Discussion Guides For Gulf Coast Community Church

Group Discussion Guide

The Father’s Joy (Advent 2025, Part 4)

Text: Romans 15:7 to 13

Sermon Points:

• The giver of joy
• The resistance of joy
• The witness of joy

🙂 Opening Prayer

Ask God to make your group honest, unified, and expectant.

Invite the Spirit to form joy that is rooted in truth, not circumstance.

🧊 Icebreaker

Where do you most feel “night” right now, and what would “dawn” look like in that area of your life?

🕯️ Read Scripture Together (NIV)

Read Romans 15:7 to 13 aloud together.

Encourage different voices to read portions if the group is large.

1) The Giver of Joy

Key Sermon Quotes

"Accept one another then just as Christ accepted you"

"Our joy comes from His faithfulness"

Discuss

What makes acceptance hard in a church context

What does it look like to welcome someone without trying to fix them first

Where do you personally struggle to receive Christ’s welcome

Orthodoxy

Right belief. What is true?

According to Romans 15:7 to 13, where does joy ultimately come from

How does Paul connect joy, peace, and hope to God’s faithfulness rather than human circumstances

Why is Christ’s resurrection essential to the kind of joy described in this passage

How do the Old Testament quotations reshape the idea that joy was always meant for the nations

What does it mean to say that Advent joy is resurrection shaped rather than sentimental

Group Action Step Together

As a group, choose one concrete act of welcome this week.

Examples include inviting a newer person to lunch, serving together on Christmas Eve, or writing welcome notes for first time guests.

2) The Resistance of Joy

Key Sermon Quotes

"Rejoicing isn't pretending everything is fine"

"Joy fades when the lie becomes louder than the Gospel"

"Joy returns when the Gospel becomes louder than the lie"

Discuss

What lies tend to dominate your inner narrative when you are tired or stressed

How does Scripture function as resistance rather than just information

What helps you make the gospel louder in daily life

Orthopathos

Right affection. What are we learning to love and trust?

When joy feels distant, what emotions or fears tend to rise up in you first

Which of the lies named in the sermon do you find most convincing in your own life and why

How does the image of waiting for the sunrise help you understand joy in seasons of darkness

What does it look like for hope to shape your posture before circumstances change

In what ways does trusting God reshape how you experience peace and joy right now

Group Action Step Together

Do a five minute practice together.

Each person names one lie they are currently fighting.

The group responds with one gospel truth and a short prayer for that person.

3) The Witness of Joy

Key Sermon Quote

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him"

Discuss

What would it look like for your community to overflow this week

How does unity strengthen witness without requiring uniformity

Who is watching your life right now, and what do they see

Orthopraxy

Right practice. How do we live this together?

What would it look like for our community to accept one another more fully in this season

How can rejoicing function as an act of resistance in your daily life this week

What practices help make the gospel louder than the lies you face

How might joy become more visible in the way you relate to others, especially those who feel on the margins

Where is God inviting you to participate in being a witness of hope, peace, and joy during Advent

Group Action Step Together

Plan one outward act of mercy or outreach you can do together in the next seven days.

Set a date, assign roles, and keep it simple.

🙏 Closing Prayer Prompt

Pray Romans 15:13 for one another by name.

Ask God to fill your group with joy and peace as you trust Him, and to make your life together a visible witness of His mercy.

📘 Group Discussion Guide

Where the Morning Star Rises

Text: 2 Peter 1:1–11, 16–19; 3:10–14

🧭 Overview

Peter calls the church to live with the light of Christ’s return already shining in our lives. We don’t wait passively—we are being formed now. This guide helps your group reflect on how grace, peace, holiness, and love prepare us to be found ready when Christ returns.

☁️ 1. The Days of Darkness

📖 Read 2 Peter 1:1–4

Peter opens by reminding believers that everything they need for godly living has already been given.

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance.”

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life.”

💬 Discussion Questions

What do you think Peter means by “everything we need”?

