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June - Week Two

Open In Prayer 

Begin by praying together – taking some intentional time to invite the Holy Spirit into your gathering.


Below is an optional Scripture you could pray: 

Psalm 25:4-5: Show us Your ways, Lord, teach us your paths. Guide is in Your truth and teach us, for you are God our Savior, and our hope is in you all day long.

Table Conversations & Reflection On Last Gathering’s Practice

This is space during your gathering to share a meal, build relationships, and enjoy one another. 


  • If you could research one topic for your full-time job, what would you choose?


  • What was one of your favorite days in the last month, and why?


  • What might be one specific message from your family of origin that God has revealed to you through this reflection that is a starting point for healing as part of your intentional spiritual formation?


Read This Aloud Together

A big piece of our journey with the false self that we have not yet discussed is what we do with it when we recognize it. Contrary to what you may think, will power, determination, and rigidity won’t make it go away. In fact, those may be part of what gives the false self its power. 


Instead, we have to face it with an incredible amount of compassion, understanding that it is trying to keep us safe. As one spiritual formation practitioner even suggests, we have to befriend it, to understand what it’s trying to say to us, what it wants to reveal to us, but to still be honest about the fact that it is trying to deceive. 


Each one of us will struggle to find the balance between the brutal honesty and the radical self-compassion required in the hard work of telling the truth about ourselves. We will need the Spirit’s help for both.


Tonight, we will split into same-gendered small groups and explore some questions together around our own journey with the false self. Remember that the journey with the false self will be lifelong, so don’t try to solve it tonight. Press as much into the questions as you feel comfortable to, only sharing what you feel ready to.


Learning: Small Group Discussion

Once you have split into small groups, work through the following prompts and questions:


  1. Recall an experience within the last two weeks that you hid yourself in the name of self-preservation.

    1. What are the signs that you were doing that? (e.g. embarrassment, feeling caught, guilt, shame, fear, anxiety, etc.)

    2. What were you hiding and how did you hide it?

    3. Our surface motive is usually to cover or hide yourself in order to avoid conflict or attention, to hide a mistake, to be seen as good/right, etc. But there are deeper, purer motives and aches in us when we do this. Sometimes we are wanting to belong, to fit in, to be loved, or to be accepted. What was your deeper motive in hiding?

    4. Looking back on this interaction, how would things have played out if you stayed in your true self?


  1. In what ways are you tempted to function within your false self in the context of our Ethos Community?


  1. We spent time reflecting on the dynamics of our biological families and how they have influenced our false selves. What unlearning and relearning have you done or are doing in the context of what a healthy, Jesus-centered, family truly looks like?


  1. How can you lean into God’s grace and self-compassion as you continue on this journey of intentional spiritual formation?


  1. Take some space to pray for one another at the end of your conversation.


Practice: BREAD & Scripture Memorization

Before our next gathering, take time to engage in the following practices:

Your first practice is to feast on the story of Jesus through daily reading of the Scriptures

  • Many of us at Ethos use our BREAD journals, but if you are engaging in a different Bible Reading Plan - do that! 

If you need to purchase a BREAD devo, they are still available at our Merch table on Sunday mornings. You can also access the digital version here: https://www.ethosoh.com/bread

The second practice is scripture memorization.

The second practice is identifying a scripture that is the antithesis of your false self core belief…and then memorize that scripture. When you find yourself operating out of your false self, you are encouraged to remind yourself of your true self through bringing this scripture to the front of your mind.


This is a very simple practice, but it can be deeply formative.


For example,

  • “I am not enough” = Psalm 139:14 or 2 Corinthians 3:5

  • “I have earn love” = Ephesians 2:8-9


Reminder: June Accountability Partner

For June, identify a partner within your Ethos Community that shares your same gender. This should be someone different than you were just paired with for May! 


Your role as accountability partners is to do the following: 


  • Schedule a time to hang one-on-one in person with your accountability partner during the month of June. Consider inviting each other into the lives you’re already living instead of having to create extra margin (ie: meal prep together, walk the dog together, run errands together).


  • Encourage one another as you lean into the practices via text etc! :)


End in Prayer

Before you conclude, spend some time as a Community praying for one another.


Below is an optional liturgy you could pray: 

Lord Jesus, there is no greater prayer than yours - make us one as you are one, in devotion, in living, in love. Amen.

 
 
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