Week One

Part 1: Restless God talk leads to a restful mind

All of our questions are intended as a starting point, feel free to adapt to your context and circumstances.

Read Genesis 32: 22-31


Jacob’s family life was complicated. 11 sons, 1 daughter, 2 wives, estranged from his brother... His life up to this point has been a wrestle — whether with his twin, his dad or his father-in-law. But tonight Jacob would face the wrestle of his life that would leave him limping.

How do you think Jacob would have been affected in his various roles as dad/husband/brother/ son-in-law after this transformative experience of coming face to face with God?

Read Matthew 14: 13-21

We commonly refer to this event as ‘The Feeding of the Five Thousand’ but there were more than five thousand fed! Apparently the women and children were in addition to the five thousand.

What would be an alternative name to describe this moment?

Read 1 Peter 5: 6-11

These words remind us that we are in solidarity with brothers and sisters outside of our conventional family units. Luis Palua the Argentinian evangelist is credited with saying “God has no grandchildren” and in Christ we have no second-cousins-once-removed... just brothers and sisters!

In what ways can remembering our brothers and sisters across the globe regularly in our prayers help us with our own anxieties?