WELCOME TO SMALL GROUP!

Transcription

1 LEADER S GUIDE

2 WELCOME TO SMALL GROUP! As a leader, this guide will assist you in effectively leading a small group of people to know the Holy Spirit better. This guide accompanies the DVD and can be used in conjunction with the book, Hello Holy Spirit. All six lessons coordinate with the six chapters in the book. Each lesson includes icebreakers, video teaching and story, discussion questions, ministry ideas, and an assignment. HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE ICEBREAKERS The main goal of the icebreaker is to help everyone get involved in conversation. Icebreakers also provide great connection points with those in your group. So, pay attention to the answers given because they will give you some unique insights to your group members. We will give you suggestions, but you can also feel free to use your own icebreaker question. Just remember to keep it simple and non-threatening. VIDEO TESTIMONY Each video section lasts about minutes and is a combination of helpful teaching and an ordinary person sharing his/her story of experiencing the Holy Spirit. DISCUSSION TIPS Feel free to ask people for their initial reaction to the video each week as a launching pad. Remember that the goal is to facilitate discussion, not dominate it. Occasionally, it s appropriate to lead with your own answer/thought to a question, but this is rare. Learn to be comfortable with uncomfortable moments of silence. Don t be afraid to call on specific people to share their thoughts, especially if they aren t sharing much. Keep an eye out for those who love to take over and dominate a discussion. An easy way to combat this is to utilize the tip above (calling on specific people for thoughts/ answers). Again, remember that your primary goal is to facilitate well-rounded discussion, where everyone has the opportunity to participate. MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATIONS Each week, there are ministry ideas and activations. These are very important and will help your group encounter and experience the Holy Spirit. DO NOT SKIP THESE! ASSIGNMENTS Each week, people can choose to do an additional assignment of reading the accompanying chapter in the book. They coordinate and add more insight to the six topics. Have your group start by reading Chapter 1.

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4 WEEK ONE: HELP! WHO ARE YOU, HOLY SPIRIT? The Holy Spirit is God, the third Person of the Trinity. He is eager to reveal Himself and be in relationship with everyone as the Helper. He woos us, reveals God to us, and offers us a new birth, complete with a heart transplant. Get ready for a new friend in life. ICEBREAKER Share your name, how long you ve been attending this small group, and your favorite way to spend a Saturday morning. INTRO FOR TESTIMONY Throughout our six weeks together, we have the opportunity to meet different individuals in our church family and hear their testimony. Each of us have a life story to share, and one of the reasons we value small groups so much is because we have opportunity to learn from each other s stories. I think this will be one of our favorite times throughout this series. DISCUSSION What is one thing that really impacted you from Rich s testimony? When did God become more than just a word to you? (Keep in mind that the answer to this question is often the person s first real experience with the Holy Spirit, but they may be unaware of this.) Who are some people that have impacted you on your spiritual journey? Share where you currently are in response to this statement: Help! I am about the Holy Spirit (unsure, skeptical, crazy, confused, searching...) Read John 3:5-8. What stands out to you in this passage? What are your thoughts about the connection between the wind and the Holy Spirit? Now read John 14: What do you think of the term Helper for the Holy Spirit? What does this communicate to you? Have you ever considered the Holy Spirit as a gift given to you to help lead and guide you in this life? 4

5 MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - WAITING ON THE SPIRIT Waiting on the Holy Spirit is a classic Vineyard practice. It actually comes from the old Quaker practice of waiting for the Holy Spirit in their meetings. It is a useful activity in that it teaches us to tune ourselves to the presence of God and flow with what He is doing. Here is how to run this activation: Have the group sit in a relaxed comfortable position. Invite the Holy Spirit to come and wait. From time to time, point out what you re experiencing. Eventually, invite a few of the students to share what they re experiencing. A few notes on this practice: First, this isn t an exercise in receiving words of knowledge. Often we can practice waiting on the Spirit to get words of knowledge, but the point of this activity isn t to hear God, it s to experience Him. If you explain this to the group, they will process the activity differently and get more out of it. Second, God s Presence tends to come in waves in an activity like this. That s a normal part of the process - learn to recognize it and flow with it. Each wave of the Spirit tends to take you deeper into His presence if you can stay engaged during the time it lifts in between. ASSIGNMENT Read Chapter Two: Help! What Do You Do, Holy Spirit? in Hello, Holy Spirit, God s Gift of Live-in Help. Journal your reflections and responses. 5

