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Thursday Giveaway

Thursday Giveaway: Unbroken

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Each week on Thursdays we highlight a trustworthy discipleship resource that can help you in your mission to make disciples. This week’s post is from Unbroken: Path to Redemption. Fill out the form at the end of this post by Friday, October 19th at 11:59pm to enter for a chance to win this free resource!

What are a few of the most significant moments in your life?

How have those moments shaped your life for good or bad?

Unbroken: Path to Redemption picks up Louis Zamperini’s story at what you would imagine to be a high point. Assumed dead, abused in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp, Louis returned home alive. His family rejoiced because their lost son had returned to them. His country lauded him as a hero. Yet when the war ended, Louis’ real battle began. The war wasn’t over just because everyone else said it was.

The war followed Louis home. The trauma he experienced shaped the way he saw the world. His captors tortured him in dreams. He was desperate to find a release from his pain, but his brokenness drove him further into darkness.

Each of us deals with brokenness. How we deal with our brokenness determines the course of our lives. Taking it on ourselves leads to more brokenness. Handing our brokenness to God leads to healing and restoration.

Anyone paying attention will notice the brokenness in the world. Natural disasters, sickness, death, national tragedies—all these events point to the reality that the world isn’t as it should be. It has been broken by sin, and so have we. Today we’ll examine the cause and the cure for brokenness.

What is a time when you felt your brokenness?

What caused the brokenness we experience?

The root cause of brokenness is sin, and the root of all sin is idolatry. Adam and Eve knew God’s standards, but they thought they knew better. They had more faith in their own instincts than in God’s decrees. Their choice led the world into sin. Ever since the garden of Eden, men and women have grappled with sin and brokenness, both as a result of the fall and as a result of their choices.

Fig leaves couldn’t hide Adam and Eve’s brokenness. In fact, they accomplished the opposite effect. The fragile leaves highlighted their nakedness instead of concealing it. When we try to mask our brokenness, the results aren’t more convincing. Feeling broken is a gift from God that’s meant to demonstrate our need for Him.

The good news of the gospel is that we can cry out to God. The brokenness that separates sinful people from a holy God was bridged by the cross of Jesus Christ. When we repent of our sin and we trust in Christ’s perfect life and sacricial death on our behalf, we’re reconciled to God. A new life begins at that very moment.

This was an excerpt from Unbroken: Path to Redemption. Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

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Group Answers Podcast, Uncategorized

Group Answers Episode 70: Power Ranking Discipleship Books

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On today’s episode, Chris, Brian, and Michael power rank their top five discipleship books.

Final Top Five:

  1. The Cost of Discipleship
  2. Transformational Discipleship
  3. Knowing God
  4. A Call to Spiritual Reformation
  5. Real Life Discipleship

Michael’s Top Five:

  1. Knowing God
  2. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction
  3. The Cost of Discipleship
  4. Abiding in Christ
  5. Multiply

Brian’s Top Five:

  1. A Call to Spiritual Reformation
  2. The Divine Conspiracy
  3. What Jesus Demands from the World
  4. Sacred Romance
  5. Tie: The Trellis and the Vine/ Transformational Discipleship

Chris’ Top Five:

  1. Real Life Discipleship
  2. The Cost of Discipleship
  3. Small Groups with Purpose
  4. Transformational Discipleship
  5. Growing Up

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Small Groups For The Rest Of Us.

Church Leadership

Five Ways to Improve at Encouraging One Another and Building Each Other Up

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by Jared Musgrove

 

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

1 Thessalonians 5:11

Christian encouragement is a command, but one we find awkward to employ in everyday life. It doesn’t have to be uncomfortable, though. Like any other skill, we get better at it with practice. With that in mind, here are five suggestions to help you grow in your ability to encourage others.

1. Turn to the Word

Not everyone is naturally comfortable crafting the perfect words for a given situation. In practicing encouragement, I have found that the fewer words I use of my own, the better. This realization has relieved me to encourage all the more, and with greater truthfulness. I don’t need my words to encourage; I need God’s Word.

Let the Scriptures be your starting point for encouraging others. Share with fellow believers where you see the Spirit working in and through them. Point out the fruit of the Spirit that you see growing in them (Galatians 5:22-23). Affirm them in their spiritual gifting and faithful use of those gifts (1 Corinthians 12; Romans 12).

Celebrating someone’s spiritual fruit and gifting is a good start toward true Christian encouragement.

