LESSON 4 staying connected with jesus Communicate that spiritual leaders must prioritize personal soul care in order to have clarity of calling and power to accomplish that calling. Spiritual leaders prioritize soul care through prayer and other spiritual practices for strength to accomplish their leadership responsibilities. To prioritize nurturing our relationship with Christ and support our church leaders as they prioritize their personal soul care. Background Passage: scripture Passage: Memory Verse: M AR K 1 M ARK 1 : 3 5-3 9 J OHN 1 5: 5 In the midst of ministry, Jesus made it a priority to get away and pray (v. 35). Jesus was willing to disappoint people and not meet their expectations because He knew His priorities and goals (vv. 35-39). The clarity of Jesus calling and goals allowed Him to say no to some opportunities in order to accomplish what the Father called Him to do (vv. 35-39). I am the vine, you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me. 34
PREPARING TO TEACH These lessons on spiritual leadership have a dual focus. On a personal level they challenge followers of Christ to consider their own roles and responsibilities as spiritual leaders. On a corporate level these lessons challenge adults to consider their responsibilities toward the leaders God has gifted to the local church. Emphasize that dual focus in your examination and application of these scriptural truths. On a personal level, this lesson builds on Lesson 3 s focus on finding our ministry roles. We must find our yes so we know when to say no. On a corporate level, adults must understand spiritual leaders need to prioritize personal soul care as the only way they can care for the souls of others. Church members build the church and promote unity when they don t expect their leaders to meet all their needs. Instead respect and protect the priorities leaders give to personal spiritual practices so they can know Christ and be transformed into His image. Read Mark 1:21-39, comparing Jesus priorities to your own. Carefully study Lesson 4 in your Venture In: Spiritual Leadership Travelogue (pp. 39-48), prayerfully responding to the bolded questions. Write on a tear-sheet and display: What would you do if you just had more time? Provide index cards for each adult. Pray this lesson will motivate adults to give priority to nurturing their relationship with Christ. TEACHING SUGGESTIONS THE PRIORITY OF PRAYER As adults arrive, draw attention to the question on the tear-sheet. Encourage them to talk with others or list in the margin of their Travelogue (p. 39) their responses. Invite volunteers to share their responses. Ask: Do you think we really need more time to do these things, or do we just need to rearrange some priorities? Explain your reasoning. Read the opening statement in the Travelogue (p. 39): I m so busy I just don t have time to pray. Explore whether group 3 5
members would be surprised to hear their leaders make that statement. Evaluate what being too busy to pray reveals about all believers, including church leaders. Ask a volunteer to read the first paragraph (Travelogue, p. 39). Inquire: When it comes to prayer, do most believers need more time or different priorities? Explain. Remind adults all believers are spiritual leaders who have been gifted and called. All spiritual leaders must prioritize soul care through prayer and other spiritual practices in order to experience the Spirit s strength and wisdom to accomplish leadership responsibilities. Point out Jesus is our role model for keeping proper priorities in the midst of busy ministry. Request adults follow along in their Bibles as you read Mark 1:21-34 and highlight every phrase that indicates urgency ( right away, just then, as soon as ). Call for responses. Note this full day reflects the daily pattern of Jesus earthly ministry. Consider why Jesus could have said, I m so busy I just don t have time to pray. Request a volunteer read Mark 1:35-36. Ask: What would you be doing before dawn after the kind of day described in verses 21-34? Why would Jesus sacrifice necessary sleep; why not wait until later to pray? Do you think all believers should get up early in the morning to pray? Explain. Do you think it s beneficial for believers to spend even a short time in prayer in the morning, even if the evening is when they have a quiet time with the Lord? Explain your reasoning. Guide the class to explore what they think Jesus prayed about that morning. (Strength, wisdom, authority, and power from God. Focus and direction to stay the course of His mission rather than be sidetracked by overwhelming needs. Refreshment and replenishment after battling Satan and the effects of evil.) Ask: Why might we need to pray after a time of ministry as much as we do before we serve? TEACHING OPTION Organize the group into teams. Assign one or more of the following Scriptures to each team. Request they read the passage and identify 3 6
times and possible reasons Jesus prayed in each instance: Mark 6:39-46; Luke 5:15-16; Luke 6:12-13; Luke 9:18-22; Luke 22:39-46. Examine what kind of changes adults might need to make so they can establish a definitive, habitual pattern of prayer (Travelogue, p. 41). Again, point out the necessity of getting alone in a place without interruptions. Acknowledge not every adult can go to a deserted place, but we can at least put away our cell phones for a while. Invite volunteers to share specific times, places, and methods of prayer that have helped them make connecting with Jesus a priority. Emphasize a Christlike prayer life is part of the transformational process. We will not make prayer a priority if we approach it with guilt as something we have to do; instead we can grow in this process joyfully, understanding praying is something we get to do because God Himself wants to connect with us. State no matter how hard we try to make time for prayer, we should expect interruptions. Even Jesus couldn t avoid intrusions on His prayer time. Ask: Why do you think Simon and his companions were searching for Jesus? TEACHER HELPS Simon s companions were most likely his brother Andrew, and the brothers James and John whom Jesus called along with Simon (Peter) to follow Him (Mark 1:16-20). Explain the phrase were searching for translates a Greek verb that usually means pursue with hostile intent. 1 Discuss: Why might Mark have described the disciples search for Jesus as hostile? How might church leaders occasionally feel they are pursued with hostile intent? Ask a volunteer to read Mark 1:37-39. Discuss: What do you think was the disciples attitude when they found Jesus? If someone tracked you down and chided you this way, how might you have responded? What did Jesus reveal about His 3 7
