We invite you to follow along with us as we explore our new theme The Sacred is Calling. You can use this material for group discussion or personal Bible study. Check out each week's section, watch the introductory video to each week's sub theme and read and reflect your way through this month's passages.

When does something become sacred? When does a place, or a sign, or an action, or a gesture, or an object, or a sound temporarily become something more… something that points us to something bigger, a glimpse of divine justice, mercy and grace?

This month we are searching for the sacred. Where do we find it? How do we recognise it? How do we cherish it? And how are we changed by encountering it?

There are moments in our lives that have special value and meaning because they give us profound insights into God’s eternal reality. Jesus spoke about ‘the kingdom’ as a way of describing God’s ongoing divine project of peace and restoration for creation. In a sense the Kingdom has already arrived and yet it is still emerging and growing — coming alongside us to show us that another way of harmony and dignity and love is possible. As disciples of Jesus we follow in the footsteps of the Kingdom speaking sacred words and doing sacred things to remind one another of our calling to be part of God’s renewed creation.

Download the Discussion Questions as a PDF

These discussion questions adapt our monthly themes for small Connect Groups or personal Bible study (look up the The Sacred is Calling Resource Pack PDF for more information on this month's theme). The questions are divided into 4 parts to correspond with the 4 weeks of the Daily Worship theme. They are offered as a guideline and there is no need to go through all the given questions in a single session, or in the following sequence. Feel free to pick and choose, or adapt to what interests you or your group.

Find out more on this month's theme: The Sacred is Calling

What are Connect Groups? 

‘Connect Groups’ is the name we give to small informal gatherings who decide to meet together to explore the Bible alongside our monthly themes. These groups are independent and folk can simply set up their own Connect Group themselves, meeting together with friends and family on their own basis. In this time of Lockdowns when people can’t get together physically this material can still be used to meet together online.

Each month we produce a range of questions to adapt our themes for group discussion. The material is offered as a starting point and there is no need to go through all the questions.You can pick and choose, tailoring it to suit the needs and interests of your group. Each ‘Part’ could form the basis of a weekly roughly 90 minute meeting but you could break it up differently. Let us know if you would like to find out more about Connect Groups and different ways of linking into the Sanctuary First community.

We all come to the Bible with our own questions, insights and barriers. The guiding principle we have in writing these is to ask questions we don’t already know the answer to! Our hope is to facilitate open-ended discussions. Often the most valuable parts of group chats are the bits that go off on bizarre tangents. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Jesus knows a thing or two about bizarre tangents…

Need some advice on starting your own Connect Group? Get in touch.