What a great service! Cliff led us in praise and worship and as usual, he and his team of gifted musicians did a wonderful job. Please continue to thank the team for what they do each Sunday.
- In order to kick off the Christmas Season we joined Cliff in singing a favorite Christmas song. What is one of your favorite Christmas carols/songs and does it have a special meaning for you?
- The common theme of today’s message centered around “waiting.” Matt commented that “a lot of life involves waiting.” Take time to share with one another about your attitude toward waiting. What part of waiting, or why we wait, or what we what on is most challenging for you?
- Zechariah, as a priest, was chosen by lot to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. (I love when God sets up these circumstances for us for his will to prevail.) Zechariah was gripped with fear when he saw the angel, Gabriel, standing next to the altar of incense. Gabriel told Zechariah, “Do not be afraid Zechariah, your prayer has been heard.” These words provided hope to Zechariah on a personal level. When has God provided you hope or encouragement in a time that was challenging or fearful in your life? How did this hope change the situation you were facing or change your attitude toward the situation?
- Both Zechariah and Elizabeth continued to be faithful to God in their lives in spite of their childless situation. Elizabeth’s response was, “the Lord has done this for me.” In times when we face challenges and times that could lead to despair, we find out that God has not left us. God has a perspective of our lives that we don’t have. He sees the bigger picture too. What does this mean for you as you live your daily life? How does change our perspective on our prayers? Does this mean we possibly have to wait on God? Have you ever gone through a time when it seems God has been silent on your behalf? How did you handle those situation?
- In this season of Advent and Christmas, what are you hoping for? What is God preparing you for? Just remember, in spite of all of their disappointments, Zechariah and Elizabeth continued to remain faithful. Can we do the same?
