Pastor Nate

Knowing God: Doctrine of the Roles of Men & Women

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Faith Talks:

  1. Sometimes the first step towards health is an honest recognition of what’s unhealthy. Talk with a trusted friend about times when you have experienced leadership which has left you afraid of trusting leaders again.
  2. Review the 3 suggestions to follow well: 1) hope in One who is greater, 2) prefer and defer, and 3) use your strength to nurture another’s leadership. Which one do you want/need to grow in? Talk about one step towards that growth.

Knowing God: To follow Jesus do I have to believe in heaven and the resurrection?

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Faith Talks:

  1. Talk about your level of certainty regarding heaven and resurrection. In what way can you see your current life affected by your belief in heaven and resurrection? 

  2. We all have questions about heaven and resurrection. Talk about your questions. Make a list and come prepared next weekend to see what questions get answered. 

Knowing God: What does the Atonement change?

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Faith Talks:

  • In what aspect of Jesus’ New World (citizenship, identity, status, posture, relationship, purpose, your body, hope) do you MOST need to fight for faith?
  • Talk together about creative ways to do intentional “acts of subversion” so you can hold onto faith in Jesus in defiance against the World we live in.

 

Knowing God: Why Church? Ephesians 4:11-16

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Faith Talks:

  1. Talk about ways Jesus' Church has been His Body -- acting on His behalf in this World. Think about in your own life, in the life of LFA, even in other countries.
  2. Talk about your place in Jesus' Body. What gifts has He given you? In what ways have you served? Are there ways you would want to serve?

When it feels like Jesus isn't showing up...

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Faith Talks

According to the teaching this morning in what way DID the arrival of Jesus bring peace on earth?

According to the teaching this morning in what way WILL Jesus bring even more peace?

What can you do to grow in your awareness and experience of the peace that Jesus offers?

Begging for Jesus' Arrival

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Faith Talks

Talk together about the times and situations where you are most tempted to become self-focused and selfish. If necessary, ask each other for forgiveness and pray for each other.

Talk together about people in your life who might be in need of a selfless act of kindness from you — make plans for what you can do for them over this week leading to Christmas.

What kind of people qualify for Jesus' Arrival?

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Faith Talks

What are some things you were hoping God would do for you?  Commit to making these things  a daily prayer list.  Try matching these desires with specific Scriptures.  

Pick one day a week to fast  during Advent - feel what hunger feels like.  Do you long for God like you long for food ?  

Carve out a 15 minute block one a week to be in silence with God.   Ask Him to speak to you, and just listen for Him in your heart.

Knowing God - Experiencing God’s Presence

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Faith Talks

Talk together about your view of the Christian faith: is it mostly head or heart? Is it mostly study and learning and doing or how much is there a place for feeling, the supernatural and a sense of intimate relationship? Talk about when you have experienced both.

Talk about the questions you have related to God’s presence. Consider emailing your questions to the pastors.

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Faith Talks

  1. Talk together about the clear signs in your life that you live (or don’t live) under the authority of Jesus, the Great King.
  2. Talk together about steps you can take to grow in your fascination for King Jesus.

Wisdom - Growing Wise in God’s Word - Psalm 119

Faith Talks:

This week, find time to look to God’s Word alone, then talk together as a household about what you learned. Here’s a simple guideline.

  1. Start by journaling what is happening in your day — events, challenges, emotions, etc.
  2. Read a passage from the Bible — maybe 10-20 verses (perhaps, Isaiah 40:21-31)
  3. Re-read the passage, looking for truth about God. Make a note of what you find.
  4. Choose one of the truths about God and explore it, meditate on it, pray about it. 
  5. Ask God to help you trust Him and follow Him today.

Lament - Psalm 73

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Faith Talks

  1. Meet with a friend and tell a story of a specific situation in your life of pain, grief, or loss (past or current). 

  2. As you listen to each other, pay attention to spoken or unspoken “conclusions” about God, yourself, or others. Conclusions are belief statements about how life is (e.g. “People are cruel;” “God doesn’t care;” “It will never work out;” “There’s no use trying,” etc.)

Life on Life Discipleship

Life On Life

Faith Talks

Review together the characteristics of the crowds that followed Jesus. Talk about the ways your following Jesus has at times looked too much like the crowd.

Talk together about how your life has been changed (or could be changed)  by life-on-life discipleship — how being known in your failure has led you (could lead you) to heart change. What helps/hinders that from happening more?

Resurrection Realities

Resurrection Realities - Mark 15:42-16:13

 

Faith Talks

Review the 8 Resurrection Realities. Which ones do you need reminded about most? How you can remind each other of those truths.

