A Prayer of Pursuit. I know I am cared for by an abundant Provider. I believe I have enough and he will provide me with what I need.

Transcription

1 DISCUSSION GUIDE

2 A Prayer of Pursuit I know I am cared for by an abundant Provider. I believe I have enough and he will provide me with what I need. I know that today s choices matter. They matter for me, for others, and for future generations. I believe freedom is found when I replace worry and greed with trust and gratitude. Creator, who made me to seek the greater good of your kingdom, guide me to use my time my talents my resources my very life to pursue what matters most.

3 Welcome to The Pursuit Jesus said some crazy things. He tells us to seek a higher purpose in life. He invites us to embrace radical contentment, to practice reckless generosity, to express unfiltered gratitude, to live with unwavering trust, and to intentionally invest our best into every day we ve been given. This life Jesus calls us to is something we will never stumble into accidentally. It s an intentional life one we experience by choice. And it s up to us to choose: Will we follow the wild and wondrous way of Jesus, or will we follow the path of least resistance? The Pursuit is about closing the gap between what we say matters to us and what we actually do with our lives. Now is the time to chase after the life you ve always wanted. Because knowing the life you want tells you how to use the life you ve got! SESSION 1: Name What Matters Most... 2 SESSION 2: Watch the Clock... 4 SESSION 3: Say Thanks... 6 SESSION 4: Trust You Have Enough... 8 SESSION 5: Master Your Money SESSION 6: Live Generously

4 Name What Matters Most Knowing my purpose gives my life significance & meaning. Without purpose, life is motion without meaning, activity without direction, and events without reason. Without a purpose, life is trivial, petty, and pointless. Rick Warren 1. What s your reaction to the quotation above? What are the key ingredients of your life s purpose? 2. Read Psalm 139: How does this reading help you understand God s intentions for you? What s one unique positive characteristic, skill or trait that God s given you? 3. The Book of Ecclesiastes is a detailed reflection of one person s attempt to name what matters most. Read Ecclesiastes 2:1-10. As a group, list the things that drove the author

5 4. Aside from a relationship with God, what has been one of the most positive driving forces in your life? If you feel comfortable, share about a negative driving force in your life (from the past or present), too. 5. Read Mark 12: What purposes does this reading present for every human being? What are two simple ways you d like to grow in each of these two purposes? 6. As best you can articulate it, share answers to these questions with your group: - My purpose is... - My God-given uniqueness includes... - What matters most in the end is... * For a detailed approach to discovering your life s purpose, download the Invitation to Simplicity workbook, authored by Mark Scandrette, at

6 Watch the Clock How I use my time is far more important than how much time I have. Time is lost when we have not lived a full human life, time unenriched by experience, creative endeavor, enjoyment, and suffering. Dietrich Bonhoeffer 1. The New Testament writers use two different Greek words for time chronos (clock time) and kairos (opportunity time). To highlight this difference, read the following scriptures and decide: does this passage refer to chronos time or kairos time? (Answers on next page). Matthew 2:7 Matthew 26:18 Mark 1:14-15 John 5:6 Acts 18:23 Galatians 6: Corinthians 16:7 Titus 1:1-3 Revelation 1:3 2. Read John 7:19. How did Jesus understanding of time differ from his brothers understanding? 3. Read Luke 10: Which time (chronos or kairos) does Mary represent? Which time does Martha represent? - 4 -

7 4. What is the one thing worth worrying about that Jesus refers to in Luke 10:42? What s one way you could follow the example of Mary in your relationship with Jesus this week? 5. Read Ephesians 5: The circumstances of your life are perfectly designed for God to work in and through you. What s one opportunity (kairos) that God may be calling you to with: Your significant other? Your family? Your friends? Your coworkers? Your neighbors? 6. Read Luke 12: What picture of time does Jesus paint with this parable? What s one way you can stay ready to respond to the opportunities God brings your way? chronos: Matthew 2:7, John 5:6, Acts 18:23, 1 Corinthians 16:7. kairos: Matthew 26:18, Mark 1:14-15, Galatians 6:9-10, Titus 1:1-3, Revelation 1-5 -

8 Say Thanks Gratitude enables me to enjoy life and live in the moment. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and all I have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy. Henri Nouwen 1. While pretty much everyone enjoys receiving gratitude, expressing gratitude can be difficult for many of us. Based on the quotation above, how many opportunities for expressing gratitude likely exist in your life? 2. On a scale of 1-10 (10=high), silently assess your own effectiveness in regularly expressing gratitude. (If you wish, share your personal assessment with the group.) Why is it important to express gratitude and not just feel it? Share an example if you have one

