Reflect:
• On Sunday, we discussed how the Psalms of Ascents are all in different emotional places. Psalm 120 shows grief (v. 1, crying out in distress); anger (vv. 2-4, asking God to be a warrior against one’s enemy), and a resolve toward peace (vv. 5-7). Many of us are experiencing different emotions, and not all of us feel comfortable talking about our feelings; the Psalms express strong emotions.
• If you feel comfortable sharing –what emotions have you felt most strongly this past week?
[If people need options, consider these: weariness, frustration, excitement, grief, loneliness, exhaustion, joy, confusion]
• In what ways are you experiencing God in this season of “wintering”?
Read and Discover:
Read Psalm 121 in preparation for next Sunday. Note: Many of us don’t feel comfortable with reading poetry. We like the Psalms, but we may still not quite know how to read them. For the next few weeks, we’ll provide a few questions to help you/your home group feel more empowered to read the Psalms by asking a few observation questions.
• Observe: Identify any words/ideas you see repeated in Psalm 121.
• Describe: How does this Psalm describe God?
• Fun: If you could commission an artist to paint something from this Psalm, what would you want the picture to look like?
Discuss:
• Is there a time you had a sense that God was watching over you or protecting you?
Interactive Spiritual Practice:
• Draw a picture of yourself doing something you really enjoy.
o Now, draw Jesus into this picture. Where is He? What is He doing? What expression is on His face?
• Share with your group –how does this activity make you feel?
Note for home group leaders: we plan on phasing in a renewed Impel curriculum this year (starting a soft launch now and a stronger launch after Missions Fest). In part, we’re trying to adapt and learn as we go in this new season. But we also want to hear from you and construct curriculum that best meets the needs of you and your group.
The next few weeks, we want to build off the theme of the journey toward the presence of God. Instead of providing materials focusing on the past sermon (though we’ll still provide a few reflection questions), we want to equip groups to read the text for the next Sunday. Psalms are comforting, but sometimes poetry makes us feel uncomfortable. We hope to provide some brief questions/activities to help you process these psalms together as a group. Just like the Psalms of Ascents are a journey toward the presence of God, we hope these reflective practices of anticipation give your group confidence in reading Scripture in community.