Group Notes | November 27

Self on the Shelf: Refocus or Regret
November 27, 2016
Pastor Jonathan Falwell

 

Open:

Most of us have—at some point in our life—realized that if we continue down a certain path, it can lead to an end we’re not ready for. Can someone think of an example?

This week we enter the Christmas season, when the “wants” of our family (or ourselves) become the focus of much money and time. God entered this earth to provide us with salvation through the greatest story ever told. It is only by taking the attention off our own desires and focusing on Him that we will get the truth of what His coming means to each of us.

Focal Passages: 1 John 2:15-17; Luke 1:5-14

Discuss:

God’s View

  1. In 1 John 2:15 and verse 17, what does God warn you to be alert for in your own life? He has told us what pleases Him in Luke 10:27. What does this mean to you personally?

QUESTION: This Christmas, how can I show my neighbor that he/she is more important than I am?

The World’s View

  1. Read verses 16 and 17. What does the world tempt you with constantly? Think of the commercials you (or your children, or grandchildren, if applicable) see daily.
  2. Can you illustrate with an example the truth that what should be the “Reason for the Season” has instead become all about you or your family?

QUESTION: What can you do to re-direct your focus from this path of having more “stuff,” to see that you are using it for the good of others?

A Refocused Heart is One Fixed on Him

  1. In Luke 1:6,7, what are some characteristics of Elizabeth and Zechariah? List some feelings that would have been uppermost because of their inability to conceive.
  2. What did a childless couple endure in those days?

Even When Things Don’t Go Your Way

  1. Did they let the unanswered prayer for a child stop them from keeping their focus on loving God?

Refocus or Regret

  1. What did the angel tell Zechariah in verse 13b? Do you think that was a prayer that had been recent? Why or why not?

QUESTION: Where is your heart amid disappointments, unanswered prayers, and shortcomings?

Daily:

 1) Praise God daily (Psalm 118:24)

2) Repent of our sins—never allow them to continue (Psalm 32:5)

3) Seek reconciliation with anyone who carries a grudge, has upset, hurt or been unfair to you (Matthew 5:24)

4) Look for ways to bring joy to someone each day (1 Thess. 4:9)

5) Focus on what really matters (Phil. 4:8)

Close:

It hardly seems possible that we are again at the beginning of another Christmas season! As we enter this month, list some of the opportunities that are possible through our church or community to bring the good news of the gospel to those outside the church. Examine your heart to make certain that your lifestyle is not hung up on adding more “things” to an already-overflowing home, and that you’re not breeding materialism in your family. We all have today to begin on a new path that will yield eternal rewards. Pray for each other that the joy of Christmas would be abiding in you every day, and that you pass it on to everyone you meet.

Memory Verse: 1 John 2:15: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.’”

Focal Passages: 1 John 2:15-17; Luke 1:5-15, Luke 10:27.

 

 

 

 

/by