Connect Guide: Week of 9-17-2023

Connect Groups play an important role in encouraging and exhorting us to listen to and obey Jesus in all of life. This week, be sure to leave enough time to talk in very practical ways about how your group not only listens for God’s voice in the Bible but also encourages and exhorts each other to obey that voice in daily life.

Welcome (15 minutes)

If you are going to listen to something, what is it most likely to be? (For example – music, an audiobook, podcasts, sporting events, the news – etc.)

Word – Hebrews 3:7-15 (40 minutes)

Read the passage aloud together.

1. Where in your life could you use rest today?
2. This passage contains a number of descriptions related to hearts – what are those?
3. What causes hearts to be hardened, evil or unbelieving? How would you describe your own heart these days in relationship to hearing God’s voice?
4. Verse 13 says to “exhort one another every day …”. Talk about that word ‘exhort’ – what does that mean? How is it related to avoiding the deceitfulness of sin?
5. How does hearing God’s voice relate to “holding our first confidence firm to the end”?
6. One last question – come back to the theme of ‘rest’. Can you remember any times that hearing God’s voice with a soft and receptive heart lead to rest?

Worship (20 minutes)

Before you close your discussion with a time for worship and prayer, spend a little time talking about how you as a Connect Group can encourage and exhort each other to hear God’s voice in the Bible. Pray for one another in this.

Witness (15 minutes)

Who is someone in your life that you would describe as closed off to hearing God’s voice. Let’s be praying for them this week.