Posts with the category “coregroup-discussion-guides”

WelcomeTechnology has made our world more connected today than it has ever been in the history of civilization. The pandemic helped us improve and embrace the ways we can communicate virtually. If your job suddenly became completely remote or you were supervising a kid in Zoom school, you also experienced the shortcomings of virtual interactions. There are both tangible and intangible parts of in-...  Read More

WelcomeYou can’t do a sermon series on Screen Time without talking about social media. “Doom scrolling” – spending too much time endlessly scrolling and focusing on the negative things you see on social media – has become an epidemic in our culture today. It’s so easy to get lost in a feed of entertaining videos, products you HAVE to buy, photos of peoples’ “perfect” lives, distressing news from a...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Screen Time - Part 1Written by Denee Bowers and Parker PattonWelcomeDualistic thinking, or black and white thinking, is a common type of reasoning where we see only two distinct options. For example, we may think something is entirely good or entirely bad, and there is nothing in between. This can easily be the way we view technology. In the Bible, though, Jesus regularly invites...  Read More

WelcomeHappy Easter! This week we are reflecting on the Resurrection, the fulfillment of God’s promise in Jesus and the central belief of our Christian faith. But first, a quick wrap-up from last month.Ice BreakerIn our previous sermon series, we learned about the disciples of Jesus, his entourage, his crew. Each of these people taught us something different about what it means to follow Jesus.  I...  Read More

WelcomeThis is the fifth and final week of the Entourage series. How has God spoken to you through this series so far? Which of these well known (and not so well known!) members of Jesus’ crew have been the most compelling to you in your own journey of following Jesus? In this final week of the series we focus our attention on Mary Magdalene, one of Jesus’ most beloved disciples.This is also Holy ...  Read More

WelcomeWelcome to week 4 of our Entourage series, where we take a deeper look at the people surrounding Jesus during the last weeks leading up to his crucifixion. This week, we are focusing on Peter and the unexpected ways God works in our lives.Opening PrayerHey God, thank you for the opportunity to come together and focus on your presence in our lives today. As we discuss your friend Peter, stir...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Entourage - Week ThreeWritten by Dan Hutti and Parker PattonWelcomeThis week’s discussion guide continues to focus on Jesus’ entourage. We first discussed the sisters, Mary and Martha, then Judas, and now Simon of Cyrene and Joseph of Arimathea. The biblical descriptions of these two people are limited, but we can still learn from them and their sacrifices for Jesus. Let’s get st...  Read More

