Leaders Guide Week of March 13, 2016

Moses: Hello
Exodus 3:1-10
March 13-14, 2016
Consider starting out with innocuous ice-breaker questions that could help you
get to know each other better in a casual, fun way and possibly lead into the
discussion, such as:
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? And
What path did your career and life actually take?
If you havent already done so, this might be a good time to pray and praise God
together. Someone in the group, or the group by taking turns, could read the
passage. The Looking Back is included in case it might be helpful in reviewing
ideas or applications from the sermon.
Here are a couple questions to help you think back through the passage in a
different light:
Considering Moses childhood and upbringing, what might have been his
aspirations as a child?
Think about Mosess surprise when his occupation changed from shepherd
to messenger of God and deliverer\leader of Gods people.
To connect your life to the passage, you could consider:
Describe a moment or a season in life when you wondered what God was
doing or how he was active in your life.
Moses must have been startled beyond belief when God found him in the
desert and spoke to him from the burning bush. Have you had any
moments in life when God surprised you?
At times, we all struggle to understand and see how God is present and at work
in our own life. Thats part of the benefit of living and being in a community
group: when we wonder where God iswe can talk through life with someone
who knows us well. An outside perspective can help us understand how God is
working when we are too stressed, tired, or hurting to notice.
Thank you for making these kinds of relationships and Ultimate Journey
discussions possible.
Titus OBryant
tobryant@gfcnow.com

LOOKING BACK

Moses: The Ultimate Journey

Hello
Exodus 3:1-10
God is present in our life at all times, whether we notice his activity or not.
Sometimes we miss his presence or wonder if he has abandoned or forgotten us
because he surprises us by the way he shows up in life (i.e. Moses at the burning
bush) or by the way he works in our lives (i.e. Moses 40 years in the desert
before returning to lead Israel). God is bigger than us and doesnt follow our
rules. Surprises can be a very good thing!
Thinking It Through (agree/disagree/consider/contemplate)

Man approaches God most nearly when he is in one sense least like God.
For what can be more unlike than fullness and need, sovereignty and
humility, righteousness and penitence, limitless power and cry for help.
~ C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves
God, Who is everywhere, never leaves us. Yet He seems sometimes to be
present, sometimes to be absent. If we do not know him well, we do not realize
that He may be more present to us when He is absent than when He is present.
~Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island
If we must feel Gods presence before we believe he is with us, we again
reduce God to our ability to grasp him, making him an idol instead of
acknowledging him as God.
~Craig S. Keener, Gift & Giver: The Holy Spirit for
Today
Working It Out
1. Press Pause and Gain Perspective: Where and how might God be at work
in your life in ways that you have overlooked?
2. Can you identify any of your own misconceptions about God that have
been challenged by the Word of God and the life and teaching of Jesus?
God works in our world by using people to accomplish his objectives. Where
might God be sending you or who lives within your circle of influence that
needs to experience a demonstration of Gods grace from you?