
Signs & Wonders
Week 3
Discerning a Sign
Over the course of this series we have been reminded that signs from God rarely lay out clear step-by-step instructions. More often we are left wondering if the song we heard on the radio, the comment made by a friend, or the bird we saw in the backyard was a coincidence or a message from God. This is where discernment comes into play. This week we will talk about the process of hearing from God, figuring out what that might mean, and taking action.
Opening Prayer:
God, we give you thanks today for your constant presence in our lives. We thank you for being near to us even when we don’t realize it. We pray that our time together will be marked by your presence, and that each of us will leave this place more aware of your Spirit than we were when we came in. Amen.
Circle back: Review the action suggestions from last week (below). Were you able to see the Holy Spirt in action? Share, as you are comfortable, how you week was different with the implementation of these ideas!
Head:
Read I John 4:1-3 (CEB)
“Dear friends, don’t believe every spirit. Test the spirits to see if they are from God because many false prophets have gone into the world. This is how you know if a spirit comes from God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come as a human is from God, and every spirit that doesn’t confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and is now already in the world.”
The Heart:
Discernment is both a personal and a communal process.
Most of us have a certain level of clarity we look for before we take action on something we have heard from God. Our personalities and life experiences have a lot to say about whether we need to raise or lower those levels.
The Hands:
Closing Prayer:
God of truth, we close our time together asking for your help as we seek to avoid deception. You have given us your word, your spirit, and your people to help us as we make our way through life. We pray for an openness to all of the ways you want to communicate with us. We give you thanks for your hand of guidance in our lives up to this point, and we place our hope in your continued direction going forward. We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Week 3
Discerning a Sign
Over the course of this series we have been reminded that signs from God rarely lay out clear step-by-step instructions. More often we are left wondering if the song we heard on the radio, the comment made by a friend, or the bird we saw in the backyard was a coincidence or a message from God. This is where discernment comes into play. This week we will talk about the process of hearing from God, figuring out what that might mean, and taking action.
Opening Prayer:
God, we give you thanks today for your constant presence in our lives. We thank you for being near to us even when we don’t realize it. We pray that our time together will be marked by your presence, and that each of us will leave this place more aware of your Spirit than we were when we came in. Amen.
Circle back: Review the action suggestions from last week (below). Were you able to see the Holy Spirt in action? Share, as you are comfortable, how you week was different with the implementation of these ideas!
- Track the signs: Use a journal or memo in your phone and begin collecting the signs your feel, see, and hear.
- Use this Quote this week to meditate on how the Spirit shows up in and around you: To eyes that see, every bush is a burning bush. -Eugene Peterson
Head:
Read I John 4:1-3 (CEB)
“Dear friends, don’t believe every spirit. Test the spirits to see if they are from God because many false prophets have gone into the world. This is how you know if a spirit comes from God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come as a human is from God, and every spirit that doesn’t confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and is now already in the world.”
- The book of 1 John was written during a time when there were still people alive who had firsthand experience with Jesus. What value can we find in eyewitness accounts when we are looking for clarity?
- The “false prophets” in this scripture were literally denying claims made about Jesus. What are some modern day “false prophets” that can distract us from the guidance God is offering us?
The Heart:
Discernment is both a personal and a communal process.
- What internal indicators do you rely on when you are discerning a sign?
- Who (if anyone) do you trust to help you discern a sign? What about their perspective is helpful to you?
Most of us have a certain level of clarity we look for before we take action on something we have heard from God. Our personalities and life experiences have a lot to say about whether we need to raise or lower those levels.
- What do you think growth looks like for you – raising or lowering the level of clarity you look for in hearing from God?
The Hands:
- Have you ever taken significant action based on something you thought was a sign from God? What did you learn from that experience?
- A helpful way to recognize God’s guidance in our lives is to know God’s word. What is one way you can invest in learning scripture that might help you with discernment this week?
- Signs from God don’t necessarily come with expiration dates. Is there a nudge or sign you previously ignored that you need to reconsider? Identify someone in your life who can help you discern this sign.
