#STFLOVES Leader’s Community Group Study Guide May 9, 2021 PDF Version
LEADER’S Community Group STUDY Guide
#STFLOVES
For the week of May 9, 2021
This guide is designed to give helpful hints in preparing & leading your group in discussion.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
|
TALK FOR LIFE On Tuesday, May 11, instead of our annual Walk for Life, STF Missions and New Life Solutions will host a sanctity of life discussion panel called “Talk for Life.” You will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn how to get involved in the fight for the lives of the unborn. Leading the discussion will be individuals who work to protect and preserve the unborn and minister to families impacted and transformed by the message of life. Live, in-person event: Tuesday, May 11, 6 p.m., Ballast Point Campus Online event release: Wednesday, May 12, 6 p.m., STF Facebook page |
|
DATE NIGHT! |
|
This month the Married Life Ministry Date Night is on Saturday, May 15, from 6-9 p.m. at Cinebistro Hyde Park. We will be watching “Extraordinary,” the story of a couple who works to run their marriage race to the end. The $20 cost to attend will go toward your food purchase at the event. Register! |
SUMMER 2021 VBS
We will be collecting supplies for VBS. Collection boxes will be located in the STFKids area. See the list below:
- Empty toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls
- Empty laundry detergent bottles/jugs
- Pringles cans
- Empty dishwashing detergent bottles
- Empty/washed Cool Whip containers
- AMAZON GIFT CARDS
QUICK REVIEW
Looking back at your notes from this week’s teaching, was there anything you heard for the first time or something that caught your attention, challenged or confused you?
MY STORY
1. In life everybody is either a skunk or a turtle. Skunks, when they get upset, they let everybody know it. They stink up the place. When turtles get angry, they retreat into their shell. Which one are you?
2. Forgiveness tends to be more of a journey than an event. Sometimes we don’t want to be on that journey. What are some reasons people have for holding onto grudges and not forgiving?
Can you think of any signs that a person may not have forgiven someone?
DIGGING DEEPER
1. Everyone walks into marriage and other relationships with a number of expectations. Identifying these expectations is a good exercise for all of us. Pick 3 or 4 categories below and write down one or two expectations you have for it in your relationship. Now take a moment and write down what you think your spouse or friend would write as their expectations in the same categories. If you can find the time, share and compare your responses with your spouse or friend before your group meets.
Communication Time Together Social Life Work
Other Friends Spiritual Growth Money Health
Household ChoresConflictParentingFamily
2. The tricky part about sharing these expectations is not what we are sharing, but how we are sharing it. How can 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 and Philippians 2:1-5 help guide your conversation so it works out the best for both of you?
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (New International Version)
(4)Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. (5) It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. (6) Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (7) It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Philippians 2:1-5 (New International Version)
(1) Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, (2) then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. (3) Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, (4) not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
(5) In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Additional Questions:
- Why doesn’t loving others come naturally to us sometimes?
- 1 Corinthians 13 starts with the idea that without love, we have nothing and gain nothing. Looking at the passage, what are some ways we can do what is described in verses 1-3 without love?
- f you were to read verses 4-7 but replace “love” with your name (Bill is kind, Bill is patient, Bill does not envy…), how accurate are these statements?
- Looking at the list of attributes Paul gives about love, would you describe them as actions, heart conditions or both? Explain.
Note: Everyone may not have an answer. This is an opportunity to reflect on how and where you’ve grown and to emphasize and celebrate the positives, not just talk about what’s challenging. (Am I more patient than I used to be? Do I trust more than I used to?)
Creative Idea: Have everyone pick an analogy or metaphor and rewrite 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 through that lens. For example, if the analogy were…
Music: Love does not rush the tempo (patient); love tunes itself to others (kind)
Baseball: Love cares less about being a home run hero and more about just getting on base so the team can win (does not envy, does not boast, is not self-seeking)
Teaching: Love does not raise its voice when students are distracted; love takes time to explain when they don’t understand (is not easily angered, keeps no record of wrongs)
Give everyone some time to think and write their answers, then have them share with the group if they’d like. Just know that some people may enjoy thinking creatively like this, and for others, it may not be their thing.
TAKING IT HOME
1. As you think about your relationships with your extended family, are there any family members you sense you need to initiate with as a result of this sermon or Community Group study?
Note: There is nothing wrong with a simple act of love or kindness—often times things that are so easy for us to do can bless someone else more than we know. This question is an opportunity to think of something that might just be one step harder for you to do but would take the challenge to the next level. (For example, calling up a difficult family member to ask how they’re doing might be more challenging for you than surprising your coworker with coffee. Would you be willing to try both this week?)
2. This past week we heard the do’s and don’ts in our family dynamics. There are many aspects to relationships, conflict, and communication, and the Bible is full of wisdom for godly living. Take some time this week to pray about the following specific scriptural commands of how we ought to treat one another:
To solve marriage/family conflict, we must:
Be at peace with one another – Mark 9:50
Love one another – John 13:34; Romans 12:10; 1 Peter 4:8; 1 John 3:11, 23; 4:7, 11, 12
Build up one another – Romans 14:19; Ephesians 4:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:11
Be of the same mind toward one another – Romans 12:16
Give preference to one another – Romans 12:10
Greet one another – Romans 16:16
Esteem others as better than yourself – Philippians 2:3
Serve one another – Galatians 5:13
Receive one another – Romans 15:7
Be devoted to one another – Romans 12:10
Rejoice or weep with one another – Romans 12:15
Admonish one another – Romans 15:14; Colossians 3:16
Care for one another – 1 Corinthians 12:25
Show tolerance toward one another – Romans 15:1-5; Ephesians 4:2; Colossians 3:13
Be kind and forgiving to one another – Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13
Submit to one another – Romans 12:10; Ephesians 5:21; 1 Peter 5:5
Comfort one another – 1 Thessalonians 4:18
Encourage one another – 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 3:13
Be compassionate with one another – 1 Peter 3:8
Pray for one another – James 5:16
Confess your faults to one another – James 5:16
Accept one another – Romans 14:1; 15:7
To solve marriage/family conflict, we must not:
Be proud against each other – 1 Corinthians 4:6
Judge one another – Romans 12:16
Lie to one another – Colossians 3:9
Be partial with one another – 1 Timothy 5:21
Provoke or envy one another – Galatians 5:26
Lust after one another – Romans 1:27
Hate one another – Titus 3:3
Take one another to court – 1 Corinthians 6:1-7
Use each other – Galatians 5:15