Emotional Rollercoaster Discussion Guide - Part 1

Welcome
Hello and welcome to the first week of a new series, Emotional Rollercoaster. In this series, we will explore the ups, downs, corkscrews, and the 360-degree loops of the emotions we experience daily. Emotions can be described as the raw, physiological responses we have to the world around us such as being happy or sad. This life of ours can lead to a full and deep spectrum of emotions and knowing more about what the Bible tells us can be helpful. We will look specifically at examples when Jesus had an emotional response to life events, and we will talk about what we can learn from his experiences.

Opening Prayer
God, You have blessed us with so many gifts, including our emotions. Thank you for those gifts. Thank you for your patience and for your endless understanding as we seek to learn more about ourselves. Please bless our time together and open our hearts and minds to deep understanding. It is in your name we pray, amen.

Ice Breaker
Colors and emotions are a popular theme when trying to visualize the state of one’s well-being.  Colors like red for anger or blue for sadness. To change it up a little for a different taste, what flavors would you match with the following emotions:  Sadness? Fear? Anger? Joy? Disappointment? Calm?
 
The Head
These verses come from the New Testament Book of John. This story begins with Jesus and his disciples located far away in Galilee when they hear news that one of Jesus’ friends, named Lazarus, was sick. Now Lazarus, and his sisters Mary and Martha, were described in the Bible as friends of Jesus whom he loved. Jesus knew that Lazarus would die from this sickness, but he chose to wait for days before visiting which confused many people.

John 11:11-14

He continued, “Our friend Lazarus is sleeping, but I am going in order to wake him up.” The disciples said, “Lord, if he’s sleeping, he will get well.” They thought Jesus meant that Lazarus was in a deep sleep, but Jesus had spoken about Lazarus’ death. Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died. For your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there so that you can believe. Let’s go to him.”

• In these verses, Jesus demonstrates his omnipotence; or put another way, his timeless knowledge of all things. Jesus knew the moment Lazarus died without seeing it. What emotions do you think Jesus was experiencing at this moment?

• What emotions do you think the disciples might have felt during this exchange?

By the time Jesus and his disciples arrived at the home of his friends, Lazarus had already been dead for four days and his sisters were in deep mourning.    

John 11:32-44

When Mary arrived where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.” When Jesus saw her crying and the Jews who had come with her crying also, he was deeply disturbed and troubled.  He asked, “Where have you laid him?” They replied, “Lord, come and see.”

Jesus began to cry. The Jews said, “See how much he loved him!” But some of them said, “He healed the eyes of the man born blind. Couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”  

Jesus was deeply disturbed again when he came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone covered the entrance. Jesus said, “Remove the stone.”

Martha, the sister of the dead man, said, “Lord, the smell will be awful! He’s been dead four days.”

Jesus replied, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believe, you will see God’s glory?” So they removed the stone. Jesus looked up and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me.  I know you always hear me. I say this for the benefit of the crowd standing here so that they will believe that you sent me.”

Having said this, Jesus shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his feet bound and his hands tied, and his face covered with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Untie him and let him go.”

• Even with the four days of knowledge that his friend had died, Jesus was really upset.  What does this emotional response teach us about Jesus?

• After reading through this story, we can see that the death of Lazarus served a spiritual purpose. How would you describe the purpose?

• What similarities can you spot in this story compared to the resurrection of Jesus?

The Heart
There is something truly profound in the resurrection of Lazarus. We see Jesus display the raw emotion of sadness.  He is so moved by the loss of his friend, that his cry comes naturally and that is something we all can relate to. What is profound, though, is that Jesus is our Lord and Savior who has the knowledge of everything that was, that is, and that is yet to come; and, he cried. This complex emotion of sadness he experienced was in human form.  

• What does it mean to you that our God, through Jesus, experienced human emotions?

• In what way does the knowledge that God not only created our emotions like sadness, but also physically experienced that sadness, impact you?

• In what ways could this impact your prayers?

• How could the emotion we know as sadness be looked at as a blessing?  

• What does sadness tell us about our place in this world and the way we treat others?

The Hands
Hopefully our discussion to this point has led to a fresh understanding that God relates to us on a very deep level, even when we are extremely raw with our own emotions. Sadness is one of those emotions that has a way of making us feel alone. Sadness is a sneaky emotion that makes us feel separate from God even though God is with us always; even when we are sad.

• How can we think about our own experiences with sadness in a way that helps others?

• What things can we do when we see others experiencing sadness, grief, or despair?

• After Jesus cried, he jumped into motion by asking the stone to be removed from the cave where Lazarus was buried and then he prayed a simple, beautiful prayer of thanksgiving. What type of motions might you jump to when sadness is overwhelming?

Closing Prayer
Hey God, thank you for this time together today. Thank you for the examples Jesus gave us to enrich our lives in this world. Please grant us peace and comfort when we are sad and deepen our compassion when we seek to help others who are sad.  Please bless our efforts and forgive us when we stumble.  It is in your name we pray, amen.    

Going Deeper
If you are struggling with sadness or anything else, you don't need to be alone! Reach out to a pastor, connect with your CoreGroup leader, or check out The Gathering’s Wellness Ministry.