Sunday 14th December, 2008

If you missed the talk from this Sunday, you can listen to it by clicking here. (25 minutes)
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HARK! THE HERALD ANGELS SING

HARKING:

• How does God speak to his people today? List out as many different that God can speak to you as you can. If you don’t find it easy to listen to God, what could you do differently?

• What is the real difference in hearing God’s voice and listening to God’s Voice? Read 1 Samuel 3:1-10. Do you pray with an attitude of “Speak Lord your servant listens” or “Listen Lord for your servant speaks?” How can you learn to listen more and speak less?

• Read Luke 1:11-12 & 26-29 and Matthew 1:20. How would you react if an angel appeared to you? Wouldn’t it be easier if God sent our own personal angel every time he wanted to talk to us? Why doesn’t he?

• Read Matthew 1:20 and Matthew 2:12-13. How would you be confident it was God speaking to you in a dream as opposed to your own thoughts? How would you confirm this?

• Although we may hear God’s voice what gets in the way of us listening? What steps can you take to make it easier to listen?

HERALDING:

• Matthew 28:18-20 refers to the “Great Commission”. When was the last time you had an opportunity to “make disciples”? What holds you back from actively passing on the good news of Jesus Christ and how might this change? What can you do to create more opportunities to talk about your faith?

• Read 1 Peter 3:15-16. What is the model of evangelism that Peter is promoting here and how ‘prepared’ are you? How easy would you find it to answer someone who asked you to give an account of why you believe? Spend a few minutes ‘preparing’ your answer now.

• Read 2 Timothy 1:11 and Matthew 25:35-45. With reference to the Whipton Proposal, what would you be prepared to do to help spread the good news?

• How well do you know your personal community (i.e. your neighbours, friends, family, work mates)? Ask God to reveal someone to you today and commit to praying for them from now on.

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Sunday 7th December, 2008

If you missed the talk from this Sunday, you can listen to it by clicking here. (31 minutes)
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AWAY IN A MANGER!

• Read through the proposal we have submitted for the Whipton building. What questions does it raise? What excites you? What makes you nervous? If you want to know more get in touch with Dave.

• Read Leviticus 19:10, Leviticus 23:22 and Deuteronomy 15:11. These are wonderfully practical commands. How might we, as a church, or you, as an individual, apply these ideas? Are we/you already doing it?

• Read Matthew 26:6-13. The disciples’ reaction seems understandable and realistic – after all a year’s wages is a lot of money! But can you also understand Jesus’ response? How would you explain his reply to someone who wasn’t a Christian? How do we align our priorities with Jesus’ and what warning signs should we look out for?

• Isaiah 58:6-12 talks about meaningful ritual and activities before God. Read the passage a couple of times, slowly and aloud. Reflect on it and ask God to help you assess your own spiritual activity against what he wants. What are you doing well? What needs to change?

• Read Luke 14:12-14. Is this just an illustration or an actual suggestion? Could you imagine doing this? What would it look like?

• Read Luke 6:20-24 for the comparison between the poor and the rich (in verses 20 and 24). You could also read Jesus’ story in Luke 16:19-31. How do you feel about rewards received and rewards waiting for you in heaven? How easy is it for you to trade something you have and can see for something you don’t have and can’t see? Are you getting better at this? Think about how you were one-year, five-years and ten-years ago. What were your hopes and aspirations then? What are they now?

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Sunday 30th November, 2008

If you missed the talk from this Sunday, you can listen to it by clicking here. (26 minutes)
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O' COME LET US ADORE HIM

• Read Matthew 1:23 ‘Immanuel – God with us.’ How do we respond to this?

• Imagine going with the shepherds as Luke describes their journey in Luke 2:8-20. Knowing what you now know about Jesus, how do you respond to what you see and experience?

• Read Luke 7:11-16, replaying the scene in your mind. If you had been there, how would you have responded to Jesus and what he did? Again, how does this affect our response to the birth of Christ?

• Look at Matthew 22:37-38. What is Jesus saying here about the intensity and wholeheartedness of the way we should love God? Think about the kind of statement we might make, in our own words, perhaps in a poem, about our feelings about God, who he is, what he means to us, what he has done for us.

• Look at Matthew 8:1-17, Luke 7:36-50 and Luke 19:1-10. In what ways might the people in these stories have conveyed their feelings about Jesus?

• Read 2 Samuel 6:14-16. Think about David's response to God. What are some of the different ways people convey their feelings about God?

• Charles Wesley's hymn ‘Love Divine...’ ends with the line ‘lost in wonder, love and praise.’ Are there any limits to intimacy with God?

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