Sermon

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS

1. What were some of your best and worst experiences with group projects in school? What made a good lab or group project partner?
2. Pastor Aaron explained how Philippians was written as a thank you letter from Paul to the Church at Philippi (see Phil 1:3, 2:25-30, 4:15-19). How does this impact the way you read the book?
3. Read Philippians 1:3-11. What sticks out to you about Paul’s relationship with the church at Philippi? How do you think they developed that level of depth of relationship even though they went years in between seeing each other?
4. Pastor Aaron shared 5 principles of healthy participation in the Gospel from Philippians. Would you agree with this list? As it relates to global missions, which do you feel you do well in? Which do you feel you need to grow in?
   • Healthy Participation Yields Deep Relationships (Phil. 1:7-8)
   • Healthy Participation Focuses on Prayer (Phil. 1:9-10)
   • Healthy Participation Rejoices with One Another (Phil.2:17-18)
   • Healthy Participation Gives Honor (Phil. 2:29-30)
   • Healthy Participation Requires Me to be Healthy (Phil. 4:1)
5. From what the visiting missionaries shared, what stuck out to you the most about their experiences on the mission field? What practical advice did you hear for how to better care for our missionaries?
6. While the expectation isn’t that you know every one of RBC missionaries, who are some of your favorites? Why? What level of relationship do you have with them? What are steps you could take to develop a deeper participation with them? Are there a couple missionaries your shepherd group wants to commit to pray for?