We had a great time doing this at New Life Church last night!
Discussion time 1hr
Opening Prayer
Read Genesis 1:27
Sharing:
Ask if any people would like to share answers to the following:
1. What were you told about yourself growing up?'
2. 'In what ways has this affected you?'
3. How does it differ from what God says about you in Gen 1:27?
We tend to live according to what others have said about us. Sometimes we follow what people have said about us, others times we try hard to prove them wrong. If we live according to what others have said about us, we are living for them, as if they were our king and God. God instead wants us to live for him. So on the one hand, we're victims of what others have said, and on the other hand, we've been offending God.
Read Romans 8:33
Rom 8:33 says, 'Who?' as if, those people are small and insignificant compared to God. God wants us to be far more concerned with what he says about us than what others say about us.
Confession:
Let's have a time of confession to God acknowledging we live too much based on what other people think or say of us. Take it in turns confessing out loud.
Meditation:
now let's meditate on what God says about us:
Spend 5 minutes memorising Psalms 139:14 together. (We used a verse memorisation app that puts blanks in the verse - and put it on the screen).
Encouragement:
Now let's go around room commenting how people show they r made in Gods image and are fearfully and wonderfully made. On each person someone start by saying, "..... is made in the image of God, and is fearfully and wonderfully made. We can see this in how they are....." Let people shout out what comes to mind, and end it with saying one specific thing about them.
Praise:
Let's pray about this - thanking and praising God for how he's blessed our group
Outreach:
How can this doctrine impact how we treat visitors at church?
