September 15, 2019 -Triggered No. 2: When "Try Harder" Isn't Working

September 15, 2019 The smaller groups in our church community are inside our homes where we go deeper, build friendships, and walk out the Christian life with each other. HOME CHURCH GUIDE + “Breaking the Ice” question (group facilitator) + CHECK-INS: Introduce, check-in + CARE: Needs in the group + COMPASSION: What is the group planning? Are you inviting your neighbours to join in? + GROUP ANNOUNCEMENTS Church-wide, group-only + DIG IN: Discuss questions as a group + END AND HOMEWORK: Final questions, prayer huddles for personal requests. Consider breaking into small groups (huddles) of 2-4, by gender, if large enough. DISCUSSION questions: OPENING STORY: (video clip) The Matrix 1. Tell of a time when you were trying harder in a situation or job and it just didn’t work. How did you feel? What did you do afterwards? What did you learn? KEY PASSAGES: Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 2. We reviewed the idea of triggers for a critical/negative attitude in our minds/hearts. Where do you most have a trigger negative/critical attitude in life? + What is it rooted in: wounds, insecurity, selfishness, perfection, pleasure in fault-finding? 2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 3. Reread some of the key Bible passages. Notice some connecting themes. What are you hearing/seeing? 4. We are called to become what we are. This is a different approach to transformation because it goes straight to identity and we receive that new identity as sheer gift. + “Who are you?” is a movie theme often about a character learning (or being challenged to learn) that they are more or other than what they think and how they have been living/ making decisions. Have you had a “Who am I?” moment? What did you find out? + What does having your identity first defined by Jesus mean practically speaking? 5. We will discuss the flesh and the overcoming our false identities in the last two messages in the series. In the meantime though... + The issue of identity in scripture is that we are still influenced by lies about our true self. What kinds of lies are convincing you, and keep us from our identity in Christ? 6. Other thoughts on the Triggered (transformation) messages? 7. In your smaller prayer huddles, name an area where you are “trying hard” but not seeing the growth or transformation you believe would make you more like Jesus. Prayer Requests: IN TODAY’S MESSAGE: 2 Corinthians 3:17-18, Philippians 4:8-9, Romans 6:1-12 v. 12 key, Romans 6:2-11, Galatians 2:20, Galatians 5:17 , John 8:43-44, 2 Corinthians 4:4 REVIEW OF TRIGGERS + Have you named your triggers? + A Common example the Critical/Judgement Trigger What triggers a critical attitude? How can you begin to recognize what triggers it in your life and begin to overcome this bad habit? + Ask those closest to you, “Where do I have a critical attitude?” Or “When have I criticized you?” + Keep a journal of examples... + Ask yourself, “What triggered this critical reaction in my heart? + Have I been wounded by this person? + Is it my insecurity? Does pointing out the flaws in others make me feel better about myself? + Shaping our desires around practices that get us in touch with our new identity is crucial to transformation - becoming what we are already. + Is it my selfishness? “I want what they have.” + Is it my standard of perfection for others? “If you are not perfect, you deserve to be criticized.” + Has God specifically given me the ministry of pointing out the faults of others? + Do I simply find pleasure in exposing the failures of others? GOING DEEPER: What if this doesn’t work? WHY THE “TRY HARDER” SOLUTION FAILS + “Who are you?” is a line that comes up in movies from time to time, where a sage character questions a younger character to provoke them to think and feel something deeper and more real about themselves. “But WHO ARE you?” + EMBRACING YOUR IDENTITY IN CHRIST IS THE VITAL PROCESS TO EXPERIENCE TRANSFORMATION. + In Christ, you become someone you were not before. God places you in Christ. Placing us in “in Christ” is the greatest work of salvation. BUT BUT BUT ...we still struggle, we still seek a lack of the Spirit’s fruit of love, joy, peace... + “You ought to...” “You need to...” “You’ve got to...” “You’re supposed to...” “You had better...” + We live in a warzone, a pattern of the world, a system of life under the deceptive influence of Satan. AKA the matrix. + “While willpower plays a role in overcoming behavioural problems, it cannot itself change fundamental aspects of a person’s character. For example, willpower alone cannot make an unloving person into a loving person or a depressed person into a joyful person.” + There is a battle then, between the Spirit in us and the flesh/old identity (Galatians 5:17) + We can try to act this way, but we cannot simply will ourselves to be this way. + The Spirit grows the fruit in us. We learn how to position ourselves in the path and source of Jesus’ spirit, His truth about us. Don’t be conformed to the pattern of the world + We must get to the heart of things, not simply attacking behaviours, we must position ourselves to rest in Christ to allow time and space for the Holy Spirit to confront the flesh in our lives. CONCLUSION/TAKE AWAY There is a... BECOME WHAT YOU ALREADY ARE “IN CHRIST” + Romans 6:1-12, Colossians 3:2-5 + “(26) The commands of Scripture are not given to motivate believers to try harder to become something they aren’t already. Rather, the commands of Scripture flow naturally from the proclamations of Scripture about the believer’s true identity. What we are to become in our behaviour is rooted in who we already are in Christ. The goal of the Christian life is simply to display in our lives the truth of who we truly are.” In Christ, you are given... You are called to... Sources: livingfree.org, Goodtheraphy.org, Seeing is Believing, G. Boyd; You Are What You Love, James KA Smith; Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Peter Scazzero; Others.