular thanksgiving? How does this look in your life? If not, ask God to show you one step you can take towards practicing gratitude and thanksgiving towards him in your daily life. 

3) Worship is first our offering to God, not his offering to us, and asks us to worship Him to reverence and awe (Heb. 12:28-29). Have you approached worship in this way in the past or is this a new thought to you? 

4) God has designed there to be wonderful benefits for us when we encounter his presence through praise and worship. We experience Joy, peace, hope, renewed strength, faith, courage, unity with our brothers and sisters and we fight back against the enemy. Have you experienced any of these in your past? If so, take time to share and testify examples of how the Lord has met you in worship or strengthened you for something you were facing for example. 5) Singing is a prominent feature of praise and worship in Scripture. It is referenced 400 times in scripture, 50 of which are commands to sing! Zac talked about how singing should be viewed as a spiritual discipline in our lives because of how often it is encouraged in scripture and how it connects the head and the heart in our brain. Do you join in singing during services or even sing on your own? If not, why? Ask God to give you his heart for singing and see if he is asking you to step out of your comfort zone and join in singing to him.

We often settle for a life filled with things that don’t satisfy, but Jesus offers us abundant life. Life and joy that is deep and lasting comes from him, and it’s available to all. 

Text: John 2:1-12 

1) The book of John is about life. John points out that Jesus is the one who created the world and life (John 1:3). He also writes his book so that we might believe in Jesus and have life in his name (John 19:31). In what ways does Jesus bring life? What do you think it means to have life in Jesus’ name? 

2) In Jewish culture, wine represented joy. Phil points out that our culture has lost a sense of deep joy, but Jesus wants to restore the joy that we’ve lost in our lives. What things do we often turn to in order to bring us joy? How has Jesus brought joy into your life? How is the joy Jesus brings different than that of the world? 

3) Phil talked about how knowing God isn’t a boring, religious activity - it’s a life-transforming relationship. “When you connect with Jesus, your world changes.” He takes our dirty water and makes it into wine. How has Jesus changed your life? How is he currently changing you or teaching you? 

4) “Jesus loves to partner with us to bring change into our lives. He wants to bring abundance of life (new wine) into our lives.” What are some ways that you can partner with Jesus and the Holy Spirit to experience abundant life?

In the second part of this sermon, we learn that persevering in your faith can strengthen someone else in their faith and help them cross the finish line.

1) Being selfless and others-centered is something that Jesus and the bible talk about regularly, but it’s difficult to put into practice. Why does Jesus prioritize loving others so much? What impact does helping and loving others have on you?

2) Phil shared a story of Derek Redmond, an Olympic runner who tore his hamstring halfway through the 400mfinal. As he’s hobbling forward, trying to finish the race, his dad comes alongside him and helps carry him to the finish line. Phil pointed out that our role is to come alongside other Christians, and help them get to the finish line. Share a time when someone has come alongside you and helped you through a difficult time. What impact did that have on you?

3) What are the key practices and habits in your life that help build your own perseverance? And building on the question #2, what are some ways that we can help others to persevere?

Day 21: Let’s Get the Word Out

Thank you for joining the journey with me for the past 21 days. I have appreciated hearing from you and enjoyed writing (and speaking) to you daily! I hope that the characters we visited and examples of answered prayer were an encouragement to you.

My prayer for you is taken from Ephesians 1:17-19, “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.”

Let us gather at the end of these 21 days and tell stories of God's goodness, of answered prayers. Let us speak of our Red Sea moments or finding courage for today. Let's be honest about desperation, numb grief, questions, and doubts… and remind one another of the promise of His presence. Let us gather around the fire of the Spirit burning – our testimonies sparking a flame of faith that will prophesy the possibility of God to others, waging war on darkness.

Paul encourages us in Ephesians 6 to, “Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints.” He also asks for prayer, which we can adopt as ours today, “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will boldly make known the mystery of the gospel.” His Spirit is anointing you today. Be intentional about telling your God stories; tell of His goodness and faithfulness over your life and His love and grace surrounding you.

Reflect and Respond

Help us, Lord, to be like Enoch, that our life would be characterised by walking with You and Moses, that we would ask to see your glory.

Like Joshua, trust your promises and pray audaciously, and Hannah, whose despair turned to delight.

Like Asaph, who found himself in the sanctuary to find the truth, and David, who listened for your guidance.

Like Elijah, who travailed, and Elisha, who saw the supernatural army of angels.

Like Solomon, who asked for wisdom, and Daniel, who prayed morning, noon and evening.

Like Zechariah and Elizabeth, who prayed for decades and who asked honest questions,

Like the woman who reached out to touch your robe,

Like Philip, give us ears to hear your direction,

Like those who prayed for Peter's release, thank you for showing us the importance of praying together.

