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WEEKLY READINGS
(Click on six-week Topic Heading for questions discussed.)
The Challenge of Humility: Is Humility a Key to Wisdom? 
“I face a lot of issues every single day. Stuff at church goes in one ear and out the other. How in the world can I ‘sanctify everyday circumstances’? I’m torn between the demands of the my job, my work, my family, people all over, …and my faith. How can I handle it all? How can I stay the right size?”
A Confident Faith: Isaiah 50: 4c-9a
- To what degree does a simple and confident faith play a role in your life?
- How much do you rely on God to help you in your daily life? Is the Lord God your help?
- What does it mean to you to “set [your] face like flint”? Do you do this?
Getting the Message: Mark 9:50-57
- As with so much of Jesus’ ministry, the disciples, at the beginning of this passage, hear a clear and direct message from Jesus and miss it – or don’t get it. Think about and discuss what kinds of messages from Jesus you miss, don’t get, or choose not to pay attention to.
- Jesus tells the apostles who are arguing about which of them is the greatest, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” How do you make sense of this statement in terms of your life: especially in your job, in your family, and in your relationships with others?
- How well do you put your arms around children, that is, around the least among us?
Woe to the Rich: James 5:1-6
- To what degree does the reading speak to you or repel you? Do you take James’ reproach of the rich seriously? Is Jesus with the poor more than the rich, in your mind? To what degree do James’s angry words apply to the world today?
- Is James talking to you? Are you the “rich”? Or rather in what ways are you the “rich”? Is it important to become less “rich,” either monetarily or otherwise in order to be a follower of Christ?
- Is there a place for humility in your life – for simplicity or poverty of any kind?
Saved by Humility: Hebrews 2:9-11
- What does it mean to you that God made himself “lower than angels” for us? Do you think of Jesus as humble or lowly? What difference does Jesus’ lowly human condition make in your life?
- Are you ever ashamed to call Jesus your brother? What people in your life or distant from you are you sometimes “ashamed” to call brother?
- Have you, personally, ever been saved or redeemed through suffering? Can you think of examples of such redemptive suffering in your life?
True Wealth: Wisdom 7:7-11
- Think about how you pray. Do you pray for the spirit of wisdom to come to you? What does this kind of prayer for the spirit of wisdom mean?
- What role do power and control (“scepter and throne”) play in your life? Do they keep you from finding wisdom?
- What is humility? Is there wisdom in humility for you? Does this wisdom mean opting for something intangible, non-material, “beyond health and comeliness,” beyond wealth?
True Greatness: Mark 10:35-45
- What does Jesus mean by his idea that “whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant” and “whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all”? Does this idea apply to your life?
- Where is the Kingdom of God? In what way does being a “great one” keep you from the Kingdom? Or does it? Should it?
- James and John ask of Jesus what they want of Him. What do you want from your messiah? How does he serve you? How do you serve him? Are you a servant?
Gifts And Calling: What Is the Will of God for My Life?
“I believe I have a gift, but I don’t think God wants me to use it the way I’ve always wanted to. How can I be sure I’m hearing him, and how long must I wait to see what he has for me?”
High Calling: God's Instruments; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11
Investing Yourself: Parable of the talents; Matthew 25:14-30
Hearing God: Listening to the shepherds voice; John 10:1-21
Running Ahead: God only knows; James 4:13-17
Lagging Behind: Jonah runs away from God; Jonah 1:1-16
Two Sabbath Controversies; Matthew 12:1-14
Pain and Suffering: Where Is God When It Hurts?
"My best friend died in a car wreck. My grandfather died of cancer. My sister has MS. My parents got divorced. If God is supposed to be good and loving, how can he allow such terrible things to happen?”
Harsh Realities: Job loses it all, Job 1:1-22
When will it end? The Fruit of Suffering, James 1:1-18
Hard Lessons: Why was he born blind? John 9:1-40
Finding God: God's whisper: 1 Kings,1-18
Comforted by Others: Four friends who cared, Mark 2:1-12
Things Can Change: The Pain and The Hope, Romans 8:18-27
Discipleship: Being a Man after God’s Own Heart
“Could anyone tell me what it means to be a man of God? I’m tired of pious Jesus talk and Sunday Christians. If I’m going to go for Christianity, I’m going all the way.”
God’s Man at Home: Love like Christ, Ephesians 5:22-6:10
Spreading the Word: Ambassador for Christ, 2 Cor 5:11-21
Teachable Spirit: Peter’s stretching vision, Acts 10:1-33
Obedience: Abiding in the vine, John 15:1-17
Total Commitment: The rich man, Mark 10:17-31
Fighting Spirit: The armor of God, Ephesians 6:10-24
Attitude Adjustment: Down but Not Out
“Pressure is closing in on me, too many demands, not enough time. Money, my job, my kids, things are out of control and getting worse.”
Fourth and Goal: Peter steps out of the boat, Matthew 14:22-33
Family Stress: Fracas in the family, Luke 15:11-32
Blowing It: Peter denies Jesus, Luke 22: 54-65
Chaos: Looking to what is eternal, 2 Corinthians 4:1-18
Demands: Paul’s boasting, 2 Corinthians 11:16-33
Pressures: Weighed down beyond our strength, 2 Corinthians 1:1-11
Men At Work: Performance Anxiety
“I constantly feel like my job is on the line. I'm always afraid I'm not measuring up. Even when I'm home, I worry about work.”
Being Content: Abram gives Lot a lot, Genesis 13:1-18
Worry Warts: Moses under stress, Exodus 5:22-6:13
Working for Tyrants: Pharaoh’s hard-heartedness, Exodus 5:1-21
What’s God’s Responsibility? God Fights Gideon’s Battles, Judges 7:1-25
What’s My Responsibility? Parable of the Talents, Matthew 25:14-30
Who Is the Boss? Workers in the Vineyard, Mathew 20: 1-16
Masculinity: Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?
“I get mixed messages about what a man should be. I know Jesus is God, but is He also someone I can look to as the ultimate man?”
The Triumphant Jesus: Jesus’ death, Luke: 23:44-49
The Tender Jesus: “Jesus wept”, John 11:1-44
The Tough Jesus: Temple cleansing time, Mark 11:15-19
The Initiated Jesus: Baptized and tempted, Matthew 3:13-14:11
The Human Jesus: “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?”, Luke 4:14-30
The Devine Jesus: “God is with us”, Matthew 1:18-25
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