6 WEEK TWO: HELP! WHAT DO YOU DO, HOLY SPIRIT? The Holy Spirit wants to help us powerfully and practically in our everyday lives and challenges. But first, He wants to make sure we know the truth - about Jesus, life, love, and the approval of the Father. ICEBREAKER If you could observe any animal in its natural habitat, which animal would you choose to observe and why? INTRO FOR TESTIMONY Last week, we met Rich and were inspired by his testimony. This week we have the privilege to have a look into the life of Tosha. DISCUSSION What is one thing that really stood out to you from Tosha s testimony? How often would you say you encounter/spend time with God in any given week? Once? Twice? Every single day? What has been your experience with the self-help world/industry? How have you struggled with dividing your life up in sacred and secular components? Read John 16:7, How can it be better that Jesus went away? In John 16:13 we read that the Spirit of truth will guide us into all truth. What exactly do you think this means? How is this helpful for us in our everyday lives? How can we use this information to partner better with the Holy Spirit? MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - IDENTITY CONFESSION Confession as an activation is confessing the truth over yourself so the Holy Spirit can build you up. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and 6

7 bears witness to the truth. As we confess the truth over ourselves, the Spirit bears witness to who we are and builds us up in our inner man. To do this activation: Lead the group in reading aloud a confession together in unison. Pay attention to what is happening internally in the Spirit. Point out how you feel. Have some of the other group members share what they are experiencing. I would suggest to your group members that, from time to time, they make a practice of this. You don t have to use a pre-written confession; just confessing Scriptures that proclaim identity about who I am in Christ can be a powerful spiritual discipline. Here is a pre-written confession you can use: I am a child of the King. I am a co-heir with Jesus. I am a new creation in Christ. The old is passed away; all things have become new. I am in Jesus. Jesus is in me. Greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world. I am united with Jesus. I have been crucified with Christ. I died with Him. I was buried with Him. I was raised with Him. I am now seated with Him in the heavenlies, far above all rule, all authority, all power and above every name that is named. Therefore, I carry the authority of Christ. I have authority over sickness, over sin, over demons, over storms, over poverty, and over this world. I am the salt of the earth. I am the light of the world. I displace the darkness because I am the light. I have the full armor of God. I put on the breastplate of righteousness. I put on the belt of truth. I put on the helmet of salvation. I wear the sandals of peace. I take up the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The weapons of my warfare are not of the flesh, but they are divinely powerful to tear down the imaginations, the lies, and the strongholds of darkness. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Because I am a child of God, I am a son of the King. I am led by the Spirit. All things work together for my good because I am loved by God, and I am called according to His purpose. I have a destiny. I am going to Heaven, but in the meantime, I have an assignment and that is bringing Heaven to Earth. Thank God that I am His and the truth of His word about me is what I stand on tonight. In Jesus name. Thanks to Mike Hutchings, Director of Global School of Supernatural Ministry ASSIGNMENT Read Chapter Three: Help! How Do I Encounter You, Holy Spirit? in Hello, Holy Spirit, God s Gift of Live-in Help. Journal your reflections and responses. 7

