Doug’s Foggiest Ideas

1. For nearly all of us we are where we are today in our Faith Journey because of other people in our lives that cared enough to share with us the gospel message. Briefly share with you group some of your story and who it was that did this for you.

2. Take a minute and think about where you might be today if these people hadn’t cared for you enough or hadn’t been brave enough to reach out to you.  Share with your group what thoughts come to your mind.

3. When you think about the “G.F.O.” conversation that we have been having for the past several weeks, has this had an impact on the way that you process your priorities?  How do you see each of these three being intertwined together?

4. I shared a Francis Chan quote this week. “Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure but of succeeding at things that don’t really matter.”  What do you think about this quote?  How does it challenge you?

5. Read Matthew 5:14-16.  What do these verses say about what God expects us to be doing?  What does “hiding your light under a basket” mean?  How do you most often do this?  This verse says that our lives and our good deeds are what will be noticed by the world around us.  How do our “deeds” communicate?  Do your deeds communicate God’s love well?

6. Read Mark 2:1-12.  This is an incredible story of 4 “G.F.O. Minded Guys”.  This week I talked about a “Shouldering Faith”.  There are several things about living this way that we need to understand:

• That there are NEEDS all AROUND us.
• Our CONFIDENCE must be in JESUS!
• ACTION must be TAKEN.
• To EXPECT OBSTACLES.
• EXCUSES fuel FAILURE.
• CREATIVITY will be REQUIRED.
• The RESULTS are up to GOD.

When you reflect back over these points which of them challenged you the most?  Why?  As you review the list share from your perspective why they are each so important to understand / remember?

7. What are the excuses that are most often used to justify a lack of “O” focus in the lives of the people that we know?  How about in your life personally?  What do you think are the primary reasons that we use these excuses?

8. I also shared another quote this week, “We need to stop giving people excuses not to believe in God. You’ve probably heard the expression ‘I believe in God, just not organized religion’. I don’t think people would say that if the church truly lived like we are called to live.” How does this apply to the importance of our G.F.O. series?

9. Share with your group the name of one of the people that God has been putting on your heart to reach out to.  Why is it so important that we have this “O” focus as individuals, as families and as a church?  What kind of an impact can you see us having if this focus was prioritized as it should be in each of our lives?

10. Share with your group any prayer requests that you might have.  Take some time to also pray that this week we would all be reminded to pray and reach out to the people that God has been putting on our hearts.  Pray for to do some incredible things this Easter week for Plum Creek and also for the other churches in our valley.

1. Can you think of a time that you totally forgot something that should have been glaringly obvious?  If so share that story with your group.  How easy is it for you to “forget” or get “off course” in the area of your priorities?  As a result of this can you see/understand why it is important for us to have the “G.F.O Conversation” regularly?

2. Has the “G.F.O.” concept had an impact on the way that you review your priorities?  Do you have any interesting stories related to “G.F.O”?  How did you do last week in focusing in on your relationship with God?  Any highlights?

3. So often we take the “familiar” for granted.  Have you had any experiences in life that helped you to reconnect with the importance of your family?  How do these types of experiences remind you of what you typically take for granted?  Why do you think it is so easy to take our marriages and families for granted? When you think about your immediate and extended family what are some things that you are grateful for / or ways you been blessed by your family?

4. This week we looked we talked about the importance of protecting our family relationships. Read John 10:10.  What does this say that our enemies objective?  What does this mean in the context of our families?  Why is it so vital that we all take the responsibility of protecting our families seriously?

5. This week I made the statement that, “Balance isn’t the goal in our lives spiritually”.  This is true for each of us individually but also for our families.  Read Mark 12:30 & Matthew 6:33.  How do these verses challenge us in the area of priorities and balance?  What should be your goal?  How do you feel you are doing in this area?  How about your family?

6. Read Deuteronomy 6:6-9, 2 Peter 3:8 and Colossians 2:6-7.  These are just a few of the verses that speak to us about our spiritual priorities.  How do these verses speak to us in terms of what we should be doing and what should be seen in our lives?  Do these verses describe the way you are living and leading?  Why / Why not?

7. This week I talked about 3 “Tipping Points” in our families.

• TIP THE SCALE PERSONALLY.
• TIP THE SCALE by LEADING WELL.
• TIP THE SCALE with ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE.

These are ways that we can “Tip the Scales” both as individuals but also in our families.  Which of these was the most important for you to hear this week?  Why?  What has been your response?  What can you do to be proactive in “tipping the scales”?

8. Last week we focused in on the “G” in our G.F.O. series.  This week we added the “F”.  Do you see the “G” and the “F” connected?  How?  What can you do to keep this in focus?

9. Share with your group any prayer requests that you might have.  Take some time to also pray that this week we would make great strides in prioritizing our relationships with the Lord and our relationship with our families.

Discussion Questions:

1. When you heard the story behind our “G.F.O.” series what were your thoughts?  Why do you think a series on priorities is so important?

2. Why do you think it is that our relationship with God so often gets pushed down our list of priorities?  What are the things that you think we worship the most in our culture today?

3. Read Exodus 20:3-6.  Why do you think these this was important enough to God that He would place them #1 & #2 on this list?  How relevant do you think these commands are in your life?

4.  Read Exodus 32:1-5.  Doesn’t it seem odd that these people could transition from a place of seeing the incredible hand of God at work delivering them from Egypt and seeing the presence of God descend on a mountain to a place of desiring some other god?  How was this possible?  How do we do this in our lives as well?

5. This week we talked about several Idol Truisms…

• Idols are a big DEAL to GOD.
• History proves EVERYONE WORSHIPS.
• Improper MOTIVES PRODUCE idols.
• Idols INCITE EXCUSE making.
• CRISIS REVEALS idols.
• Our IDOLS need to be DESTROYED.

Go through each of these and talk with your group about what they mean and whether you have seen them to be true in your life?

6. Read Acts 17:22-30.  Share your thoughts on what Paul was teaching the people in Athens.  Focus in on the last verse (verse 30).  How does this challenge you personally?

7. What are some things that we can do this week to live with a sense of passionate priority in our relationships with God?

8. Share with your group any prayer requests that you might have.  Take some time to also pray that this week we would make great strides in prioritizing our relationships with the Lord.