Community Group Guide

> Why We Gather

At The Springs Church, we desire for community groups to be a place where we BEHOLD JESUS, BECOME LIKE JESUS, and BELONG IN COMMUNITY. This means that our primary goal for groups is to gather around the transforming presence of Christ. As we gather around the transforming presence of Jesus, we believe by faith that we will be incrementally transformed into His image and likeness. With that in mind, let's begin in prayer by asking the Holy Spirit to lead our time together, move on our hearts, and help us behold Jesus, become Like Jesus, and experince the gift of belonging in community. Let's pray.

> Give Thanks

Take a few moments to briefly share about anything that you are thankful unto the Lord for? Perhaps you've witnessed God answer a prayer or experienced a moment that strengthened your faith. Feel free to share any recent occurrences that have encouraged you or instances where you've felt God's presence at work in your life.

> Scripture Reading

Have someone read Matthew 6:7-15.

> Discussion Questions

Beginning with a right view of God When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, the first half of the prayer is focused on God and his will. We pray that God’s name would be kept holy, his kingdom would come, and that his will would be done. This models how we need to focus our prayers on God and his purposes before we focus on our own. However, putting God first needs to flow from a recognition of who God is. We begin first by addressing God as our Father,addressing God as our loving father is a productive first step in learning how to pray.

Reflection Question: What are some other ways that people may think of God that are distinct from addressing him as Father? How would those other views of God influence people’s prayers?

Reflection Question: What does it mean for you to approach God as Father?

Praying for provision, community, and protection

After we pray for God’s will to be done, we ask for some key needs we have. Jessica Betz highlighted these three requests as praying for God’s provision, healthy community, and God’s protection. We pray for our daily bread, which refers to the way God provided for Israel in the desert by providing bread on the ground each day. This not only points to the way God meets our needs, but the way we depend upon his provision each day. As Betz pointed out, this is not praying for abundance, but for daily dependence. Second, we pray for forgiveness in a way that is tied to forgiving others. We want to be in right relationship with God, but this is tied to the ways we seek healthy relationship with our community. Third, we pray that God would protect us from evil and sin. The people hearing Jesus preach wanted him to set them free from the Roman empire who held political power, but Jesus instead focused on setting them free from the power of sin.

Reflection Question: How do you need to pray this week for God’s provision, right relationships, and protection?

Reflection Question: How does the idea of dependence on God influence the way you pray?

Jesus is the answer to this prayer

Betz emphasized how Jesus not only taught his disciples to pray for these things, but he also answered each request in the prayer. The satisfaction of all of our prayers come in and through Jesus. This is why Paul said that all of God’s promises are “yes and amen” in Jesus.

Reflection Question: How is Jesus the satisfaction of each request we make in the Lord’s prayer?

> Confession and Prayer

Reflect and Pray: As we sit with this passage, ask God to bring to mind anything you need to confess or need prayer for. Take a moment to share and pray for one another. Feel free to split up into pairs depending on the group size.