8 WEEK THREE: HELP! HOW DO I ENCOUNTER YOU, HOLY SPIRIT? There is an encounter with the Holy Spirit, accompanied by actual experiences, that is available for all. These experiences may include the gift of tongues, physical sensations, the gift of prophecy, fresh desire to worship, the gift of powerful witnessing, and greater understanding of the Bible. When we encounter God, something happens! ICEBREAKER What is the strangest, most exotic thing you ve ever eaten? INTRO FOR TESTIMONY Last week, we heard Tosha s testimony on embracing Holy Spirit in the everyday moments. This week s testimony you won t soon forget as our individual has quite the story unfolding in his young life. DISCUSSION Share some things that stood out to you from Kundayi s testimony. What are some of your fears or concerns about encountering the Holy Spirit? Intellectual fears? Weirdness? Something else? Also, share why you have those. What emotions are stirred up when you hear that the Holy Spirit is wooing you, like a lover? The Spirit promises to supply all the help you need to live the full and satisfying life Jesus made possible. Is this something that is easy or difficult for you to believe, and why? Read John 4: How would you define worshipping the Father in spirit and in truth? Describe some ways that you can do this in your everyday life? Now read Acts 10: What catches your attention in this passage? Discuss the topic of tongues as a gift received by faith. 8

9 MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - SPIRIT INFILLING Praying to be filled with the Holy Spirit is a critical event in being empowered for ministry. Jesus taught the disciples that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them (Acts 1:8), and that was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit filled the disciples (Acts 2:4). In the Vineyard, we believe that being filled with the Holy Spirit is meant to be a repeated experience; you don t get filled with the Spirit once-and-forall, but as believers, we are meant to have ongoing experiences of being filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Here is how to run this activation: Select some of the group members to pray for to be filled with the Spirit. Have yourself or other people pray for the Holy Spirit to come and fill them. In doing this, you are asking the Holy Spirit to take over every part of their person. Wait and observe what is happening, then point out what you are seeing to the other group members. Ask the people receiving prayer to explain what they re experiencing. After the activation is all done, you can have your members break up in groups and pray for each other to be filled with the Spirit afresh. If possible, have every group member receive prayer - this is an important empowering for ministry. (CONTINUED NEXT PAGE) 9

10 RELEASE THE GIFT OF TONGUES This is a great activation to model for your group, and depending on where they are at, it can be a great activity for them to practice with each other. Here is how to release the gift of tongues: Place your hand on the stomach of the person you re praying for. Ask Jesus that out of this person s belly would flow rivers of living water. Coach the person through the process of learning to speak in tongues. Often people need a little help learning how to speak in tongues. It is a different type of speech - you re not speaking what your head is telling you. You re speaking what your Spirit is telling you. Learning how to speak from a different place is a little tricky. Often people will hear a specific phrase in their head or feel a sensation in their mouth or on their lips as the Spirit is activating the gift. Encourage them to speak out whatever they hear or feel they should say. It may feel strange, but the gift of tongues is a little strange! Once people are activated, they will need to practice the gift regularly. Encourage people to try and pray in tongues five minutes a day for a while after they ve received the gift; this will help establish them in how to flow in the gift. ASSIGNMENT Read Chapter Four: Help! How Do I Experience You Daily, Holy Spirit? in Hello, Holy Spirit, God s Gift of Live-in Help. Journal your reflections and responses. 10

11 WEEK FOUR: HELP! HOW DO I EXPERIENCE YOU DAILY, HOLY SPIRIT? We can overflow daily with the Spirit in our work, family, worship, and play. He empowers us to walk and live in His Presence all day long. He teaches us the unforced rhythms of grace, and His grace flows through us refreshing others and us too! ICEBREAKER What are some daily practices that you have implemented in your life? Talk about a hobby or task that you recently learned how to do. How did you go about learning about it? How long did it take until that hobby/task felt natural? INTRO FOR TESTIMONY Our testimony videos have become one of our favorite parts of this series. And how awesome is it to meet people from across our Vineyard community! DISCUSSION What is one thing that caught your attention in Danelle s testimony? What is currently keeping you from accessing the Holy Spirit on a daily/regular basis? What are some ways that you build and maintain relationships or things that you do with some of those who are closest to you? How do you think you could incorporate some of those same things into your relationship with the Holy Spirit? Read Romans 8: What do you notice in these verses? These verses tell us we have the Holy Spirit in us because we are God s children. What do you think the relationship between God s children and the Holy Spirit should look like? Read Galatians 5:16, What stands out to you in these verses? How does it make you feel to know that Spirit-filled living is beneficial for every aspect of your life? Are there currently any areas of your life where you haven t really granted Holy Spirit access to? 11