How does peace grow in a world that feels so dark?

What “darkness” are we most tempted to conform to?

✅ Group Action Step

Name one practice this week that could help you resist being shaped by the world and instead grow in godliness (e.g., Scripture, prayer, fasting, simplicity, etc.)

🙏 Prayer Prompt

Pray for the Spirit to expose where your formation has been shaped more by culture than by Christ.

🌅 2. The Day of Righteousness

📖 Read 2 Peter 3:10–13

Peter speaks of the coming day when righteousness will dwell.

“Scripture gives one clear and simple answer - live holy and godly lives.”

“We hasten the day when we are found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in His sight.”

💬 Discussion Questions

What emotions arise when you think about Christ’s return?

How can we live in a way that “hastens” the day of the Lord?

What’s the difference between legalism and godly pursuit?

✅ Group Action Step

As a group, choose one way to embody peace and justice this month: visit a shut-in, serve a neighbor, forgive someone, or advocate for someone in need.

🙏 Prayer Prompt

Pray that God would form in you holy urgency without fear or perfectionism.

⭐ 3. The Daystar Within

📖 Read 2 Peter 1:16–19

Peter describes the morning star rising in our hearts as the light of Christ’s future breaking into our present.

“Until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”

“Listening to Jesus is listening to the Gospel.”

“When we not only hear the teaching of Jesus but set out to live it the day begins to dawn.”

💬 Discussion Questions

What does it look like for the “daystar” to rise in a person’s life?

Why is it significant that this happens in our hearts and not just in the sky?

What teachings of Jesus challenge you most? What teachings bring peace?

✅ Group Action Step

Choose a Gospel teaching of Jesus (e.g., the Beatitudes, love your enemies, forgive 70 times 7) and commit to encouraging each other to live it out for the next week.

🙏 Prayer Prompt

Pray for the “morning star” to rise in your hearts—individually and as a community. Ask that your shared life would shine like a city on a hill.

🔎 4. The Day of Discovery

📖 Read 2 Peter 3:14 and Matthew 7:24–27

Peter and Jesus both make it clear that storms and judgment will expose how we’ve been formed.

“Storms do not form us they expose what has already been formed.”

“Our formation in Christ is what will matter.”

💬 Discussion Questions

What storms (past or present) revealed your formation—good or bad?

Are you focused more on knowing the truth or becoming the truth?

How can we help one another be found ready—not reactive?

✅ Group Action Step

Develop a spiritual formation plan together. What practices, disciplines, or relationships help form Christ in you? Consider doing one weekly check-in.

🙏 Prayer Prompt

Ask God to deepen your group’s formation—not just with knowledge but love, peace, endurance, and humility.

🧺 Group Practice Challenge

For the next 4 weeks, challenge your group to embody these four marks of formation:

Peace – speak peace into conflict or tension

Holiness – resist one habit that compromises your witness

Love – show sacrificial affection to someone in your life

Readiness – put one teaching of Jesus into consistent practice

💡 Tip: Check in weekly and celebrate what God is forming in you together!

✨ Closing Prayer

“May the morning star rise in our hearts.”

Lord, shape us into a peaceful people. Form us into a holy people. Let the light of your coming day shine in our hearts and in our community. May we be found ready. Amen.

🙌 Group Discussion Guide

Advent 2025: Living in Hope of the Returning King

Text Luke 19 verses 11 to 27

Sermon points

• An Unfamiliar Story
• An Abundant Investment
• Hope Empowered Living

1 Opening

📖 Read aloud

Luke 19 verses 11 to 13 NIV

While they were listening to this he went on to tell them a parable because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once He said A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas Put this money to work he said until I come back

💬 Opening quote

Read this together

“Whatever we expect will make the world right that is what we hope in.”

