Hope Christian Church
Message Notes
Message notes and Life Group Questions for 9-24-23
Locations & Times
Hope Christian Church
9273 Coach Stop Rd, Columbia, IL 62236, USA
Sunday 8:00 AM
“We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”
Numbers 13:33b
Numbers 13:33b
Life Group Questions
OPEN:
1. When did you first attend a worship gathering at Hope? How did that happen? Who invited you? Share your experience.
DIG:
2. As the nation of Israel wandered the dessert for 40 years, God led them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. By contrast, He leads His followers by His Spirit which indwells every Believer.
What would be the differences and what are the similarities?
Does one seem easier to you? Why? If it were up to you, which would you prefer, being led by fire/cloud or by the Holy Spirit? What might be the pros and cons of those two experiences?
3. During they desert wanderings, how did God provide for the needs of His people?
Read the following scriptures describing how God provided for His people....
OPEN:
1. When did you first attend a worship gathering at Hope? How did that happen? Who invited you? Share your experience.
DIG:
2. As the nation of Israel wandered the dessert for 40 years, God led them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. By contrast, He leads His followers by His Spirit which indwells every Believer.
What would be the differences and what are the similarities?
Does one seem easier to you? Why? If it were up to you, which would you prefer, being led by fire/cloud or by the Holy Spirit? What might be the pros and cons of those two experiences?
3. During they desert wanderings, how did God provide for the needs of His people?
Read the following scriptures describing how God provided for His people....
4. How has God provided for you? Has He ever provided in an extreme way? Have you had a car/appliance/clothes last way past expectations? Share with the group.
5. The Israelites were turning complaining into an art form which angered God and brought a literal fiery response. Complaining is a big deal to God.
How are you when it comes to complaining? On a scale of 1-10, (1 you complain 24/7 and 10 you never ever complain) where are you on the scale? Are you better or worse than you were 5 years ago?
6. As followers of Jesus, our identity is in Christ. Where have you found your identity over the years? How has that changed or need to change in your life?
Read....
But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored.. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. Numbers 13:31-32
“We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” Numbers 13:33b
7. God's people were seeing themselves as "less than" or unable to do what God had instructed them to do. Have you ever struggled to do something you knew that God wanted you to do?
They saw themselves as "small." We discussed that it was likely because they had been slaves. How can our past influence our response? How does faith affect our experience?
REFLECT:
8. Have you experienced God working 19 miles upstream? Encourage your group by sharing your story.
9. How can we help each other realize that God is always working?
How are you when it comes to complaining? On a scale of 1-10, (1 you complain 24/7 and 10 you never ever complain) where are you on the scale? Are you better or worse than you were 5 years ago?
6. As followers of Jesus, our identity is in Christ. Where have you found your identity over the years? How has that changed or need to change in your life?
Read....
But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored.. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. Numbers 13:31-32
“We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” Numbers 13:33b
7. God's people were seeing themselves as "less than" or unable to do what God had instructed them to do. Have you ever struggled to do something you knew that God wanted you to do?
They saw themselves as "small." We discussed that it was likely because they had been slaves. How can our past influence our response? How does faith affect our experience?
REFLECT:
8. Have you experienced God working 19 miles upstream? Encourage your group by sharing your story.
9. How can we help each other realize that God is always working?