Begin Here Week 2 Discussion Guides

The following is a rough draft of a small group discussion guide I wrote for my local church for a series entitled "Recalculating." Original messages can be found at vineyardchristian.org/media/2015-messages

Begin Here
Seeing where it all began

There’s joke, credited to the writer Micheal Giordano, that goes like this.

A new ambassador for the country of Norway to the United States is appointed to

his position in the late fall. While he was a politician in his home country, he had

very little international experience and had never served as an ambassador before.

One day he received a call on his cell phone from a New York Times reporter who

asked what he wanted for Christmas. The ambassador politely explained that he

could not accept gifts in his position, in case it may seem like bribery. The reporter

ended the call with a confused tone. Two days later the reporter called back and

asked the same question, again, the ambassador declined the offer.  Finally, the

following day, the reporter called a final time, this time, the ambassador stated he

would take a fruit bowl. After all, who would be upset over a fruit bowl? Besides, he

felt rude turning the man down so many times. Again, the reporter sounded

confused, and asked the ambassador if he was sure that was what he wanted, and

the ambassador assured him it was. The following day, the New York Times ran the

following story:

What the foreign ambassadors here want for Christmas

During a few hectic days, I've been calling all the embassies here, and asking the ambassadors

what they want for Christmas. This is the result.

Great Britain. Good economic welfare.

Western Germany. Even better east-west relations

France. Free trade between Europe and USA.

Switzerland. Better European cooperation, and better US relations.

Sweden. End of the starvation in the third world.

Belgium. Better environmental care.

Norway. A fruit bowl.

Icebreaker discussion: If you were selected as the ambassador of the United 

States to a foreign country, what do you think would be the first thing you’d do 

to introduce yourself?  Think of a country you’ve always wanted to visit. If you 

met them ambassador for that country, what do you think they’d be like?

We’re going to be talking today about what it means to be God’s representative, his 

“image” or ambassador on Earth.  How does this affect the way we view ourselves? 


How should it affect the way we treat others? And how should it affect the way we

approach the world around us?

Let’s start with prayer:

Father God, you’ve given us the awesome responsibility of being your 

representation here on earth. As we meet together tonight, tear down any walls 

of understanding that might be in place to let us look at this in a fresh light. 

Take away our assumptions and our prejudices and replace them with your 

truth. Help us to see the truly glorified dignity that we have been given through 

you and how it’s rescued in your Son Jesus. Amen

The opening chapters of Genesis are incredibly interesting, but there are some

things about it that we may not see when we’re reading in the English translations

that most of us use today. When it’s read by someone in the original Hebrew, some

really interesting patterns begin to develop, namely that these chapters were

originally written in a poetic method. Hebrew as a language in poetry was less

concerned with rhyming words together so much as ideas. That’s why when we read

Psalms or Proverbs, we find things either repeated or contrary thoughts stated

together. For example Proverbs 19:5 says “A false witness will not go unpunished,

and whoever pours out lies will not go free.” This is interesting when we compare

Genesis 1 and 2, which list the order of creation. Some people reading in the English

might think there’s a contradiction here. In Genesis 1, it lists all of creation, with

human beings coming last, but then Genesis 2 lists Adam first, then all other animals

followed by Eve. A Hebrew reader, however, knows that this is actually due to the

construction of the poem of the verses. Don’t forget, the chapter breaks and

numbers that we use for reference were added much later on and were not an

original part of the verses, so while they are helpful, the text is often meant to be

read straight through rather than stopping at some of these artificial breaks. So

when you read these passages together in the Hebrew mindset, you see this as a

great epic poem that builds and then recedes like a mountain, with the creation of

human beings at the top. (remember, until Eve is separated from Adam, he is

actually a representation of all humans, both male and female)

So the story of Creation is a story about a special place in it for human beings that’s

been set aside by God. We are considered the rulers of this world, as His

representatives, but what kind of rulers are we? That’s ultimately the question we

have to answer, how are we taking care of the possession we’ve been given. There’s

a parable that Jesus tells in the Gospels that often gets used by teachers as an

illustration regarding talents or finances, but let’s read this together and consider

how God might see this regarding our place as his representatives as rulers of this

creation. [leaders, ask a volunteer to read the following verses or take turns if

more comfortable]

“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted 

his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to 

another one bag,[a] each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.  The 

man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and 

gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more.  But the 

man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s 

money.