🗣 Warm up questions

When you hear the word hope what is the first thing that comes to mind

Share a time when your expectations about God did not match what actually happened How did that affect your hope

Group action step for opening

As a group list common hopes people around you live for success politics comfort family Then pray briefly together asking the Spirit to reveal where your own hopes might have shifted

2 An Unfamiliar Story

Key quote

“Everyone in the story acts according to their future expectation according to their hope.”

📖 Read

Luke 19 verses 14 to 21 NIV

🧠 Discuss

In the sermon we heard that “the parable is about how subjects of a kingdom are to live during the journey.” How does that shift the way you have usually heard or taught this parable

The first hearers knew stories of rulers traveling to Rome to receive kingdoms often with opposition How does that historical background help you feel the tension of this parable

You heard that “if we are not loyal to Jesus and his ways we are being loyal to the king of darkness.” In practical everyday ways what might loyalty to the old king look like for believers today

🤝 Group action step

As a group identify two or three “old king” patterns that are common in your context such as political fear consumerism or contempt for enemies Write them down and commit together to pray against them this Advent

🙏 Short prayer prompt

Lord Jesus reveal where our lives still reflect loyalty to the old king Teach us to live as citizens of your kingdom even while the journey feels unsettled

3 An Abundant Investment

Key quotes

“I am going to call it God's grace That is the thirty thousand dollar investment.”

“Grace is the kingdom currency but we can only spend it when we have hope true Christian hope that he is indeed returning and will set all things right.”

📖 Read

Luke 19 verses 22 to 26 NIV

Then also read Titus 2 verses 11 to 14 NIV

🧠 Discuss

In what ways has God entrusted “kingdom currency” to you personally Gifts time resources opportunities forgiveness

Where have you seen the church joyfully spend grace Where have you seen the church bury grace

“We bury grace because we think revenge will work better than forgiveness” and “we bury grace because we think power will work better than mercy.” Which of those temptations hits closest to home for you Why

📝 Group action step

Together choose one situation in your church or community where grace needs to be “put to work” It could be reconciling with someone helping a family in need or supporting a person who has failed Make a simple plan with names and steps then pray for courage to follow through

4 Hope Empowered Living

Key quotes

“This parable teaches us that the Christian's hope should empower risky obedience because we expect our king's return to set all things right.”

“The unfaithful servant acts timidly because he does not expect it He fears the worst and expects the kingdom to fail His problem is not laziness it is hopelessness.”

“We have to risk it all on the sure hope of Christ's return and judgment to set all things right.”

📖 Read

First Peter 1 verses 3 to 5 NIV

🧠 Discuss

What are some examples of “risky obedience” that you see in the teaching of Jesus

How does the difference between hope and hopelessness show up in the three servants

Where do you see hopelessness creeping into your own discipleship Is it in prayer in generosity in courage to speak about Jesus

You heard that “real acts of faith feel risky but the path of faith is the only path to reward.” Share a time when obedience felt risky at the time but now you can see the fruit

🤲 Group action step together

As a group choose one shared act of risky obedience you can do this Advent Examples

Invite a neighbor to a gathering or service

Commit to a generous gift for someone or a ministry that stretches you

Approach someone you have avoided and seek reconciliation

Set a timeline and decide who will take which part Then plan to report back next meeting

5 Judgment as fulfillment of hope

Key quotes

“Judgment is the fulfillment of our hope Judgment is the moment when the king puts all things right.”

“On the day of his return allegiance or trust is determined by whether we lived in the ways of the new king or the old.”

📖 Read

Matthew 25 verses 31 to 40 NIV

🧠 Discuss

What words or feelings usually come to mind when you think about the final judgment

How does seeing judgment as the day when the King sets all things right change your feelings

In what practical ways should our view of that day shape the way we treat “the least of these brothers and sisters” now

If someone in your group is anxious about judgment how might this sermon help you encourage them

6 Closing reflection and prayer

📝 Reflection question for the circle

Each person complete this sentence

Because of this message I want to shift my hope from and toward and I want to spend grace this week by

🙏 Group prayer prompt

Use these sermon lines as prompts and pray slowly through them together

“Lord we have often had a pagan view of hope.”