2. Be Specific

Our encouragement is most meaningful when we take enough interest in others and are specific with our encouragement. Be observant of those in your believing community. Who is quick to volunteer and serve others? Who models self-control in their words and actions? Who exhibits patience with those who talk perhaps more than they should?

Based on what you observe, offer concrete examples of how you have seen this person live out their faith. It’s deeply encouraging to hear, “I saw God’s grace at work when you did this or said that.” Specific examples bless the hearer and show that you have taken genuine interest in them.

3. Be Intentional

Give thought to who could use encouragement. I and my ministry team set aside some time during some of our team meetings to encourage one another. We choose an individual in advance for each meeting, then take intentional time to tell them specifically how we see them being used by God. It deepens us as individuals and as a community.

Whether we work for a church or not, we are all doing the work of ministry, and because it is difficult work, we all need encouragement. The best way to be intentional is to think ahead and praise someone based on where you see faithfulness and fruit of the Spirit in a brother or sister. That is intentionality in encouragement, and it draws from the depths.

4. Be Selfless

Have you ever held back from encouraging someone because you were afraid you might feed their pride? Have you ever withheld encouragement because you viewed someone as a rival in your work environment or your circle of friends? We all have, but Christian encouragement and flattery sit at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Don’t let fear of being seen as a flatterer cause you to curtail your genuine words of encouragement. Don’t let your own insecurities inhibit your praise of others. The one who encourages practices selflessness, taking the words of Proverbs 12:18 to heart: “There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”

We have a choice to be selfish or selfless in our encouragement. We can either harm by the selfishness of our silence or diminished praise, or we can heal by the selflessness of our fruitful words driven by the Scriptures.

5. Be Courageous

Don’t just encourage for godly things already done, but encourage the pursuit of godly things not being done, as well. We often need godly courage in order to give someone else godly courage.

If a friend is looking at pornography, find words to encourage them toward desiring Christ-likeness instead of illicit images. If a friend is engaging in gossip, find words to encourage them toward Christ-honoring speech. Be gracious rather than legalistic. The more you can identify with your friend’s battle, the more loving your encouragement will be. Use Christian courage to confront sin with kindness and gentleness.

I believe encouragement should take its place alongside any list of spiritual disciplines. I’ve found few exercises to be more challenging and affirming to my walk with Christ and to my ability to benefit my brothers and sisters.

When we encourage someone, we have the opportunity to speak healing truth into their life. We do this by grace through a heart changed by Christ and words drawn from Scripture. In this way, may we strive to excel in building up the church (1 Corinthians 14:12).

*Aspects of this article also appeared at tvcresources.net and ftc.co

Jared Steven Musgrove serves as Groups Pastor and elder at The Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The University of Oklahoma, a Master of Divinity in preaching from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Ministry in leadership from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the husband of Jenny and the father of two sons, Jordan and Joshua. You can follow him on Twitter @jsmusgrove 

 

Church Leadership

How to Deliver Small Group Content and Training with a Consistent Message

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As the leaders and administration of a church, I’m sure you are trying to solve the problem of finding the right small group content consistent with your vision and mission.

Even once you find content that meets your expectations, you can run into the problem of consistency across groups in presenting the material. The small group leaders need to know the material and theology behind what’s being presented – and that usually means you have to be on call to make sure everyone is on the same page.

LifeWay can help you with this. With a heart for growing you as the servant leader God has called you to be, we can walk alongside you with training and trustworthy content. We’ve tried to make this easy for you and the church by bundling our digital platforms.

Ministry Grid, SmallGroup.com, and Wordsearch Bible are all quality tools that will help you and your leaders build the disciples of the gospel globally in your community and beyond. All 3 of these platforms are bundled together to ensure you have the quality resources you need for a deeper dive into the study of God’s Word.

“2 The Twelve summoned the whole company of the disciples and said, “It would not be right for us to give up preaching the word of God to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom, whom we can appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” …

7 So the word of God spread, the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly in number, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.” (Acts 6:1-7 CSB)

As we grow in this digital world, LifeWay wants to be by your side to help your church navigate these waters and give the best to your staff, volunteers, and members. LifeWay is continuing to create a suite of products to solve your needs for the church. Please visit lifeway.com/digitalhub for more information and to discover the solutions to your needs.

