Resisting The Rut

In one paragraph

Brian preached outdoors in the park, picking up on the unusual setting as a prompt to talk about what happens when life gets disrupted. The two passages he walked through, Moses at the burning bush and the disciples encountering Jesus walking on the water, gave the sermon its frame. The core idea was that God often shows up inside the disruptions we most want to avoid. Brian opened by noting that...

Read together

1. Exodus 3:1-12 read aloud in full as the first of two Bible stories about Moses and the burning bush
2. Exodus 3:3 discussed in detail as the verse where Moses says he will turn aside to see the burning bush
3. Exodus 3:12 speaker directs congregation to hone in on this verse in connection with the theme of disruption
4. Mark 6:45-52 read aloud as the second Bible story about Jesus walking on water and the disciples

Talk about it

1. Brian talked about the Holy Spirit using disruption the way a judo throw works, catching us off balance so something new can happen. When has a disruption in your life actually opened you up to something you would not have noticed otherwise?
2. Moses said to himself that the burning bush was amazing and turned aside to get a closer look, even though his instinct could have been to walk away from something strange. What tends to be your first reaction when something throws off your routine, and what does that reaction cost you?
3. Several people pointed out that the disciples had been with Jesus constantly, watched miracle after miracle, and still their hearts were too hard to take it in. Why do you think familiarity with Jesus can sometimes work against us rather than for us?
4. Brian offered three practical things for when disruption hits: pick your head up, open your heart and mind to the Holy Spirit, and lean into the growth opportunity. Which of those three is hardest for you personally, and why?
5. The closing prayer named real things like an unexpected death or a hard health report, and said God already knew about every one of them. How does believing that God is not surprised by your disruption change the way you sit with it?