The Great Adjustment

November 6, 2022

Any time God calls you to join Him and His work, you can be sure that you will face a crisis of belief. That crisis will always require faith and action as you make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing. From the earliest stories in the Bible to its final pages, we see examples of people standing at the crossroads of doubt and faith. Some heard God’s invitation and adjusted their lives to follow Him, while others listened to the invitation and refused to make the necessary changes. Join us for part 6 of Experiencing God, where we will compare two men whom both heard God’s invitation but made very different choices.

Listen to Podcast

Passage

1 Kings 19:15-21 & Mark 10:17-27

Realities of Experiencing God

1. God is ____________ at ________ around you.

2. God pursues a continuing ________ ____________________ with you that is ________ and ________________.

3. God _____________ you to become involved with ______ and His ________.

4. God speaks by the ________ ___________ through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal _____________, His ____________, and His _______.

5. God’s invitation always leads you to a ____________ ____ __________ that requires faith and action.

6. You must make __________ ______________________ in your life to join God in what He is doing.

Practice

__________________ an ______________________ you need to make to join God and what He is doing.

Small Group Questions

Use this outline for personal reflection, as a couples or family devotion, or with a small group.

HANGOUT

Describe the last significant adjustment that you made in life. Why did you make it? How did it change you?

This week we are considering Reality 6: You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing.

Large Group Questions

Read Exodus 4:18 – 5:9

What major adjustments were necessary for Moses to join God’s work (see 4:18-20, 24-26)?
How does knowing Moses’ history with the Egyptians add to your understanding of Moses’ crisis of belief and the major adjustment required to join God in what He was doing (see 4:19)?
What does the story about circumcision, the sign of God’s covenant with the Israelites, suggest about Moses’ previous relationship with God and the community of God’s people (see 4:24-26)? How does it highlight the major adjustments required of Moses and the people around him?
How did the following people respond to the major adjustments in Moses’ life?

Jethro, his father-in-law (see 4:18)
Zipporah, his wife (see 4:35)
Aaron, his brother (see 4:31)
Pharoah (see 5:2-9)

Small Group Questions (3 - 5 people)

Review this week’s daily readings. If you did not do this week’s lesson, feel free to join the conversation anyway! If you’d like a copy of The Seven Realities of Experiencing God, please ask your group leader.

What success or comfort could tempt you to resist Christ’s invitation to do something else? What apparent failure discourages you from trusting God’s call to join His work?
What area of your life would be the easiest to adjust to God’s will? What area would be the most difficult or significant to adjust if God required change?
What’s the most significant sacrifice in your life? How did God prove more satisfying than whatever you sacrificed?
What do you feel is getting in the way of God’s will in your life? How have you blamed other people or circumstances for the spiritual condition of your life?
Talk about it, invite accountability, and pray together.

Daily Readings

As you read these passages, look for the major adjustments people made to join God in what He was doing. Invite the Holy Spirit to reveal any adjustments He is inviting you to make.

Day 1: Numbers 13
Day 2: Joshua 2 & 6:15-17
Day 3: Job 41-42
Day 4: Matthew 9
Day 5: John 19
Day 6: John 20
Day 7: Acts 3

Think Deeper

What are the three most significant life adjustments you’ve made? Were they by choice, or were they forced upon you?
Do you believe that following God always requires major adjustments in your life? Why or why not?
What significant adjustment would you need to make to join God in what He is doing around you?