Like Paul and Silas, help us worship in all circumstances, even in our darkest hour.

Like the woman who poured perfume, may our sacrifice please you.

In your name, we pray. Amen.

Prayer Focus

Perseverance is a gift that the Lord wants to teach us in prayer, because in the fight against the enemy and our own sin, perseverance is power. 

1) In his sermon, Phil said that, “Spiritual warfare is the whole of the Christian experience.” What is your response when you hear that statement? Would you agree or disagree? What does spiritual warfare look like for you in your life? 

2) We have an enemy who wants to discourage us, weaken us, tempt us, and destroy us. Because of this, we need perseverance to face his tactics, resist them, and overcome them. Have you ever thought of the importance of perseverance in the Christian life? Has there been a time in your life when you’ve had to persevere in prayer before seeing a breakthrough? If yes, share with your group. 

3) Perseverance is important for our growing in character. We all have traits that we wish we could change, and perseverance with Christ is how we see change. In fact, God promises that persevering in our character growth and having good character leads to abundant life, resisting the devil, and a reward in heaven. Has there been a time when God has worked on a specific character trait in your life? What did that process look like? Did you have to persevere through it in order to see change? 

4) What are some practical ways to encourage and increase perseverance in your relationship with Jesus? Share and brainstorm with the group

Day 17: Yes or No?

Let's think about the evangelist Philip who was part of a successful ministry among the Samaritans and was confronted by the angel of the Lord in Acts 8:26. “Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Go south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.'” It was time for a new assignment! Philip got up and went and found himself being introduced to ONE man, the Ethiopian Eunuch, a high court official of Candace, the queen of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian was reading Isaiah and invited Philip to sit with him. From here, Philip began with the passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus; the Eunuch understood the word and was baptised as soon as they came to water as they travelled. Church fathers as early as AD 180 mention the Eunuch evangelising his homeland!

Then there's Paul. He wanted to minister in the province of Asia and Bithynia – but the Spirit said "No." It is unclear how the Spirit said “no”, but it is likely to have been a direct revelation. It was clearly the intention of God to extend the gospel further into the regions of Greece than would have been done if they had remained in Asia Minor. This prohibition was the means of the first introduction of the gospel into Europe.

Have you ever heard a clear “no” when you've asked God to go in a specific direction, then later, see why? By the grace of God, we go!

Paul and his group obeyed and went down to Troas, and during the night, Paul had the vision to go to Macedonia instead (Europe). So much fruit was born from listening to his redirection. Both Philip and Paul were obedient to the direction of the Spirit, born from taking time to listen in prayer.

These stories remind me of a similar story, our story, also involving Philip an evangelist, in a thriving ministry in the UK. Phil had dreamed of Canada for decades, knowing the Lord would use us all significantly there. Meanwhile, I didn’t want to hear about Canada as I was loving my job, where I lived, my friends, my family. But then one November evening in 2009, as I prayed, the Holy Spirit spoke clearly to me: “It's time for Canada.” And I knew, without a doubt, that this was God's kingdom purpose and said “yes”! We moved six months later and have been in Kelowna for twelve and a half years, still saying “yes” to God's call in Canada.

I hope these examples of direction today encourage you to listen specifically for direction from the Holy Spirit; He wants to guide your steps.

“This is what the LORD says: 'Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.'” (Jeremiah 6:16)

Lord, thank you for guiding and directing us when we live a listening life. Your word says, “since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.” Help us to live by the Spirit for your glory. Amen.

Reflect and Respond

Prayer Focus

Fear is something that grips all of us. But it is not the way of life that Jesus would have for us. With his help, we can move from fear to faith.

Text: Mark 5:21-34

Study questions:

1) Fear is something that we have all experienced, and probably more so in the last couple of years than ever before. Where do you see or experience fear within our culture? What impact does fear have on you or the people around you?

2) “When your fear is great, but your need is greater, that’s when you start to hear the message of the Kingdom of God.” What does this mean for you? Is there a time in your life that comes to mind after reading this?

3) There’s a obvious contrast between Jairus and the woman who bled. Jairus is an esteemed Jewish leader, and the woman is an outcast. And yet they both come to Jesus, because they know that only he can help them. Both Jairus and the woman overcame their fears of losing their place, and being even more isolated, respectively, and stepped into faith in Christ. What’s the main thing that sticks out for you from this story? How can we emulate their step of faith in our lives?

4) Jesus calls the woman his daughter. He gives her an identity and in doing so, he is telling her that she is seen, loved, and known. How often do you think of the fact that you are a son or daughter of Christ? How does it make you feel to know that you are his child?