WEEK TWO GROW WITH GOD & GOD S FAMILY [TOTAL SESSION: 61 MIN]

SLIDE 1: JOURNEY TITLE 02 WEEK TWO GROW WITH GOD & GOD S FAMILY [TOTAL SESSION: 61 MIN] SLIDE 2: PRE-ROLL VIDEO SLIDE 3: WEEK 2 SESSION PLACEHOLDER PLAY VIDEO: Journey Pre-Roll Video [1:20 MIN] INTRODUCTION [12:26 MIN] INTRODUCTION [3 MIN] SAY: Welcome back to Week 2 of the Journey! We hope you were able to take some time to watch the Four Pictures of God and the Baptism videos. SAY: We are so glad you made it back to week 2 of the Journey! This week we will focus on GROWING in your relationship with God and His family. One of our Core Values at Christ Fellowship is Grow to Go. For the next two weeks we want to talk about how you can grow spiritually here at Christ Fellowship. Each of us need to be growing if we are going to impact our world with the love and message of Jesus Christ! As we open in prayer I want to remind you of this Scripture. SLIDE 4: OUR PRAYER FOR YOU SLIDE 5: TABLE TIME SAY: Our prayer for you DO: PRAY SAY: I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may KNOW HIM better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people. Ephesians 1:18 TABLE TIME [4 MIN] DO: (Table Leader): Spend a few minutes at your table discussing the following: SAY: (Table Leader): 1. What is your favorite hobby or activity & why? 2. Have you ever trained for a sport or a hobby? 3. What did you learn from your training? DO: (Facilitator): Transition from Table Time back to Facilitator. SAY: (Facilitator): Were there any surprises or unique examples at your table? DO: Give away the Everyday Journal to the most unique example. SAY: Let s take notes in our journals as Pastors Todd and Julie teach us how to have an abundant life through Jesus Christ. FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 1

SLIDE 6: TEACHING VIDEO PLAY VIDEO: Pastors Todd and Julie Teaching [5:26 MIN] SLIDE 7: SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES [22:33 MIN] INTRODUCTION [2 MIN] SAY: Spiritual Disciplines are practices that help us gain the power to live the life that Jesus taught and modeled. SAY: Training is crucial to growing. Just like the examples we shared with each other during our table time, we need to commit ourselves to train or practice every day if we want to grow in our relationship with God. SAY: One commitment we need to make if we are going to GROW, is spending time with God. Jesus modeled this by spending time with the Father every single day. He knew that God was the source of strength, peace, joy and victory. He even woke up early to do it! If Jesus needed this time how much more do we need this time with God? SAY: Mark 1:35-37 states that Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray. We want to unpack a few of these practices today. Keep in mind, these are not religious rituals, but activities that will help us grow in our relationship with Him. This is not about what God wants from you, it s all about the abundant life He has for you. SLIDE 8: READING READING [4 MIN] SAY: The first discipline we want to talk about is reading God s Word. Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105 Scripture enables us to see what s important to God and why. God designed Scripture to play an active role in our lives as we change the way we think. 2 Timothy 3:16 writes about this: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. The writer of Hebrews in Chapter 4, verse 12 illustrates this further: For the Word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. God speaks to the core issues of our lives through the Scriptures. Scripture is where we find out how deeply we are loved. It has the power to root out any anger, depression or insecurity in our lives. It is where we can be overwhelmed with the price God paid to know us and to be known by us. Scripture is also where we learn how to see the things in our life the way that God sees them. The Bible speaks to all of the most important issues in our lives including our calling/purpose, singleness, sex, marriage, parenting, career and finances. FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 2