character in His response? What did He reveal about His priorities? Does it surprise you that Jesus left many needs unmet in Capernaum? How does that realization free you as a spiritual leader? How should it compel us to give a break to our church leaders? Remind adults Lesson 2 emphasized clarifying our identity and calling. Because Jesus had a clear sense of identity and calling, He had a clear sense of His goals and priorities. Declare: We need to know God s purpose for our lives so we can say No to good ministries in order to say Yes to what God has willed for us to do. What can we learn from Jesus example about how we can find our Yes so we know when to say No? Encourage adults to underline in their Travelogue (p. 41): Prayer first, leading ministry to others second. Invite volunteers to read the five bulleted reasons leaders must take time for spiritual calibration (Travelogue, p. 41). Invite responses to: Which of the five reasons for private prayer for leaders (listed above) is most significant for you right now? Why? (Travelogue, p. 42). Analyze why a lack of prayer reflects arrogance. Ask rhetorically: If Jesus had to set aside time to pray for wisdom and strength to fulfill His mission, why would we think we can do the work of ministry under our own strength? THE KEY TO FRUITFUL LEADERSHIP Explain John 15:1-8 is Jesus masterful illustration of the necessity of staying connected to Him. Invite someone to read John 15:5. Ask: If Jesus were literally sitting in front of you, how do you think He d respond if you said, I don t have time to pray? Point out John 15:5 is this lesson s memory verse. Explore why this verse is an absolute must for every spiritual leader to memorize. Request a volunteer read John 15:7. Ask what else besides prayer maintains our connection to Jesus. Read the Travelogue paragraph (p. 43) beginning: These two practices. Invite volunteers who participated in the JourneyOn study of Spiritual Practices to share how God has been transforming them as a result of their intentional 3 8
priority on the spiritual practices of prayer and Bible reading. Ask: What strategies or plans have you used to remain faithful to these two vital spiritual practices? Point out the value of praying Scripture. Invite volunteers to share verses they claim over their loved ones. Discuss from the Travelogue (p. 44): other ways you can use the Bible as a guide to praying for others. Ask: Is John 15:7 a blank check to get whatever we want? Explain. Emphasize we must never take one verse out of context and claim it to say what we want. Explore what this promise means in the context of the vine and branches. Discuss from the Travelogue (p. 45): Why is Christian leadership essentially a spiritual function? How can learning secular leadership techniques be counterproductive to Christian leadership? LEADERSHIP FORMS CHARACTER Ask a volunteer to read Romans 8:28-30. Ask: When do we often quote or claim these verses and why? How do these promises apply to leadership roles as well? Consider why it s difficult for many spiritual leaders to accept the truth that God is far more interested in making us more like Jesus than He is in what we accomplish in ministry. Determine priorities of leaders who believe the key issue is Christlike character development. Either in smaller teams or as one large group, request adults think of their own spiritual leadership roles (remind them they lead anywhere they have influence) and discuss the evaluation questions on Travelogue 47: How does your perspective on problems change when you understand your setting is God s leadership lab for you? How is God using your current leadership role to shape each of the following? Your character. Your leadership skills. Your leadership practices. Your leadership convictions. 3 9
PURSUING JESUS Invite adults to recall from Lesson 3, a church leader s primary job (training/equipping the saints) and overarching goal (build up the church). Encourage adults to listen for what should be every church leader s consuming passion as you read Philippians 3:12-14. Call for responses. Discuss: Why is it often easier to pursue doing ministry rather than being with Jesus? (Travelogue, p. 48). How can we make pursuing Jesus a priority over doing ministry for Jesus? Why should we? CONCLUSION Discuss: How does this lesson challenge us in our expectations of and prayers for our church leaders? How can we demonstrate respect for our leaders accountability to God rather than us? How can we help our leaders give priority to personal soul care? How does this lesson challenge you as a spiritual leader? Give each adult an index card. Request they write on the card: Prayer first. Ministry second. Encourage them to use that card as a reminder to prioritize prayer and Bible study and to pray for church leaders to prioritize personal soul care. Close in prayer. FOLLOW THROUGH Text or email John 15:5 to adults. Urge them to memorize and live by these words. Encourage adults to let church leaders know they are praying for their own time and space for personal soul care. 1. James A. Brooks, The New American Commentary, Mark: Vol. 23 (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991), 53. 4 0