Backwards Living--Lesson 11--The Wise & The Foolish--Ecclesiastes 9-10

Discussion Questions:

1.  How have you seen a little folly destroy a lot of good? 

2.  What struggles do you have with maintaining a proper fear of God?  How is fear of God connected to wisdom?

3.  How does pursuing holiness factor into your daily living?  Why is pursuing holiness an important part of obtaining wisdom?

4.  What kinds of things help you to maintain a soft heart and a teachable spirit?  How well do you learn from your mistakes?

5.  How does controlling your speech demonstrate wisdom?  What makes controlling your speech so difficult?  How does the use of social media affect your control over your speech?

Backwards Living--Lesson 10--Time & Chance are a Cruel Master--Ecclesiastes 9

Discussion Questions:

1.  How has time and chance messed with you?  Why do you suppose God has us living in a world where time and chance have the control they do?

2.  How can you tell the difference between God’s testing you versus punishing you?  What is the benefit of each of these?

3.  Why is death such a certainty living under the sun?  How can one use the certainty of death to their advantage?  What kinds of lessons or aids do you receive from knowing that death is imminent?

4.  How does one live with hope in a world of certain and awaiting death?  How can Solomon go so easily from talking about the certainty of death to telling us to enjoy the pleasures of this life that the LORD gives us?

5.  Why do you think Luke tells the story of the birth of Jesus with every character praising God, worshiping God, and rejoicing?  How can we adopt more of this attitude in our own daily living?

Backwards Living--Lesson 9--Viewing Things from Up Above--Ecclesiastes 8

Discussion Questions:

1.  What difficulty do you have with playing the long game instead of getting absorbed into the shorter game?  How would you define the long game in a spiritual sense?

2.  How is God’s wisdom like seeing a maze from up above?  What limitations are there to a clear view from up above? 

3.  How does David’s example of submission to authority encourage you to trust in God’s wisdom to lead you through difficult things you encounter?  Why would God allow David to experience the challenges he faced prior to becoming king?

4.  How does one obey and submit to authority while keeping things in proper perspective, so we obey God instead of mankind?  What frustrations have you had with this?

5.  How have you seen people who embrace evil seem to enjoy better things in life than those who strive after righteousness?  How well do you trust that it will be well for those who fear the LORD?