Elemental Season 1 - End of Week 5

INTRO
The following is a guide to help facilitate discussion. Feel free to add or subtract or change questions to fit the conversation, and pray for the Spirit to lead in all things.

OPEN
Have you ever helped to build something (a house, a car, a mission project, an art piece, etc…)?  What did the process feel like and how did you feel when it was done?

HEAD
Read Luke 6: 46-49 together and share any wisdom, insights, or questions in response to the reading.

What was the difference between the person who built on the rock verses the person who built on the sand?

Do you think it’s possible to be building on rock but feel, at times, like you’re building on sand?  Like it could all just slip away at any moment?

What do you think the floods are in life that Jesus is referring to in this passage?

Think of the story of Jonah.  He was a famous prophet, highly sought after, but his story ends in a bit of a tragedy.  It’s a story with a massive storm, a ginormous fish, and God’s love for a people Jonah hated.  Describe how you think Jonah’s faith was before his called to Ninevah vs his faith after Ninevah.  Do you think his view of God changed?

HEART
In your past, has “the church” ever helped you grow in your faith?  If so, how?  If not, why?

Has “the church” ever hindered your growth?  If so, how?  If not, praise God!

Through the process of questioning your faith, are there things you used to believe strongly that you no longer do?  How about things that through the questioning you became more sure of?  Share.

The third stage of the most basic model for spiritual development is called chaos.  It is the place where we begin to question what we believe and why we believe it.  On the other side of chaos is ownership of your beliefs.  How do you think questions, doubt, and deconstructing can actually strengthen your faith and make it your own?

HANDS
What do you think your life and your faith would look like if the only thing you held onto was an assurance that Jesus was real, that He was actually God?  You don’t have to understand what all that means, but how do you think your life might look different, your faith, your liturgy (or practice) of your faith look like if Jesus was all you had or were sure of?  Journal on this topic as you go through the week, let your self sit with the idea.

WORDS TO LIVE BY
“In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen.”
1 Peter 5:10-11 NLT