Sermon-Based Small Group Lessons
Frazzled: Be Bold
Les
Hughes
January
11, 2009
Opening Question
& Scirpture
Sometimes God causes unpredictable things in our
lives to help us trust him. Share
of a time in your life when you most needed (and maybe learned) to trust Him.
Read
the Philippians passage. Ask the
group to listen to what we can learn about boldness?
Philippians 1:20-30
20I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but
will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my
body, whether by life or by death. 21For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22If I am to go on living
in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I
do not know! 23I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ,
which is better by far; 24but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25Convinced
of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for
your progress and joy in the faith, 26so that through my being
with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me.
27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the
gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my
absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for
the faith of the gospel 28without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This
is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be
saved—and that by God. 29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to
believe on him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are going
through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
Share what you learned about boldness from the
passage.
Read the 2 Samuel passage below.
2 Samuel 23:20-23
20 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a
valiant fighter from Kabzeel, who performed great
exploits. He struck down two of Moab's best men. He also went down into a pit
on a snowy day and killed a lion. 21 And he
struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear
from the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear. 22 Such
were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he too was as famous as the three mighty men. 23 He was
held in greater honor than any of the Thirty, but he was not included among the
Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
What do we know about Benaiah
based on this passage?
1. Life-changing lesson #1 states: “God is bigger than any problem I’ll
ever face.” What keeps believers
today from finding joy and peace in this truth? (lack of faith,
trust, experiences of faith, etc.)
2. Les said that our boldness (confidence
in God) in trying situations leads to joy.
How does that work in our lives?
Why is this so?
3. Life-changing lesson #2 states: “God may not intervene until
something is humanly impossible. He
loves impossible odds.”
4. Les shared
that our only natural fears are falling and loud
noises. Everything else is
learned. What is the one thing you
fear God would ask you to do?
5. Life-changing
lesson #3 states: “Godly
boldness (confidence in God) causes a person to act differently than is
expected.” Can you think of a
time you’ve seen someone act unexpectedly as a result of their faith?
6. Les compared
reading God’s word as “downloading a new operating system.” If God has made a difference in our
lives, don’t you think we have to operate differently than the people of
this world?
7. Life-changing
lesson #4 states: “God has a
way of strategically placing people at the right place at just the right time.” Sometimes it looks like the wrong place
at the wrong time. When is a time
you or someone you know have providentially been in the right place at the
right time?
8. Life-changing
lesson #5 states: “God uses
past experiences to prepare us for future opportunities.” Can you name some examples of this in
your life? How was God glorified by
this?
9. James 4:17 says that if we don’t
do what we know we ought to do, that is sin. Les encouraged us to trust God for the
impossible. That is what God wants
us to do. That is faith. Name one impossible thing that you think
God would like to happen that you may need to trust Him for.
10. Life-changing lesson #6 states: “God doesn’t measure success
by whether there is a happy ending.”
We can find true joy when God is glorified. Are there some events that you’ve
seen happen to Godly people that didn’t seem to be a happy ending?
Sometimes
we won’t know the happy ending (how God used events on earth) until we
are in heaven.
What
is God calling you to do as a result of today’s study? Is there a situation you need to give to
Him?
Memory Verse
Philippians
1:21
For to me, to live is Christ and to die
is gain.