“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with 

them. 20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ 

he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’

 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with 

a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s 

happiness!’

“The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with 

two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’

 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with 

a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s 

happiness!’

“Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that 

you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you 

have not scattered seed.  So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. 

See, here is what belongs to you.’

“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have 

not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?  Well then, you should have put 

my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received 

it back with interest.

“‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags.  For 

whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not 

have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant 

outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Discussion question: How do you think God will see the way we humans have 

used the Creation He gave us? How do you think He’ll respond to your 

individual actions?



How we treat the world around us is a crucial part of the Good News of the Kingdom

of God, in Romans 8:19-21, Paul writes recognizing that it’s not just individuals, but

all of Creation that will be remade by the work of Jesus.

“For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For

the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the

one who subjected it, in hope  that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage

to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.”

This is God’s Kingdom at work, and as His image, we have a great part in it!

Finally, the fact that we are created in God’s image and our relationship with

Creation has another consequence. It affects how we view ourselves each other.

Each of us is formed by God, made in His image. Consider the following verses:

Psalm 139:13 “For you created my inmost being;

    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

And

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

    before you were born I set you apart;

    I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

When we recognize that all of Creation is a gift from God, and that human beings are

set as the ruler of that Creation, we have to recognize that we, too, are a part of that

Creation! What’s more, as the image of God, we have a responsibility for how we

view ourselves and our fellow humans. Look around the room, imagine that god is

someone who is the ultimate original from which each of us is made. How does this

affect your view of God? Ultimately, how does this affect the way we see each other?

Discussion Question: When we consider that we are all created in the image of 

God, how does this affect, or should affect our marriages? Our dating life? How 

should the way you interact with your boss or co-workers be defined by this? 

Think about some of the news stories that Barry mentioned. When you consider the

way that the weak and helpless are often treated in our world, what is the place for

those of us who know that we are all created in the image of God when dealing with

these issues? It should be noted, Christians are not the only ones who try to serve

others. Right now in downtown Cincinnati, there is a group of anarchist activists

that are giving out donations of food and clothes to the homeless. While it’s certainly

true that there are Christians who are members of this group, it’s also true that a

large number of the group are not Christians. They aren’t caring for the homeless

because they know that they’re made in the image of God, but because they care

about their fellow human beings. These actions alone are not the Good News of the

Bible, but on the surface it might look like it.


Imagine you could travel anywhere in the world instantly. First you go to the shore

of one of the Great Lakes, maybe Lake Superior or Lake Erie. Everywhere you look,

you see water, stretching off to the horizon. When you look to either side of you, you

see the shore running off in the distance. You may see seagulls flying along, and

swimmers going out into the waves. Boats will almost certainly be in view, and they

may be of a variety of sizes. Now, imagine you could travel then to the shore of the

pacific ocean. Again, you see the water, stretching as far as you can see. The shore,

seagulls, and boats are there too. On the surface, the two places look very much the

same. If you did some digging, you’d certainly start to come across clues as to where

you are, but the initial impression is quite likely to be the same. But the ocean is

different. Hiding beneath its waves is the largest body of water on earth. There are

whales in there, and sharks, and microscopic creatures that are responsible for most

of the air we breathe. The ocean has depth. When you look on the surface, some

actions can look very much like the Kingdom of God. The sick are cared for, the

homeless are fed, but there is a heart that’s missing. It doesn’t have the same Why.

At the same time, there are vibrant churches you can go to. People show up every

Sunday to worship and pray. Some might wear crosses as jewelry, and say “God

bless you” in conversation. But they would be disgusted at the idea of caring for a

homeless person, or helping to feed someone diseased and dying. They may know

the Why, but they fail to Act.


This combination of the Why  and Action is shown throughout scriptures. Jesus said

to the Pharisees, Matthew 23:23  "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you 

hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. But you have 

neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You 

should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” The Pharisees were

highly religious people, they went to temple, they prayed, they tithed, but they’d

forgotten their place as God’s image. They’d failed to care for the Creation around

them that included their fellow human beings. Let’s consider the following verses

from James 2:14-19

 “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no 

deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and 

daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does 

nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if 

it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You 

believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”

Discussion Question: Knowing what we know about ourselves as the image of 

God and His ambassadors to Creation, how do we act on this in a way that 

shows the depth we have in our Why? What will set us apart from others who 

also want to take care of those in need?

