January Meeting
Date: January 20th | Time: 8-10pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: Aposto-Monasticism: A 24-7 Prayer Distinctive: Pete Greig & Jill Weber
Discussion Questions & Notes
- The Gathered Church – congregational with a building, professional clergy and programs
- Apostolic Mission Movements – Pete suggests the Franciscans and YWAM as references for this idea.
- Monastic Movements – Pete originates this idea with the desert mothers and fathers retreating from the Constantinian Christianization of the empire. He also honors Mike Bickle as a modern day desert father who has established a monastic prayer movement.
Q? Take a moment to reflect on what your history has been with these expressions. *Note: It is all too easy to bring a critical review to all of these expressions, but let’s take a positive approach to this conversation, highlighting the good and fruitful aspects of your experience.
2. Pete gives a testimony about the development of his theology and practice of prayer;
“My theology of prayer was that it was a big fat red switch and if you do it hard enough and long enough, revival will come. And that got beaten out of us pretty quickly…due to my wife’s epilepsy not being healed, and if my prayers don’t work for her how are they going bring revival? I realized I need to become a prayer rather than say a prayer, I need to move prayer from a verb to a noun, I think I need to discover contemplative prayer. It had to start with me, in me. So somehow my apostolic impulse was starting to Tango with this contemplative, very broken part of me, very reflective and creative part of me.”
Q? If you resonate with this, share your own story of the development of your theology and practice of prayer.
3. Please read these quotes aloud:
We need some language for what we are doing the will combine the breathing in and breathing out, the contemplative and the intercessory, the apostolic and the monastic. And so ‘Aposto’ is the mission piece, and ‘monastic’ is the prayer piece. – Pete Greig
I call new-monasticism the Big Experiment. What from these ancient traditions can we pull into the now for us, dust them off and find the treasures, and begin to work them out into our own context? – Jill Weber
Q? In what ways is your expression of church participating in this idea of aposto-monasticism?
- Are you stronger in one than the other?
- What might be some intentional ways you could strengthen the weaker side?
4. Antioch and Iona; Resource sending Communities that are Aposto-Monastic. There’s much talk about ‘resource churches’, ‘apostolic hubs’ and ‘monasteries’. In their full operational state these expressions of church, mission and ministry share many common features and have much to glean from each other.
Q? How might we build on this within 24-7 Communities? Why a Mother House?
- Let your imaginations run and see if there’s some common vision that emerges from your dreaming together.
- Pray into this a bit, welcoming the prophetic unction of the Holy Spirit to breathe life into whatever is in the heart of God for you or your community.
The Order of the Mustard Seed is a new monastic expression within 24-7 Prayer that is a dispersed community who are journeying together into this vow: Being true to Christ, kind to people, and taking the Gospel to the nations. A recent development is the idea of planting ‘Seed Communities’ – micro-expressions of new monastic communities who embrace a Rule of Life shaped by living into 6 key practices:
- Prayer
- Creativity
- Mercy & Justice
- Mission
- Learning
- Hospitality
Written by leaders from the 24-7 Prayer movement, and produced in partnership with CWR, this resource helps you engage with Scripture to inspire prayer and shape your life.
Journey through the year with Pete Greig, Carla Harding, Phil Togwell, Jill Weber, Izwe Nkosi and international guest writers.
February Meeting
Date: February 17 | Time: 8-10pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: Invitation to Transformation – Jill Weber
Discussion Questions & Notes
- Thus far what have been God’s invitations to you in your current season of leadership development?
- What is your reaction/response to the question “Do you know who you are outside the context of ministry?” If you can articulate who you are outside the context of ministry what words might you use to do so?
Exercise One – How Is It With Your Soul Handout
Take a few minutes (10 or so) to fill out the “How Is It With Your Soul” handout. We encourage you not to judge or condemn yourself when doing so. Just notice with loving curiosity what your responses to the questions reveal to you about how your soul is right now.
After filling out the handout, discuss together anything you might have noticed, any reflections you have after doing the handout. If you don’t want to share in the group, that is completely ok.
Exercise Two – Lectio Divina on Mark 10:46-52
Take turns in the group reading this aloud. After the first reading sit in silence for a moment or two. After the second reading, speak out a word or phrase that feels meaningful or highlighted to you. After the third reading, pray some brief prayers of response to God. After the fourth reading just sit in silence for a minute and let it sink in.
Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”
So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.
“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.
“Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
1. What would it look like for you to lead out of strength of soul?
2. What are you longing for? What do you want Jesus to do for you at this time?
3. What would it look like for you to re-order your life around your desires?
Content: Engaging the Scriptures for Transformation – Jill Weber
Discussion Questions & Notes
Lectio Divina. Read this passage three times. During the first reading, listen for a word or a phrase that jumps out at you. Second reading, ask God why He is highlighting that particular verse – what is He saying to you about it? At the end of the second reading, take turns to speak your word or phrase out loud. During the third reading, ask God what invitation He might bringing you through that passage. Is there something He wants you to believe? Is there something He wants you to do? After the third reading, take turns to pray your responses to God together.
- How would I describe my primary approach to Scripture? Performance? Utilitarian? Informational? Do I treat it as an object?
- Describe a time when you were surprised and confronted by the Scriptures. What happened? How did you feel? What did you do?
