Lead Your Hearts--Lesson 1--What Kind of God Is This?--Malachi 1

Discussion Questions:

1.  How has God shown that He loves you?  What kinds of things cause you to forget or take for granted what He has provided out of His love?

2.  How do you react when God allows things in your life that don’t seem just or fair (like Jacob being chosen and Esau not)?  Why is being chosen by God important?  What does Ephesians 1:4 teach about our position with God?  Why is it important to wait until things play out completely before determining whether God is just or not?

3.  How does history (your own history with God and the stories we find in the bible) help you to learn and grow?  Why do we often repeat the sinful mistakes of the generations who lived before us?

4.  How are we guilty of bringing God the sick and lame in our own sacrifices?  What are some ways you offer God less than your best?

5.  What difficulty do you find in leading your heart rather than being led by it?

Celebrate!--Lesson 7--Setting the Best Priorities--Luke 2:39-52

Discussion Questions:

1.  How do you determine your priorities for the day or week?  Who is part of your process for determining this?  Does anything need to change?

2.  Luke provides some insight into things Jesus “must do” during His time on the earth (Luke 2:49 & 24:25-26).  How does seeing the things Jesus “must do” affect your own priorities? 

3.  What struggles have you had thinking you need to get Jesus to follow you and bless your agenda instead of following Him and accepting His agenda? 

4.  Luke emphasizes many times how Joseph & Mary fulfilled the will of God, yet they lost sight of Jesus and didn’t understand His agenda.  How is this comforting and/or disturbing to you in your own faith walk?  What kinds of things help you keep Jesus and His agenda in your sights?

5.  How has seeking Jesus led you back to the Father?  How is this a great introduction to Luke’s version of the “Good News”?

Celebrate!--Lesson 6--What Child is This?--Luke 2:21-38

Discussion Questions:

1.  What kind of expectations do you have for God to work in your life today and during your lifetime?  Is it fair to say that if you don’t expect much, it is a lot easier to be discouraged or pessimistic concerning God and His promises?  Elaborate on this.

2.  How do expectations influence your choices and/or your interactions with people?  How do people tend to live up to (or down to) the expectations you have of them?

3.  How does time influence your expectations concerning the promises of God and His fulfillment?  Why did God make promises to Abraham, Moses, David and Simeon that He was not going to fulfill for many years?  How does this encourage or discourage you concerning the promises He has made for your life?

4.  How does living by faith in God inconvenience you?  What do we learn from being inconvenienced that we would not learn if there was no inconvenience?  When is the last time you thanked God for His inconveniences?

5.  How have you seen God’s Kingdom be hidden in plain sight?  Why hide things at all?  Why not make everything plain and simple to see?  How do our expectations add to or hinder our ability to see what is hidden in plain sight?