Let’s close in prayer

God, we thank you for your gift of Creation. We pray for your strength as we look for

ways to serve our purpose. Help us to see others through your eyes. Help us to do

them same when looking at ourselves. Let us see your image. And let us treat it with

the dignity it deserves. Amen.


January 17th and 18th

Original Teaching by Barry Long

Facilitation Guide by James Scott

Begin Here part 1

The following is a rough draft of a small group discussion guide I wrote for my local church for a series entitled "Recalculating." Original messages can be found at vineyardchristian.org/media/2015-messages

We’re going to start by playing a quick game. I’m going to read a few famous names and I want you to try and name their places of birth.
Abraham Lincoln Answer: Hodgenville, Kentucky
Gene Simmons (musician) Answer: Haifa, Israel
J.R.R. Tolkein (writer) Answer: Bloemfontein, South Africa
Nicki Minaj (musician) Answer: Saint James, Trinidad and Tobego
Steve Jobs(Founder of Apple Computers) Answer: San Francisco, California
Thurgood Marshall (justice of the Supreme Court) Answer:  Baltimore, Maryland
Stefani Germanotta (musician known as Lady Gaga) Answer: New York, New York
George S Patton (US Army General) Answer: San Gabriel, California
Edger Allen Poe (poet and writer) Answer: Boston, Massachusetts
Superman (Superman) Answer: Krypton

Icebreaker discussionIf you were to describe where you came from(your hometown or your family) in one word, what would it be?
When we talk about who we are, we often have to start with where we came from. On a first date you talk about your family or your hometown, while in a job interview you talk about your work history. When we talk about God and the Universe, we talk about The Beginning. The Bible isn’t just a collection of random books and sayings, it’s a huge interconnected story about God and the world we live in, so when we talk about where to start, we start at Genesis

Let’s start with prayer:
Lord, you created the heavens and the earth, and you also made us. We thank you for the chance to get to know you better, to experience your wisdom and your power. We thank you for the opportunity to understand our beginnings and our place in the world. Open our hearts and eyes to the wonder you have in store, and help use realize the blessings you have in place in your creation. –Amen

A quote that Barry gave this week is a great place to start when we talk about why we read Genesis. "Genesis is not about how things were, but how things always are" –Leonardo Kass. There are a lot of things that we can say about the world we live in. It’s certainly far from a perfect place, and we’ll be learning more in the next few weeks about exactly how things got broken.

In the spring of 1876, the Saint Pancras Renaissance Hotel was opened in London. At 300 rooms, gold leaf on the walls, and the most cutting edge in late 1800’s technology, the hotel was a huge expense for the builders, but an amazing sight to behold. However, the hotel closed in 1935 as the expense of running the huge establishment, as well as the fact that it’s interior workings were no longer up to the current expectations of the public(personal restrooms were not in style when it was first built, but quickly became the norm in the following 50 years) The building fell into disuse and disrepair, developing a reputation to be haunted, largely inspired by the pitiful broken walls and shambling roof.  In the 1980’s, the building was shut down entirely  for failing fire and safety codes. If you were to look at the building from the outside, you would likely assume it was a worthless dump, and think that it could be moved away to make room for more parking, or a more efficient building.

However, in 2004, a group began to work to rebuild the hotel. They found the beauty of the original frame and vaulted ceilings. At huge expense, the building was revitalized and brought back to life. Now it stands as a premier 5 star hotel in London, and it’s interior is an example of some of the most gorgeous architecture in that major city.

When we look at the world around us, it’s easy to have our eyes drawn to the pain and brokenness that exists. It’s easy to think sometimes why does anyone bother with wanting to take care of the world around us when it is so broken and shambled. But we have to look at it’s core. What’s inside, what’s its foundation? When we know where the world comes from, that it originates as God’s creation, we can learn to look for the beauty He has placed inside. True, we can also see where things have gone wrong, but we can also see where it can be fixed.(And really, that’s what the Bible, Jesus, and Christianity is all about, God fixing what’s gone wrong in His creation, and how he’s inviting us to take part!)

