Subject: Generosity: Generosity is giving no matter what you’re getting
Core Scriptures: Genesis 40:1 – 41:46
Memory Verse: 2 Corinthians 9:7 (NIV) “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Discussion Questions:
• Did Joseph ask for anything in return for what he gave? Why or why not? Did Joseph ultimately get anything in return for what he gave? If so, what?
• What are some specific ways that we can show generosity in our lives? What is at least one way you can be generous in the next 24 hours?
• How do our heart motives affect whether we are generous or not?
• How does our motivation affect our generosity? When should we ask for something in return for what we give? When should we not ask for something in return?
• How does it make you feel when someone gives to you with “strings attached”? Do you ever find yourself doing that to others? How do you think it makes them feel?
Bottom Line:
• If generosity means giving no matter what you’re getting, then a person with the successory of generosity should be quick to fill a need when he or she sees it.
• We have opportunities to give around us everywhere. Generosity isn’t a successory we add to our lives later – it’s something that we can add to our lives right now. Generosity is giving no matter what you’re getting. When we give help in whatever form, we join God in remaking and redeeming the world. This is the kind of world we dream about living in.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
May 9th & 10th
Subject: Integrity: Integrity is doing what is right even if what happens next is wrong
Core Scriptures: Genesis 39: 1-23
Memory Verse: Proverbs 11:3 (NASB) “The integrity of the upright will guide them, but the crookedness of the treacherous will destroy them.”
Discussion Questions:
• What situation was Joseph in? What are some of the ways he chose integrity? What did the choice for integrity cause Joseph to do? What did the choice for integrity cause Joseph not to do?
• What is YOUR definition of integrity? How do you feel about people who have integrity? What about people who don’t?
• What are some of the things integrity leads us not to do? What are some of the things integrity leads us to do?
• Have you ever been in a situation where you had to make a decision based on your integrity, a time when no one else would have known the difference? What choice did you make? How did you feel about it afterwards?
Bottom Line:
• Joseph decided that his commitment to God and his master meant far more than a sexual affair or a comfortable life. His story shows us that integrity is doing what is right even if what happens next is wrong.
• Integrity is doing what is right even if what happens next is wrong. If we try to skirt the rules and get away with as much as we can, we cheat God and ourselves. But we can be like Joseph and choose to live with the successory of integrity.
• We need to weed out unwise decisions and replace them with the successory of integrity so that we can begin laying a foundation of Wise Choices in our lives. We will always face the choice between integrity and the easy way out. But imagine how much different your life would be if everyone lived this way. This is truly a better kind of life.
Core Scriptures: Genesis 39: 1-23
Memory Verse: Proverbs 11:3 (NASB) “The integrity of the upright will guide them, but the crookedness of the treacherous will destroy them.”
Discussion Questions:
• What situation was Joseph in? What are some of the ways he chose integrity? What did the choice for integrity cause Joseph to do? What did the choice for integrity cause Joseph not to do?
• What is YOUR definition of integrity? How do you feel about people who have integrity? What about people who don’t?
• What are some of the things integrity leads us not to do? What are some of the things integrity leads us to do?
• Have you ever been in a situation where you had to make a decision based on your integrity, a time when no one else would have known the difference? What choice did you make? How did you feel about it afterwards?
Bottom Line:
• Joseph decided that his commitment to God and his master meant far more than a sexual affair or a comfortable life. His story shows us that integrity is doing what is right even if what happens next is wrong.
• Integrity is doing what is right even if what happens next is wrong. If we try to skirt the rules and get away with as much as we can, we cheat God and ourselves. But we can be like Joseph and choose to live with the successory of integrity.
• We need to weed out unwise decisions and replace them with the successory of integrity so that we can begin laying a foundation of Wise Choices in our lives. We will always face the choice between integrity and the easy way out. But imagine how much different your life would be if everyone lived this way. This is truly a better kind of life.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
May 2nd & 3rd
Subject: Humility: Arrogance is the Pits
Core Scriptures: Genesis 7: 6-35
Memory Verse: Proverbs 16:18 (AMP) “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
Discussion Questions:
• How was Joseph arrogant? What were some of the factors that led him to be arrogant? What was the result of Joseph’s arrogance? How did this contribute to his trip to the pits?
• What are some of the ways we display arrogance? What reasons do we use as excuses for our arrogance?
• What problems can result from our arrogance? How can this lead us into the pits? How has this happened in your life? Are there any specific relationships in your life that have been damaged by arrogance?
• What will it look like for us to live with humility? What is humility? How can we develop humility in our lives? What Wise Choices must we make to grow in humility?
• In what specific situations do you need to show humility right now? How can you do this? What practical steps do you need to take?
Bottom Line:
• Jacob’s favoritism and Joseph’s arrogance had created a recipe for jealousy, and this soon took a disastrous form as Joseph’s life took a dark turn. Joseph found out the hard way that arrogance is the pits.
• Humility does not mean we will become doormats. It didn’t for Joseph; he actually ended up as a ruler. But no matter where he was, he had a realistic view of who he was. He knew that God was in control, not him.
• Let us move away from arrogance and instead make the Wise Choice to humbly follow God in our lives, trusting him to lift us out of the pits and into the good He is up to in our world.
Core Scriptures: Genesis 7: 6-35
Memory Verse: Proverbs 16:18 (AMP) “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
Discussion Questions:
• How was Joseph arrogant? What were some of the factors that led him to be arrogant? What was the result of Joseph’s arrogance? How did this contribute to his trip to the pits?
• What are some of the ways we display arrogance? What reasons do we use as excuses for our arrogance?
• What problems can result from our arrogance? How can this lead us into the pits? How has this happened in your life? Are there any specific relationships in your life that have been damaged by arrogance?
• What will it look like for us to live with humility? What is humility? How can we develop humility in our lives? What Wise Choices must we make to grow in humility?
• In what specific situations do you need to show humility right now? How can you do this? What practical steps do you need to take?
Bottom Line:
• Jacob’s favoritism and Joseph’s arrogance had created a recipe for jealousy, and this soon took a disastrous form as Joseph’s life took a dark turn. Joseph found out the hard way that arrogance is the pits.
• Humility does not mean we will become doormats. It didn’t for Joseph; he actually ended up as a ruler. But no matter where he was, he had a realistic view of who he was. He knew that God was in control, not him.
• Let us move away from arrogance and instead make the Wise Choice to humbly follow God in our lives, trusting him to lift us out of the pits and into the good He is up to in our world.
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