Thursday Giveaway

Thursday Giveaway: Smallgroup.com

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Each week on Thursdays we highlight a trustworthy discipleship resource that can help you in your mission to make disciples. This week’s post is excerpted from the study “Indivisible”  available on smallgroup.com. Fill out the form at the end of this post by Friday, October 12th at 11:59pm to enter for a chance to win a free year subscription to smallgroup.com! 

The film Indivisible is the real life story of Major Darren Turner and his wife Heather. Darren shared about his and Heather’s early commitment to their agreed purpose in their own marriage: “Heather and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God had called us together for one another, and His plan and purposes. Joining the military as a chaplain was a mutual decision for us. We knew that God would use us both to minister together as well as separately to reach those that had volunteered to die for us, if called upon.”

Notice that Darren clearly stated that God had first called him and Heather together for one another. But then he added their mutual decision to follow God’s specific will in their marriage and how they could serve Him both individually and together. For example, when Darren is stationed stateside on a base, as he still is active duty today, he and Heather often serve together to minister to military families. But when Darren was sent to Iraq, he ministered to the soldiers there, while Heather served the wives and children left behind at the base.

There is great satisfaction in being in God’s will in your marriage, while also discovering together a divine purpose that He offers specifically for the calling, gifts, and talents of each individual.

Genesis 2:18-25:

18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.” 19 The Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it. And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man[a] no helper was found corresponding to him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man, and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. 22 Then the Lord God made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 And the man said: This one, at last, is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh; this one will be called “woman,” for she was taken from man. 24 This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh. 25 Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.

Even though the idea of something being “indivisible” is most often associated in our society with the United States Pledge of Allegiance, we can see from this passage that the nation’s forefathers did not create this concept, but rather God Himself, for His divine purpose of marriage.

When the Pharisees were quizzing Jesus on the topic of marriage one day, He connected His teaching back to this Genesis passage.

To offer a simple analogy of being indivisible, becoming “one flesh,” or “joined together,” imagine tearing off two equal-sized pieces from a roll of duct tape. Separate, the two sections are very sticky. In fact, you have to be careful that they don’t bond to something prematurely before you apply them for their intended purpose. If you carefully connect their sticky sides, matching up corner to corner, pressing together all the way around both, you will effectively no longer have two pieces of tape—but one single unit. They have fully bonded to one another. If you try to separate them, you cannot successfully divide the two, but only destroy both for they are now truly indivisible. This is a great visual to represent God’s purpose for the “one flesh” concept in marriage.

The biblical concept of marriage as an indivisible “one flesh” includes what God does in the hearts, souls, lives, and gifts—both individually and corporately—of any couple that calls Him “Lord.” He creates an internal as well as an external oneness that doesn’t exist in the same manner outside of the two partners working together. This is indeed a spiritual mystery that only He can create.

We must recognize the life that our marriages give by being brought together for the purpose of bringing glory to the Lord. As biblical marriage comes further under attack, Christ followers should commit to placing their focus on creating oneness that can only be explained by the presence and power of Almighty God.

This is an excerpt from the study “Indivisible” available now at smallgroup.com. 

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Church Leadership, Group Leadership, Uncategorized
Thursday Giveaway

Thursday Giveaway: Bible Studies for Life

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Each week on Thursdays we highlight a trustworthy discipleship resource that can help you in your mission to make disciples. This week’s post is from The Full Picture of Christmas, a six-session study in the Winter 2019 Bible Studies for Life. Fill out the form at the end of this post by Friday, October 5th at 11:59pm to enter for a chance to win 10 free copies of the Winter 2019 Daily Discipleship Guide! 

Isaiah’s Prophecy

Read Isaiah 7:10-14.

If God came to one of us and said we could “ask for a sign”—any sign, even a sign “as deep as Sheol or as high as heaven,” I wonder what most of us would ask for. The Lord gave King Ahaz that opportunity, but he put forth a false humility and wouldn’t ask for a sign. Here was a king whose country was under attack and his people were terrified (7:1-2). God offered to give Ahaz a sign that He was powerful to take care of their enemies, but it Ahaz already may have been planning to ask Assyria for help and therefore didn’t think he needed God’s help.

Upon hearing King Ahaz’s refusal to ask for a sign, Isaiah the prophet broadened his audience beyond the king. He told the whole faithless house of David that God would give a sign anyway! The house of David’s wickedness had tested God’s longsuffering patience, but God had a sign for them: “See, the virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.”