SLIDE 9: S.O.A.P SLIDE 10: PERSONAL EXAMPLE-JOURNAL PHOTO SLIDE 11: PRAYER VIDEO SLIDE 12: PRAYER SOAP [2 MIN] SAY: Spending time in Scripture every single day helps us become the people God created and called us to be. One easy place to start is the S.O.A.P. method. S Scripture: Read the Scripture. O Observation: What do I observe about it? A Application: How can I apply it to my life? P Prayer: How should I pray as a result? DO: Share a personal example S.O.A.P PRACTICE IN JOURNAL [2 MIN] SAY: In your journal this week, take some time to practices S.O.A.P. with one of these Bible verses: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Psalm 92:13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord will flourish in the courts of our God. PRAYER [6 MIN] SAY: PRAYER IS A CONVERSATION WITH GOD SAY: Sometimes people have a distorted perception of prayer. Check out this video. PLAY VIDEO: Prayer Video [1:33 MIN] SAY: Prayer is what connects you to God. It s a conversation. Jesus always prayed when He spent time with the Father. Prayer involves both listening and speaking to God. So what do you say when you re speaking with God? When Jesus was asked how to pray by His Disciples He gave them the example of the Lord s Prayer. This is a great model for you to use as well. Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your Name be kept holy. May Your Kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. Matthew 6:9-13 Jesus example in the Lord s Prayer shows us that we pray to: Focus our attention on God { Our Father in heaven } Align our lives with His purpose { On earth as it is in heaven } Acknowledge our dependence on Him { Give us today the food we need } Clear our hearts { Forgive us our sins } Ask for help { Rescue us } FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 3

SLIDE 12: PRAYER Prayer isn t about saying the right words or following some magic formula; it s simply a conversation with God. Just talk to God about the things that are on your mind. JOURNALING [2 MIN] SLIDE 13: JOURNALING SAY: Journaling helps to mark your spiritual journey. A journal is simply a written record of what God is teaching you and what He is doing in your life. Record your prayers and write your thoughts in your journal like how you re feeling at the moment that you would normally not express anywhere else or in any other way. Looking back at your journal is a great way to see how far you ve come. Whenever you get discouraged you can do a quick review of your journal and it will remind you that God is faithful and active in your life. We ve given each of you a journal to get you started in this discipline by taking notes in class each week. Be sure to bring it with you every week so you can use these notes to reflect on your journey. MEMORIZING SCRIPTURE [3 MIN] SAY: Memorizing Scripture strengthens your faith & transforms your thinking. Why is Scripture memorization so important? Because the goal is to change the way you think. The way we think has been polluted with sin and lies from our culture. Scripture memorization is critical if we are going to replace the negative thinking from our culture with the truth of God s Word. SLIDE 14: MEMORIZING SCRIPTURE How do we identify negative thinking and lies? The lies tend to be things that regularly and repeatedly cause us to feel fear, anxiety or stress. The way to combat these lies is to choose truth from God s Word that contradict them and commit them to memory. Write the verse on a note card and put it in a place that is visible. When you feel fear, anxiety or stress, think about the verse. SAY: The best illustration that I could think of for this is a bar of soap. DO: Hold up the bar of soap for everyone to see. SAY: If your mom was anything like mine, you may have the distinct memory of having your mouth washed with soap. I can still remember the first time my mom heard me use a cuss word when I was a child. I m not sure what the theory is behind washing a child s mouth out with soap. But in my case, it was effective. I stopped using that word right away! Memorizing Scripture is the practice of consistently and purposely washing our minds with the truth of God s Word. The difference? The Bible has no bad aftertaste! FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 4

