Group Discussion Guide
What Do I Do With This? Part 2
GETTING STARTED
Begin your time together by catching up with one another. Take a few moments to share how you have seen God at work in your lives, your families, or your group: “How have you seen God in your life since we last met?”
Begin your time together by catching up with one another. Take a few moments to share how you have seen God at work in your lives, your families, or your group: “How have you seen God in your life since we last met?”
Scripture References from Message: Lamentations 2:1-8, 17-22
Big Idea: God invites us to honestly bring our questions and pain to Him.
Big Idea: God invites us to honestly bring our questions and pain to Him.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Use these questions to talk through the message together.
Use these questions to talk through the message together.
- Read Lamentations 2:1-8, 17-22. Tyler suggested that the human predicament can bring about the question, “Can I trust God enough to tell Him exactly how I feel?” Why do you think we sometimes struggle to be completely honest with God about our pain, frustration, doubts, or disappointment? What might keep us from bringing those emotions to Him?
- Throughout Scripture, we see people like David, Job, and Jeremiah openly expressing their pain and questions to God, suggesting that protest is possible because God is personal. How does knowing that God desires a personal relationship with us change the way we approach Him when life doesn't make sense?
- When life doesn't go the way we hoped, it can reveal what we've been depending on for security, identity, or control. Have you ever experienced a difficult season that exposed something you were trusting in more than God? How did that experience challenge or deepen your faith?
GOING DEEPER
For groups who want to dig further into the scripture or topic.
For groups who want to dig further into the scripture or topic.
- Read Psalm 13:1–6 together. David begins by asking, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?” but ends by declaring his trust in God's steadfast love. What do you notice about the movement from protest to trust in this psalm? Does trusting God require our circumstances or emotions to change first?
- In Matthew 26:36–39, Jesus expresses deep sorrow in Gethsemane and asks the Father whether the cup of suffering might pass from Him, yet ultimately submits to the Father's will. What does Jesus' example teach us about the relationship between honest emotional expression, humility, and trusting God through suffering?
WEEKLY CHALLENGE
This week, take time to write your own prayer of lament. Think about something painful, disappointing, confusing, or unresolved in your life, whether it's happening right now or something you've carried for years. Following the example of Lamentations 2:19, pour out your heart honestly before God. Tell Him what hurts, what you don't understand, and what questions you're carrying. Then spend time sitting with Him in prayer, remembering that you don't have to understand everything God is doing to trust Him with what you're experiencing.
This week, take time to write your own prayer of lament. Think about something painful, disappointing, confusing, or unresolved in your life, whether it's happening right now or something you've carried for years. Following the example of Lamentations 2:19, pour out your heart honestly before God. Tell Him what hurts, what you don't understand, and what questions you're carrying. Then spend time sitting with Him in prayer, remembering that you don't have to understand everything God is doing to trust Him with what you're experiencing.