September 2024 Wednesday Study Questions

September 4: Designed for Community

1. When have you needed to hold on to others in a physical sense? When have you needed to hold on to others in a metaphorical sense? What were the circumstances?
2. Recall a season when you faced turbulent times and tried to go it alone, without seeking support from God or others. Did you end up seeking support? What was the outcome?
3. Do you struggle to lean on God and others? Why or why not? What helps you accept support and allow others to lift 
you up? How are you intentional about lifting others up?
4. Why do you think God designed us to need other 
people? How do you think our inherent need for community impacts our interactions with God and those around us?
5. What can we learn from the relationships Jesus had with his disciples? How do relationships within your church resemble or differ from those between Jesus and the disciples?

September 11: Sitting with Sadness

1. Have you ever received comments like those mentioned by today’s writer? Have you ever expressed similar sentiments to someone else? Do you find such responses helpful when you are struggling? Why or why not?
2. Do you feel uncomfortable when you are faced with pain, whether it be yours or someone else’s? Do you try to move through difficult moments quickly? Why or why not?
3. What happens when you allow yourself to feel grief, pain, or anxiety? How is that experience different than when you try to brush aside difficult feelings? What helps you find hope and healing in painful situations?
4. How does scripture encourage you when you are suffering? What scripture verses help you endure painful times? What verses give you hope for the future?
5. When someone tells you they are experiencing something difficult, how do you respond? How do you ensure that you don’t minimize their pain? In what ways do you encourage them and remind them that healing will come?

September 18: Grounded in God’s Grace

1. When has a hobby taught you a spiritual truth? What was that truth? How do you ensure that you remain open to unexpected faith lessons in your daily activities?
2. What comes between you and God? Why does this happen? How do you clear away those obstacles and restore your connection with God?
3. How do you know when you are becoming disconnected from God? What changes do you observe in yourself, your relationships, and your faith journey in such times?
4. Do you feel grounded in God’s grace today? Why or why not? What spiritual practices, prayers, or scripture verses ground you and help to cultivate your connection to God?
5. What role does prayer play in your life? How does prayer transform you and your relationship with God? How does prayer connect you with God’s grace?

September 25: Belief Over Fear

1. Have you ever been anxious while waiting for news about something or someone? What was the situation? What other emotions did you experience?
2. When you are overcome with worry, what scripture stories most often come to mind? How do those stories help you? What have you learned from them?
3. Do you imagine that it was easy for Jairus to follow Jesus’ command to “just believe”? How do you think you would have responded if you were in Jairus’s place?
4. Does fear easily overwhelm you when you are faced with dire news? Why or why not? What helps you to turn your situation over to God and to trust God with the outcome?
5. When your prayers are not answered in the way that you hope, what helps you to remain focused on your relationship with Jesus? How do you remind yourself that Jesus loves you?