WHO I AM IN CHRIST [12 MIN] INTRODUCTION [2 MIN] SLIDE 15: WHO I AM IN CHRIST Jackie is one of our amazing college students who grew up at Christ Fellowship. She has experienced the power of Scripture memorization firsthand. She was regularly and repeatedly being bombarded by lies from our culture that told her that she wasn t good enough or smart enough or beautiful enough and that she didn t fit in. She felt herself getting discouraged by these lies until she came to CF Students and heard a message on the importance of Scripture memorization. She wrote several passages on her bedroom mirror to combat these lies and began to memorize them. Every morning and night when she looked in her bedroom mirror she was encouraged as God s Word reminded her of what God said about her. As Pastor Todd says, The truest thing about us is what God says about us! TABLE TIME [5 MIN] DO: (Table Leader): Share a personal example of any lie from our culture that you have believed and replace it with the truth from God s Word. REPLACING LIES WITH TRUTH [3 MIN] SAY: (Facilitator): Some other common lies many of us might struggle with are - I will never break this addiction. I am not good enough. I am not strong enough. I am not smart enough. I don t fit in. Here are some great passages from Scripture you can start with to counter these thoughts: SLIDE 16: REPLACING LIES WITH TRUTH I am a new creation; Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 I am accepted ; Accept each other just as Christ has accepted you. Romans 15:7 I am chosen ; Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us. Ephesians 1:4 I am forgiven; There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1 I am loved; Nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God. Romans 8:39 I am known by God ; The Lord knows those who are His. 2 Timothy 2:19 I am Jesus friend ; Now you are My friends. John 15:15 I am family ; You are members of God s family. Ephesians 2:19 At the end of your handout is a list of Scriptures that you can begin to memorize. We also have provided a practical tool to help you personalize the passages. FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 5

SLIDE 17: FIRST 15 SLIDE 19: LIFE GROUPS TWO PEOPLE SLIDE 18: LIFEGROUPS...CHRIST FELLOWSHIP FIRST 15 [2 MIN] SAY: Relationships take time! We can all start somewhere. Starting the first fifteen minutes of your day will make a huge difference. 5 minutes in God s Word, 5 minutes in Worship and 5 minutes in Prayer is a great way to start! LIFEGROUPS [10 MIN] FACILITATOR [5 MIN] SAY: So far we have talked about the value of Spiritual Disciplines. Now we want to spend some time on the importance of connecting in community with others so you can be encouraged in your faith and accountable to others. At Christ Fellowship we believe that as we grow larger, we need to grow smaller at the same time. We love weekends we are encouraged, inspired, and equipped to live out our faith. We know that our greatest growth will come in smaller community when we are in close relationship with people who know us and hold us accountable to the commitments we have made. We know that circles are better than rows and the best way to get into a circle is through a LifeGroup. At Christ Fellowship, LifeGroups are typically made up of 5-10 people who meet together regularly in homes, coffee shops, or businesses in the community to grow in our relationship with God and each other; to better impact our world with the love and message of Jesus Christ. DO: Share a personal story here bring out points of encouragement, care and spiritual growth. SAY: There are times that we have had people who attended Christ Fellowship for years. They hit a crisis and call the church. We did our best for them, but how much better it would have been if they had already been in a LifeGroup that could have cared for them. We want to help you be connected! DO: Introduce the person who looks after LifeGroups at your campus. LIFEGROUP LEADER [5 MIN] SAY: Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. Ecclesiastes 4:9 DO: Share the value of LifeGroups and how they can join a LifeGroup. CLOSE [3 MIN] SAY: Baptism is an important next step for every person who has accepted Christ as his or her Savior. If you have not yet been baptized, please talk to your Table Leader or use the link we emailed you last week to watch Pastor Todd s teaching on baptism and to sign up for baptism. FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 6

SLIDE 20: NEXT STEPS SAY: Your Next Steps are: Download the free YouVersion app to read the Bible on your phone Use S.O.A.P. & begin the First 15 to spend time with God every day. Sign up for a LifeGroup at Christ Fellowship. Watch Pastor Todd s teaching on Baptism. Take your Spiritual Gifts Assessment. Your Table Leader will give you the Spiritual Gifts Assessment. Please fill it out and bring it back next week. Remember to bring your journal and folder next week. Each Table Leader will close out with prayer at your table. See you next week! TABLE TIME DO: (Table Leader): Hand out the Spiritual Gifts Assessment and encourage participants to complete them at home and bring them back as we will be spending time on these next week. DO: (Table Leader): Ask if anyone needs help with Next Steps. Make sure each participant checks off their name on the participant sheet. Answer any questions. Close in prayer. FACILITATOR GUIDE: WEEK TWO 7