Take yourself back to grammar class for a moment. You probably remember the basic definition of a verb, noun, and adjective. But do you recall what a homonym is? It’s each of two or more words that have the same spelling and pronunciation, but different meanings and origins. For example, the word crane can be a bird, a piece of equipment, or a way to move your neck.

In a similar way, prophetic passages in Scripture can have multiple meanings: an immediate meaning for the initial hearers and an added meaning for future generations. Isaiah 7:14 has just such a double meaning.

Initially the prophecy was a word of comfort and hope to the original recipients of the prophecy. It is not clear who the woman and child were, but perhaps it was a child born in the king’s house. The birth of this child was a reminder of God’s prophecy and the comfort that “God is with us.”

The second meaning involves a prediction of the future virgin birth of Christ. Matthew quoted this prophecy word for word as he gave an account of Christ’s birth. “See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel, which is translated ‘God is with us’” (Matt. 1:23).

Historically, this phrase was intended to convince King Ahaz that God could rescue him from his enemies. Our sovereign God spoke something to encourage ancient Israel and inspire generations to come with the hope of the Messiah. Therefore, the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy was in Jesus Christ who is “God with us.”

What captures our attention in this passage is that “the virgin will conceive.” The virgin birth of Christ is an important truth; Jesus had to be one of us—human—to die in our place, but He couldn’t offer the perfect sacrifice if He was like every other human with a sin nature. The virgin birth means Jesus had no human father—God is His Father—therefore, Jesus was born without a sin nature. Jesus is fully man and He is fully God. God is with us!

What does God being Immanuel (“God with us”) mean for us as believers?

What does this truth mean for Christ-followers?

This article is an excerpt from The Full Picture of Christmas, a six-session study in the Winter 2019 Bible Studies for Life. Learn more about this study here. 

Group Answers Podcast

Group Answers Episode 68: Jonathan Dodson

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Our guest today is Jonathan Dodson. Jonathan is the founding pastor of City Life Church in Austin, TX which he started with his wife, Robie, and a small group of people. They have three children. He is also the founder of gcdiscipleship.com and author of a number of books including Here in Spirit: Knowing the Spirit who Creates, Sustains, and Transforms Everything, The Unbelievable Gospel and Gospel-Centered Discipleship. He enjoys listening to M. Ward, watching sci-fi, and going for walks.

Questions:

  • What are Fight Clubs?
  • How do you equip leaders to lead Fight Clubs? How do you support Fight Clubs from the pulpit and encourage participation?
  • How have you seen Fight Clubs contribute to the ministry of the church and impact the lives of Fight Club participants?
  • Gospel-Centered Discipleship released in 2012. If you wrote it today, what from your experiences in the last 6 years would you be sure to include?
  • Here in the Spirit just released. How is this different from other books about the Holy Spirit? Talk about the backstory — what circumstances or insights led you to this specific topic?

Quotes:

“Fight clubs are discipleship groups. We are fighting for faith to trust and to treasure Jesus.”

“They follow the process of text-theology-life.”

“God picks your community, you pick your friend.”

“It’s not a highly programmed environment. It’s a natural outworking of the gospel in an ordinary disciple’s life.”

“Fight Clubs promote holiness in our church.”

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Small Groups For The Rest Of Us.
Church Leadership

What Backflipping Has Taught Me About Small Grouping

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by Scarlet Hiltibidal

 

(That’s me, by the white fence, upside down, back tucking with horrible form – so horrible that one second later my teammates were pulling grass out of my teeth.)

I was a cheerleader in high school. Not the pom-poms and “go team” kind (I didn’t understand football then, and I still don’t today). I did the three hours of practice a day, taped-up wrists, crying and sweating and winning national competitions kind of cheering.

Being on the competition team was serious. It was my everything. And if I play out our first national championship winning routine in my mind from start to finish, and remember seeing Jen Granado stick that last heel stretch after having just landed my roundoff-backhandspring-backhandspring-tuck, I can easily trigger a full-blown weeping session of joy and nostalgia.

My job on the team was to tumble. I did flips. So I was, pretty much, just responsible for my self—hitting my mark, doing my tricks well, and making the appropriate theatrical, corny faces to go with it. If I really stuck the landing, I would turn to the judge’s table with the biggest, fakest open-mouthed smile I could contort my face into while underlining the “DCS” on my chest with both hands.

I hate myself.

I was really bad at what we cheerleaders called “stunting”—the thing where we throw each other into the air and catch and lift. I hated it. I didn’t want to get my teeth knocked out.