“Help us to put your grace to work while we wait.”

“Teach us to risk it all on the sure hope of Christ's return and judgment to set all things right.”

🙌 Group Discussion Guide

Sermon Title

Gratitude for an Unshakeable Kingdom

Text

Hebrews 12

Daniel 2

Selected passages from Acts and Romans

Sermon Structure

Gratitude for an Unshakeable Kingdom

Gratitude for a Crushing Kingdom

Gratitude for an Unmerited Kingdom

🌟 Opening

Welcome and Centering Thought

Begin by inviting the group to breathe, slow down, and remember that God is present with them.

Read Aloud (Quote)

“Gratitude is the pulsating heartbeat of every positive response to the Gospel.”

Opening Prayer Prompt

Ask the Lord to calm anxious hearts, increase gratitude, and help each person see that they are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken.

1. Gratitude for an Unshakeable Kingdom

📖 Hebrews 12:25 to 29

Key Quotes

“You may feel like your life is insecure, it's unstable.”

“And when the shaking happens the only thing that's gonna be left over is God's kingdom.”

“It's a sign of the powerlessness of men and our systems.”

Discussion Questions

Where do you personally feel instability right now.

How does Hebrews 12 challenge your instinct to grasp for control.

How does the image of everything shaking except God's kingdom give courage.

Connection to Jesus

Hebrews says Jesus is the one who now speaks from heaven. How does listening to Jesus instead of reacting to fear shape the way we live.

Group Action Step

As a group identify one real situation where someone feels shaken (job loss, finances, relationships, ministry discouragement).

Commit to doing one tangible act of support for that person this week.

This allows the group to embody what the sermon called “the culture of heaven on earth.”

2. Gratitude for a Crushing Kingdom

📖 Daniel 2:44

📖 Acts 17:6 to 7

Key Quotes

“God's kingdom crushes all other kingdoms.”

“The Kingdom of God is growing and it cannot be smashed by the most powerful kingdoms of the world.”

“You Gulf Coast are part of a crushing kingdom that's growing.”

Discussion Questions

Which earthly kingdoms or systems feel most intimidating to you.

How does Daniel 2 expand your view of the real power structures in the world.

What does it mean that the heavenly stone grows into a mountain that fills the whole earth.

Connection to Jesus

Acts describes Christians as people who live as if there is “another king Jesus.”

How might allegiance to Jesus force us to make different choices than our culture expects.

Group Action Step

Role play scenarios

• someone in political tension

• someone in workplace pressure

• someone facing relational conflict

Practice responding with Christlike courage and gentleness instead of reacting in fear.

Afterward discuss where Jesus is inviting each of you to trust His kingdom more deeply.

3. Gratitude for an Unmerited Kingdom

📖 Romans 12:1 to 2

📖 Philippians 3:20

Key Quotes

“Therefore since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken let us show gratitude.”

“If I'm just passively receiving this kingdom it it must be unmerited must just be given to me.”

“My citizenship is in heaven.”

Discussion Questions

Why is it hard to believe that the kingdom is something we receive rather than earn.

Where do you see signs of earning mentality in your own spiritual life.

How does gratitude change the way we serve God and others.

Connection to Jesus

Jesus endured the cross “for the joy set before Him.”

Talk about how His endurance gives strength for your endurance.

Group Action Step

As a group list ways God has shown mercy to your church, your group, and individual members over the past year.

Choose one way to respond together

• serve in a ministry

• bless a family in need

• adopt a mercy project

• commit to weekly prayer for another church

This creates a shared expression of gratitude.

4. Living the Unshakeable Life Together

Key Quotes

“You have the victory you are receiving the kingdom It's being given to you and it is going to prevail.”

“So are you trusting in Jesus Christ and living His in His unshakeable kingdom.”

Discussion Questions

Where are you tempted to trust something shakable instead of Jesus.