Closing Prayer:
God of truth, we close our time together asking for your help as we seek to avoid deception. You have given us your word, your spirit, and your people to help us as we make our way through life. We pray for an openness to all of the ways you want to communicate with us. We give you thanks for your hand of guidance in our lives up to this point, and we place our hope in your continued direction going forward. We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Posted in CoreGroup Discussion Guides
Recent
Archive
2023
2022
January
February
March
M-Note 3.1.22Lenten Devotional // Day 1Lenten Devotional // Day 2Luke: The Gospel For Rebels Week 5Lenten Devotional // Day 3Lenten Devotional // Day 4Lenten Devotional // First SundayLenten Devotional // Day 5Lenten Devotional // Day 6Lenten Devotional // Day 7Lenten Devotional // Day 8Lenten Devotional // Day 9Following Jesus: Some Assembly Required – Week 1Lenten Devotional // Day 10Some Assembly RequiredLenten Devotional // Second SundayLenten Devotional // Day 11Lenten Devotional // Day 12Lenten Devotional // Day 13Lenten Devotional // Day 14Following Jesus: Some Assembly Required – Week 2Lenten Devotional // Day 15Lenten Devotional // Day 16M-Note 3.20.22Lenten Devotional // Third SundayLenten Devotional // Day 17Lenten Devotional // Day 185 Benefits to Embracing Your Uncertainty of GodLenten Devotional // Day 19Lenten Devotional // Day 20M-Note 3.24.2022Lenten Devotional // Day 21Following Jesus: Some Assembly Required – Week 3Lenten Devotional // Day 22Lenten Devotional // Fourth SundayLenten Devotional // Day 23Lenten Devotional // Day 24Lenten Devotional // Day 25Lenten Devotional // Day 26
April
Following Jesus: Some Assembly Required – Week 4M-Note 4.1.2022Lenten Devotional // Day 273 Implications of God's Humanity on YoursLenten Devotional // Day 28Lenten Devotional // Fifth SundayLenten Devotional // Day 29Lenten Devotional // Day 30Lenten Devotional // Day 31Lenten Devotional // Day 32Following Jesus: Some Assembly Required – Week 53 Misunderstandings of Easter that Impact YouLenten Devotional // Day 33Lenten Devotional // Day 34Lenten Devotional // Palm SundayLenten Devotional // Day 35Lenten Devotional // Day 36Lenten Devotional // Day 37M-Note 4.14.2022Lenten Devotional // Day 38 Maundy ThusdayLenten Devotional // Day 39 Good FridayLenten Devotional // Day 40 Holy SaturdayLenten Devotional // EasterMysterious You: How your union with God makes you divineM-Note 4.20.2022No Filter: See The Real You – Week 14 Ways Embracing Your Sin Serves the WorldM-Note 4.28.2022No Filter: See The Real You – Week 2
May
3 Reasons You Should Embrace Your WeirdnessM-Note 5.5.22No Filter: See The Real You – Week 3Identify Your Purpose and Empower Your FutureM-Note 5.12.22No Filter: See The Real You – Week 4Confidently Approach Life as a Second ChanceLearning to Enjoy LIFE by Eliminating DistractionsUncomplicating the “God” Question to Simplify Spirituality
Categories
Tags
1 Kings 3
1 Kings
1 Timothy
2 Corinthians 9:5-7
Belden Lane
Beyond Simple
Celebrate
Change
Christ
Commit
Confidence
Denee Bowers
Distractions
Divine Love
Doubt
Easter
Ephesians
Equity
Five Shared Practices
Focus
Frederick Buechner
Fresh Take
Friends
Generosity
God
Gratitude
Holy Ambiguity
Hope
Humanity
Identity
Jesus
John 21
John
Joy
Kids
King Solomon
Life
Limitations
Longing
Matthew
Nadia Bolz-Weber
No Filter
Open
Parables
Parenting
Patience
Paula D'Arcy
Paula D\'Arcy
Paula D\\\'Arcy
Paula D\\\\\\\'Arcy
Paul
Privilege
Proverbs 1
Proverbs
Psalms
Purpose
Questions
Redeem
Rejoice
Righteousness
Sabra Engelbrecht
Second Chance
Self-Love
Struggle
Success
Timothy
Uncertainty
Untethered
Vision
Weird
acts
adulting
advice
challenge
commitment
creation
deconstruction
deconstruct
faith
finances
fitness
forgiveness
forgiving
foundation
freedom
give
growth
kelley weber
love
meister eckhart
money
mystery
new life
opportunity
reconstruction
reconstruct
redemption
relationships
responsibility
simplify
sin
social
thomas merton
transition
truth
willingness
willpower
will
young adult
No Comments