• All Sites:
  • Pastors
  • Leadership
  • Kids Ministry
  • Student Ministry
  • Groups Ministry
  • Women's Ministry
  • Worship Ministry
LifeWay

Group Ministry

Conversations on Group Practices

  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Bible Study Insider
  • Groups Resources
  • Free Bible Teaching
Free Bible Teaching
June 22, 2020

Free Bible Characters Devotion for Your Group

By Deborah Spooner

The last few months have been incredibly unpredictable. 

What we have experienced as a nation and in our own personal lives is beyond what we anticipated when we rang in New Year for 2020.

As we strive to move forward, we’re facing much of the residual upheaval. We might be wondering about what we’ve seen inside ourselves as we’ve had time to hear our own thoughts. We might be wondering about our relationships as we’ve had to navigate conflict. We might be wondering about the future we thought was secure. We might be wondering what our once stable group dynamic will be like this fall.

Even though the specifics that moved us into this state of upheaval might be unique to this time and place, we know we are not the first ones to experience hardships and difficulties. In fact, trials, temptations, and challenges have been endured by believers for centuries.

What if we could learn from others? And not just anyone, but characters within the Bible?

They were human, just as we are. They struggled, just as we do. They made mistakes, but they also learned. As we all strive to continue seeking the Lord and growing through these challenging times, we can learn from their stories recorded in the Bible through a free 7-Day Characters devotional. 

Learn from Abraham, Ruth, Josiah, Malachi, Jesus, Philip, and Barnabas. The first devotional (centered on Abraham) is excerpted below. Use it to equip your group during this challenging time. You can download the entire 7 day devotional here, at lifeway.com/charactersdevotional. 

ABRAHAM

You’d be hard-pressed to find someone (other than Jesus) who figures more prominently in the Bible than Abraham. His story is referred to frequently by the biblical writers, and even by Jesus Himself.

But in the beginning, Abraham is just Abram, an aging and childless man who heard a simple call from God to go. Abram obeyed, and his story began as he followed God in faith, waiting for the fulfillment of the promises given to him. These promises frame the entire biblical story, for from Abram would come the nation of God’s chosen people, the Israelites. And in the New Testament, we find that Abraham’s fatherhood extends beyond blood to all those who believe in the same way that he did.

God told Abram to go, and that is what Abram did. Abram had a clear word from the Lord. God wanted him to leave the land where he lived and go to a new land. Abram was faced with the decision of obedience or disobedience.

This was a significant decision, and God knew it. To obey meant leaving everything he knew behind to pursue God’s promise. If Abram was willing to act in faith, then he would be the father of a great nation. He would be blessed, and his name would be made great. And in the end, every nation on the earth would be blessed through him. God chooses to use ordinary people who put their full faith in Him as conduits of His blessing to the ends of the earth. Those great blessings begin with people willing to take

God at His Word and step out in faith.

In Abram’s case, this promise was fulfilled in the person of Jesus. Through Jesus—born of the lineage of Abraham—people of every tongue and tribe can be blessed with the greatest gift, eternal life. When we turn from our sin and trust in Jesus we are grafted into the line of Abraham by faith. The blessing God promised Abraham belongs to us in Christ. And it all begins with a step of obedience, a willingness to trust Christ and respond to His call.

To learn more about the Characters Bible study series, visit lifeway.com/characters.

 

Free Bible Teaching
September 24, 2019

The Discipleship Group That Changed My Life

By Group Ministry

by Scarlet Hiltibidal 

I was twenty-something. My husband had recently become an ordained pastor. It felt fast and scary and wrong to me. We were babies. We were supposed to be wild and free. We were supposed to go to church or sleep too late and miss church, not be IN CHARGE of a church. As an act of semi-rebellion I, with my husband’s approval, got two tattoos (both Bible verses) within one week of him being ordained. Okay, I guess that’s not very rebellious, but kind of it was.

I was a bit of a mess those years early years of church ministry. During a few of them, I was a closeted bulimic. During a few of them, I was an uninvolved hider. During some months in there, I suffered a miscarriage and turned away from God — telling Him I did not have anything to say to Him. I did a lot of things wrong during those first years.

But, I never left the faith. I was held together by the body of Christ, who prayed FOR me when I wouldn’t, who discipled me when I was more immature and foolish than I am today. 

And I can think back to one particular discipleship group I was in when I was some season of my twenty-something messiness, that extraordinarily changed my life.

Because we were part of a large, multi-site church, there was a ministry specifically for the pastor’s wives there. One weekend, our group was scheduled to stay in a borrowed beach house in the Florida Keys for a “Pastor’s Wives Retreat.”

