Plugged-In

Friday - 2/23 - Read Malachi 2:17-3:5

What were some of the ways that the Israelites were treating each other according to v. 5?

What mattered most to these who were taking advantage of others?

If we have a healthy fear of God, according to 3:5, how will that manifest itself in our relationships?

For those of you who were in church two weeks ago, how should the concept of covenantal relationships affect our relationships?

If we are living in covenant with each other are our relationships primarily about what we can get out of them or about what we can give to others?

Why is the answer to the previous question so hard to live out in today's world?

How might the return of Jesus Christ, which could happen at any moment, influence how you treat others?

At GEFC, what are the most important things if Jesus came back? New santuary? New ministries? Or...you and I living sacrificially for each other, putting one another first?

Are you plugged into the lives of others here at GEFC?

What steps do you need to take to better plug into the lives of others?

How might a "plugged-in life" help you to be better prepared for the Lord's return?

Read Malachi 3:6-12 in preparation for next Sunday.

Spiritual act of worship

Thursday - 2/22 - Read Malachi 2:17-3:5

According to Malachi 3:3,4, what is God really after?

Is it possible to offer up religious service to God that actually displeases Him?

What is God really after?

Remember a couple of weeks ago we discovered every believer is a priest to offer up spiritual sacrifices to God as opposed to the Old Testament where only the Levites were to do so?

According to Rom. 12:1,2 every believer is to offer up something to God. What is that?

How can you do this in your work-place, family, marriage, relationships, school, etc.?

Paul calls this your "spiritual act of worship." If it is, then how should you view the places where you live life?

Is it possible to separate our spiritual life from any other part of life?

According to Rom. 12:2, Paul warns us against something. What is that?

How does He tell us we can avoid this?

How are you "renewing your mind?"

Read Malachi 3:6-12 in preparation for next Sunday.

Good building material

Wednesday - 2/21 - Read Malachi 2:17-3:5

Read 1 Cor. 3:12-15. This is a judgment for whom? Believers or unbelievers?

What is the foundation upon which believers are to build? v. 11

According to v. 12 what are the building materials?

What is the purpose of this judgment day according to v. 13?

Are you living your life in light of this day?

Sometimes we associate fire with the fire of Hell. Is that the issue here? cp. v. 15 - "he himself will be saved." Is this judgment going to determine whether a person is saved or not according to verse 15?

So what is the "fire" of these verses? What remains as a result of this fire (vv. 14,15)?

What will the believer receive if what he has done survives this "fire" of judgment (v. 14)?

What are you building upon the foundation of Jesus Christ in your life?

Why is this so crucial in light of 1 Cor. 3:12-15?

Read Malachi 3:6-12 in preparation for next Sunday.

Are you ready?

Tuesday - 2/20 - Read Malachi 2:17-3:5

On Sunday mornings we have been talking about recovering our spiritual groove. How do you feel being accountable to God will help us recover and keep our spiritual groove?

How does the Lord's second coming help us to be accountable?

Why did the Lord want us to know that He would return a second time to this earth?

What are some of your priorities in life? How do they line up with the Lord's coming?

As you work and receive an income and purchase items in life, how do they line up with the Lord's coming?

Do you feel that you are working, buying and accumulating things in life with a sense of accountability to Jesus Christ who could return at any moment?

If Jesus returned today, would you be ready?

Do you need to make any changes in your heart? Your lifestyle? Your priorities?

Read Malachi 3:6-12 in preparation for next Sunday.

Where is the God of justice?

Monday - 2/19 - Read Malachi 2:17-3:5

Where is the God of justice?

This world can be a pretty nasty place to live in sometimes. Lot's of innocent people suffer horribly at the hand of fellow humans. Don't you long for God to do something about it? Why?

Are you ever tempted to feel like the the Israelites, that living a good life in God's eyes is fruitless?

What does God tell the Israelites who felt this way in 3:2 that puts this in the right perspective?

Why is God taking so long? Read 2 Pet. 3:3-9. Does that shed any light on why God is taking so long?

If God had judged this world before you had an opportunity to exist, what would that mean for you?

