Thinking Rightly In a Broken World: The Biblical Story of the Mind
COMMUNITY GUIDE
The Community Guide below is based on Sunday’s teaching for our new series: Thinking Rightly in a Broken World. As your whole Community gathers (online or in-person), use the Community Guide below to give shape to your time together.
Begin by Practicing the Lord’s Supper Together (5 minutes)
Begin your time by partaking of the bread and the cup together. Have each person bring their own Communion elements or provide elements for the group. To facilitate your time, you can either ask a member of your Community to come ready with a short prayer, scripture reading, or read the passage we’ve provided below. After reading (aloud), spend a moment in silence before continuing:
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:23–26).
CHECK-IN (10 MINUTES)
As we focus on this series, we want to continue to create space for checking in on each other but doing so in a shorter amount of time. Take a few minutes to do a whole person check-in (emotional, spiritual, physical) with your Community, creating space for each person to answer the question below:
What are two things you were thankful for this last week? What are you trusting the Lord for in this week to come?
If the need arises, spend a few minutes praying for one another, asking God to meet needs and help each person carry what feels heavy right now.
READ THIS OVERVIEW (5 MINUTES)
This Sunday, Christian explored how God intended our minds to work in the beginning. Before sin entered the world, God’s good design for our minds was to learn from him in a relationship of trust: depending upon him to guide us into true wisdom, and yet trusting him with our limitations in both what we CAN know and what he ALLOWS us to know. Therefore, the “renewal of our minds” (Rom. 12:2) must begin with restoring us to this relationship of trust in God.
QUESTIONS (20 Minutes)
What is one thing that stuck out to you in today’s sermon?
What is one area that you wish God gave us more clarity on?
What is one limitation (something you don’t understand) that you can’t wrap your mind around?
In your current season of life, what lessons have you learned about trusting God? Are there any areas where you are struggling to trust him?
Missionary Practice For The Week Ahead: BLESS (10 Minutes)
ᐅ B.L.E.S.S.
(B)egin with Prayer:
Pray for the people in your life and the places that you’re in.
People: Who do you live, work and play with that is far from God? Pray that God would create spiritual curiosity in them, and then spend time with them.
Places:
Where does pain exist here? Pray for healing.
Who makes the decisions here? Pray for integrity.
Who throws parties here? Pray for community.
Where are the pennies spent here? Pray for provision.
(L)isten:
Listen to and discover the needs of others and for the places where God is at work.
Before you can help others find Jesus, you need to listen to them first - their hopes, pains, challenges and dreams. In your interactions with others today, take the posture of a learner. Lay down assumptions and practice being present in conversations.
(E)at:
Share meals, drink coffee, and spend time with people in your life that don’t yet know Jesus.
Who can you eat with (or have coffee with) that is far from God? A co-worker over lunch? A neighbor during the day? A friend or family member over the weekend?
Is there a place that you regularly visit (coffee shop, gym, etc.)? Ask God to grant you opportunities to eat with people.
(S)erve:
Who can you serve this week? Who do you know that has a practical need? Ask them how you can help.
Before jumping into serving, have you taken the time to pray for, listen to and eat with these people? Doing these things first helps you discover the way that you really need to serve them.
(S)tory:
Share the story of Jesus and what He is doing in your life with others.
Start by sharing how God has blessed you and made a difference in your life.
Share your story in such a way that demonstrates that Jesus is also at work in their life.
Don’t feel like you have to tell your life story at once. Think “bite-size” stories.
Prayer (10 Minutes)
Spend a few minutes praying for God’s grace over each other, that we might become a people who make Jesus our Lord, and that there might be a sweeping renewal of the Holy Spirit in our city. Ask that God would stir up within us a desire to be with him in prayer and to serve him, one another, and our neighbor in love.