- How do I notice God turning me into a living letter, making His word flesh in me?
- Peterson, Eugene. Eat This Book. Colorado Springs: Hodder & Stoughton, 2008.
- Mulholland, Robert. Shaped by the Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation. Upper Room Books, 2001.
- Benner, David. Opening to God. Lectio Divina and Life as Prayer. Downers Grove: IVP. 2010.
March Meeting
Date: March 17 | Time: 8-10pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: The Presence Paradigm by Pete Greig
Discussion Questions & Notes
- You could talk into the specifics of mission stuff you are doing in your context, and is there a way you might consider doing it differently?
- Maybe a little less program driven? Maybe a little more – How can we find where Christ is already in this dark place or in this broken person?
- Maybe – What would it look like for our mission to be much more about worshipping Christ in people who don’t even believe He exists?
- What might it look like to have our communities not be congregations out of the culture, but to be truly houses of prayer that host the presence of God within a culture in a way that is accessible to all?
April Meeting
Date: April 21 | Time: 8-10pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: Life Stages of Leadership – Joe Steinke
Discussion Questions & Notes
- In the Ministry Maturing phase, Joe talks about maturing our transactional leadership into relational leadership. He says a transactional model is when people are only as valuable as what they can provide you, but a relational model is when we commit to relationships and value the person more than what they can give us. He also talks about our pursuit of growth and fruit, and “bigger and better,” and success. Joe says we “hit the wall” and God begins to do some soul care in us and work on our ego. These are big ideas – and absolutely vital to leading in health in the Kingdom. What is at stake if we don’t learn these lessons now?
- In the Life Maturing phase, Joe mentions that this is a phase where people graduate into “parental love” in your discipling relationships. He talks about “spiritual parents.” What does that term mean to you, and for those of you in this phase, or beyond this phase, have you begun to ask yourself what it might mean to be spiritual parents to a few “adopted” children?
May Meeting
Date: May 19 | Time: 8-10pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: The Constellation of Essential Kingdom Relationships – Joe Steinke
Discussion Questions & Notes
August Meeting
Date: August 18 | Time: 8-9:30pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: “The Gospel of the Kingdom” by Roger Ellis
Discussion Questions & Notes
- What stood out to you from the teaching?
- Was there anything that was new or challenging in the way you’ve seen The Kingdom coming into this teaching?
- Explore how social action and evangelism flow together within different ‘Kingdom’ initiatives you know. How can they both flourish together?
- If we were to neglect the Kingdom message what might we lose as a Church?
- In your experience, what might be the most challenging aspect of the Kingdom message to your generation?
September Meeting
Date: September 15 | Time: 8-9:30pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: The Kingdom of God and Society by Lucy Hill
Discussion Questions & Notes
1. Thinking of the explanation of the first, second and third way – can you think of examples of these in your own context?
- Ways you’ve seen the church as syncretistic, blending and blurring with culture or alternatively so isolated/removed it’s become irrelevant and finally examples of a third way?
2. When thinking about your own context – where does power lie? What are the dominant idols/gods you see at work in the culture around you?
3. When thinking about your own church/community and the Scot McKnight statement ‘the local church always performs the gospel it proclaims’ – what Gospel do you see being ‘proclaimed’?
4. Discuss the idea of power in the Kingdom and how this looks different to the world’s understanding of power – what do you think are the tensions/challenges that we face as the church in living as those with authority but demonstrate it in the way of Jesus?
- Faithful Discipleship
- Faithful Resistance
- Faithful Community
- Faithful Presence/Practice
October Meeting
Date: October 13th | Time: 8-9:30pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: The Kingdom of God: Justice, Reconciliation and the Poor – Aaron White
Discussion Questions & Notes
- How might you be complicit in the injustices that especially harm the poor and vulnerable in our world?
- Has your complicity come through ignorance, good intentions, or desire to hold onto power and privilege?
- What does it look like to recognise that we may be on the wrong side of God’s justice in this world?
- What does it look like to commit to the kingdom of God in the light of all this? What does it require of us?
November Meeting
Date: November 17th | Time: 8-9:30pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content:The Kingdom of God: Justice, Reconciliation and the Poor – Aaron White
Discussion Questions & Notes
- How might you be complicit in the injustices that especially harm the poor and vulnerable in our world?
- Has your complicity come through ignorance, good intentions, or desire to hold onto power and privilege?
- What does it look like to recognise that we may be on the wrong side of God’s justice in this world?
- What does it look like to commit to the kingdom of God in the light of all this? What does it require of us?
December Meeting
Date: December 15th | Time: 8-9:30pm AZ Time | Google Meet Link >
Content: Encouragement Night
The original inspiration for starting this community was to simply be an encouragement to each of you and your ministries. With that in mind, let’s spend our last session together encouraging one another. Specifically, let’s all bring a gift of encouragement to give to the group in the form of a prayer or a scripture.
I’m imagining everyone spending time before we meet thinking and praying through a scripture you’d like to declare over us, a prayer you’d like to pray over or, or a blessing you’d like to bestow upon us, and we’ll then go one by one and give our “gifts.”
Perhaps in your preparation you’ll feel led to give a gift to a specific person or group of people? I don’t know!