Check In

  1. Where is a place, near or far, where you feel most at rest, and what makes it that way?
  2. How has your week been: where did it feel calm, and where did it feel stormy?

This Week's Message

Sunday's message continued our series on the fruit of the Spirit with peace, and began with a question many of us know well: what steals my peace? Most of us assume peace arrives when the problem leaves. But in Philippians 4, right before "Don't worry about anything," Paul writes, "The Lord is near." Peace isn't about what leaves; it's about who stays. Three movements followed. Peace is a presence, not an absence: the Hebrew word shalom means nothing missing, and in Mark 4 the storm was real, but so was Jesus, asleep in the boat. Anxiety gets a voice, not a vote: it may ride along, but it doesn't drive, because at the cross Jesus disarmed the powers and triumphed over them (Colossians 2:15). And prayer is a pathway, not a performance: God isn't grading our words; he looks at the posture of our hearts. We bring him everything, specifically and with thanksgiving, and his peace stands guard over our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Read Together

Galatians 5:22–23 and Philippians 4:4–7

Discuss

  1. What stands out to you in Philippians 4:4–7?
  2. Paul writes "The Lord is near" just before "Don't worry about anything." In Mark 4 the storm was real, but so was Jesus. How does knowing Christ is with you change the way you face whatever is stealing your peace right now?
  3. Anxiety can have a voice without getting a vote, because Jesus has already triumphed at the cross. When worry starts talking, what helps you remember who is really in charge?
  4. Paul says to bring "everything" to God, with thanksgiving. What is one specific thing you could bring to God this week, and what might get in the way of praying about it?

Pray

Bring God one specific request, thanking him for his faithfulness in the past. Ask that his peace, which surpasses all understanding, would guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, and pray for one another, especially for anyone in the middle of a storm right now.

Use what serves your group; you don't need to get through every question.