JOIN US FOR WORSHIP
Worship isn’t about performance; it’s about participation. This Worship Guide serves as a weekly resource as we join in singing, praying, and celebrating the work God is doing in our community. Whether you’re at the Lyric Theatre or tuning into our live stream, we’re so glad you are joining us!
Let’s jump in.
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.
1 John 4:16-19 NIV
PRAYING TOGETHER
Divine Love, call us in. Give us ears to hear your gentle voice that a wrathful world too often tries to drown out. We come to you earnestly and longingly, but often with inhibition. Release us from the reservations that we’ve acquired. Break down the walls we’ve built, knowingly and unknowingly, that numb us to beauty and shield us from true transformation. We want to believe this very thing is true: You are Love. We are loved by Love itself.
We come to your table today, not by status or will or striving, but by invitation. Because we are beloved, we are invited. Because we are invited, we belong. Because we belong, we can stop trying and simply be. Your breath fills our lungs, and we stretch and grow in wisdom and stature, in kindness and creativity, into the wholly loved children of God that we have been all along. We know we are safe by your side, at your table, in your house. After all, You, God of Love, are our home.
HOME CHURCH: GROWING TOGETHER IN COMMUNITY
Start your time together by having a few people share where they’ve seen God at work in their lives throughout the week.
God is not contained to a service or a building. We want to live with the expectation that God is present and at work in the everyday stuff of our lives. We listen, join him in his work, and share stories of how he’s moving!
Studying The Scriptures Together
Each week, we approach the Scriptures with 4 primary questions:
1. What does this tell us about God?
2. What does this tell us about ourselves?
3. How does this help us love
our neighbor?
4. How can we put this into practice?
These questions help guide our conversation around the Scripture each week, and encourage us to move beyond knowledge and into action together.
Discussion Questions:
1. Instead of love being one of God’s many attributes, God is love – meaning every other part of his character (holiness, justice, mercy, anger, wisdom, etc.) is an expression of His love. How does knowing that love is the central reality of God’s character change the way you relate to Him? How would your posture before Him change if you knew that His love didn’t falter or fade?
2. In the message, Justin states that “God loves us as we are, but love never leaves us as we are.” How has love changed the kind of person you are? How might God’s love move beyond affection and emotion into being the primary force of transformation in our lives?
How You Can Pray:
Love Starts With God.
Brennan Manning writes, “My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it.” Love starts with God (1 John 4:19), and we’ll never grow in love unless we’re recieving that love for ourselves. This week, ask God to make His love known to you in tangible ways. Spend time meditating on His perfect love, and as you do, release the fear that holds you back from knowing His love more fully.
NEXT STEPS AND RESOURCES
This summer, we’re seeking to develop “Habits of Love” that help us better love God and our neighbors well. These habits are based upon the “5 Habits Of Highly Missional People” in Michael Frost’s book “Surprise The World.” Our Home Church leaders will be getting a copy of the book, but if you’d like to purchase it, click here.