CGG Dec 10 Our God is the Giver of good gifts€¦ · God to work in powerful ways as your group members take a step of faith in accomplishing the Next Step Challenge from last week.

Pray for your group this week. Pray for God to work in powerful ways as your group members take a step of faith in accomplishing the Next Step Challenge from last week. Pray for God to move in the worship service next week. Pray for the pastor who will be speaking. As you prepare, ask God to give you specific direction in how to lead your group this week.

Our God is the Giver of Good Gifts 10 December 2017 Hebron Church | Connect Group Guide

PRAY

Nobody knows your group better than God! As you have been praying for your group, is there something you feel like God is leading you to do differently this week? Follow His guidance and make whatever changes are necessary.

Luke 11:5-13 “…if you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more…”

Psalm 107:8-9 “…for [God] satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and will be my witnesses…”

We give our lives to lead people to life-changing

faith in Jesus

Main Point: God Himself is the greatest gift we could ever

want or need. He is also exactly what we need as we carry out the mission we have been given. Scripture tells us that when we seek after Him with longing, hunger and

persistence we will be given more of Him!

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Issue #: [Date] Dolor Sit Amet

Spend the first portion of your time together looking back at the time that has passed since you last met together. This time is broken into three components: Care & Worship, Loving Accountability and Vision.

Depending on how you structure your meeting time and how many people you have in your group, it is recommended that you divide into smaller groups. Ideally, they should divide by gender if you have a mixed group.

Care + Worship – Sometimes people bring burdens to a group and cannot focus on anything until they have a chance to release. This is a time to love on and care for each other. It is also an opportunity for people to give testimony in worship of God.

Loving Accountability – Keyword being “loving.” We keep each other accountable because we care about their relationship with God. The main focus is on what God did as they were obedient to the last week’s Next Step Challenge.

Vision – This can be done by a leader in the smaller groups, or a leader can use this as a way to transition everyone into the next part—Looking Up.

Looking Back

1. Care + Worship

Ask: What were your highs and lows/blessings and stretches/joys and struggles (pick one) of the week?

Ask: What is one thing you are thankful to God for from this past week?

2. Loving Accountability

Ask: What was one thing that God taught you this past week as you spent time with Him?

Last week’s Next Step Challenge was to look for ways to be used to bring healing. How did that go? In what ways did God bring healing this week?

3. Vision

We know from Matthew 28:18-20 that we are all commanded by Jesus to make disciples. Each of us is a missionary either placed or sent to accomplish this task. At Hebron, we are studying how the roles/characteristics of God impact this mission.

Today, we will discuss how since “God is the Giver of good gifts” we will see how the Holy Spirit is not just needed to accomplish our mission, but He satisfies the longing of our souls.

Ask: What are some of the good gifts that God has given to you throughout your relationship with Him?

Looking Back

We give our lives to lead people to life-changing faith in Jesus

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Teaching Points

What were some of your favorite points that Keith mentioned in

Worship?

Luke 11:5-13

Note that the relationship Jesus was portraying in this passage is that between a Father and Son. Verse 9 is often misquoted pertaining to lost people seeking God for salvation, but that is not the correct context. It is for believers seeking more of Him.

How does verse 8 refine what we pray for and how we do it?

We go persistently to Him for what we need, not want. Just because we keep asking for something we desire, it doesn’t mean we are going to get it.

What does it mean that the Holy Spirit is considered a good gift? What does that practically look like in our lives

and relationship for the Holy Spirit to be a good gift?

How does this fit theologically with the concept of receiving the seal of the Holy Spirit at salvation (thus becoming sons/daughters) but still asking for the

Spirit?

Take into consideration Acts 1:8, and the fact that Jesus had already given the disciples

the Holy Spirit (John 20:22)

Psalm 107:8-9

What kind of attitude/approach do these two passages seem to indicate we need to have as we seek more of God?

Asking for more of God is something He wants for you too, but sometimes the measure of Him we receive is proportionate to the hunger and persistent patience we are committed to go through as we seek Him. Just because we don’t “feel anything” the first time we ask for more, it doesn’t mean we should give up. God enjoys the journey!

Has anybody ever experienced anything like this before?

This is the part of your group’s meeting time where you look up for instruction from God’s Word. The method used here is meant to be an effective and generic example in how to study Scripture. It can be used in a large group setting, one-on-one discipleship or even during personal study. The goal is to model how people can personally lead someone they disciple through using Scripture as their guide. Remind everyone that the general questions you ask below should be filtered through what was mentioned in the Vision (#3). To the right is a section titled “Teaching Points.” This section provides important points that you want to listen for your group to draw out of the Scriptures. Use the questions listed to help guide the group into discovering the truths themselves. People remember things they discovered much better than things they were told!

4. Scripture

Read: Luke 11:5-13 & Psalm 107:8-9

What stuck out? What did you like/dislike? What was confusing? What do these passages teach us about God?

What do these passages teach us about People? Sin: Is there a sin to avoid or repent of? Promise: Is there a promise to behold?

Example: Is there an example to follow? Command: Is there a command to obey?


Looking Up


5. Practice

Ask someone if they would share what it has looked like in his/her personal prayer life to seek more of God and the Holy Spirit.

[The concept may be new for many, and knowing how to start can be confusing]

6. Set Goals

Next Step Challenge

v Discuss ways that you will specifically seek after the Holy Spirit as we continue to carry out the mission of knowing God and making Him known.

v Create ‘discussion groups’ for people to talk together through this process this week. Come back next week ready to share.

7. Commission + Pray

Make sure to pray over your group, or get someone in advance to pray over the group regarding the Next Step Challenge. Pray that God would move in mighty ways in and through each person.

Looking Forward


The last portion of your group’s meeting time is designed to lead people into taking what was learned today into direct application looking forward. It is divided into Practice, Set Goals and Commission + Pray.

Practice: Some weeks there will be a tool that you might learn. For example, if the lesson was on sharing, you might have learned the “20 Second Testimony” tool. This would be the time when you would practice using that tool.

Set Goals: Application is an essential component in responding to God’s Word for three reasons. (1) It puts action to the claim that Jesus is Lord; (2) In the Great Commission Jesus commanded us to make disciples who will “obey all that [Jesus] commanded…” not just disciples who know what Jesus commands, but don’t do anything about it; and (3) When we depend upon God to even accomplish His tasks, we grow in greater ways than we would have otherwise. At Hebron, we call these goals our Next Step Challenge (NSC). Make sure that there is a clear connection between the lesson and the challenge. Remind people that you will begin next week by discussing how God worked as they obediently committed to accomplishing the NSC.

Commission + Pray: Remind everyone that as missionaries, everyone is being sent out to make disciples (who make disciples). Pray over them, and that God would do great things in and through them!

Looking Forward

CGG Dec 10 Our God is the Giver of good gifts€¦ · God to work in powerful ways as your group members take a step of faith in accomplishing the Next Step Challenge from last week.

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