JULY 16
CLINT PHILLIPS: LIVING A LIFE OF WONDER
Work through the following questions and scriptures on your own, and get together with your running partner, life group, or friends and family to talk through what you are learning.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- What was the last thing you felt, saw, heard, tasted, or experienced that brought you a sense of wonder?
- What stood out to you from the message?
- What role, if any, does wonder play in your life? Do you tend to view your life through your pain or through wonder?
4. Read Psalm 103.
Make some observations about this passage (What does the text say?):
- What do you notice and what are you curious about?
Make some interpretations (What does the passage mean?)
- What do we learn about God here?
- What do we learn about people?
- What do we learn about cultivating wonder in the midst of difficulty?
Now make some applications (what’s my response?)
- How are you encouraged, challenged, or convicted by this passage?
- What needs to change in your life in order to live this out?
5. In what ways have you experienced the Lord’s “benefits”?
6. What are you currently facing in life that is threatening to steal your joy and wonder in the Lord or that is tempting you to turn to things other than the Lord? What are some tangible practices you can put in place to refocus your eyes on Jesus and depend on Him?
PRAYER
Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts. The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all. Praise the Lord, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word. Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will. Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the Lord, my soul.
PRAYER
Prayer of Thanksgiving from the Book of Common Prayer:
Read each paragraph out loud and take a few moments after each to let people respond in praise.
Accept, O Lord, our thanks and praise for all that you have
done for us. We thank you for the splendor of the whole
creation, for the beauty of this world, for the wonder of life,
and for the mystery of love.
What in creation stirs up praise for you? Thank Him specifically for those things.
We thank you for the blessing of family and friends, and for
the loving care which surrounds us on every side.
What relationships has God given you that you wouldn’t be the same without? Thank Him for them.
We thank you for setting us at tasks that demand our best
efforts, and for leading us to accomplishments that satisfy
and delight us.
In what ways do you get to create in your daily life that you enjoy doing? Thank Him for these things.
We thank you also for those disappointments and failures
that lead us to acknowledge our dependence on you alone.
What challenges are you facing that God wants to use to deepen your trust and dependence on Him? Thank Him for those things.
Above all, we thank you for your Son Jesus Christ; for the
truth of his Word and the example of his life; for his steadfast
obedience, by which he overcame temptation; for his dying,
through which he overcame death; and for his rising to life
again, in which we are raised to the life of your kingdom.
Express your thanks for Jesus and all He has done for you.
Grant us the gift of your Spirit, that we may know Christ and
make him known; and through him, at all times and in all
places, may give thanks to you in all things. Amen.
TAKE A NEXT STEP
- If you recently made the decision to trust and follow Christ, tell someone about it and register for baptism coming up on July 30th. https://www.gatewaychurch.com/baptism/
- As a way of cultivating greater joy and wonder in life, consider starting a thanksgiving journal where you begin and end your day listing 5 things you are grateful for.
FOR THE PARENTS
Hey, families! Here’s a look at what we’re covering with your kids so you can help them continue to grow at home during the week.
THIS WEEK
This week, kids hear about the relationship between brothers, Jacob and Esau.
-THE BIBLE: Jacob and Esau: Genesis25:19-34
- THE BIG IDEA: We always belong in God’s family
ASK THIS:
Because sometimes you and your kid need a conversation-starter that isn’t, “So . . . how was church?”
-What good or important gifts have we been given, like Esau’s birthright, that we take for granted?
- What do you think is needed for two people to trust each other? How do we know we can trust God?
REMEMBER THIS
This month, your kids are memorizing the Bible verse Galatians 6:10 (NIV), in case you want to work on them together.
Preschool: “Let us do good to everyone…” Galatians 6:10a
Elem: “Let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:10 (NIV)
NEXT WEEK
Next week, kids will hear about the dream Jacob had and the message he received.