Talk about the areas of alarm and unbelief that come as a result of forgetting Resurrection. Pray for each other in those areas that you will experience resurrection power. 

When following Jesus includes failing Jesus

When following Jesus includes failing Jesus

Mark 14:43-72

Faith Talks

The contrast between Jesus and everyone else in today’s teaching makes the point that all of us fail and deny Jesus. How aware are you that you fail and deny Jesus? 

Jesus’ example of finding strength by being watchful included leaning into community. Spend time together as a community of faith, talking about and praying together about some of your patterns of failing to follow Jesus. 

Stay Awake, Because it’s too easy to fall asleep. Mark 14:1-21

Stay Awake
Because it’s too easy to fall asleep

Mark 14:1-21

Faith Talks

What are the situations/circumstances where you tend to fall asleep spiritually or go “off duty”?  (consider times when life is going well as well as when life is not going well.)

What are practices that you do or have heard of that might be helpful to you being more alert/watchful?  Are any of these practices ones you might want to embrace for your household?  Talk about putting  them into practice

Worship Jesus as True Savior

 Worship Jesus as True Savior 

Faith Talks:

For Jesus, love is most important. Talk together about the evidence in your life, over the time you have been walking with Jesus, that you have grown in whole-hearted love towards God and others. 

Jesus warns us to watch out for the natural tendency to be like the Scribes who live to impress others, who love to be praised by others. Talk together about the ways Jesus is setting you free of being like a Scribe.

Follow Jesus in Stewardship

Follow Jesus in Stewardship 

FAITH TALKS

"The big struggles of life are struggles with authority." Talk together to see if that statement is true in your life. 

"We can never effectively steward what God has given us until we recognize Him as our authority." Where are you in the process of joyfully yielding all you are to the authority of God?  Name the obstacles. 

The Making: Discover Jesus Through His Church

The Making: Discover Jesus Through His Church 

Faith Talks:

The Bible calls us, at times, to be childlike and at times not to be childlike. Talk together about the ways we should and should not be childlike.

Talk about ways in which you want to grow in childlikeness.

<< Rewind, Fast Forward >>

<< Rewind, Fast Forward >>

Faith Talks

Talk together about 2016: What memories stand out from this year?

Talk together about 2016: What significant things did Jesus do in your life?

The Story: Creation

The Story: Creation

Faith Talks

God makes all things good. Talk about the good things you see in each other. What are the unique characteristics of each person in your household?

Ask each person how easy/hard is it to believe what the others have said about you? Are there any of those positive characteristics they listed hard to believe? Why?

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Family Life: Prepare. Event. Debrief. (P.E.D.)

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Households ... A Training Environment (part 2)

Faith Talks

Brainstorm together about different scenarios when it might be helpful to use the PED tool. Pick one of them to practice this week.

Talk about two things in your household training environment or culture for which you are grateful to God.

Talk about one pattern in your household you would like to see God change. Pray about it. 

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Family Life: The Four Foundations

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Households ... A Training Environment (part 1)

Faith Talks

If your “household” includes the next generation: talk together about the 4 Foundations. Which one do you want to put into practice in new ways? How will you do that?

If your “household” does not include the next generation: what are ways you could implement the 4 Foundations among the people you do life with? Talk together about steps you want to take, and maybe ways you can include the next generation.

Who is Jesus?

Who is Jesus?  Mark 9:1-13

Faith talks

Talk about the way you imagine Jesus. What picture do you have of Him in your mind? What’s the look on His face? If you saw Him, do you think you would bow before Him in reverence or give Him a hug?

Think of a recent time when you were either worried, tempted, or disappointed. How did knowing Jesus effect the way you walked through that situation?

Discover and Follow Jesus Mark 8:11-26

Faith Talks

Pastor Nate talked about the “means of discovering Jesus” — the ways or places where God speaks to us and takes away our blindness (personal Bible reading, TFL, Bible studies, sermons, Christian music). Talk about your practices of discovering Jesus. Talk about steps you want to take to receive more.

 

Parents, leaders, friends are the “means” of revelation for people in their life. How much do you see yourself as the “means” of revelation for other people? Pray for each other that God would use you to reveal Jesus to others and that God would take away blindness.

Grace For You

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Galatians 5:6,13,14

Faith Talks

1) Today, we heard Diana’s story of God’s grace on her life. Tell one story of God’s grace on your life.

2) Make sure you fill out the Lighthouse Prayer Tool and talk about the people you are praying for. 

3) Talk together about the LFA fall training options. Which might best equip you  to follow Jesus better? Who we are (God’s grace for us) God’s story for our life is a better story.