Tag: bible study

@Mike_Breen at @IvyManchester – the Prodigal SONS

These are my notes from the talk, with some questions for Grow Groups to consider and discuss together. PRAY: Thanks to God for IVY KINGSWAY! What a great way to start off our new service there at Cineworld Didsbury. Next Sunday we’ll have the lights in too that we’ve partnered with the cinema in buying, it’ll be even better! Father’s Day Mike said his talk is for those who have felt that your walk with God is drifting or has drifted. Because God wanted us CLOSE. Question – Do you feel close to God right now? How do you know when you are?  Read 1 John 3:1 – How great is the love of the Father that he has LAVISHED on us that we should be called the children of God! That’s what we are! Question – Discuss the word Lavish. What images does it bring to mind? The story of the Prodigal son is actually all about the Father and how he relates to 2 different types of people: Read the story together and look at the setting in Luke […]

Beware. This may not build your self esteem.

‘Jars of Clay.’ Whole talks I’ve heard about this passage and blogs I read around it talk about being ‘cracked pots.’ There’s a problem with that. It’s not in the text. It doesn’t say anything about the pots being cracked. I wonder whether we want to add that in because we want to make it about US again. The point is not about your cracks. Don’t make it about that. The point is, the container is NOT the point. It’s what’s inside that matters.

Carl Beech: Iron Sharpens Iron

Here’s my notes on Carl’s recent talk when we were at Soul Survivor, Watford. Great stuff and it was a sell out! Looking forward to  playing at home for the ‘North’ version in January! Details of that so you can book in here (why not organise a group from your church?); http://www.new-wine.org/events/mens-daysIron Sharpens Iron IRON SHARPENS IRON Life’s up and down, and often gets very hard – and we men retreat too often. Testosterone gives us ‘fight or flight’ but we run too much too soon, rather than go through the muck and mud. Romans 5:3 says ‘We glory in our sufferings’ why – because of what it produces! If we didn’t go through this we’ll be spoilt brats who sulk when something goes wrong. 9 out of 12 apostles were killed. William Carey saw his wife die. Peter preaches and sees 3000 saved, Stephen says, ‘I’ll have a crack at that.’ And gets 3000 bricks on his head. This helps us understand why so many men are down and depressed. The measure of a man is how you hold […]