Advent ideas

If you are looking for some Advent ideas to help your family prepare for and celebrate Christmas, here are a couple of links to check out.

Blogger and Children’s Pastor Jenny Funderburke has put together a great tool called the Family Advent Calendar to help families prepare for Christmas. There are some  family devotions using scripture, video and activities. If you are on twitter you can follow here to get your daily reminders!

Focus on the Family also has a family advent calendar with all kinds of ideas to help your family celebrate Christmas in a meaningful way.

Another set of Christmas preparation ideas, comes from a blog in Calgary. You knew I'd like the title: It’s Okay to Be Weird!

GPYP 4 :: micro devotional

5-Day Micro Devotional

1 Hebrews 4:14-16  Confess to God those sins that you have not asked forgiveness for. Ask Him to forgive you and cleanse you from the stain of sin.

2 Psalm 73:26  Tell God your past failures that you continue to struggle with. Ask Him to help deliver you from these feelings.

3 Philippians 3:12-15  Ask God to help you receive and walk in his forgiveness.

4 Romans 8:37  Thank God for His forgiveness and grace in your life. Tell Him how it has changed you.

5 Psalm 37:8; Jude 1:24-25  Ask God to help you stop focusing on your past mistakes and instead focus on the future God has planned for you. 

GPYP 4 :: discussion questions

This Week

Talking through the message during the week helps you turn what God is saying to you into action steps. These talking points, questions, and scriptures are designed to help you take the next step.

• Describe a time when you lost a competition or a contest. What did you learn from your failure?

Read 1 John 1:9 and Jeremiah 31:34. 

These verses tell us that our sins are never too big for God’s grace.

• What are some of the lessons you’ve learned from your past failures?
• In what ways are the personal failures of your past still impacting you today?
• Why is it so difficult for us to live in the forgiveness that God offers us?

Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. 

This verse explains that our identity is not based upon what we have done, but rather whom God says we are.

• Failure is an event – never a person. What does that statement mean to you and how can you draw strength from it?
• What are some of the lies you have believed about yourself as a result of your past failures?

Read Philippians 3:12-15. 

These verses encourage us to realize that while we can’t change our past, God can change our future.

• Describe a past failure that you have fully overcome. How did you overcome it?
• What does God’s grace and forgiveness mean to you? How has it changed you and helped you overcome your failures? 

GPYP 4 :: getting past personal failure

Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future.

  

Your biggest sins are not too big for God’s grace.

You are not what you have done; you are who God says you are.

You cannot change your past, but Christ can change your future. 

Key Verses

1 John 1:9

Jeremiah 31:34

2 Corinthians 5:17

Philippians 3:12-15

GPYP 3 :: micro devotional

5-Day Micro Devotional
Read the passage & then pray through the suggestion

• Proverbs 6:1-4 Confess to God those things you’ve done that hurt others. Ask for His forgiveness and strength as you apologize to those you’ve hurt. 
• Matthew 5:1-48 Tell God how pride has impacted your life. Ask Him to help you remove all pride from your heart.
• Proverbs 13:10 Ask God to develop within you a more humble heart. Allow Him to show you what humility should look like in your life.
• Romans 12:18-21, 1 Peter 3:11 Ask God to help you apologize with integrity when you hurt someone.
• Mark 9:50, Hebrews 12:14, James 3:18 Commit to God that you will be a peacemaker and not a peacekeeper in all of your relationships. 

GPYP 3 :: discussion questions

This Week

Talking through the message during the week helps you turn what God is saying to you into action steps. These talking points, questions, and scriptures are designed to help you take the next step

• What is the toughest apology you’ve ever given to another person? Why was this so difficult?

Read Matthew 5:9, Matthew 5:23-24 and Romans 12:18.
These verses emphasize the importance of making peace with those you’ve hurt.

• How do you typically respond to those you hurt? Are you more of a peacekeeper or a peacemaker?
• Why do so many of us tend to be peacekeepers instead of peacemakers?
• Whom have you hurt that you need to apologize to? What has kept you from apologizing to this person?

Read Proverbs 11:2.
This verse tells us that the greatest enemy to peacemaking is pride, while the greatest friend to peacemaking is humility.

• How have you seen pride impact your ability to be a peacemaker in your relationships?
• What does humility look like in your life? How can you develop a more humble heart?
• Why is it so important to apologize with integrity?
• What do you think is the hardest part of apologizing with integrity?
• Describe a time when you apologized to someone with integrity. How did your apology impact you and your relationship with that person?

Next Steps

Here are some specific things you can do this week that will help you become a peacemaker by apologizing with integrity.

• One of God’s biggest desires for us is to be peacemakers. The Bible often talks about the importance of being at peace with each other. As you work to make peace with those that you’ve hurt by apologizing with integrity, read the scriptures listed below allow them to empower you to become a peacemaker.  
• If there is someone you need to make peace with that you have wronged, take the next step of apologizing to them with integrity this week. As you prepare your apology, use the five guidelines that Pastor Mike gave us in his message on how to apologize with integrity:  

GPYP 2 :: micro devotional

5-Day Micro Devotional

Read the passage & then pray through the suggestion

1. Colossians 1:13-15; 1 John 2:12 Thank God for the power of his forgiveness in your life. Tell Him how it has changed you.
2. 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 Pray for those you need to forgive. Ask God to help you as you begin the process of forgiving someone.
3. Acts 8:22-23; Ephesians 4:29-32 Ask God to help you remove the stains on your heart that have been created by your bitterness.
4. Job 5:2; Mark 11:25; Luke 6:27-36 Tell God the things that are holding you back from forgiving others. Ask Him to help you remove these things.
5. 1 John 1:9; Romans 8:1-2 Confess your sins and ask God for His forgiveness in cleansing you of your sins. 