What practical habits could help this group cultivate an unshakeable mindset.

What would it look like for your group to be a pillar of calm and trust in a shaken world.

Group Spiritual Practice

Take 90 seconds of silence

Ask

“Lord where am I trusting something shakable more than You.”

Share briefly. Then pray for one another with hands on shoulders.

🙏 Closing Prayer Prompt

Father thank You for Your unshakeable kingdom. Thank You that we receive it as a gift and not a wage. Help us trust Jesus above all shakable things. Fill our group with gratitude for what cannot be taken away and send us to live out the culture of heaven on earth this week. Amen.

🙌 Group Discussion Guide

Cultivating Gratitude: The Church as a Community of Lepers Made Whole

Text: Luke 17:11 to 19

📖 Sermon Structure

Christ Makes Lepers Whole

Paul, a Leper Made Whole

The Church, a Community of Lepers Made Whole

🙏 Opening Prayer Prompt

Father, thank You that in Jesus, You have made us whole. Open our hearts today. Let us not take Your healing for granted, but grow in deep gratitude for You and for one another. Teach us to love. Teach us to see. Shape our hearts with Your Word.

✳️ Discussion Section 1: Christ Makes Lepers Whole

📖 Read: Luke 17:11 to 19

🗣️ “Christ makes lepers whole and He is still healing us through one another.”

🗣️ “The gospel makes friends of enemies.”

🗣️ “He restores us to the community of His people.”

Questions to Discuss:

What do you notice about the ten men with leprosy and Jesus' response?

Why do you think only one came back to give thanks?

What does this story teach us about healing and gratitude?

How does Jesus not only heal physically, but restore people to community?

Group Action Step:

As a group, write out 5 things you are grateful for about your community group. Share them with someone in your church family who may feel isolated or discouraged.

✳️ Discussion Section 2: Paul, a Leper Made Whole

📖 Read: Philippians 1:3 to 5 and Acts 28:15

🗣️ “At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and received courage.”

🗣️ “Did you know that simply seeing the people of God can give you courage?”

🗣️ “Recommit daily to humility. Teachability. Guard against spiritual pride.”

Questions to Discuss:

Why do you think Paul was so overwhelmed with gratitude when he saw the believers in Rome?

What role does gratitude play in our relationships within the church?

How has your faith been strengthened by the people around you?

Where might pride be blocking deeper community in your life?

Group Action Step:

This week, each group member sends one note of encouragement to someone in your church. Celebrate what God is doing through others.

✳️ Discussion Section 3: A Church the World Cannot Ignore

📖 Read: John 13:34 to 35 and 1 John 4:11 to 12

🗣️ “Love, church, it’s not just your duty. It is evidence.”

🗣️ “Let’s not just attend church. Be a local church the world cannot ignore.”

🗣️ “The church shoots its wounded instead of seeks to heal their wounded.”

Questions to Discuss:

Why does Jesus tie our witness to how we love each other?

What are the subtle ways churches drift from love into judgment?

In what ways do we need healing as a community?

What might it look like for us to become a church the world cannot ignore?

Group Action Step:

Choose one way your group can serve a person or family in your church who may feel overlooked. Make a plan and set a date.

✳️ Discussion Section 4: Gratitude as Formation

📖 Read: Colossians 3:12 to 14

🗣️ “People God puts in our lives are not obstacles but gifts.”

🗣️ “Let’s walk into our community groups and into one another’s lives with gratitude.”

🗣️ “Let’s see the gift. Let’s look around and see the gift.”

Questions to Discuss:

Why is gratitude essential for Christian community?

Who in your life has been a gift, even if it was not easy to see it at first?

How can we help each other grow in gratitude and grace?

What practices help us avoid grumbling and instead give thanks?

Group Action Step:

Create a “thank you” wall or message thread in your group. Each person posts or shares one way someone in the group has helped them experience Jesus' love.

🧱 Final Reflection Questions

What would it look like for you to live with deeper gratitude this week?