Discussion question: When you consider that the world around us is God’s creation, what are the things that come to mind? How do you react to the idea of God as the source of existence? When you consider that God saw the trees , oceans, animals, and sky and said “It is good” what do you consider the natural reaction? Is this a struggle? Why?

Have you ever visited a building site? Maybe it was a house being built, or a new business. I get excited whenever I see a building site in my neighborhood. I always want to get nosey about what’s going to be going in there. Maybe it’s a new restaurant, or a new place to hangout. Maybe a store that will sell something I really like, or maybe it’s something boring but necessary like a bank or a post office. One way to tell what’s going to be built is to look at its foundation. You might be able to tell how big the building is, or if you know more about construction you can see how many rooms will be in the building. The foundation tells you a lot about what is to come. In Genesis chapter 1 we see God as the foundation of creation at every step. In Genesis 1:2, we have a phrase in the Hebrew  “Tohu wa bohu” (תֹ֙הוּ֙ וָבֹ֔הוּ) which gets translated in the NIV as “formless and empty,” while other translations use words like “the void” or “Chaos.” Think of this like a wild and huge ball of clay. The rest of the creation story is about God bringing order to that chaos, forming existence like an artist might form clay on a wheel. God has His very specific plan for creation, building to something that He considers to be great. (I promise, we’ll be getting into that more later) The fact that all of creation, including us, comes from God, tells us something fundamental about that creation. Again, we know that things are broken, we know that things in this world are not perfect, but we also know where we came from. Some of us may come from what might be referred to by some as “broken homes.” We may have grown up with serious disadvantages or painful relationships with our parents. There may be pain and injury in our past, but that’s not where we ultimately come from. Our true source, our “First Cause” is God. Just like the hotel that at one point looked broken and destroyed from the outside, we have a chance to get back to where we first came from, our first source, God. And that’s the story the Bible, and Jesus, and every day the Holy Spirit, is telling us.

Discussion Question: How does considering God as your creator change the way that you think about yourself? How should you change the way your see yourself knowing that God is your creator?

In the Hebrew tradition, this nature of the universe as a creation of God, has a deeply central point in the way they see the world. This has carried over for us as Christians, we’ll be learning more later about the nature of our mission as given by God as “image bearers” and stewards of creation, but for the moment, let’s consider this following passage from the Psalms

Psalm 19:1-6 “The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

Creation is a gift from God. Again, we recognize that there is brokenness in this world, and we’ll be talking later about how God’s Kingdom covers creation too. Creation is God’s expression of love. We saw during the weekend service the video showing the beauty of nature set to the lyrics of “Wonderful World,” and it truly is a wonderful world! Throughout history there are many stories of Christians who were brought to God, or found a deeper relationship with God, through the joys of the beauty of nature around them. One of the greatest poems of prayer in the Catholic church is the “Canticle of the Sun” by Saint Francis of Assisi, which among other expressions of the beauty of creation includes the lines:

“Be praised, my Lord, through all your creatures, especially through my lord Brother Sun, who brings the day; and you give light through him. And he is beautiful and radiant in all his splendor! Of you, Most High, he bears the likeness.
Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars; in the heavens you have made them, precious and beautiful.”

Creation is God’s gift, and we’ll be talking later about how it’s part of our job to care for it as stewards, but for now we’ll touch a little bit about how part of our place in relation to nature is to view it as the gift it is. If you give someone a gift, say a kitchen pan, or a nice living room chair, how do you feel if you go to visit them and you find out they’ve broken it? Or what if you give them something like a car and you find out they aren’t taking care of it? At the same time, imagine a parent buying a child a pet, but then the child spends so much time with the pet that they ignore their parents! All of these things can come close to how we might view our relationship with God’s gift of nature. Barry said this weekend that anything we worship that is not God is an idol. Many people over the years have taken portions of nature and made them into idols, but that also doesn’t mean we should cast nature away and treat it as something to be used and abused.

Discussion: How should our approach to creation be informed by the knowledge that it is a gift of God? How should we work to find the proper place for the care for this gift in our lives?


