The 5 W s and 1 H of Prayer, as well as the 3 things that can short circuit your prayer life. Click below to listen.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Sunday Sermon: Dream
In order for a Godly dream to manifest...4 things must happen Click below to listen
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Monday, February 3, 2014
Bible Study: Joseph
1. “You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don’t be foolish or naive. But don’t despair either. With God’s help you will get through this.”
Consider each sentence one at a time. Which is most comforting or encouraging to you? Which, if any, do you wish hadn’t been included? Why?
Which negative word below do you relate to most? Which represents the greatest temptation for you now, or which is most characteristic of you when you are in a difficult situation?
❑ Foolish: I am tempted to be or have been thoughtless, reckless, shortsighted, lacking in wisdom and good judgment, or impulsive in my behavior.
❑ Naive: I am tempted to be or have been willfully ignorant of negative reality, lacking in discernment and critical judgment, blind to the impact of my words or behavior, or engaged in an unrealistic view of the world and human nature.
❑ Despairing: I am tempted to be or have been unwilling to receive comfort or care from others. I am prone to feel hopeless, desolate, despondent, helpless, or miserable.
❑ Other:
2. Read Genesis 37, which provides critical background about Joseph’s family and details about his abduction and sale into slavery in Egypt.
a. The story features three primary characters: the brothers (as a whole), Joseph, and Jacob. Which of the “don’t” words from question 1 best describes each of the three characters?
The brothers are .
Joseph is .
Jacob is .
b. Use the word you chose from question 1, and the character from Genesis 37 who best illustrates that word, to reflect on how you face difficulties. For example, if you chose “despairing,” what similarities do you see between yourself and the despairing character you identified? What insights about your words, actions, or situation does this character provide? (You may wish to reread Genesis 37, paying particular attention to this character’s words, actions, and situation.)
c. In what area, if any, do you resist being identified with this character? Why?
3. At the end of Genesis 37, Joseph finds himself in Egypt. The Hebrew word for Egypt is Mitzrayim, whose root means “to border, shut, or limit.”1 It evokes the image of a very narrow or tight place. We could say that Joseph’s Egypt—his Mitzrayim—began the minute he was thrown into the pit. And the tight places kept coming—slavery, entrapment, prison.
a. It would have been natural for Joseph to defy his captivity and devote all his efforts to escaping. Why do you suppose he repeatedly chose not to? What would you say he chose to do instead?
b. How do you relate to this image of being in Egypt? How has your suffering hemmed you in or made your world much smaller than it once was? What limitations are most difficult for you?
c. How would you characterize your response to your limitations? For example, are your thoughts and energies devoted primarily to escape plans, to ways to cope, or to something else?
4. Between the beginning and end of Joseph’s story, he underwent a remarkable transformation. The spoiled youth who once thought of no one but himself became a visionary leader who saved the world from starvation. Every tight place in Joseph’s life became a training place, a narrow path to an eternal purpose.
a. Training is preparation. It is a process that makes the weak strong and the unskilled effective. What is the potential for training in your difficult situation? What new “muscles” are you working?
b. Here is the assumption of training: what we can’t do now even by trying very hard is something we will be able to do later by training very hard. How do you recognize this truth in both Joseph’s story and your own?
5. “The story of Joseph is in the Bible for this reason: to teach you to trust God to trump evil. What Satan intends for evil, God, the Master Weaver and Master Builder, redeems for good” To trump is to get the better of an adversary by using a crucial, often hidden resource at the most strategic moment. How does this idea help you understand God’s involvement in your life currently?
6. Author C. S. Lewis wrote, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains.”2 Take a moment to reflect on what Joseph’s story could reveal about the pain or difficulties you’re experiencing. If God is shouting to you in your pain, what is he saying? How might he be inviting you to respond?
Share your thoughts and insights.
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