Answer this question again: Where is the God of justice? Answer it in light of some of the questions you answered above. Has your perspective changed? Should it?

Read Malachi 3:6-12 in preparation for next Sunday.

Guard yourself in your spirit!

Friday - 2/16 - Read Malachi 2:10-16

According to vv. 13,14 what affect do our marital relationships have on our relationship to God?

Why do you think God connects our worship of Him to our relationship with our spouse?

In verse 15 what is the relationship between our marriages and our offspring?

Do you believe this is true or not?

Why do you believe God is seeking “godly offspring” in our marriages?

As we learned last Sunday, from verse 16, a man covering himself with his garment was a euphemism or symbol of marriage in Malachi's day. A man covering himself with violence is a euphemism for divorce and the negative things it causes in our families and culture.

Have you gone through a divorce? What were some of the negative repercussions of divorce in your life?

Did your mom and dad go through a divorce? Same question: What were some of the negative repercussions of divorce in your life?

What about society? What are some of the negative repercussions of divorce in our society?

Are there occasions where God allows for divorce? Study the following verses for yourself. Matthew 7:32; 1 Cor. 7:15

Why do you think God wants you to “guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith?

List three or four practical ways you can guard your spirit from breaking faith with the wife of your youth.

Read Malachi 2:17-3:5 in preparation for next Sunday.

Shalom = great marriages?

Thursday - 2/15 - Read Malachi 2:10-16

The Hebrew word shalom carries with it so much more than just peace. It means the desire to see someone prosper, flourish, develop and become whole. We learned on Sunday that it's tied directly to the concept of covenant.

God wanted the people of Israel to live in shalom! Do you believe God desires this for you and your marriage?

How does that desire by God reflect itself in your relationship to your marriage partner?

How are you pro-actively living out the covenant relationship you have with your husband or wife? How are you establishing shalom in your marriage?

Contrast the way the world tries to build a successful marriage with the concept of shalom.

How are they different? How are they similar?

Husbands, what changes do you need to make to establish shalom in your marriage?

Wives,what changes do you need to make to establish shalom in your marriage?

Read Malachi 2:17-3:5 in preparation for next Sunday.

Yoked together with whom?

Wednesday - 2/14 - Read Malachi 2:10-16

Today I want to speak to those who are not married yet, but want to get married at some point in the future. Of course, those who are married need to remember in their own marriages why this is such an important thing to God.

Are you looking for your soul-mate in life?

Why do you think that God was so opposed (Malachi 2:11,12) to the Israelites marrying outside the faith?

As we discovered, the phrase “broken faith” means to “act unfaithfully with respect to a prior agreement or covenant.”

If we are in a covenant relationship with God through Jesus Christ, should we look for a husband/wife who is covenant relationship with God too?

Why do you think this important or unimportant?

If you are looking to find God's person to marry, what's more important? Intimacy with God or intimacy with another human being? That's tough to answer isn't it?

Spend a little bit of time looking at 2 Cor. 6:14-16. List the contrasts in these verses. How do they apply to whomever we “yoked together” with in life?

Do you think this is for our good?

In what ways?

Where does faith enter into the applying of these concepts we're focusing on today?

Are you trusting God to guide you to the best person for you to marry?

Read Malachi 2:17-3:5 in preparation for next Sunday.

Alone in a Crowd

Tuesday - 2/13 - Read Malachi 2:10-16

I related the account of when I was lost and all alone in a crowded store. Alone in a crowd of people? I was terrified.

Do you feel that way in your marriage? You're surrounded by your husband/wife and perhaps your children and in-laws, etc., but you feel so alone.

Could it be that you're experiencing that detached, terrifying loneliness because you've lost track of God in your marriage?

My parents weren't really that far away when I was “lost”--just a few aisles over. God isn't far away right now for you.

Have you and your mate acted on the need to cry out to Him for Him to return to His place in your marriage? Will the information you gained on Sunday perform a disappearing act in your mind, or will you act on it?

Nobody likes confrontation, but did God's word confront you and your mate? Have you talked about it? Do you want to settle for the status-quo?