12 MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - WHEN I LOOK AT YOU, I SEE... We find that this is a great first activation for getting people to move in words of knowledge and even begin to prophesy. It is designed to force people to get started with something, which is often the majority of the battle. Once you give it a shot, God is more than willing to meet you halfway (or less)! Break the group into two lines that face each other. One line will be the talking line, the other the listening line. For one minute, the talking line will look at the person across from them in the listening line and share with them what comes to mind when they look at them. Keep it to positive thoughts. Positive thoughts are constructive. Don t worry if you start with natural thoughts. Often, you start in the natural and transition to hearing from God during the exercise. After one minute of talking, the partner in the listening line will share a few seconds of feedback with their partner who just talked to them. This is to help people recognize what they heard was possibly from God. You ll repeat this whole cycle a number of times, each time rotating one of the lines so that people wind up with new partners. I find that until the fourth or fifth time, many are still warming up. Eventually, you ll have the two lines switch roles (the talkers becomes listeners and vice versa) so that everyone practices both roles. 12

13 EYES CLOSED WORDS This activation is a great one for pushing people who are already moving in words of knowledge to another level. Essentially, we re going to practice sharing words of knowledge with each other, but with our eyes closed - so we don t even know who we re practicing with! While it seems like a higher risk activation than the previous one, we regularly find that people get more accurate words of knowledge with this activity because they don t have any natural cues to read off of. With their eyes closed, there are no distractions from hearing God, and the words tend to come out a little more purely. Once again, you ll take your group and split them into two lines that will play separate roles. One of the roles will be talking and the other listening. The talking group will line up and close their eyes. Then, the listening group will shuffle around so that each person partners up with a person in the talking group. Once everyone is partnered up, they will walk forwards and place their hand on the shoulder of the person they ve partnered with. Once the person from the talking group feels the hand on their shoulder, they are going to immediately share the first thought or impression they have. Have them keep their eyes closed! Once they are done sharing their impression, they open their eyes, and their partner in the listening group will give them some immediate feedback on the accuracy of what they shared. Once the whole group has shared some feedback, the talking group closes their eyes again. The listeners will shuffle, and the process repeats. When the whole process has looped a number of times, switch roles so that each person gets the opportunity to practice both sides. ASSIGNMENT Read Chapter Five: Help! How Do I Trust You in Tough Times, Holy Spirit? in Hello, Holy Spirit, God s Gift of Live-in Help. Journal your reflections and responses. 13

14 WEEK FIVE: HELP! HOW DO I TRUST YOU IN TOUGH TIMES, HOLY SPIRIT? The Holy Spirit works powerfully in our tough situations tragedies, temptations, and everyday troubles. He strengthens us, comforts us, and even prays for us and through us. He shows us God is very good, we are deeply loved, and we can fully trust Jesus. ICEBREAKER What is one of your favorite lines from a movie? INTRO FOR TESTIMONY Tonight, your heart will be moved again as we hear a testimony from a couple with a transformational story on how God met them in the middle of a very rough season of life. DISCUSSION Share something that really stood out to you from Jon s and Ashton s testimony. Discuss some of the differences you notice in how both Jon and Ashton initially handled their marriage situation. Read 1 Corinthians 2: What do you notice in these verses? What makes it possible to know the wonderful things that God has freely given us? It is not always easy to cooperate with the Spirit when in the middle of tough and hurtful situations, but it is usually quite simple. What are some things you could do to make it a little easier to recognize the Spirit s voice and cooperate with Him in the middle of tough times? Now read Ephesians 4:21-24, What catches your attention in these verses? How can these verses help you when dealing with difficult situations with others? What are some difficult areas that you are struggling with right now? 14

