Group Discussion – Mar 3, 2024

Connect:

1. Open in prayer
2. Have you ever put on a pair of pants and found something in a pocket you forgot about? Money? A receipt? Gum ball? What was it? Did you eat it/use it?

Discussion:

1. Re-read Mark 6:31-44. What stands out to you as you read the passage? Use this as your launching point into discussion. What comes out in this part may lead you to certain questions below.
2. Jesus took his disciples away to rest. Pastor Tim mentioned that Jesus did not value busyness like we do today.
   1. Why do you think we value being busy so much?
   2. Where in your life do you feel the boundaries of ‘having too much to do’ being pushed?
   3. Where/when do you find your worst attitudes come out? When you are driving? With your family? At work? What do you think is the reason for these attitudes? (Hint: If its ongoing, it’s not usually because of the presenting issue such as bad drivers, etc. It’s usually because the water levels of stress are high in your life.)
   4. Busyness is not wrong in and of itself. Working hard is a good thing. How do you find taking time to rest? Easy? Hard? Non-existent? Explain.
3. Pastor Tim talked about redeemed work.
   1. How do you view your work? How would a co-worker or spouse say you view work?
   2. In what ways do you view work in an unredeemed way and what ways do you view work in redeemed ways?
   3. What is an area of your life that you need to trust God for more than what you can see? i.e. all you can see is two fish and 5 loaves.
4. The story of Jesus feeding the 5000 also brings out the idea that Jesus will give us what we need. What anxieties do you have about the world around you? Food scarcity? Money? War? Politics? How would it change your outlook on these things if Jesus were to sit beside you and tell you that he’s got this?

Prayer

1. From what we discussed, what would you like prayer for? And how would you like us to pray?
2. Considering these thoughts about rest and work, who needs to hear these thoughts this week?

Global Request

Pray for Japan this a country dominated by atheism, Buddhism and Shintoism. Evangelical Christianity represents only .5% of the population despite 500 years of missionary presence. Japan faces many crises: young people lacking hope, a massive suicide epidemic and high divorce rates, economic decline. Pray for our Alliance team and for Sarah Hornoi from our own congregation who is there teaching ESL. Ask Jesus to give them many opportunities to have faith conversations with people who are seeking. Ask the Lord to break through the strongholds of false religious ideologies and show Himself as the One able to fully save, restore, and redeem.