Finally, we see in all of this that creation is an expression of God’s love. English author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the writer of Sherlock Holmes stories, said in his short story, as spoken by the famous detective character, “’There is nothing in which deduction is so necessary as religion,’ said he, leaning with his back against the shutters. ‘It can be built up as an exact science by the reasoner. Our highest assurance of the g

Recalculating...

The following is a rough draft of a small group discussion guide I wrote for my local church for a series entitled "Recalculating." Original messages can be found at vineyardchristian.org/media/2015-messages

The 1997 comedy film, Waiting for Guffman, tells the story of a fictional town called Blaine, Missouri, preparing for its 150^th anniversary celebration. At one point, they tell the story of how the town is founded, and mention that the early settlers had hired a guide to lead them to California. Late one night, while sitting around the campfire, their guide announces to them, “Smell that air. Smell the salt in the air? That’s the ocean. We’ve made it. I’ve brought you to California.” It’s only later that the settlers realize they’re actually in Missouri, and decide that’s still good enough for them. (they later name the town after the guide, so obviously there’s no hard feelings.)
Icebreaker discussion: When was a time when you got really lost? What happened? Where were you going? How did you get back on course?(or did you?)
Sometimes, we can feel a little lost in life like that. And it can be very easy to settle down where we’re at, far away from our true goal, tired of the barriers we’ve faced, and say “well, this is good enough.” But God doesn’t want us to settle for what’s “good enough,” He has a much more powerful, and sometimes much more difficult, but always worthwhile, road ahead for us. This is a great time of year for us to refocus, find our “inner GPS” and “recalculate” our possibly off route course!
Let’s start with prayer:

God, we thank you for the chance to get together and learn from you. We ask that you open our minds and hearts to what plans you may have for us, help us to find the route you have laid out, and to conquer the barriers that will get in the way. Let us listen to what you may be saying to us tonight, and leave us open to your Word. –Amen

For the last two weeks, Scott and Barry have talked about the story of Joshua taking over from Moses. Imagine what that experience was like! Moses is still one of the most famous people in history, so how must it have felt like to be his successor as the leader of the Israelites? Joshua doesn’t seem to have shrunk away from the responsibility though. We have the story of how Moses resisted being made the leader of the Israelites, but no such story with Joshua. Instead, we seem to see he was a gung ho warrior leader who was ready to run forward and trust God at any point, even when the odds seemed stacked against him. A great illustration of this is another story from actually much later in Joshua’s life.

Let’s set the scene. This is after the invasion of the Promised Land by the Israelites, capping off 30 years of warfare. The Israelite army has defeated almost all of the armies they’ve faced off against, and they’ve cleared most of the land for them to settle in. However, there are still some enemies left, and they’re separating out into their individual clans to settle down and finish the job. Joshua stands before the people and offers them a choice. After decades of following God in the wilderness, followed by long years of war, the Israelites are being given the option to choose whether or not they will continue to follow God. Joshua starts by giving the whole history of everything God has done for them, and then he puts the decision to them in Joshua 24:14-15a

“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. “

This is a big moment. Joshua is standing in front of all of the people of Israel. He’s standing in front of the nation he’s lead through war. Almost all of them were children or grandchildren of the people he’d grown up with. Of all the people who originally left Egypt, only Joshua and his friend Caleb were left, everyone else had died off before entering the Promised Land. Joshua looks at them. I like to imagine at this point, he looks something like Clint Eastwood in an old western, facing off against some bad guy gunman, his eyes are squinting, he mouth is barely smirking, and then he says this (Joshua 15b)

“But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Boom.

Joshua is basically saying, “look, after all of this stuff that God has done for you, if you want, you can leave. You can go back to being comfortable worshipping the pagan gods of your neighbors, or worshipping the gods of Egypt. But even if you all choose to leave, my family and I are going to stick this out, because God’s all I need.

Pretty awesome, huh?

But what does it mean to choose to serve the Lord? How does our life change, how is our course recalculated because we are serving God?

Discussion Question: What is one thing in your past life that you’ve had to change to more closely match what you felt God wanted for you? What was it like to “recalculate?” What were the struggles you had? Did you succeed right away, or did it take a few tries? What was something you did that made it easier?(or even possible at all?)

So we’ve all had some opportunities to recalculate with God, and it’s usually because of something or someone (the “someone” so often being ourselves) that gets in the way. These barriers that come up may be the result of our own poor decisions, the actions of others in our lives – sometimes well meaning, or due to a spiritual attack, either directly against us or as a consequence of living in a broken world.