Written by Parker Patton and Dan Hutti WelcomeThis week during our sermon series Entourage, we will continue to explore the stories of the people who surrounded Jesus during his final days before the crucifixion. We now focus on one of the most infamous characters in the Bible, and certainly the most infamous of the disciples: Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Jesus. Opening PrayerHey God, than...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Entourage - Week OneWritten by Dan Hutti and Parker PattonWelcomeThis sermon series focuses on key people in Jesus' entourage. None of the people discussed in this sermon series are perfect, but they can all teach us something and help us in our pursuit of Jesus. This week we will focus on Mary and Martha, how they served Jesus, and what we can learn from their relationship with ...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Money Talks - Week ThreeWritten by Denee Bowers and Chris BurfordWelcomeWhew! We made it to the last week of our Money Talks series! We hope these three weeks have been a time of opening our hearts to new possibilities when it comes to money. We are ending by talking about generosity and impact. Scripture regularly reminds us that we can’t take our money and possessions with us w...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Money Talks - Week TwoWritten by Chris Burford and Denee BowersWelcomeIn 1979, a new book series began under an interesting theme.  The series was called “Choose Your Own Adventure” and the reader would be thrown into the protagonist role in mysteries and in epic fantasy worlds.  In every story, there would be multiple crossroads where decisions would need to be made at key point...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Money Talks - Week OneWritten by Denee Bowers and Chris BurfordWelcomeMoney is a part of all of our lives, but many of us were taught to never talk about it. It is a huge part of our day to day, but it can often feel like we are on our own when it comes to decision making around our finances. While many churches only talk about it when they are asking you to give, money and mater...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Clean Slate - Week FourWritten by Sherrill Wall and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeThis is the final week of our series, Clean Slate. We began the series with the precept that less is often better. During that first week we were challenged to consider what things are essential – what we truly value and what activities simply keep us busy. Next, our thoughts focused on beginning any changes ...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Clean Slate - Week ThreeWritten by Jenny Huffman and Sherrill WallWelcomeWe all have a rhythm to our life, a routine, parts of our day that always seem to happen whether we plan for them or not. Sometimes these routines are beneficial, but sometimes they are not! Sometimes we need a change, and change does not just happen. Meaningful change happens when we create new habits and w...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Clean Slate - Week TwoWritten by Sherrill Wall and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeThis is the second week in our series Clean Slate, which offers an opportunity for change.  Last week in the series opener, Pastor Matt suggested that less is better – that change in our lives requires subtraction first. We need to pare down to what is essential and focus on what is most important. Hopefully y...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Clean Slate - Week OneWelcomeWelcome to a new year of CoreGroup discussions! Our first sermon series of the year is called Clean Slate: New Habits for a New Year. This series offers a perfect opportunity to reflect on the past year – goals met, mistakes made, lessons learned, and places of gratitude. This is also an opportunity to look ahead at the year to come. What hopes and dr...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Simply Christmas - Week 4Guide written by Denee Bowers and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeWe are almost there, Christmas is nearly here (peep that Christmas Eve worship schedule if you haven’t already). It can be both an exciting and overwhelming time. So, it is fitting that this week we are focusing on grace. The grace God extends to us and the grace we can share with others. Opening Praye...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Simply Christmas - Week 3Guide written by Denee Bowers and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeA simple truth about Christmas…it almost never goes exactly as planned. Things go off the rails and we are forced to deal with things we didn’t see coming. We can respond to these interruptions with stress and frustration, or we can take them as an opportunity to open ourselves up to God and those arou...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Simply Christmas - Week 2Guide written by Denee Bowers and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeIn this series we are trying to shift our focus from all of the material parts of Christmas to the spiritual and relational opportunities God presents us with. If we are able to simplify things like gift giving and party planning we can create space for things like connecting with God and caring for th...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Simply Christmas - Week 1Guide written by Denee Bowers and Jenny HuffmanWelcomeIn the first week of this series we are thinking about being present. It can be easy to get caught up in gift giving, travel details, and party planning, but God is calling us to something much less complicated. This Christmas could look completely different if we are able to focus our minds and hearts...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | ONE: Finding Unity in a Divided World - Week 3Guide written by Dan HuttiWelcomeThis sermon series has focused on the concept of unity, which Pastor Matt defined as “maintaining a posture of love across difference.” This week we are discussing how to deal with division. What do we do in the face of division? Are our divisions more important than our relationships? In some cases, t...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | ONE: Finding Unity in a Divided World - Week 2Guide written by Chris Burford and Dan HuttiWelcomeNow this is a true story.  In 1936, there was a man named Edward who fell in love with a woman who had been divorced twice.  There was a policy in place at Edward's job that forbade them from marrying.  So, Edward weighed the pros and cons of that job and decided to part ways in order...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | ONE: Finding Unity in a World of Division - Week 1Guide written by Dan Hutti and Chris BurfordWelcomeIn a world that is so divided along cultural issues, politics, money, and faith, how do we find unity with people that are different than us? Does unity even matter? The Bible urges us to live in unity with one another but that seems impossible in a world of division. In this seri...  Read More

Core Group Guide   No Regrets - Week FourWritten by: Sherrill Wall & Jenny HuffmannWelcomeThis is the final week of our series, No Regrets.  In this series we have looked at the way we handle mistakes, and we have considered three essential steps in moving forward in relationships with God and with others.  The first step is recognizing and owning our mistakes.  Pastor Charity defined obstacles we...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | No Regrets - Week ThreeGuide written by: Jenny Huffman and Sherrill WallWelcomeThis is the third week of our sermon series No Regrets: Moving Beyond Mistakes. In the first week we talked about Recognizing and naming our mistakes. In the second week we talked about Rethinking our mistakes and the concept of repentance. This week we move towards Repairing our mistakes. But what doe...  Read More

Written by: Jenny Huffman & Sherrill WallPart 2 - Rethink ItLast week we started a new series called No Regrets: Moving Beyond Mistakes.  We began by acknowledging that we all make mistakes and that an important first step is to reckon with our responsibility.  The next essential element for moving beyond our mistakes is reflection and repentance.  WelcomeThis week we are challenged to consider th...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | No Regrets - Week OneWelcomeThis week we began a new sermon series called No Regrets: Moving Beyond Mistakes. The truth is, we all make mistakes. This is part of being human! But sometimes we struggle to recognize our mistakes, repair the damage done by our mistakes, learn from our mistakes, and move past our mistakes. That is what this sermon series is all about. These are not e...  Read More

