Sermon Series: Wholes

1. Hurt People, Hurt People; Whole People, Love People

  • SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS

    • Being Vulnerable is the only way to work through your holes en route to Wholeness

    • Share your 5 things you like about yourself and the 5 things you don’t like about yourself.

    • Identify 3 of the video clips that you play in your mind. What life situations most often prompt their replay? How often do they replay?

    • On a scale from 1 to 10 how well do you healthily love yourself? (1=I’m full of holes. 10=I am Whole in Christ). What does this look like in how you live your daily life?

    • What are the “video clips” that you replay from holes in your life that keep you from being WHOLE?

    • How have you experienced the phrase, “Hurt people, hurt people” within yourself or observing others?

    • Brainstorm how can you love someone else who is full of holes. (What shouldn’t you do?)

    • How can Paul’s prayer in Eph 3:16-19 help you today?

  • FOR FURTHER STUDY or NEXT STEPS

2. I am Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (What is Going On in My Brain?)

3. I am Enough (Overcoming Unrealistic Standards)

4. I am Holy (Overcoming Shame)

  • SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS

    • How often do you buy the lie that you have to have it all together, refusing to face the pain of your past?

    • How often do you hide behind a mask petrified that someone will discover the real you?

    • What failures have you had that have been like a ball and chain preventing you from living life to the fullness that Christ desires?

    • What is your next best step toward self-care so that you can be whole, and able to love others as they need to be loved?

  • FOR FURTHER STUDY or NEXT STEPS

    • Schedule an appointment with a Christian Counselor.

    • Work through the 15 Self-Awareness Practices

    • Watch

      • Matthew West, “Truth Be Told” [3:47]

      • Guy Winch: “How to Practice Emotional Hygiene” TEDTalk (YouTube) [17:22]

        • What causes Christians to dismiss emotional hygiene easily?

        • Describe times of trauma, mistakes, failures, or sin from your past.

        • How does your mind react to these memories?

        • What negative messages do you tell yourself because of past trauma, mistakes, failures, or sin?

        • What rumination playlists do you play in your mind? (Have any “failure” or “shame” Soundtracks?)

        • What kind of actions or behavior do these negative messages produce?

        • What new stories can you tell yourself?

        • In addition to the spiritual habits that we must practice to have a healthy relationship with God, what emotional hygiene practices might you incorporate into your daily or weekly routine to have a more healthy view of yourself, your inner world, and your life story?

        • What new soundtracks might you curate? List them out and keep them in a prominent place (in a notes app, on your mirror, in your Bible)

    • BOOKS

5. I am Valuable (Overcoming Depression)

  • SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS

    • How can you become more informed or seek a deeper understanding of mental health in the Christian community?

    • In what ways might you practice compassion with and deeply love those in your life that you know or suspect might struggle with mental illness?

    • What do you need to do to guard your tongue in making spiritually flippant comments about those who suffer from mental illness and listen more?

    • Memorize a few of the strategies to help a person who has a panic attack

  • FOR FURTHER STUDY or NEXT STEPS

    • Explore

    • Watch

      • Andrew Solomon: “Depression: The Secrets We Share” TEDtalk (YouTube) [29:21]

        • What was your initial reaction to this TED talk?

        • How did Solomon shape your understanding of depression? How does Solomon’s story compare to what you have thought about depression and mental health in general?

          What questions do you have after watching it?

      • “There is Hope” from There is Hope for Mental Health (A Rap/Spoken Word Music Video) - “This song was written to share hope with those who struggle with mental illness and to help break down the stigma and stereotype. People need to know that God cares and so does the church! Together, let's make it ok to reach out and talk about it.”

    • BOOKS

6. I am Loved (Overcoming Loss, Grief, and Loneliness)

  • SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS

    • What attitude change is needed in your life to see life not through the lens of your holes but through what God is doing in your life to grow you toward being WHOLE?

    • How can you use your holes to help be a source of healing for others to be WHOLE?

    • Reflect on your healed holes so that you can better pay attention to those who are lonely, hurting, grieving, or having a hard time with change. Listen. Be fully present.

    • How can we as a church community be the most loving group of people on the planet, to love and to work with God to bring about WHOLEness to holey situations?

  • FOR FURTHER STUDY or NEXT STEPS