The Good and Beautiful Life: Learning to Live Without Lying (4.7.19)

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“Let your yes be yes. Let your no be no.” Matthew 5:37 Listen here as Chris DeBlaay helps us learn what that looks like in our lives.

Questions for Discussion (chapter 6)

  1. James Bryan Smith gives an insightful list of lies we often tell:
    • Yes, I have read that book (or seen that movie).
    • Yes, let’s definitely get together soon.
    • He’s in a meeting.
    • She’s not home.
    • No, that outfit doesn’t make you look fat.
    • Add to this list by brainstorming lies we tell that seem harmless.
  2. Read the first 5 paragraphs from the section titled “How Living in the Kingdom Can Cure Lying” on pages 112-13. Note the ways the kingdom of God sets us free from lying. Discuss how your experiences of God’s kingdom have reduced lying in your life.
  3. Read Colossians 3:9-10. In this passage, Paul refers to the “new self,” which can be seen as indwell by Christ and as residing in God’s kingdom. The “old self,” which Paul invites us to take off, is isolated from God and God’s resources. As we put on the new self, lying is less necessary and less attractive because of who we are and where we are. What soul-training exercises (spiritual practices) have helped you to take off your “old self” and put on the “new self” that Paul speaks of?

The Good and Beautiful Life: Learning to Live Without Worry (3.31.19)

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There’s no podcast for this day because there was no sermon! Instead, we engaged in 4 prayer stations designed to help us take steps toward trusting God instead of worrying. Chapter 10 of The Good and Beautiful Life is a great place to start. Resources are listed below if you would like to engage in these practices with us. Slowly read Matthew 6:25-33 and then move into one or more of these options.

Option 1: Pray the news. Grab a newspaper or scroll through a news feed. Stop when a story grabs your attention and causes you to worry, or that feels hopeless. Pray over that story, and begin to “trust that God can and will work in them.” (Smith p. 178)

Option 2: Reflect on God’s past, stead provision and care in our lives. Prompts for writing and reflection can be found here.

Option 3: Reflect on God’s provision and care in creation. Take a walk outside and pick up a leaf or acorn, or hold a flower. Reflect on the beauty of creation and of God’s good care of it all.

Option 4: Mindful breathing allows us to awaken our own spirit, acknowledge the gift of life that God has provided, and turn that breath of life into prayer; joining our spirit with God’s. A step-by-step guide to prayer using mindful breathing can be found here.

Questions for Discussion (chapter 10)

  1. God has instituted prayer as a means of caring for us. We are invited to turn our cares into prayers. And when we do, we put the matter into God’s hands. This does not take away our responsibility in dealing with our concerns, but it places the concerns in the larger context of the kingdom. In what ways do you see the kingdom of God at work in the areas you pray about?
  2. Review the section titled “Jesus’ Narrative: Things Not to Worry About” (pp. 175-178). Reflect on the various points from this section that you find either challenging or helpful.
  3. The author tells us that Matthew 6:33 “is the key to the entire Sermon on theMount” (p. 178). Go to section “One Day at a Time” (pp. 180-81), and highlight points that are especially helpful or challenging to you. Then prayerfully engage Matthew 6:33.

The Good and Beautiful Life: Learning to Live Without Anger (3.24.19)

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Listen here as Josh Wall continues our series on The Good and Beautiful Life.

Questions for Reflection from Chapter 4:

  1. The author opens the chapter with the author’s honest account of getting angry during a trip. What aspects of the author’s story can you relate to?
  2. The author gives us multiple “false imperative narratives” (FINs) (p. 73). Which FIN is most common in your life? How does it lead you to anger?
  3. “Jesus’ narrative is that God permits nothing to happen to us that He cannot redeem and use for good. In the kingdom of heaven God is always near. We are never alone and never needed to be afraid. When I live with this reality deep in my mind and heart anger cannot get a grip on me” (p. 77). Do you have any evidence in your life of anger diminishing as you come to know that God is near to us and working for our good? (my addition): If an example doesn’t come to mind, consider taking 2-3 minutes in your group to quietly reflect on something you are (or have been) angry about. As you reflect on that anger, bring in God’s provision and proximity? Can you sense the anger changing as you reflect on the reality that God is with you?


The Good and Beautiful Life: The Grand Invitation (3.17.19)

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Because we have been invited by God, we are called to be people who extend lavish hospitality. Listen here as Deborah McCreary tells stories of receiving lavish hospitality and encourages us to do the same.

Questions for reflection:
1. How can you offer hospitality to someone this week (a coworker, a neighbor or someone you disagree with)?
2. Review the section “Jesus’ Narrative: The Beatitudes Are Invitations of Inclusion,” on pp. 55-62 of The Good and Beautiful Life. How does the author’s interpretation resonate or differ from what you have been taught about the Beatitudes?
3. How can we, as followers of Jesus, live out the message of invitation to those who are seen by the world as ‘cursed’?

Our Hopes for the Future: Week 3 (3.3.19)

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God’s love makes more room at the table, not less. How are we as a church making more room at our table, and how might we do that in the future?

Our Hopes for the Future: Week 2 (2.24.19)

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Shape. Embrace. Grow. Participate. Listen here to find out what these words mean for the future of The Branch.

Our Hopes for the Future: Week 1 (2.17.19)

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In this series, we are asking a couple of questions: What is the picture of the future that God is asking us to aim our heart towards? and What unique role is God asking us to play in bringing that future into the present? Listen here as we explore this as we take a look at the history of The Branch and who we are today.

Recalibrate: The Liturgies of the Everyday (2.3.19)

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We all have liturgies that shape us everyday. What if we looked at the mundane things of life, like brushing our teeth and eating a meal, with new eyes? How could we make small changes so that these things become formative?

Recalibrate: The Liturgies of Worship (1.27.19)

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We might not always be aware of the liturgies of corporate worship, but they’re there in big and small ways. The over-arching liturgy of corporate worship is radically counter-cultural. It has the potential to recalibrate us towards God.

Recalibrate: What Shapes You? (1.13.19)

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Janelle 01.13.19Download

How can a trip to the mall shape who we are? Are we aware of the things that are shaping us? And are those things shaping us to be more like God? Listen here as we explore these questions.

Recalibrate: What do you want? (1.6.19)

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As we begin a new year we invite you to join us as we consider how to recalibrate our heart’s desires towards what really matters — to those things that are primary — to true north. Proverbs 4:23 says “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” We encourage you to keep that verse close over the next few weeks, maybe even memorize it. In John 1:35-39 Jesus asks his disciples what they want and we are asking the same question today. What do you desire? What does your heart seek? Listen here for more.

The Parables of Jesus: The Wounded Traveler (11.25.18)

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What if we would look at the parable of The Good Samaritan from a different perspective? What if we would enter in to the story from the perspective of the wounded traveler? Would that change what we think of this story? What could we learn about our enemies?