21 Days of Prayer
Jesus invites us to journey with Him over these 21 days toward shalom, wholeness in our hearts and lives. As we draw near, reflect and pray, we join Him as He works in and through us to restore and refresh our hearts and minds; heal and renew our relationships with those close to us; and empower us to foster harmony in His church, our local community, our country and world.
Week 1: Be Restored
Week 2: Renewal in Relationships
Week 3: Fostering harmony in the church, local community, country and world
READ Psalm 37:1-9
What strikes you? What challenges you? What encourages you?
How does this paint a challenging picture of self control?
How does this paint an encouraging picture of self control?
How does this illustrate the core to self-control lying in the power of God, not in the strength of our own will power?
READ Matthew 12:43-45
What strikes you? What challenges you? What encourages you?
How do you see these verses as being related to self-control?
If, as Dan's been preaching, self-control is more about relying on God's strength rather than exerting our own will-power, how does this parable support this message?
APPLY YOURSELF TO THIS MESSAGE
In the last sentence of these verses, Jesus points the parable directly at the generation before Him, one that is hearing His teachings but not choosing to enter into His Kingdom. In what areas of Jesus' teaching through His scriptures, through the teaching of the church, or through the Spirit's message to your own heart is a lesson being preached that you are not letting in to your "house"?
Are there areas of your life where you have obediently repented of sin, cleansed your life of sinful habits, but not replaced those behaviors with positive full life of the Spirit of God? Put another way, in emptying your life of the bad, where might you be also closing off the power of the Spirit to flow in and through you to re-fill your emptiness with the Spirit's goodness?
CLOSE BY READING OVER PSALM 23
What does God desire to fill your house with?
READ Isaiah 55:1-3
What strikes you? What challenges you? What encourages you?
When one hears "self-control" our first instinct might be to think about self-denial, refraining from that which is enjoyable. How is that NOT the picture in these verses?
When you experience pain, especially emotional, what is your very first-instant instinct? If you're like me, you grasp at what you can to escape the pain, distract yourself from it. Many of my own struggles with self-control stem from moments like this - shove a chocolate in my mouth, get lost in a Facebook rabbit hole, bark at someone in anger - all to distract or defend myself from the pain. But none of these go-to's are about my true desires. What do these verses say about our true desires and needs and what God desires to do with them? How might this shift our perspective about a God who desires us to live with self-control?
What guides those obedient to these verses in how they "delight in rich food?" What does this tell us about the growing of the fruit of self-control in our lives?
Where do you see healthy self-control exhibited around you? What effect does that have on you, others? What effect does lack of self-control have?
READ Ecclesiastes 3.1-14
How does this passage support a picture where self-control has an important role to play?
How does this passage paint a picture that contrasts ways of life like asceticism (severe self-discipline and avoidance of all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons)?
How does this passage support living in a rhythm of sabbaths and sabbaticals?
READ John 5.16-24
If anyone should be free to be self-directed, shouldn't it have been Jesus? How does this passage illustrate something different?
What rubric or authority should determine how we behave?
How do we lean into a life that exudes self-control?
For an overview of the book of Jeremiah, check out this video:
You can also use this poster as a reference/overview: CLICK HERE FOR POSTER
[OPTIONAL BONUS QUESTION:] A few weeks ago, Dan preached on the story of Jonah [if you missed it, the whole book of Jonah in the bible is a short one and a great read, so check it out!]. How would you compare and contrast these two, Jeremiah and Jonah, prophets' stories? Which guy would you rather be?
READ Jeremiah 1:4-10
What was Jeremiah's call? Would hearing Jeremiah's message feel gentle to you?
READ Jeremiah 11:18-20
How did the Israelite's receive Jeremiah's message?
Definition: Gentleness
What is the picture of Gentleness in this passage? Is it attractive, desirable?
Who is Jeremiah Gentle toward?
Jeremiah's warnings fell on deaf [and hostile] ears. Israel was led off into exile. But with their former covenant wasted, God, in His grace, established a new covenant.
Check out the new covenant, READ Jeremiah 31:33-34
What strikes you? Do you see any Gentleness in God through the announcement of this new covenant?
How is this new covenant fulfilled? [short cut hint: see Hebrews 10:14-17]
How is it possible for Gentleness to flow through us? [for a hint, see Acts 2]
How is Jeremiah's Gentleness related to our own Gentleness?