After eating crab cakes and settling in our rooms in the big house, we all congregated in the living room area. One of the older women said she thought it would be a good idea for each more seasoned mother to share their best advice with the younger mothers in the group.

I was trying so hard to have it together at that point in my life. I had a BABY. I wanted to be the perfect wife and mother. I wanted to make up for all my ministry mistakes and failures. I wanted God to approve of me and I always felt like He didn’t. 

So, I listened. I listened so intently as each woman shared her sleep training tips and disciplinary strategies. It all felt overwhelming until it got to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was the newest pastor’s wife. I didn’t know her. She was really pretty and really blonde and seemed confident and relaxed. She said something like, “My goal in my home isn’t to have perfect children or to be a perfect mother. That’s not even possible anyway… My goal is to live the gospel out in my home.”

She went on to explain that she failed her family all the time, but when she did, she apologized and asked for forgiveness. She said he prayed, out loud, prayers of repentance with her children. She said her goal was to live a life that displayed her need for Jesus and Jesus’ sufficiency in her, and if she was able to give that to her kids, then she’d consider her parenting a success.

She wasn’t saying, “do,” she was saying, “done.” She wasn’t saying, “you,” she was saying “Jesus.” And it’s not like I’d never heard His name before, but it had never sounded so sweet. His work had never sounded so complete.

That moment in that group with Elizabeth changed my life. It changed my family. It grew my  faith and gave me hope for ministry, as I began to base my approved status on Jesus’ perfection, not my own attempts to be good enough.

Whatever your group is — whether it’s a sermon-based group or a book-study group or a group for Christian musicians or an outreach for preschool moms — if the gospel is lifted up, if the already done, amazing work of Jesus is made central and beautiful, hearts and lives will change.

Preach the gospel in your group. Be repetitive and ask your people to preach it back to you. We are rebels and hiders and bulimics. We are scared and tired and in over our heads. But Jesus has already died and risen and won. He forgives and saves and leads us out of hiding and fear and self-imposed exhaustion. Our hearts need to be reminded that we are loved and safe and free because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Discipleship groups that highlight that are the ones that will change the world, one broken heart at a time.

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” — Jesus, Matthew 28:19-20

Scarlet Hiltibidal is the author of Afraid of All the Things and He Numbered the Pores on My Face. She also writes a regular column for ParentLife Magazine and enjoys speaking to women around the country about the freedom and rest available in Jesus. Scarlet lives in Middle Tennessee, where she loves sign language with her daughters, nachos by herself, writing for her friends, and learning how to raise ducks with her husband for no reason other than cuteness.

 

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 6 – Seeking in Our Doubt

By Joey Jacob

Session 6
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s6.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:16 — 7.8MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 5 – Experiencing the Kingdom

By Joey Jacob

Session 5
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s5.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:44 — 2.4MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 4 – The Path to Life

By Joey Jacob

Session 4
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s4.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 0:54 — 2.0MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 3 – Spiritual Growth

By Joey Jacob

Session 3
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s3.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 0:48 — 1.9MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 2 – The Power of Faith

By Joey Jacob

Session 2
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s2.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:09 — 2.3MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus Ep. 1 – Revealing His Identity

By Joey Jacob

Session 1
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_s1.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:17 — 1.9MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Knowing Jesus
April 16, 2019

Knowing Jesus – Audio Trailer

By Joey Jacob

Audio Trailer
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/knowingJesus/KnowingJesus_promo_20160728_.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:32 — 2.5MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

Free Bible Teaching, Making Space
April 16, 2019

Making Space Ep. 8 – Hospitality

By Joey Jacob

Session 8
http://media.blubrry.com/groupsmatter/p/media.blubrry.com/lifewayleadership/p/ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/freebibleteaching/makingspace/Making%20Space%20-%20Session%208%20edit%203A%20Final_w-credits_r1204.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 10:52 — 14.9MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Spotify | RSS

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 15
  • Next Page »

Subscribe to Group Ministry

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

previous arrow
next arrow
Slider

Subscribe to Podcast

Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidby EmailRSS

Follow Group Ministry on Instagram

…

Follow Group Ministry on Facebook

Follow Group Ministry on Facebook

All Ministry Sites

Pastors
Leadership
Kids Ministry
Student Ministry
Groups Ministry
Women’s Ministry
Worship Ministry

Digital Resources

Ministry Grid
LifeWay Worship
Digital Church
KidEvent Pro
MyCurriculum Manager
Simulcast Manager
LifeWay Reader eBooks
Generosity
WORDsearch
SmallGroup.com

LifeWay Network

LifeWay Research
B&H
Ridgecrest

Copyright © 2021 · LifeWay Christian Resources · All Rights Reserved