Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
What cant Paul make himself do in verses 18b-20? Describe times when you have felt this kind of frustration. Paul wants to be Gods willing servant in what part of his being? See verse 23. Discipleship Discipleship is the process of growing to become more like Christ. How can the pursuit of discipleship help us to overcome confusion, guilt, shame, compulsion and addictions, self-condemnation, frustration, discouragement, and despair? Pair up and discuss just one very small area you would like to grow in and share ideas for how to accomplish this growth.
3. DECLARE MY STRUGGLE TO ANOTHER What do we need to do in order for God to heal us? See James 5:16. Now turn to Galatians 5:16. How do we avoid doing what our sinful nature craves? What keeps us from declaring our struggles to others? How can sharing them help us to live the new life in Christ? Fellowship In addition to giving us his Holy Spirit, God makes us members of his family when we accept Christ. This fellowship provides us with the strength we need to win the battle inside us. As a group, agree to help one another deepen your understanding of Christ, detect and disarm the lies youve been believing, and declare your struggles to one another. One of you keep a group journal to record the victories. Celebrate whenever you see signs that God is winning the war. Take a moment to review any assignments/challenges made during the personal application and commitment section of your previous meeting. Seeing God at work in the lives of those who commit to Him is essential for growth. PERSONAL APPLICATION AND COMMITMENT: What have you been trying to do on your own strength? Control your temper? Be more patient? Have greater self-control? You want to do whats right, but you do whats wrong. Face it: youre a walking civil war. We all are! This new life in Christ is not easy. Will power is not enough to win the war. By ourselves we cant do the right thing. The old nature is still inside us, trying to keep the new nature from taking over. Paul has the answer to winning this war, and well unpack his solution in our next lesson. First you have to be sure you understand who is fighting it. You cannot live the Christian life in your own powerbut in Christs power you can! Identify an area in which you find yourself doing regular battle. Are you confused? Harboring guilt and shame? Fighting compulsions and addictions? Filled with self-condemnation? Frustrated? Discouraged and in despair? Confess it to God and then share it with at least one other member of your group, someone wholl be your battle buddy. Rejoice in knowing, as Paul discovered, that Christ is the answer. Surrender your battle to him and agree to check in with your partner during the week to see how things are going.