READ Luke 19:1-10
What do you most resonate with in this passage? What do you most resist in this passage?
How does Jesus define his purpose in coming to Earth in this story? Earlier in the book of Luke, how is Jesus' mission is defined? (see Luke 4:18) How does the story illustrate that Jesus is "on mission" in both of these respects?
This and last week, we've been looking at the spiritual Fruit of Goodness, as "setting things to right." Last week we saw Jesus set things to right for the demoniac. Where do we see things set to right in this story (hint: this is slightly a trick question)?
What do you learn about Goodness through this story? Where do you see this type of Goodness flowing forth from the Body of Christ as members dwell in the Spirit?
What do you learn about God through the process of reading and reflecting on your reaction to these verses? What do you learn about yourself?
What do you learn about your role in community through reflecting on this story as it may intersect with your own life?
READ Romans 15:4-13
RE-Read verse 4: What hope do the scriptures encourage you to have? What does this have to do with Patience?
What other encouragements do you find in this particular passage of scripture? What challenges you? What else strikes you as interesting?
Read verse 7: How has Christ welcomed you? How do you welcome others? How can you more fully glorify God in obeying this command?
Read through the passage and look for the presence or idea of “harmony.” What do you observe? What do you learn about God’s heart through this observation? What do you learn about how to follow Jesus through this observation?
RE-Read verse 12: Who is the root of Jesse? Let’s look at what Isaiah says about this person:
READ Isaiah 11:1-10
Isaiah paints the picture of a family tree, starting with Jesse, the father of King David. What do you learn about the Shoot of Jesse or Root of Jesse from this passage?
Scholars think that the book of Isaiah was written between 7th or 8th BCE, while Romans was written ~55 CE. That puts a minimum of 700 years between them. What does this span of time holding the same topic and hope tell you about the kind of patience involved in the life of faith?
Consider the role of fear in this passage. Take a look at the passage verse-by-verse and articulate about how fear is present, at work, or anything else interesting about fear. What do you learn about God by paying attention to the story of fear in these verses?
<< Finish the studying and looking for more meat to chew on? Give these a try:>>
READ Matthew 3:1-12
Re-Read verse 8. We are spending the year learning about the fruit of the Spirit. How might this text be related? What different perspective does this shed for you on the fruit of the Spirit?
Re-Read verse 9: This contains an interesting example about Abraham. Why would this suggestion hold such weight? [Check out Genesis 18:1-15] What does this say about the wideness of God’s heart and desire for drawing unexpected characters into this family?
We have different imagery here about tree roots. What does this imagery teach about the Root of Jesse? What does this say about the connection between the Root of Jesse and the Fruit of the Spirit?
READ Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Try using this text as a guided prayer.
Getting to know you: What is something you have pursued in your life? A goal, a person, an object . . . something you’ve been willing to focus for, sacrifice for, been determined to secure for yourself? How long did you pursue it? Did you attain it? What was that like? Did anything change in your thinking/feelings/behavior in the process of that pursuit?
Getting to know the Bible:
1) Off the top of your head, how would you define or describe what is the Kingdom of God is or is like?
2) What would the Jews have thought the Kingdom of God was about at the time of Jesus’ birth?
a. Read Exodus 19:3-6
3) What did Jesus say the Kingdom of God was like/about?
a. Read Luke 4:14-30
b. Read Mark’s version of the above story in Mark 1:14-15 [note both accounts immediately follow the temptation in the desert and are followed by Jesus’ cleansing of the man with the unclean spirit]
c. Read Matthew 5:3-12
4) What does Jesus’ take on the Old Testament show us about what God has always had in mind with regards to the poor and the Kingdom of God? Read at least two of the following:
a. Deuteronomy 14:22-29;
b. Deuteronomy 15:1-18;
c. Leviticus 19:1-10;
d. Leviticus 25:1-28;
e. Leviticus 19:11-19 (do not favor poor or wealthy)
How do I apply myself to this message?
What does the reality of the Kingdom of God and its nature do to instruct how we can a) think about God’s plan for the world around us b) feel towards God, and feel towards people around us and c) live our lives accordingly?
