Get Packing - Connect Groups
Introduction
Introduction
It’s summer, the sun is shining, and it’s time to get packing!
This month the epic foundational story of Exodus is going to help us get packing with God! We ask the Holy Spirit to move us from where we have been to where we are going — into newness of life. To let go of the past so that we can immerse ourselves in the promise of the present.
We begin by asking — as the Hebrews did — what are we leaving behind? What do we want to no longer carry into our new life with God? What are we glad to be rid of and what do we need help letting go of? Following on from that, like the Hebrews hurriedly preparing for the first Passover, what are we wanting to take with us? What is essential? Often what we pack are not ‘things’ at all, but traits like curiosity, hope, confidence, and open heartedness that God uses to equip and enthuse us.
Then, as we join the Hebrews wandering in the wilderness, we check in with how we are going. Are we going round in circles or, worse, going backwards? Are we on the lookout for manna, and are we open to resting, re-setting and reconfiguring along the way? And finally as the theme draws to a close we look ahead to the urgent. immediate Gospel of Mark that begins in a different wilderness — but with the same people — asking insistently, ‘So what now?’ If we are getting packing with God are we open to our restless Messiah Jesus’s call to adventure to discover the burgeoning Kingdom all around us!
• Week 1 What are we leaving? — Getting rid and letting go.
• Week 2 What are we packing? — The essentials we need to pack.
• Week 3 How are we going? — Two steps forward, one step back, and several sideways!
• Week 4 What now? — Anticipating the Kingdom and revelations of divine glory!
SEEDS TO SOW: We have a 'Seeds to Sow' phrase at the beginning of each section. These are open-ended and optional and are designed for people wanting to develop their own ideas/resources in response to the material. Perhaps if using this material as a group you could use these prompts to inspire a time of prayer, or drawing, or creative writing? They are intended to be short and sweet, simply a starting off place for you and your imagination, be encouraged to tailor/develop as suits your group.
Download the Discussion Questions as a PDF
These discussion questions adapt our monthly theme for small Connect Groups or personal Bible study. 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.