Where are you struggling to love or forgive within the church?

Who are the “lepers” in your life that Jesus is calling you to welcome and restore?

Are you allowing others to be part of your healing? Why or why not?

🙏 Closing Prayer Prompt

“Christ has made us whole and He is still healing us through one another.”

Pray together:

Jesus, thank You for making us whole. Forgive us for seeing others as burdens instead of blessings. Open our eyes to the gifts You have placed around us. Make us a church the world cannot ignore, not because of our size or style, but because of our love. Let our love be evidence of Your power. Amen.

Gratitude Rooted in a Happy Future

Series: Cultivating Gratitude

Message 2 of the Series

Designed to help groups process the message, engage Scripture, and practice gospel-shaped gratitude together. It follows the sermon’s structure and includes selected sermon quotes, action steps, and prayer prompts.

📖 Sermon Overview

Title: Gratitude Rooted in a Happy Future

Sermon Points:

Giving Thanks for God’s Judgment

Giving Thanks for Christ’s Victory

Giving Thanks for the Kingdom’s Fullness

🌱 Opening Reflection

Read this quote aloud:

“The Psalms teach us to give thanks because of a happy future.”

Then reflect together:

What stood out most to you from the sermon?

Did anything challenge the way you usually think about gratitude?

Why do you think gratitude in hard times feels unnatural?

📖 Read Aloud – Psalm 145:13 (NIV)

“Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.”

🧠 Discuss:

What does it mean that God's kingdom endures through all generations?

What does this reveal about the relationship between gratitude and trust?

How can our gratitude shift when we remember God's eternal reign?

⚖️ Point 1: Giving Thanks for God’s Judgment

“God's judgment means He will set things right.”

“We can give thanks now when the world looks like Psalm 2 because God will set the world right.”

📖 Read – Ecclesiastes 12:14 (NIV):

“For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”

🧠 Discuss:

Why do you think God’s judgment is often misunderstood as negative?

How does gratitude in light of judgment help us persevere in injustice?

What situations in our world today make you long for God to set things right?

🛠️ Group Action Step:

Identify one injustice, local or global,and spend time praying specifically for God's justice and healing. If possible, choose a small way your group can advocate, give, or serve in response.

✝️ Point 2: Giving Thanks for Christ’s Victory Over Death

“Because He lives, death’s days are numbered.”

“Your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

📖 Read – 1 Corinthians 15:55–58 (NIV):

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you.

Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

🧠 Discuss:

How does resurrection hope affect the way you live now?

In what areas of life do you feel like your efforts have been in vain?

What does it mean to “stand firm” and “give yourself fully” even when results are unseen?

🛠️ Group Action Step:

Encourage one another by naming one way you see each person’s labor in the Lord bearing fruit. Speak words of blessing and affirmation. Consider writing encouragement notes to ministry volunteers or people who feel unseen.

👑 Point 3: Giving Thanks for the Kingdom’s Fullness

“We may live under dark skies now, but we belong to the kingdom of light.”

“Hope teaches us to rest in God's promise even while we long for its fulfillment.”

📖 Read – Colossians 1:12–14 (NIV):

“…giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

🧠 Discuss:

What does it mean to live with “kingdom identity” while still in a broken world?

What difference does it make to believe we’ve already been transferred into the kingdom of light?

How can we practice joyful gratitude now, before everything is made right?

🛠️ Group Action Step:

Choose one way your group can reflect kingdom gratitude publicly this week—write thank-you cards to community servants, serve a struggling family, or bless another ministry in town.

🔁 Wrap-Up Reflection

Ask each person:

➡️ Where is God calling you to sing in the rain this week?

➡️ What truth or promise from today’s discussion helps you give thanks before the storm passes?

🙏 Group Prayer Prompt

Read this quote aloud:

“Our gratitude is not denial-it’s a declaration that Christ reigns.”

