A People Empowered: The Church as a Common Devotion (02.24.20)
Facilitator’s Notes:
- Each week’s practice guide takes the principles from Sunday and tries to bring them into tangible practice. This week, the practice involves writing down different ways we can commit to growing in community — so feel free to use a journal or a notes app on your phone.
- After learning that some CGs in our church thought last week’s guide was encouraging groups to practice speaking in tongues together as part of their gathering, we thought it best to clarify: this was not our intention! Rather, the prayer practice was always intended to be in English. However, upon re-reading the guide, we see how we could have been more clear and left less room for misunderstanding. Our apologies for any miscommunication. If you have any further questions or feedback, you can email practices@realitysf.com.
Opening Prayer & Remembrance
Open up your time by reading Psalm 63:1-8.
Spend 5-10 minutes as a group briefly remembering and celebrating the ways you noticed the active presence of the Holy Spirit in your lives in the last week. How did the Spirit show up in your life?
Practice
Read Acts 2:42-47 and reflect on this Sunday’s teaching.
This passage documents the culture of the early church. We see the impact of their devotion to learning, corporate community (koinonia), breaking bread, and prayer in their personal lives as well as in their broader community.
Discuss as a group your experiences in Christian community. You can use these questions as a starting point:
- When was a time that you were growing in your personal journey in community?
- When was a time that community was difficult?
- What is one reason why you have stayed in a community (though it was difficult) or left a community?
As individuals, take 5-10 minutes to prayerfully reflect on your commitments to church community using the below questions. Write custom commitments for yourself. Define what is truly doable for you.
- Keep Learning: How will you practically commit to continue learning and growing in your discipleship to Jesus?
- Show Up for Others: What will intentionally “showing up” look like in your CG, church, and neighborhood — for example, practicing generosity and serving “any who had need”?
- Pray: What will corporate and personal prayer look like for you?
- Say Yes to the Spirit: What faithful (even risky) actions will you take to be open and say yes to the Spirit?
Share your commitments with a partner or the whole group. After sharing, take time as a group to give these commitments to Jesus and invite the Spirit to work through your community.
Closing Intercession (20 minutes)
- Spend time sharing prayer requests for the places you participate in community outside of Reality SF (e.g., workplace, hobbies, neighborhoods, families, school, etc.).
- Invite the Spirit to build His Kingdom through your Community Group (“many signs and wonders were being done through the apostles”…. “The Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”).
Optional
Break into partners and commit to pray and follow up on the work of the Spirit in one another’s communities.