So, I was good at flipping by myself and bad at working with the rest of the team.

In the first couple of years, my coaches would challenge me by having me spot the girls who flew in the air. The first time I spotted, the flyer landed on her back and sprained her elbow. The second (and last) time I spotted, our star flyer landed on her coccyx. I didn’t jump backward and away, covering my face while my teammates were falling to their death on purpose. It was instinctive self-preservation!

Again, I know! I was the worst! NOW WILL YOU STOP TALKING ABOUT IT, PLEASE!

Back then, I loved the buzz of being on the team, but I enjoyed the most isolated role. This wasn’t only a cheerleading thing for me. It was also, really until the last few years, how I functioned in relationships.

As a cheerleader, I liked wearing the team uniform, but only if I could do my own thing and not be dependent on anyone or have anyone dependent on me. In life, I always want to be at the party, but you can count on me having to go to the bathroom or slipping out the back door as soon as you go from small talk to deep talk. No thank you.

This tendency led to me hurting a lot of people. I’d be friendly, they’d misconstrue my friendliness for actual openness and love, and I would either fail to meet their expectations as a friend or tell them upfront, “Hey…let’s not even go where you’re going, because I’m going to fail to meet your expectations as a friend.”

Living this way wasn’t good for them and it wasn’t good for my soul, either. I thought I was okay because my life has always been very busy and full. But, I wasn’t growing. I wasn’t allowing God to use me to do anything in anyone’s life, and then I fought the guilt this brought by distracting myself with more busyness.

This has been my pattern until the last couple of years. I joined a small group at church a few years ago, and instead of being at arm’s distance, I actually got involved in these people’s lives and let them into mine. When I was afraid to do something that I knew God wanted me to do, I would tell this group instead of hiding it. I would ask them to pray.

They didn’t bulldoze my walls and force their way into my life. They actually didn’t ask anything of me at all. They just lived like Jesus in front of me, and that compelled me to put my defensive arms down. Their Christlikeness helped me notice my own un-Christlikeness and want what they have.

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. – Proverbs 27:17

I’m doing things and living in ways that would have scared me to death years ago, and it’s bringing me joy. My friendships have deepened and become sources of encouragement, rather that stress.

Letting myself be fully on a team with a group of people—tossing and catching and praying and diving under the person who is falling, and letting them catch me when I fall has proven to be such an extreme joy—it’s worth any head bump or bruised coccyx that has come with it.

So much has changed since flipping was part of my life. No longer am I the nervous show-off doing, whatever it takes to keep everyone on my team at a safe distance. Now I’m a nervous show-off who does life with people that make me want to be less like me and more like Jesus.

Scarlet Hiltibidal is the author of Afraid of All the Things. She loves sign language with her daughters, nachos by herself, writing for her friends, and learning how to be a pretend-farmer with her husband in Middle Tennessee. Follow her on Instagram at @scarlethiltibidal.

 

Church Leadership

Tornadic Activity in Your Group

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by Jared Musgrove

I grew up in Oklahoma where tornadoes are just part of life. You learn to live with getting out of their way. You also learn that there is not a true linear pattern to how they are formed. As I was raised to understand, tornadoes are dependent on weather conditions coming together just so if they are to exist. The conditions of lightning, rain, wind and clouds can exist and a tornado never form. Some of these may exist and then immediately a whirlwind ensues. Tornadoes don’t follow a particular pattern or process. Elements come together out of certain conditions, and all those elements must be present for a tornado to form.

Your Bible study group may isn’t all that different.

Your role is to ask God for the elements to come together in such a way that souls are spiritually formed when His Holy Spirit moves. Word. Prayer. Food. Fellowship. Encouragement. Accountability. These are some of the elements. Assemble and plan for them faithfully, and pray for the wind to blow.

After you place the extra chairs out, sit in the circle where you will have group that night. Pray over each chair that represents a soul who will sit together with others to celebrate the truth that the Father sent the Son. Raise empty hands of faith and ask the Lord to produce great fruit in you and your group members.

We cannot make the group happen, any more than we can create a tornado. But we can anticipate God’s bringing together of elements for the formation of a spiritual event in the lives of those who make up our group.

Jared Steven Musgrove serves as Groups Pastor and elder at The Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The University of Oklahoma, a Master of Divinity in preaching from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Ministry in leadership from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the husband of Jenny and the father of two sons, Jordan and Joshua. You can follow him on Twitter @jsmusgrove