Holy Habits: Simplicity
Matthew 6:19-21 and Selected Scriptures
Connect:
Share how you have seen God in the Highs and Lows of your week.
Prayer:
Pray that God would lead your discussion time and bring fresh insight, conviction, and hope through your time together.
Review:
This series is focused on changing our lives by forming habits that will nurture our life in Christ and daily walk with Jesus. This week we are reminded that letting go of excess can lead to a more fulfilling and content life. We can invite God to change our hearts, and ultimately, having a relationship with Jesus is the foundation for understanding true fulfillment and contentment.
The Grand Tour of the message: Thinking back on what you heard this Sunday…
o What did you learn about God?
o What did you learn about people?
o What did you learn about yourself?
o What do you want to commit to putting into practice?
Reflection:
Personal Experience:
Do you know someone who is a “pack rat” (finds security in having an abundance of ‘stuff’ and cannot get rid of ANYTHING)? What problem is ‘stuff’ solving in their lives? Does it actually do that? What are some unintended consequences?
How do we tell the difference between a want and a need?
Group Discussion:
Read Matthew 6: 19-34
What is the essential message of this passage— say it in your own words.
First Jesus talks about laying up treasures in Heaven, then He ends by talking about exchanging anxiety for trust. What is it about our experience of life here and now that makes all that so difficult?
Read Luke 16:9-15. How does this deepen our understanding of “simplicity” in the life of a disciple of Christ?
What are some things from your ‘riches’ here that, if God were to take them away from you right now, would cause an earthquake not only in your experience of life, but your walk of faith?
How do you tell the difference between a need and a want?
Talk about that connection between our stuff and our faith?
Read Hebrews 12:1-2 and Luke 11:1-4. How do these verses add to/ sharpen/ inform your discussion?
Read Philippians 4:12-13
Share an experience in your own life or someone else’s when “all [I/they] had was Jesus”. What happened?
Scott said, “The closer you are to Jesus, the clearer you are on what matters.” Why is that?
Application:
Discuss practical steps to cultivate simplicity, such as decluttering, simplifying schedules, focusing on relationships and choosing contentment.
Prayer:
Scott asked “What matters most?” That’s a great question. Spend some time in prayer together acknowledging God’s Lordship over what concerns us, and thank Him for His promise to be with us “to the end of the age”. Commit to the discipline of contentment and see His strength in living that out!
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