Introduction

Introduction

Over Lent we want to cultivate a real understanding of what it means to follow Jesus in today’s world. We move from the place of preparation in February’s theme Prayers for Living, and now as this new season begins we are out on a journey like Jesus’s first followers! But it’s not the same road, we cannot travel with the disciples the way they did, for their story has been and we have the perspective of the Third Day of Jesus’s resurrection to draw from.

This year we travel in parallel with the disciples, not so much going into their world as we are weaving them into ours! How can we move through Lent mindful that Jesus wants us to invite him into the here and now rather than escape into his past? What happens when we look through our lives with resurrection eyes, as we let the events of Jesus’s first followers unfold in our own world. As well as the Gospels we will have a particular focus on Psalms, poetry, and our relationship with God.

Each week we begin with a psalm as the Psalms help us to engage with all the passion of life from the depths of despair to the heights of joy. You could say that the eternal hope of The Third Day is almost written into them, the light of God that meets us in the midst of our complex lives. The resonance of the Third Day of resurrection and reconciliation is woven into human experience and is richly expressed through this ancient poetry.

Join us over Lent as we take time to reflect on place, passion, poetry, praise, paths, poverty, providence, pasture, patience, pardon, pain and presence! The journey to the resurrection is not one back in time, for the resurrection comes to find us wherever and whenever we are…

Sanctuary First would like to thank Jock Stein who helped us in developing the framework for the weekly sub-themes focused around a different psalm each week and for all the words beginning with P!

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 themes for small Connect Groups or personal Bible study (look up the The Third Day Resource Pack PDF for more information on this month's theme). The questions are divided into 6 parts to correspond with the 6 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 how to get involved: Connect group Blog