March 15th - March 21st Life Group Notes Copy

Open in Prayer 

• Welcome/Introductions/Cast Vision - Remind the Life Group of the Guidelines- See bottom of page.

•  Doing the Mission: Did anyone share Jesus or last week's passage?  

• Does anyone have a God story? An undeniable encounter or experience with God that creates an impact or breakthrough in your day-to-day life. These moments can be extraordinary or very humble, but always personally powerful. 

• Opening Question: What was one of your best parties? What made it so awesome?
                                                                                               
  
• Share background for the passage: This passage is a Parable, told by Jesus. It expresses an invitation that is ignored by many people. The purpose of the parable is to discover why so many don’t respond to the invitation.

                                                                                       

• Thought/Focus: What excuses do we make when God is inviting us to His “banquet”?
• Have someone read or tell this week's passage/story: Luke 14:16-24
• Discuss these questions: Go deeper as led. Remember Head, Heart, Hands.

1. What do you think the “great banquet” in verse 16 represents?
2. What excuses did the invited guests give for not coming to the banquet?
3. How valid would you say these excuses were?
4. How do you think “the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame” felt when they were invited?
5. On a scale of 1-10 right now, how would you describe your “appetite” for the things of God?
6. From your experience, what excuses do people make to avoid God’s “banquet”? What excuses have you heard?
7. Which of these “priorities” do you struggle with? – personal devotion time, regular church participation, sharing my faith with others, using my talents and abilities to serve Him.
8. Realizing that God wants to fellowship with you, will you work on having a personal relationship that is more meaningful this next week without offering excuses?

 


Next week's passage/story: TBD
Select someone to tell next week's story
Dismiss in Prayer  

CONFIDENTIALITY: What is said in the group stays in the group.
 
LISTEN: Let's value one another during the  discussions by really listening to what is  being shared. Try to avoid thinking about  how you are going to respond or what you  are going to say next.
 
PAUSE: Allow a pause in conversation after someone shares. Give the person sharing a  chance to finish and the group the  opportunity to consider what was just  shared before responding.

NO "CROSS TALK": Be considerate of others  as they are sharing- no side conversations.

NO FIXING: We are not here to fix each  other. Jesus does that part. Speak truth is love, give  
encouragement, empathize,  point to Jesus.  You may share  solutions God has led you through. The  other person should never feel shame or  failure, but rather connection & hope.

NO HIJACKING of shared stories.

NO RESCUING: When people are sharing  something deeply personal, there can be a  tendency to try to make them feel better  about themselves or the situation by  providing immediate condolences. This will  often cause them to stop sharing. Resist the  temptation to rescue people.
 
SHARING: Be sensitive about the amount of time  you share.
 
SILENCE: It is important to allow silence in the  group as it provides an opportunity for someone  else to share and for members in the group to  process the topic or question being considered.

BE SELF-AWARE: Be self-aware of how you are  personally affecting the environment through your  words, actions, and non-verbal communication.
 
"I"STATEMENTS: It's easy to talk about the issues  of others, but for our purposes, we want you to put  yourself on the table. Try to use "I" statements rather than "them', "they", "you", "the church", "us", "we", etc.
 
FIGHT FOR RELATIONSHIP: We will commit to resolve conflict  biblically. When conflict or sin issues arise between  group members, we want to make sure that  we are honoring God and each other in the way we  deal with these issues. We will fight for  relationship.  I will discuss the struggle with the person I am in conflict with first, & if not resolved, seek wise advice. The following are a few key Scriptures  in this regard (there are many others.)

• If someone sins against you: Mat. 18:15-20
• Restoring someone in sin: Gal. 6:1-5 
• Forgive a sinner: Col. 3: 12-13 
• Reconciling differences: Mat. 5:23-24, Mat. 7:1-5