If you're marriage is healthy, did you notice the need for some tweaks in your relationship to grow to the next level in an already healthy marriage?

Read Malachi 2:17-3:5 in preparation for next Sunday.

What place does God have?

Monday - 2/12 - Read Malachi 2:10-16

Where does God fit into your marriage? What place does God have in your marriage?

God is our Father. If he is a Father, what place does He have in your relationship with your mate? Have you considered this in your marriage?

Are there any changes you have made in your relationship since yesterday because He is a Father over your relationship?

God is your Creator? When have you been acutely aware of God as creator? Enjoying the stunning beauty of the outdoors-mountains, sunset, sunrise, etc.? Birth of baby? How about your marriage?

If God is a covenant keeping God whose love is irrevocable and unconditional, do you think He wants this covenantal aspect of His relationship to you to be extended to your mate? How?

His covenantal love isn't based on our ability to deserve it—we let God down many times. Has your mate let you down? If your love is to be this covenantal type of love to him/her, how do you react when he/she lets you down?

What changes need to be made in the way you love your mate?

Read Malachi 2:17-3:5 in preparation for next Sunday.

Guess who's coming for dinner?

Friday - 2/9 - Read John 1:1-14

Mark 2:15 mentions that Jesus would go and eat with the tax-collectors and sinners of his day. They were rejected by society. Everyone hated them and wanted nothing to do with them, that is, all but Jesus and his disciples.

What does this tell us about Jesus' heart?

Do you ever feel like the tax-collectors and sinners, abandoned and rejected by others? What does this text tell us about how Jesus feels toward you?

What is the setting for Mark 2:15?

It's in the setting of a meal that Jesus says I care for the abandoned and rejected of this world.

When you think of a meal, what do you think of besides just the eating of food?

It looks like these abandoned and rejected tax-collectors and sinners were drawn to Jesus.

Why do you think that is?

What draws you to Jesus?

If you have suffered rejection and have been abandoned do you still matter to God?

In the midst of some of the rejection you're experiencing in your life, would you pray and ask the Lord to sit down with you and be close to you and walk with you through the experience?

Read Malachi 2:10-16 in preparation for next Sunday.

Rejection can be good?

Thursday - 2/8 - Read John 1:1-14

As you partook of the bread and the cup at communion last Sunday, were you able to invite Jesus into your rejection you're experiencing?

When you think of the bread and the cup and how they are to help us remember what the Lord did for us on the Cross, do you think of rejection? How? Why?

How did God take the rejection His Son experienced and turn it around and use it for good?

List three or four ways Christ's rejection became something good for you?

Parents, when your children are rejected, what is our natural tendency?

Could we possibly short-circuit valuable life-lessons by reacting to quickly to keep our children from the affects of rejections?

If you are in the midst of suffering rejection, are you looking for God to do something in your life that can only happen through the rejection?

Would you pray and ask God for the strength to endure the rejection and the wisdom to discern God's purpose for it?

Read Malachi 2:10-16 in preparation for next Sunday.

Spiritual "Blinders"

Wednesday - 2/7 - Read John 1:1-14

Today, I am drawn to Isa. 53:1-3. Take a couple of minutes to look over this passage. God was pretty up-front about Jesus and how he would be a man familiar with rejection.

If we are to be followers of Jesus what does Isa. 53:1-3 imply for our lives?

Have you considered rejection as a possible element of Christian discipleship?

Do we have a tendency to wear “blinders” when we think of following our Lord? I know I do.

Have you ever been rejected by a really close friend because you were a follower of Jesus Christ? Many of you have.

How did you react?

Did it drive you to the Lord or away from Him?

Did it make you stronger in your Christian walk or weaker?

If Jesus would be a man “despised and rejected by men,” and he was, should it surprise you when you are despised and/or rejected by men?

Read John 15:18-16:4. How did Jesus prepare the disciples and us (17:20) for the inevitable—for rejection and persecution?

Do these words help you to be willing to be rejected for Christ?

Read Malachi 2:10-16 in preparation for next Sunday.