🕊️ Then pray together:

“Lord Jesus, thank You that You are King over every storm. Teach us to give thanks not just when things are easy, but even when skies are gray. Help us remember Your justice is coming, Your victory is sure, and Your kingdom is unshakable. Make us people who sing in the rain. Fill our hearts with gratitude that declares: Christ reigns. Amen.”

✅ Weekly Challenge as a Group

As a group, pick at least one of these to practice this week:

• Celebrate gratitude together with a “Thanksgiving Table” moment at your next meeting—bring something that represents God’s goodness and share why
• Visit or bless someone in your church who may feel discouraged, isolated, or weary
• Serve together-partner with a food pantry, foster care agency, or a neighborhood school
• Create a playlist of songs that help you “sing in the rain” and share it with each other

🙌 Group Discussion Guide

Series Title: Cultivating Gratitude

Sermon Title: Receiving Life as Gift, Not as Entitlement

Key Texts: Romans 1:18–23, 1 Corinthians 4:7, Romans 8:32

Focus Theme: Practicing gospel-shaped gratitude in every part of life

📖 Sermon Structure

Gratitude – What It Is

Gratitude – What It Isn’t

Gratitude – What Makes It Possible

🙏 Opening Prayer Prompt

Invite someone to open by praying something like:

“Lord, shape our minds and hearts by Your Word. Let our time together deepen our gratitude, align us with Your truth, and create a gospel culture in our community.”

🧠 Part 1: Gratitude — What It Is

📖 Read: 1 Corinthians 4:7

“What do you have that you did not receive?”

“Gratitude is receiving all of life as gift.”

“Gratitude aligns us with what is true.”

“We are aligning our souls with truth of what really is.”

💬 Discuss:

Why do you think Paul challenges believers with this question about receiving?

What areas of your life are easiest to receive as gift?

Where are you tempted to feel entitled rather than thankful?

🛠 Group Practice:

Take 3 minutes in silence to write down five things each person is thankful for. Then go around and speak one aloud with a short “thank you, Lord.”

🚫 Part 2: Gratitude — What It Isn’t

📖 Read: Romans 1:21

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God, nor gave thanks to him…”

“Gratitude doesn’t pay back — it joins in.”

“Gratitude that holds space for lament.”

“Our call to gratitude is not pretending that things are okay when they are not.”

💬 Discuss:

How have you seen gratitude twisted into a denial of pain or injustice?

What’s the difference between real lament and grumbling?

In your own life, how do you balance giving thanks and being honest about what’s hard?

🛠 Group Practice:

As a group, create two columns on a whiteboard or sheet:

Column 1: “Things we lament”

Column 2: “Things we’re thankful for”

Let people name items for both — hold space for both truth and trust.

🔑 Part 3: Gratitude — What Makes It Possible

📖 Read: Romans 8:32

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

“Everything is given as gift.”

“Even our skills and efforts are gifts from God.”

“We have to intentionally give thanks to God.”

💬 Discuss:

How does seeing Jesus as God’s greatest gift reshape how you view other areas of your life?

In what ways do you need to grow in trusting that God will “graciously give” you what you need?

What gets in the way of practicing intentional gratitude?

🛠 Group Practice:

Have each person share one area where they’ve seen God's provision — even if it came through struggle. End with a 60-second group thanksgiving prayer for those stories.

🤝 Group Action Steps

This Week:

Individual: Keep a “Gift Journal” for the week — write down one moment each day that reminds you life is a gift.

Group: Start a shared gratitude thread (text, GroupMe, Slack, etc.) — post one sentence of thanks each day.

Together:

Plan a visit, letter, or act of generosity toward someone in need as a group. Let gratitude overflow into tangible gospel mercy.

“We remind one another in the community of grace through songs, prayers, shared language of Thanksgiving that creates culture among us.”

