Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.

Philippians 2:3-5

Have you ever noticed how much time we spend thinking about the right person? “I hope he looks like this, I hope she dresses like that, I hope he has this kind of job, I hope she gets along with my mom, I hope, I hope, I hope…”

What if we spent that much time thinking about becoming the right person? Some people think when I meet the right person comes along then they will be loved and accepted no matter what.

What if he isn’t ok with the person you are right now? What if he or she isn’t ok with the decisions you’ve been making, and he’s not ok with the baggage you’ve been creating?

This week we will look at our own hearts and personal decision, and well ask the tough questions: Are you the kind of person that the person you are looking for is looking for?

Discussion Questions

1. What is one the thing that really stood out from tonight’s talk?
2. Why do we spend so much time thinking about “the right person?”
3. Why can’t another person “complete you?”
4. Are you the kind of person that the person you are looking for is looking for? Why or why not?

Have you ever realized that someone else was not seeing or feeling the same way about a situation as you were? Doesn’t it make things super awkward?  The sad part is, a simple conversation could make things clear to everyone who is involved and put everyone on the same page.   That sounds like such a giant, permanent life-altering conversation, but it really doesn’t have to be. Wouldn’t it be nice if you always knew where you stood with somebody else, wouldn’t it be nice if you didn’t have to wonder or guess how someone else felt all the time?

In Philippians 2:3-5 Paul wrote “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus (NIV).”

This week we are going to talk about how to be honest, careful, and Christ-minded in our relationships with others. Relationships are never about making ourselves look good or feel special.  They are about serving and loving someone else, and making sure they love you well.

Discussion Questions

1. Have you made any Relationship Goals since we started this series? If so, what are they? If you haven’t take a moment to create one goal for your relationships.
2. What does it mean to “define the relationship?”
3. The Bible tells us to “Guard our Heart” in Proverbs 4:23, so how can you know someone is trustworthy enough to give you heart to?

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.

Philippians 2:3-5

Have you ever done something that you thought was no big deal, but it ended up getting you in trouble, or ruining a day a long time after it happened?

I don’t think anyone ever acts selfishly or carelessly and thinks “I’m going to be dealing with this for years!” But the truth is, the decisions you make now in one way or another, will show up in your future. So the question we need to ask ourselves, is “what kind of future do I want to have?”

In this series, we will ask the questions: “What are your relationship goals, what do you want your current or your future relationships to look like?”

We typically don’t spend much time thinking about what a relationship is going to be like until after we have been in it for a while. It usually starts off with a text or a snap, maybe a few conversations, and then you’re “talking,” and the next thing you know you are in a relationship with someone, but you haven’t given any thought to what kind of relationship you want it to be.

Let’s slow things down, and take a look at what our goals actually are.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you currently have any Relationship Goals? If so, what are they?
2. Have you ever seen or called a bad relationship before it even started? Explain.
3. How would you define a healthy relationship?
4. What do you want your future relationships to look like?

Proverbs 4:7-9 

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.  She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”

Wisdom is truth from God – and, as a disciple of Jesus, we are on the path toward wisdom. And as you journey down that path to a life of applying truth from God to your life, you’re going to be faced with all sorts of decisions that are going to shape who you become.

God wants to help us make wiser choices.  So how do you make wise decisions? It starts by asking God in prayer and walking with Him every day.

This week, we will also look at 4 practical steps from the Book of Proverbs to help you as you make the life-altering decisions ahead of you in the next few months or years.

Discussion Questions

1. What major decision ahead of you will you require God’s guidance on?
2. Are there decisions you feel seem minor, which you could use God’s help on?
3. How could you use this community as a resource for wisdom?

 

Proverbs 4:7-9 

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.  She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”

This week, we’re going to look at what might happen when we receive advice we don’t want to hear. You’ve probably been on the other side of this before: you told a friend exactly what they ought to do to fix a problem or make a situation better, and they flat refuse to do what you told them! That may be infuriating to you, but flip the roles.

Have you ever had solid wisdom given to you that you didn’t take?

All the best wisdom in the world won’t do us any good if we aren’t willing to take the advice to heart and start using it. In other words, we’re going to focus on this one thing:

Putting wisdom into practice!

Remember the guy who God said would be remembered as the wisest person on the planet? Well, we’re going to talk about his son.

Just so we’re clear here: David was a man after God’s heart, the beloved guy, whose son was Solomon, the wisest person on the planet, whose son was Rehoboam.

Rehoboam is not remembered for being very wise.

Discussion Questions

1. When was the last time you heard wisdom that you didn’t like? What was the situation?
2. Have you ever gone to multiple sources of wisdom to try to find someone who would tell you what you wanted to hear?
3. Why is it difficult to hear negative feedback?
4. How can we have an attitude that will not only listen to wisdom but put it into practice?

Proverbs 4:7-9 

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.  She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”

We’re kicking off the new year talking about wisdom! But what exactly is wisdom? One definition puts it this way ‘wisdom isn’t simply intelligence or knowledge or even understanding. It is the ability to use these to think and act in such a way that common sense prevails, and choices are beneficial and productive.’

You don’t become wise just because you know all the right answers! Knowledge is important. But, wisdom is more important than knowledge. And before you can become wise, you have to see the value of wisdom. So, our talk today is going to focus on one main thing: Desiring Wisdom.

Questions:

1. If you were given a choice to ask for anything you wanted, what would you ask for? Why?
2. Who is someone in your life that you think is wise? In your opinion, what made them that way?
3. Why should we seek to work on our character before our accomplishments?
4. What is one goal that you can set this new year to prioritize wisdom in your daily life?

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” which means “God with us.”  – Matthew 1:22-23

It’s our last regular Wednesday night, and you don’t want to miss the conclusion of our series King of Hearts.

First, we asked Who’s the King of your Heart? We studied the first King of Isreal name Saul.  God gave Israel a King after they rejected God from being directly king over them.  They asked for a king so they could fit in with their neighbors and wanted what they saw others had.  The Lord honored their wishes and gave them Saul, a good-looking, strong guy, even though God knew a king was a bad idea.

Next, we talked about the best King of Isreal, David, the beloved king.  David was able to make God king of his heart because he knew he was Beloved of God. He ruled with the security of God’s love and tried to please God.  He didn’t live for the expectations of others like Saul.  David wasn’t perfect though, but his dynasty lasted 500 years.

This week, we are going to jump ahead to the Real King. The Promised-King. The God-King.  Join us as we explore Matthew Chapter One and how Jesus revolutionizes the throne of Isreal and the throne of our heart!

Discussion Questions:

1. How does Jesus’s entrance into the world as a baby in Bethlehem shape the message of his kingdom?
2. Imagine Jesus sitting on the throne of your heart. What power in your life might feel threatened by his reign? Is it your need to be accepted? Is it your apathy toward helping others?
3. Advent is about the “ALREADY” of Jesus’ birth and the “NOT YET” of Jesus’ second coming in final victory. How would you imagine the world is different when ruled by Jesus the God-King, not just saved by Jesus the Anointed One?