Who's your Maxine?

Tuesday - 2/6 - Read John 1:1-14

Do you have a “Maxine” in your life? If you were at church on Sunday you know who I'm talking about. I'm talking about someone who you wanted to share Christ with and you tried to, but the whole thing was a disaster. When I shared Christ with Maxine she became livid. It really hurt me. I really cared about her eternal destiny, yet she just railed on me because of it.

If you've had an experience like this and your attempts to share Christ were rejected, let me ask you how you've reacted?

Have you attempted to share Christ with anyone since?

Are you reluctant to do so because of fear of rejection?

Is there someone in your life that you want to share Christ with so badly, but that past experience of rejection looms over any attempts of you doing so?

Does the pain of that past rejection justify not sharing Christ now?

What is more important, guarding your heart from rejection or the eternal destiny of someone you know who needs to hear the good news?

How can Jesus help you get past that reluctance? Read Heb. 4:14-16.

Have you drawn near to the throne to receive mercy and find grace with this rejection you've experienced?

Will you right now?

Read Malachi 2:10-16 in preparation for next Sunday.

Rejection--Part of God's plan?

Monday - 2/5 - Read John 1:1-14

Yesterday in church we talked about rejection. As we partook of communion together we tried to focus on how Jesus was constantly rejected. All of us, to some degree or another have faced rejection. List your three most difficult rejections you've experienced.

How did you react to them? Did something positive eventually come out of those experiences now that you look back on them?

Are you still experiencing the effects of those rejections?

Why is Jesus uniquely qualified to help you through the pain of rejection?

Have you invited Jesus into the midst of that pain?

Would you be willing to consider the rejection you've experienced as part of God's 'Big Picture' for your life, in other words, part of God's plan for using your life for His purposes?

If not, would you be willing to tell God right now that you accept that rejection as something from Him and trust Him to use it in your life to honor His name?

Read Malachi 2:10-16 in preparation for next Sunday.

"Safe Christianity = Boring Christianity!"

Friday - 2/2 - Read Malachi 2:1-9

Finding your spiritual groove is all about finding a dynamic, vibrant, life-changing, Christian life.

Do you agree with that? Why or why not?

Do you agree with this: "Safe Christianity = Boring Christianity?"

Do you think you've been playing it safe, especially in light of Malachi 2:1-9 and its suggestion that you should assume the role of leader?

As this kind of leader, when was the last time you've "climbed out on a limb," as it were, so far, that if God isn't out there with you, you'll fall flat on your face?

Was Phinehas this kind of person? Why was he?

Senior Saints - Have you ever said, "Oh, I'm to old to be of use to the church anymore, besides, I'm tired and I'm gonna let the younger ones have a turn for a while." Or, "The younger ones in the church don't appreciate my insight I've gained over the years, so I'm just not going to be involved anymore?" Is this the way you want to finish your spiritual race? Is this the kind of vibrant Christianity you want to pass down to your kids and grandkids? Is God worthy of this?

Middle Age Saints - Have you ever said, "Retirement is just around the corner. I'm tired. I've worked hard. I've done my duty. It's time for some rest." What kind of leader would you be to your kids who are quickly approaching adulthood, or perhaps already are? What kind of legacy will this communicate to them? Would there be any difference between you and the priests in Malachi 2:1-9?

Young Adult Saints - Have you ever said, "I'm too young to lead anyone! I'm still learning the ropes! I'm gonna just watch and learn for now, and someday, when I feel up to it, I'll be more serious about having an influence on people around me, besides I'm having too much fun right now to devote any time to being a leader." If you have kids, how is this attitude going to impact them? What will they think of what God is worth? As they grow up, what place will God have in their hearts?

Children and Teenager Saints - Have you ever said, "You know, I'm just way too young to be a leader. I'm just trying to figure out who I am and how I fit into this world. How can I influence others?" Do you think others your age feel the same way? Would it benefit them and you if you were just honest and worked through these questions together? What would happen if you were zealous like Phinehas in your school, with your friends? Would you have to pay a price? Would it be worth it?