In life, “the next chapter” can create in us a combination of excitement, fear, and sadness. Change can be hard, and change can be exactly what we need.
We can move forward with confidence and enjoy the adventure when we can see how where we are now is part of God’s plan for us.
According to Luke 10, Jesus sent out 70 people on a mission to Go Find Needs:
- Go together -trusting and representing God.
- Find open-minded people who want what you have.
- Be fully present and meet their physical and spiritual needs
Spend time with these questions, and then discuss them with your running partner, family over dinner or life group, and use them to help you discover your mission.
Discussion Questions
- What was a transition in your life that was scary or nerve-wracking but turned out to be a really good thing for you?
- Have you ever helped someone fulfill their mission? If so, what did you do? What did you learn?
- Based on your background, experiences, opportunities, or personality, what are some of your passions or areas of interest or spiritual gifts?
- According to Luke 10:1-11, 16, Jesus sent out the 70 on a mission. If you were to take on the mission of Jesus, what part of that mission would be easiest for you – going out in community, finding “persons of peace,” meeting physical needs, or meeting spiritual needs?
- According to Matthew 10:1, 7-8 and John 14:12, Jesus sent his disciples out to overcome the darkness and proclaim hope and even said that whoever believes in Him “will do even greater things than these.” If helping someone discover eternal life with God through Jesus is the “greater things” Jesus promised, have you ever had the opportunity to help someone find eternal life? Have you seen people choose to follow Jesus and turn their life around? If so, what happened?
- If fulfilling the mission God has for all who follow Jesus is not dependent on where you live or where you work, then what is your next step this week in making an impact?
- The more we fulfill the general mission God has for all who follow Jesus, the more clearly God guides us towards our own specific mission. What do you sense may God’s more specific calling for this season in your life?
Luke 10:1-11, 16
“After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.
“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’
“Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
Matthew 10:1, 7-8
“Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness….
As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”
John 14:12
Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.
Here is the audio of the message I shared:
Gateway is a community where you can “come as you are” AND grow to “change your world.” To that end, during the inspire service called “The Next Chapter,” we looked at how God has created each of us on purpose on for a purpose.