Week Four Discussion GuideIt has been written that "birds are something truly special. What other group of animals has such a widespread and beloved hobby dedicated to simply looking at them. There are birds on every continent and just about every human civilization that’s ever existed has grown up in a landscape filled with birds. It is no wonder, then, that so many cultures have assigned a great...  Read More

Eleanor Roosevelt once said "Do one thing everyday that scares you. Those small things that make us uncomfortable help us build courage to do the work we do.” It was a bold way to look at stepping outside of a comfort zone.  That isn't easy for all of us.  Taking a leap of faith can be downright frightening, but sometimes those leaps lead to wonderful things.Icebreaker - Have you ever felt compell...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Inside Voice - Week 2Welcome! Last week Pastor Matt Miofsky began a new sermon series called Inside Voice: A Study of the Holy Spirit. Part 1 of this series focussed on the Holy Spirit as Fire – a fire that refines, illuminates, empowers, and energizes our lives. As part of last week’s discussion, we watched a meditation video from Pastor Adam Baker. Take a few minutes at the beg...  Read More

Welcome to CoreGroups! Ice Breaker: Share a brief introduction (if there are new people in your group) OR share a highlight from your summer (if an existing group) and one or two words that come up for you when you hear Holy Spirit.Opening Prayer: Holy Spirit, we are so grateful to be together today. We thank you for you presence with us among us. May you illuminate what we most need to hear as we...  Read More

Faith Like a Child - Part 4 Dependency Written and submitted by Curriculum Writing Team Jen Jordan, Rebekah Backowski, & Sherrill Wall(This week our talk focuses on the word and idea “dependency” please be mindful of the use of the word in relation to addiction, this can be triggering to many people)   Opening Prayer Gracious God, we come together as a group to learn from your Word and each other....  Read More

Faith Like a Child - Part 3 Saying SorryContributing Curriculum Team Writers:  Sherrill Wall & Rebekah BackowskiWelcomeToday we consider something almost all parents and teachers insist that children practice in their interactions with others at home, in school, and on the playground, and yet as adults we often have ceased to use in our own interactions – saying “I’m sorry.”  Rather than addressin...  Read More

 Discussion Guide for Faith Like A Child - Part 2: PLAYContributing Curriculum Team Writers: Rebekah Backowski & Sherrill WallWelcomeThis is the second week of our sermon series entitled, “Faith Like A Child.” In today’s CG discussion we will present how PLAY et al is vital in ways we may not have imagined! Science has studied the value of mammal play in….yep, you guessed it…rats.  In his journal ...  Read More

Faith Like a Child – Part 1  Wonder A dandelion, a worm, a butterfly, a rock, a seashell, a rainbow, a cloud – all have the possibility of wonder. Things in our everyday surroundings that so easily go unnoticed often become the object of fascination and/or amazement to the children in our lives.  Do you remember your first big natural discovery? Or have you been the recipient of some precious wild...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Burnout - Week 4Welcome:This is the fourth week of our sermon series called Burnout: Rest and the Power of Going Dark. In today’s CoreGroup discussion we will continue to wrestle with what it means to rest for something, not just to rest from something. The truth is, God needs us to be revived, refreshed, and renewed for the meaningful work the rest of the week holds for us! God ...  Read More

Nature is beautiful.  In some of us, nature has the ability to put our souls at rest and ground us in ways that feel restorative.  From epic hikes through national parks to just relaxing in the backyard or at a park, it feels good to be outside.  God designed some truly wonderful creatures, feelings, and experiences.God also placed unique aspects in nature that can be physical manifestations of Hi...  Read More

CoreGroup Guide | Burnout - Week 2Welcome!Last week Pastor Matt began our sermon series called Burnout: Rest and the Power of Going Dark. We learned that burnout is defined as a state of emotional, spiritual, mental, and/or physical exhaustion. But at the end of the sermon, Matt suggested that, “Burnout is not really about overworking; it’s about an unhealthy rhythm of living.” In other words, bur...  Read More

Week 1 Discussion GuideIn 2021, U.S. tennis star Naomi Osaka made headlines at the French Open not for her performance, but for what she did off the court.  At that time, Osaka was No. 2 in the world's tennis rankings and was one of the highest paid athletes.  It is safe to say that tennis was a passion for Osaka.  In a step that seemed to be out of nowhere, Osaka just started skipping obligated m...  Read More

Core Group Discussion GuideEaster Reflection"Easter is the demonstration of God that life is essentially spiritual and timeless."— Charles M. CroweThis week we will be taking a break from our traditional discussion guide. We will be coming together as core groups to reflect, share, and listen. Let's Pray and then discuss these ideas together. Opening prayerJesus, the greatest gift we receive from ...  Read More