GPYP 2 :: discussion questions

This Week

Talking through the message during the week helps you turn what God is saying to you into action steps. These talking points, questions, and scriptures are designed to help you take the next step.

• What was one of the worst things you did as a child that you asked forgiveness for? What did you learn from your experience?

Read Hebrews 12:15, Matthew 6:14-15 and Matthew 18:21-35.

• These passages show us why we should forgive those who hurt us.
• Why is it so difficult to forgive those who have severely hurt us?
• How have you seen unforgiveness and bitterness hurt yourself and others?
• When you think about the people you need to forgive, who comes to mind? What is keeping you from forgiving this person?
• What can the forgiveness we have received from God teach us about forgiving those who hurt us?

Read Matthew 5:43-44 and Colossians 3:13.
These verses demonstrate how to forgive those who hurt us.

• Why is prayer such a vital part of forgiving others?
• How have you been set free by the power of God’s forgiveness?
• How different would your life and your relationship with Christ be if you removed all bitterness from your heart by forgiving those who have hurt you?
• What specific steps do you need to take immediately in order to forgive someone who has wronged you?

Next Steps
Here are some specific things you can do this week that will help you overcome bitterness and embrace the power of forgiveness:

• Because forgiveness is such a fundamental part of our relationship with Christ, the Bible has much to say about the dangers of bitterness and the delivering power of forgiveness. During your time with God this week, read the passages below and allow God’s Word to deliver you from your bitterness and embrace his forgiveness.
• If there is someone in your life who you need to forgive, take the next steps toward forgiving that person this week. Follow the Biblical principles that Pastor Mike discussed in his message on how to forgive others by first praying for that person and then forgiving that person in the same way God forgave you. 

GPYP 1 :: breaking the labels that bind

this last sunday we talked about labels
  ...labels that lie
  ...labels that hurt
  ...labels that damage


and we started to talk about the new names that God gives
  ...names that are true
  ...names that give life
  ...names that bring meaning


grow into the name that God calls you by
grow into the purpose that he is unfolding
grow into the future he has for you.

GPYP 1: breaking the labels that bind

Yesterday, we identified labels...

Today, we want to be thinking about the new name that Jesus gives us.

• What are some of those new names?

GPYP 1: breaking the labels that bind

A couple of questions that come out of Sunday's message:

• What are the things we believe about ourselves that keep us withdrawn, shameful, and without freedom?
• What are the labels others have given you?

GPYP 1 :: micro devotional

5-Day Micro Devotional

Read the passage & then pray through the suggestion

1.       2 Corinthians 5:17-19 Share with God the negative labels that you have in bondage. Ask for His help to free you from these labels.

2.       2 Corinthians 12:9-10 Ask God to help you take your greatest weaknesses and turn them into strengths.

3.       Jeremiah 29:11-14 Ask God to show you the purpose He has designed for you. Ask Him to guide you in taking your next steps towards embracing that purpose.

4.       Isaiah 62:2-4 Thank God for the new name, purpose and future He has given you because of your life in Christ.

5.       Philippians 4:8-9 Commit to God that you will no longer allow the labels of your past hold you back from embracing your purpose and future. 

GPYP 1 :: discussion questions

This Week

Talking through the message during the week helps you turn what God is saying to you into action steps. These talking points, questions, and scriptures are designed to help you take the next step.

• What was one of your least favourite nicknames you were called growing up? Why did you dislike your nickname?

Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 and Isaiah 62:2.
We learn in these verses, that in Christ, we are all new creations and labels no longer apply because of the new name God has given us.

• What negative labels have followed your name? How have these labels influenced the way you see yourself?
• Why do so many of us accept negative labels and let them define us? 
• How does having a God-centered view of yourself change the way you see yourself?
• What new name would best describe your new life in Christ?

Read Matthew 16:17-18, Jeremiah 29:11 and Philippians 3:13-14.
These verses show us that God has given us a purpose and a new future.

• In what ways have you seen your strengths grow out of your weaknesses?
• What God-given purpose are you growing into? What next step(s) do you need to take to embrace that purpose?
• How have you let the labels of your past limit God’s plan for your future?
• How can knowing that God has a future planned for you help you overcome your negative labels? What next step(s) do you need to take?

NEXT STEPSHere are some specific things you can do this week that will help you overcome the negative labels of your past and embrace the purpose and future God has given you:
One of the best examples in the Bible of a person breaking free from the bondage of their negative labels is Rahab, in the Book of Joshua. Read Rahab’s story in Joshua 2 & 6.

• Write down the negative labels that continue to define you and influence the way you see yourself
• Next to each label write the new name that God has given you to replace that label. For example if your label is “average,” write “extraordinary” next to it. If your label is “addict,” write “overcomer” next to it. Place your list somewhere you’ll see it often to remind you that you no longer will let labels define you, but instead be defined by your life in Christ. 

Getting Past Your Past
Is your future caged up in your past?
Instead of being dragged down & immobilized by guilt, pain, or a lingering sense of failure, we can find freedom and joy in Christ. You can Get Past Your Past and live life.
Over the next 4 weeks we are going to explore some of these themes:
16 Oct :: breaking the labels that bind
23 Oct :: forgiving those who hurt you
30 Oct :: initiating restoration
  6 Nov :: getting past your personal failures