9 3. Read Psalm 145:1-7. What is the writer of this psalm grateful for? If you were to write your own Psalm 147, what are some of the specific things for which you would say give thanks? 4. Read Philippians 4:6-7. What is the role of gratitude when it comes to prayer? How might this passage change the way you pray? 5. In this week s talk, Eric challenged us to write notes to three people expressing our gratitude for them. If you feel comfortable, share the names of some (or all) of the people you plan to thank. * To find out about creating your own gratitude journal, go to

10 Trust You Have Enough Trusting in God s provision frees me to fully embrace life. The power of the future lies not in the hands of those who believe in scarcity but of those who trust God s abundance. Walter Brueggemann 1. When you think about the future, where would you place yourself on the continuum below? (Circle the number that best represents your outlook). Do you tend toward anxiety or trust in regard to the future? Why do you think this is? anxiety trust 2. For several years running, the country of Paraguay, with a GDP per capita of around $4,000, tops the world s positive experience index, a measure of a country s overall happiness. By comparison, the United States, with a GDP per capita of about $57,000 comes in 38 th in the world. What do you think accounts for this difference? - 8 -

11 3. Read 1 Timothy 6:6-8. Tough question: Do you feel content just as long as you have food and clothing? What sorts of influences in our culture fuel discontent? What sorts of influences in your life fuel discontentment? 4. Read Luke 12: How does this passage present the difference between worry and trust? What s one change (even a small change) you might make this week if you absolutely believed this scripture was true? 5. Read Matthew 6:24. In a culture that often takes money as its master, what are a few practical ways that you can vote against the desire for more and more money/things/stuff? 6. Read Philippians 4: What s Paul s secret to maintaining a spirit of contentment in the midst of challenging circumstances? What s one way you could integrate Paul s insight into the way you live tomorrow? - 9 -

12 Master Your Money Money is a tool, a trust, and a test God s interested in how I manage money. A relationship with God simply cannot grow when money, sins, activities, favorite sports teams, addictions or commitments are piled up on top of it. Francis Chan 1. Think of one of the happiest seasons of your life. What were your finances like during that season? What does this suggest for you? 2. Read Proverbs 21:5. Share about a time when a wise financial plan led to greater freedom in your life. Then (ouch!) share about a time when a hasty financial decision had negative consequences in your life. 3. If current you could go back in time and tell past you just two things about mastering your money, what would current you say?

13 4. Read Luke 14: How does this passage treat budgeting and planning? In Luke 14:33, why do you think Jesus draws a parallel between planning and discipleship (becoming more and more like Jesus over time)? 5. Read Proverbs 28: How does this passage challenge common cultural assumptions about money? What s one way you can be a faithful person (Prov. 28:20) this week: in your family? with your friends? at work? 6. In this week s talk, Eric said that money is a tool, a trust, and a test. Complete the prompts below; then, if you feel comfortable, share your answers with the group. I will use money in my life to... I will demonstrate that I m a manager and not an owner of my money and stuff by... I will meet the test of money by... * To dig deeper into mastering your money, download the Simplicity Plan financial spreadsheet, authored by Mark and Lisa Scandrette, at

14 Live Generously Real life is measured by how generous I am, not by how much I own. The measure of a life, after all, is not its duration, but its donation. Corrie Ten Boom 1. If you make minimum wage in America, you are in the top 8% of wage earners in the world. What s your reaction to this global statistic? 2. Read James 4:1-3. One definition of greed is an intense, selfish desire for something you don t have. How does this passage illustrate the roots and results of greed? 3. Read Ecclesiastes 5:8-17. What misconceptions about money does this passage describe? What are some of the symptoms of greed that this passage describes?

15 4. 1 John 3: What relationship does this passage describe between love for God and love for others? What s one way you can love others with actions and truth (1 John 3:18). 5. Read Ecclesiastes 5: This passage lays out an antidote for greed. What are two ways this week you can focus on what you have rather than what you don t have? 6. Read Matthew 6:1-4. What kind of giving does this passage describe? Talk about a time when you saw someone practice this kind of giving. * To discover how your income stacks up to other income-earners worldwide, go to

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