Getting Started

Main Idea:
Get in on God’s grace and greater purpose through His new rivers and roads.

Discussion Starter:
Share with the group a good habit you are proud of or a bad habit you hope to break.

Introduction:
We are creatures of habit, and it is easy to get stuck in the past, but God is calling us to learn from the past, not live in it. He will provide new rivers and new roads through whatever wilderness we travel.

---

Encounter God

Primary Scriptures: Philippians 3:20, Exodus 4:12, Isaiah 43:18-19

Discussion Questions:
1. Read Philippians 3:20. Have you ever traveled to a foreign country (or a place that felt like a foreign country)? How long did you stay? Did it begin to feel like home? Discuss our heavenly citizenship. Are you longing for your heavenly home or comfortable in your earthly habitation?

2. Read Exodus 14:12. The Israelites wanted to return to Egypt! When has this happened to you? When has it been more comfortable to return to something negative in the past rather than face the unknown in the future?

3. Read Isaiah 43:18-19. Are you facing a wilderness or desert right now? Share with your group and ask them to pray that you would see God’s new rivers and new roads.

Discovery Bible Method:
For deeper study, as an alternative to the questions above, read the verses in Isaiah that precede our theme verses: Isaiah 43:1-13 and use the Discovery Bible Method to explore the passage.

---

Embrace Others

Suggestion: Consider breaking the group into dyads or triads for this section.

Isaiah 43 was written during the Israelites’ captivity in Babylon. Sometimes we are held captive by circumstances beyond our control, and sometimes our captivity is the result of our own sin. Are you currently held captive by circumstances or sin? How can your group pray for you?

---

Engage the World Around Us

Engaging at Faith Promise: Are you currently serving in a ministry at Faith Promise? If not, ask your group leader to suggest ministry opportunities.

Engaging in Community: Is your group serving in your local community? If not, make a plan to serve together as a group 3 times in 2018. Mark your calendars! For local missions opportunities please visit https://faithpromise.org/love-local.

Engaging the World: January is a time when many people are attempting to make positive changes and turn over a new leaf. With whom can you share the positive changes that God has made and is making in your life?

---

Expand God’s Kingdom

Super Bowl Sunday is February 4, and Faith Promise will again feature a battle of the Pastors. Who can you invite to this service before the Super Bowl?

---

Leader’s Notes

E-Groups
– Encounter Groups: the primary focus of Encounter Groups is the deeper study and application of God’s Word.

– Embrace Groups: the primary focus of Embrace Groups is making friends and being friends on a deeper level.

– Engage Groups: the primary focus of Engage Groups is serving the people of our area through our local partners and through God-directed opportunities.

– Expand Groups: the primary focus of Expand Groups is the development and multiplication of disciple-makers to lead more groups at Faith Promise.