Think through some of the barriers we’ve just shared with each other. Do these kinds of barriers seem to go away at any point? Is there a place in life where the challenges we face suddenly fall away and everything becomes easy? Definitely not! But after we face a challenge, does that sometimes help prepare you for the next one? Think about the first challenge you ever faced in life that you can remember. Now compare it to the most recent challenge. Chances are, your more recent challenge was more difficult than your first, but if you hadn’t faced that first challenge, and all the other ones between, you probably wouldn’t have been as prepared for the most difficult ones.

There’s a great verse for this in the book of Jeremiah in the Old Testament . In Jeremiah 12:5 it says.

“If you have raced with men on foot

and they have worn you out,

how can you compete with horses?

If you stumble in safe country,

how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?”

Now, there’s a lot going on in the original context of this verse that’s definitely worth studying when you have time, but we’re going to look at the verse by itself for a second.

[Leaders, the following story is meant as an example, please feel free to replace it with a personal example from your own life] Personal story, when I was in junior high, I decided to try out for the track and field team. This was odd to my family and what friends I had at school because I was by no means an athletic person. I was, to put it lightly, a heavy set nerd who was reading on average 2 or 3 Star Trek novels a week, and was in the process of trying to teach myself Klingon. I was NOT your stereotypical jock! As might have been expected, I didn’t do terribly well, but I showed up for every practice and tried hard. I had the absolute lowest time for running a 100 yards for anyone on the team, and when I threw a shotput it was a major accomplishment to even get it into the pit, let alone throwing it far enough to be even close to the rest of the team.

Now imagine if after a few weeks, I trotted over to the high school field, walked up to a member of the varsity team, and challenged them to a race? Imagine I’d danced around and sang a tune trying to rhyme their name with some embarrassing word, like banana. What would have happened? If the varsity runner had even deigned to race me instead of beating me and shoving me into a locker, I certainly wouldn’t have faired well in the race, and chances were I’d have been thoroughly embarrassed. However, if I’d stuck with running in track and field all through high school, I might have one day become pretty good at it, certainly better than I was in the seventh grade.(I quit in high school to join the public speaking team instead)

Moving “straight ahead” through earlier barriers in life helps us deal with barriers later on. We learn techniques for striving through, and we learn the importance of leaning on God for our strength. That’s why in James 1:2-4 the author says

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

Discussion question: What are some barriers that you’ve faced in your life that you think help prepared you for later on? What are the main lessons you’ve learned from past barriers that you have remembered for facing future ones?

One way to recalculate and learn lessons to move through barriers is to spend time in God’s word. New Year’s is a GREAT time to start this habit if you haven’t already.

Discussion Question: What are some ways that you’ve studied the Bible in the past? How has Bible reading helped you with some “barriers” you’ve faced in life? What are some struggles you’ve had with getting in regular Bible reading? How can we help each other in this goal?

There’s a lot of great reading plans out there, most of them available for free. One great resource is www.youversion.com They have plans designed for reading the entire Bible in a year, or just taking a week or two to dig into a particular book of the Bible. The reading plans can be shared with friends or small group members for accountability, and are completely available for free! Don’t feel like you have to jump into a full year long study, if you haven’t read the Bible consistently in a while, feel free to start by just reading the Psalms, Proverbs, or the Gospels! Any time with God is great, just make sure you’re setting aside time to pray, both before and after reading if possible. Remember, quality over quantity, it doesn’t have to be an hour, even fifteen minutes with God everyday can have a HUGE impact on your life!

For closing prayer, let’s take some time and break into smaller groups and pray together about the areas Scott highlighted in last week’s message. Pray for each other on each area, and feel free to share with each other what you might be hearing from God about how you might need to “recalculate” for each area as well as what barriers you might be facing.  How will you go “straight ahead”?

·        Spirituality

·        Emotionally

·        Physically

·        Family and Friends

·        Job

Feel free to close with the same prayer Barry used, a rewording of 2 Chronicles 32: 7,8

"May I be strong and courageous; may I not be afraid or discouraged because of my adversaries; there is a greater power with me than with them, for you, the Lord my God are with me to help"