Sorry about the delay. Here's the devo/lesson for this week:. Feel free to discuss any of the questions located here.

The Journey Continues
How Do I Find Hope in the Face of Persecution?

Read JOHN 15:18-25

This passage is about Jesus telling His disciples to be ready for persecution. This is not only for them, but for anyone who follows Christ. You WILL be persecuted for what you believe. If you aren't being persecuted, could it be possible that you aren't shining brightly enough for God?

Questions:

Who does the world love and why?

Why does the world hate Christians?

What type of persecution did Jesus experience?

How can knowing that you are suffering like Jesus bring you hope and courage?

Read JOHN 15:26-27

This passage is Jesus again talking to the disciples, but this time about the Holy Spirit ("Counselor"). He says that the Holy Spirit will be with you and help you testify about Christ.

Questions:

What is your typical reaction to hatred or persecution? Do you run from it or stay put?

What does it mean to testify about Jesus?

What opportunities have you had recently (or that you can think of) to stand up and testify for your faith? Did you testify or remain silent?

Jesus promises that He will live in you (through the Holy Spirit) and give you the courage to testify about Him. How does that give you hope when you face situations that call for you to stand up for your faith?

Read JOHN 16:1-4

This is Jesus explaining why He is telling us (and the disciples) this. He also explains that some people, even religious folk, will try to persecute us for what we believe and think that they are honoring God.

Questions:

Why does the world hate Jesus?

Is your love and obedience to Christ enough that the world hates you? If the world doesn't hate you because you are a Christian, what does that say about you?

Why did Jesus tell the disciples they would be persecuted?

Jesus said that religious people would persecute Christians and think they are honoring God. What are some examples of this type of persecution today?

Questions to think about:

How can you stand strong in the midst of opposition?

What areas of your life do you need to change in order for people to see that you are a follower of Jesus?

What keeps you from standing up and standing out for Jesus?

Where will you find hope in the face of persecution?

Please discuss these questions and feel free to ask your own.

those are alot of questions....where do i start?

Start by reading through John 15:18-16:4. Then, re-read the passage for each section. In your mind, go over the questions and come up with some answers. If you don't understand them or think they need to be discussed, post your questions/comments here.

Does this make sense? Do I need to re-write and make it shorter? I wasn't sure how to do this.

Would it help if I posted the scrïpture to go with the devo?

I'll do that next week. I'll also try to make it shorter. I was on a limited time schedule last week and ended up borrowing questions from a Lifeway Ministries book.

Quote :

khakigirl wrote : I'll also try to make it shorter.

Good idea! Lol.. I was gonna do it, but I have 3 hours of hw that I have to get done in about 20 minutes, and the length kind of discouraged me from that.  

I'm going to make it MUCH shorter for next week. I teach a Sunday school class and I thought that I could try using my lesson from that week to see what you all thought of it...I should have  shortened it b/c my lesson is meant to fill up 35 minutes of class time. OOPS!

how could i tell my co workers that such things they feel comfortable with that im not like they'll joke around about impure things and say to me things that get me up set a little like oh you know you flrit with us because i work with a few men and they find its funny to joke around with things like that and like drinking i feel that they see the changes i made since i  started there and that they know i go to church but they like to try to get me in to talking about like sex and ive tried to tell them that its not cool and that im not into all that sinful impure stuff but they dont believe me  what should i do

This ^ really should go in the advice section so I'm gonna move it there.

I'm going to post a new one on Saturday. Sorry for the delay. I got all mixed up this weekend and didn't get one done in time.  You'll have one this week though!