May - Week Two
- Delaney Brake
- Apr 28
- 4 min read
Open In Prayer
Begin by praying together – taking some intentional time to invite the Holy Spirit into your gathering. Lead your Community into the evening with a non-anxious and joyful spirit.
Below is an optional Scripture you could pray:
Psalm 133: How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! Yes, that is where God commands blessing and ordains eternal life.
Around The Table & Reflect On Last Gathering’s Practice
This is space during your gathering to share a meal, build relationships, and enjoy one another.
As you’re around the table, invite your Community to reflect on the practice. If your Community is larger, you may find it helpful to reflect in smaller groups for the sake of time.
What’s the one symptom of emotionally unhealthy spirituality that most applied to your spiritual life today?
What did God reveal to you as you contemplated emotionally healthy spirituality through the reflection practice?
Learning: 1 Samuel 15 and the Forming Life
Read 1 Samuel 15:7-24 together. Then, discuss the following questions:
In verses 10 and 11, what words and phrases reveal the depth of God’s and Samuel’s feelings around the choices Saul made? Contrast that with Saul’s response in verses 12 and 13?
Rereading verses 12, 15, and 24, how would you describe the things Saul was unaware of within himself?
Saul’s unawareness leads him to go through the motions of religious activity as enough. The offering of sacrifices at that time would be equal to our religious activity today. Saul makes sacrifices, but he doesn’t obey or listen to God (see v. 22).
What might be an example of how you do religious activity, but it is disconnected from your heart and life? (e.g., I go to church but can’t stand people at work who irritate or hurt me; I serve in church but spend little time developing my own relationship with Jesus; I say I follow Jesus but rarely pray or consult with him before making decisions.
Saul pretends to be someone on the outside that he is not on the inside, (i.e., a false self). Use the following symptoms of a false self to get an idea of where you are right now. Next to each statement write down the number that best describes your response. Use the following scale:
5 = Always true of me
4 = Frequently true of me
3 = Occasionally true of me
2 = Rarely true of me
1 = Never true of me
I compare myself a lot to other people.
I often say “yes” when I prefer to say “no.”
I often don’t speak up to avoid the disapproval of others.
People close to me would describe me as defensive and easily offended.
I have a hard time laughing at my shortcomings and failures.
I avoid looking weak or foolish in social situations.
I am not always the person I appear to be.
I struggle with taking risks because I could fail or look foolish.
My sense of worth/well-being comes from what I have (possessions), what I do (accomplishments), or what others think of me (popularity).
I often act like a different person when in different situations and with different people.
Share the one that most stands out to you with your table (or in groups of two or three).
5. What might be one invitation from God for you out of this entire story about Saul?
Practice: The Forming Life
As you examine this visual, consider what challenges keep you from slowing down your life to be with God and intentionally formed by Him.
Create a diagram similar to the one above on a blank sheet of paper.
In each category - list out specific ways in which you can identify the managed life, wounded life, and forming life at work within your daily life.
For example,
Managed Life: How is your life shaped by being perceived as successful (within your work, family, relationships, academics, etc)? Is there any areas in which you are operating in "auto-pilot" as a means of just focusing on how you can look and feel good?
Wounded Life: In what ways are you living out of the worry, fear, stress, etc that can come when we focus on solving pain or problems to get back to the managed life?
Forming Life: In what ways are you aware of what God is doing in and through you? How are you pursuing intentional spiritual formation within the rhythms of your life?
At this point, what might be one or two simple steps you can take toward beginning to slow down your life and intentionally lean into the forming life?
If you need help identifying practical next steps, consider reviewing the results of your Spiritual Health Reflection that you completed through Practicing The Way at the last gathering.
Reminder: May Accountability Partner
As we prepare to continue to lean into these formational practices, we’re going to start touching base with an accountability partner during the weeks in between our gatherings.
Identify a partner within your Ethos Community that shares your same gender.
Your role as accountability partners is to do the following:
Encourage one another as you lean into the practices. You may choose to send a quick daily text to touch base.
Example: during times when I need more accountability, I send a bread emoji back & forth with friends to hold each other accountable to lean into our BREAD scripture practice.
Schedule a time to hang one-on-one in person with your accountability partner during the month of May.
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).
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.