START TALKING

When have you known that you would have to do something that would hurt or be uncomfortable or hard? Maybe it was pregnancy, a new workout, a busy season, or a diagnosis. What was the pain or discomfort that you knew was unavoidable? How did you prepare to get through it? What tools did you use to navigate whatever it was?

START THINKING

Read Joshua 1:1-2. Put yourself in Joshua's shoes. What do you think you might have felt as you heard this? How might you have felt loneliness and why?

Read Joshua 1:3-5. What is the promise that God gives Joshua, specifically? Why do you think giving Joshua this promise was so important? How do promises help us when we are lonely?

What are promises of God throughout scripture that you can think of that are helpful or could be helpful when you feel loneliness or face something you have never faced before? Make a list as a micro church of all the promises you can think of and then spend time this week meditating on and studying those.

START SHARING

Read Joshua 1:6-8. When has God's word helped you in a time of loneliness or facing something you had never experienced before? Getting to know the nature and character of God more - in other words, knowing Him more closely on a personal level - helps us in those times because even when God's Word may not speak to a specific issue or circumstance, knowing Him better helps us to hear from Him, be more like Him, and experience Him. When have you experienced this? What did you learn from it?

Read Joshua 1:9. When have you experienced the presence of God in a circumstance or situation that you faced, or most especially in the midst of loneliness? How would you describe the presence of God to someone who may not understand? How did it help you then, or how would it help you in the future, to be strong and courageous when you face uncertainty or loneliness?

START DOING

What promises will you focus on this week to face loneliness or uncertainty with confidence and courage?

What specifically in God's Word will you focus on this week?

How can you practice experiencing the presence of God in your life this week?

START PRAYING

Pray for each person and the practical steps they shared in the section above. Pray that God uses these experiences to write a story for each person that will point others to Him, and that we all look for ways to share that story wherever we live, work, or play.