This coming Sunday, we will re-enter our sermon series on Ephesians. If you would like to prepare for Sunday's sermon, you are welcome to use the below study guide as a resource. This guide will also instruct our community group discussions. To join a group, contact zoefaithreyes@gmail.com.
Ephesians 2.1-10: Saved by grace
Getting to know you: Recount a memorable walk or hike you’ve taken that involved following a guide. What was the setting like? What was your guide like? What made the walk memorable?
Pray that God would open "the eyes of your innermost self" (Eph. 1:17) to God's light.
Day 1:
Getting to know the Bible: Read Ephesians 2.1-10
Write down your initial impressions.
What one word sticks out to you most in this passage?
You and the Bible: From what do you need Christ to save you?
Try sketching a picture of you traveling on a road based on these verses.
Day 2:
Getting to know the Bible: Read Isaiah 30.18-22
Based on this passage, how do you think God feels about showing you grace and mercy?
You and the Bible: How does this passage make you feel about walking in God’s way?
Day 3:
Getting to know the Bible: Read Psalm 1
Express verse 3 in your own way [whatever suits you: write, draw, graph, sing . . .]
You and the Bible: How does this passage make you feel about the idea of walking in God’s way?
Day 4:
Getting to know the Bible: Read Luke 7.36-50
If Jesus says that in serving “the least of these,” we serve Him (Matt. 25:40), how might the woman in this story show us how to serve “the least of these?”
You and the Bible: How much have you been forgiven?
Day 5:
Getting to know the Bible: Re-Read Ephesians 2.1-10
Does a new one-word stick out to you in this passage after spending time in the others? What’s the difference between works-based-salvation and salvation-based-works?
You and the Bible: Why were you made alive? For what purpose(s)? (vs. 10)
Starting in September, we will re-enter our Ephesians sermon series. You can catch up on Dan's sermons on Ephesians 1 here under "Letter to the Ephesians." And/or you can spend some time in Ephesians 1 for yourself using the following guide.
Use as much or as little of this study guides as you find edifying. You might consider breaking up each of the following 4 sessions over 4 days of study.
Consider praying Ephesians 1:16-29 repeatedly for your community group as you anticipate (re)joining them this fall.
To learn more about our group offerings visit our Community Groups page. To sign up for a community group, please email Zoë Reyes, Community Development Director, at zoefaithreyes at gmail.com with the type of group you're interested in, the nights your available and/or a particular group leader you'd like to join.
Session One: Ephesians
Read through the whole book of Ephesians to get an overview. Just read.
Session Two: The Wealth of His Grace
Read Ephesians 1:1-10
1) How do we form our identity in Christ?
2) What has God delivered you from in particular? What would your life look like without the work He is doing in and for you now and throughout your life? [see vs. 4-10, esp. vs. 7]
3) We aren't chosen for our own sake, but for the sake of what God wants to accomplish through us. In what ways might God want to bless (or how is he already blessing) others through you or your Christian community? ( N. T. Wright. Ephesians)
3b) For further study:
Read Genesis 12:1-8. How do you see this passage relating to what Paul is talking about here in Ephesians? How do you see this passage relating to you personally?
4) What is God’s plan? (see vs. 10)
5) What do you learn in these verses about Jesus and our relationship to Him?
Session Three: Inheritance and the Spirit
Read Ephesians 1:11-14
1) Is there a particular statement that you find particularly thought provoking or penetrating?
2) What is our promised inheritance (v. 11)? (N. T. Wright. Ephesians)
3) What do you learn in these verses about Jesus and our relationship to Him?
Session Four: Knowing the Power of the King
Read Ephesians 1:15-23
1) What do you learn in these verses about Jesus and our relationship to Him?
2) Paul doesn't imagine that all Christians will automatically be able to recognize the power of God. It will take, as he says in verse 17, a fresh gift of wisdom, of coming to see things people don't normally see. And this in turn will come about through knowing Jesus and having what Paul calls "the eyes of your innermost self" opened to God's light. What should and shouldn't using this power look like in our daily lives? How have you experienced this power in your life? (N. T. Wright. Ephesians)
3) What is the church?
4) What does it mean to be the fullness of the one who fills all in all?
Our mission at North Harbor is to lead people toward a growing relationship with Jesus and we believe this is best accomplished in community. We invite you to become a part of our community and hope that in us, you would find a place where you belong.
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