15 MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - RELEASING JESUS This is a great activation that connects believers with the reality that Jesus really does live within them. As we are leading our groups, we are really trying to connect our members with this reality, not just as a fact or a truth, but as a reality they can live in touch with. The activation looks like this: Take turns having your members pray for one person at a time. As they do, have them pray that the Jesus who lives within that person would be free to have full expression and not be hindered by the mindsets and unrenewed thinking that blocks them from living in connection with Jesus within them. After they are done receiving prayer, have each small group member share what they experienced and how Jesus living within them became more real to them as a result of this activation. We suggest having your small group members pray for each other in groups so that everyone can experience Jesus within them in this activation. (CONTINUED NEXT PAGE) 15

16 INTERCESSION FROM A PLACE OF IDENTITY This activation is meant to release people to intercede from the place of identity and of being seated in heavenly places. Sometimes, intercessory prayer can become begging prayer. This activation can help people pray from the place of authority we have in Christ. To lead your group members through the activation, follow these steps: Have everyone close their eyes. Walk your group members through a mental exercise of picturing the problem in front of them. Describe it physically and emotionally; make it real to them. Now, shift their perspective to where they are seated in heavenly places. Point out the angels lined up, waiting to invade the problem, and the Father and Jesus excited about seeing their will come to pass. Release them to pray by releasing the will of the Father into the situation they see. ASSIGNMENT Read Chapter Six: Help! How Do I Pray for Others, Holy Spirit? in Hello, Holy Spirit, God s Gift of Live-in Help. Journal your reflections and responses. 16

17 WEEK SIX: HELP! HOW DO I PRAY FOR OTHERS, HOLY SPIRIT? The Holy Spirit is eager for us to share God s love and power. This is such an amazing privilege we have right now: be Jesus s Body on Earth. We get to speak His words and do His works. The Holy Spirit wants to give gifts to each of us to do even greater works than Jesus, especially outside the church walls, in a very naturally supernatural way. ICEBREAKER What is something that really motivates you to accomplish a task or goal? INTRO FOR TESTIMONY It s our last week, and I can t think of a better way to close out our video testimonies than for us to hear from Burnsey. DISCUSSION What is one thing that encouraged you, and one thing that challenged you from Burnsey s testimony? What have been some of your thoughts about the gifts of the Spirit? Have you ever prayed for another person outside the church? If so, share some details about one of those times. If not, what has kept you from praying for someone outside the church? Read Acts 2: What are your thoughts about this passage? Who does it say God will pour out His Spirit on? What is the significance of this? Read John 14:12. Who does this verse say will do the same, and even greater works than Jesus? How do you think this is possible? Talk about all the different things we see Jesus doing in Matthew 9: There is a world in need out there, just waiting for the good news of Jesus to be shared and demonstrated. Are you willing to go and share with them? (Literally ask this question, and then be silent and see who answers. Maybe even ask it a second time after some silence.) 17

18 MINISTRY TIME ACTIVATION - IMPARTATION PRAYER Impartation prayer is releasing what God has put on your life onto another; it is stirring up and activating gifts in other people. There are many examples of how God uses this type of prayer to empower people for ministry. When we pray for activation, the Holy Spirit tends to manifest powerfully. You may want to have a few people trained to catch. That being said, always remember that we re not looking for powerful manifestations, we re looking for fruit. Many times, people who don t experience a powerful manifestation do receive a powerful impartation. Also, people who manifest in dramatic ways may or may not have received a powerful impartation. To pray for impartation, we like to take a minute or two with each person, take their hands, and pray what we feel God is saying over them. Sometimes, you see impartation happening quickly as people touch someone s forehead, but we prefer to take a little extra time with each person. In this activation, simply have each of the members wait and go around and pray for each of them personally. Activate and release whatever gifts you see God moving on, and release what God has deposited in you and what God does through you on each of them. ASSIGNMENT Reflect on this Hello, Holy Spirit series and how your thinking has evolved about Holy Spirit, our live-in help for everyday life. Journal your reflections and responses. 18

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