DISCOVERY QUESTIONS

Series: Thrive
Sermon: Joy is Possible
Passage: Phillipians 4

Main Idea: What’s going on around me is no match for who is living inside of me.

Leader GuidePDF Version (Participant)PDF Version (Leader)

GROUP DISCUSSION

Lean In

Purpose: Introduce topic and get the group talking.

1. Are you more of a glass half full, or glass half empty sort of a person? Explain.


Look Down

Purpose: Observe the passage and interact with the text

2. Read Philippians 4:4 together. Find two or three different translations to read (NIV, NLT, The Message, etc.), to get different perspectives on the word “rejoice”. What does this passage teach us about joy/rejoicing? How can we rejoice when we don’t feel joy?


Look Out

Purpose: Connect observations in God’s Word with observations in our world today.

3. When you look around you, how often do you see people “choosing joy”? What are some examples of people choosing joy in this season?


Look In

Purpose: Internalize God’s Word and apply the truth to your personal life.

4. We all struggle with finding joy in circumstance at times. Where are you struggling right now to find joy?


Live It Out

Purpose: Spend time listening for God’s for direction and guidance as you seek to live out the truths of this passage in your everyday life.

5. Now that you’ve identified an area where you’re struggling to choose joy, spend 1 minute listening to the Holy Spirit. Allow him to speak to you. What might he be encouraging you with? What might he be inviting you into?

6. Close in prayer.

LEADER GUIDE

Lean In

Purpose: Introduce topic and get the group talking.

1. Are you more of a glass half full, or glass half empty sort of a person? Explain.

This question is designed to be a light starter. Choose to use it if the group could use some light discussion before diving in to question #2.


Look Down

Purpose: Observe the passage and interact with the text

2. Read Philippians 4:4 together. Find two or three different translations to read (NIV, NLT, The Message, etc.), to get different perspectives on the word “rejoice”. What does this passage teach us about joy/rejoicing? How can we rejoice when we don’t feel joy?

“Rejoice always” is a command. That makes us think that it is not just a feeling, but rather a state of mind. It’s not saying simply to “be happy,” but rather “find the joy in any circumstance”, because “The Lord is near.” (4:5). As we open to His presence with us, we can find joy always. Encourage the group to discuss the differences between a feeling and a state of mind.


Look Out

Purpose: Connect observations in God’s Word with observations in our world today.

3. When you look around you, how often do you see people “choosing joy”? What are some examples of people choosing joy in this season?

Encourage the group to think of examples in the world, in pop culture, in the news, or in their own lives. There are so many areas that people are choosing to have a mindset of “joy,” and yet sometimes it feels forced or like a front. As the group discusses, allow for people to express how sometimes you just can’t generate joy from within yourself. That will lead well into the next question.


Look In

Purpose: Internalize God’s Word and apply the truth to your personal life.

4. We all struggle with finding joy in circumstance at times. Where are you struggling right now to find joy?

Use this question to set up the final question, where you will spend a couple of minutes listening to what God might be saying to you. Encourage the group to be really honest, and let them know that you’ll have a chance to pray about these things in just a few minutes.


Live It Out

Purpose: Spend time listening for God’s direction and guidance as you seek to live out the truths of this passage in your everyday life.

5. Now that you’ve identified an area where you’re struggling to choose joy, spend 1 minute listening to the Holy Spirit. Allow him to speak to you. What might he be encouraging you with? What might he be inviting you into?

Come back together and share together your sense of how God may be leading you. This is not a time to give advice, but rather, to listen, process together, and encourage.

6. Close in prayer.

Virtual groups: use the chat feature to do prayer requests. Share your screen to play the song Gravity. As the song is playing, ask the group to share prayer requests in the chat (ideally personal requests, not requests for other people). Then, as the requests come in, ask the group to silently pray for them as the song plays. The facilitator can close the group in prayer once the song ends.

Encourage people to memorize Philippians 4:4 this week and to walk in the joy of the Lord!