Luke 15:11-32 "The Lost Son" (part 2) April 2, 2017

This Sunday we will finish the parable of the Lost Son. This portion of the story could be called "The Lost Brother" as we meet his older brother and he appears to be equally lost. Before you write off the older brother as being an ungrateful son, take time to see things from his perspective. You might find that he is more like you than you think.

Enjoy the discussion and let me know if you have any questions or comments.

God bless.

Leader's Guide

Participants Guide

Luke 15:11-24 "The Lost Son" March 26, 2017

Hi Small Group Leaders,
Thanks for coming to our lunch yesterday. I hope you enjoyed it and felt encouraged. I appreciate you so much and am so thankful for all you do. There were some good ideas on promoting small groups and how to make the small group fairs better for those who are new to the church. Thanks so much.

This coming Sunday we will be studying Luke 15:11-24 on the famous parable of the Lost Son. Here's the leader's study guide and the participants study guide. Hope you enjoy the discussions.

Next week we'll focus on the older brother, which is very interesting! 

God bless your week.

Luke 15:8-10 "The Lost Coin" March 19, 2017

Hi small group leaders,
Hope you are doing well and having a great week.
This coming Sunday, Pastor Ray will be preaching on the second "Lost" parable which is the "Lost Coin". This parable is very similar to the last one on the Lost Sheep. If your group did not discuss the Lost Sheep, you may want to combine both parables into one discussion. The questions for both of these are similar, but this one talks a bit more about the emotion of the woman who searched for her coin.

Here's the leader's guide and the participant's guide.

Remember that we have a leader's meeting on Sunday after second service in the conference room. Food will be provided but please RSVP with Ethan.

Thanks for all you do!

Two sermons in one discussion guide

Hi leaders,
Our original plan was to preach the whole parable of the Lost Sheep on March 5, but Pastor Ray decided to emphasis Luke 15:1-2 and set up the whole Lost series.
Therefore, the material I wrote last week will cover March 5 and March 12.

If you want to stick with the sermon from Sunday, focus on the first two verses and talk about evangelism and outreach. A couple things to consider:
   
-Why do those who are lost feel so comfortable with Jesus?  Why do they continue to “draw near” to him while the religious elite keep distancing themselves from him?  Who do we attract?  How can we live differently to attract the lost?

-What does it mean to “receive sinners and eat with them”? What are the ways we can be in closer relationships with those who do not know Jesus?  Who are you praying for that you can invest in as we approach Easter? Will you invite them to services on Easter?

Thank you and have a great week. Let me know if you have questions or how I can pray for your group.

Luke 15:1-7 "The Lost Sheep" March 5, 2017

This Sunday, Pastor Ray will kick off a 5 week series on the three parables found in Luke 15. We'll start this Sunday with the parable of the Lost Sheep.
Before you get into the parable, it is most important to understand the context found in Luke 15:1-2.  Jesus is talking to Pharisees who were complaining that Jesus does not spend enough time schmoozing with the religious elite, but with "sinners"!  These parables are directed to them, but they show a lot about God's heart for the lost, hurting, struggling! Praise God that he seeks us out and rejoices over our salvation!

Here's the leaders guide and the participants guide.