🛐 Closing Prayer Prompt

Wrap up your time by inviting everyone to participate in a “popcorn” style prayer — brief prayers of thanks, one at a time, no pressure. End with someone praying this:

“Father, thank You that we have received everything in Christ. Help us live with open hands and open hearts. Teach us to be a people formed by gratitude — in joy, in pain, and in the ordinary. Let our shared life reflect the aroma of Christ. Amen.”

Love Goes Small

Advent 2025 Part 4

Leader Guide for Small Group Discussion

Primary Text

Luke 2

John 13:34–35

Sermon Points

• Jesus Became Small
• Jesus Remained Small
• Love Calls Us to Become Small

Leader Orientation

This guide is written for formation, not information only.

Your role is not to lecture but to hold the space where truth is named, hearts are shaped, and concrete practices are discerned.

Keep an eye on three movements throughout the discussion:

Orthodoxy What is true about God and His kingdom

Orthopathos What we are meant to love, feel, and desire

Orthopraxy How this truth and love take shape in our lives

Do not rush to application.

Let the weight of the incarnation sit with the group.

🙏 Opening Prayer

Invite the group into prayer.

You may pray something like:

“Father, as we open Your Word together, help us to see not only what is true, but what is good and beautiful. Shape our hearts and our lives by the love You have shown us in Jesus. Amen.”

📖 Scripture Reading

Read aloud together.

John 13:34–35 NIV

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Encourage the group to listen for words or phrases that stand out.

🧠 Section 1

Jesus Became Small

Orthodoxy

Sermon Quote

“God becoming small was not a necessary inconvenience but an intentional way to love.”

Scripture Luke 2:6–7 NIV

“While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.”

Leader Teaching Emphasis

The incarnation is not merely about Jesus becoming human.

It is about how He became human.

God’s love is revealed not through power but through humility.

The manger is a theological declaration.

Discussion Questions

• What does the incarnation tell us about the nature of God?
• Why do you think God chose to enter the world this way?
• How does this challenge our assumptions about power and significance?

Allow silence. These are weight bearing questions.

❤️ Section 2

Jesus Remained Small

Orthopathos

Sermon Quote

“Going big would distort our understanding of His kingdom.”

Scripture John 6:15 NIV

“Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.”

Leader Teaching Emphasis

Jesus does not simply start small and then scale up.

He consistently resists popularity, coercion, and spectacle.

Remaining small protects the heart of love.

Discussion Questions

• Why are we often drawn to what is big, visible, or impressive?
• What emotions or desires does Jesus’ refusal of power stir in you?
• Where do you feel tension between faithfulness and effectiveness?

Name that resistance is normal. Do not resolve it too quickly.

🕊️ Section 3

Love Calls Us to Become Small

Orthopraxy

Sermon Quote

“If our doctrine really, truly is sound, we will love one another.”

Scripture Philippians 2:3 NIV

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.”

Leader Teaching Emphasis

Orthodoxy and orthopathos must lead to embodied practice.

Christian love is not abstract. It takes shape in real relationships.

Love chooses the lower place for the sake of others.

Discussion Questions

Where is it hardest for you to love other believers right now

How does humility reshape conflict and disagreement

What might loving one another look like in very ordinary ways

Encourage specificity. Move from generalities to lived realities.

🛠️ Group Practice

Orthopraxy Together

As a group, discern one shared action for the coming week.

Examples include:

• Reaching out to someone in the church who feels overlooked
• Choosing forgiveness where there has been quiet resentment
• Serving together in a way that will not be seen or praised

Write it down. Assign simple responsibility.

🙏 Prayer Response

Orthopathos Before God

Invite the group into a time of prayer.

You may use this prompt:

“Jesus, You did not cling to power but poured Yourself out in love. Where are You calling us to go smaller for the sake of others?”

Allow space for silence, then invite voluntary prayer.

✨ Closing Encouragement for Leaders

Remind the group with this sermon quote:

“The world will know we are His disciples if we love one another.”

Encourage them that faithfulness in small, hidden acts of love is not insignificant.

It is precisely how God works.

Close with prayer.