Storytellers, Part 3: “Snaked by Grace”
Welcome to the third week of our series Storytellers. This week, our Student Ministry director Shawn Colacchia takes us into a discussion of unmet expectations and grace in Numbers 21.
To frame your discussion today, read the passage on which Shawn has based his message: Numbers 21:4-9.
The Hebrew name for the book of Numbers means “in the wilderness.” While it may seem like nothing of value can happen in the wilderness—or that nothing good happens when we experience crisis—Shawn said in the sermon this week that “crisis makes us rethink our expectations, recenter our lives, and return to Jesus.”
How has a crisis made you rethink your expectations of God?
How has a crisis allowed you to recenter (or, re-recenter) your life?
How has a crisis helped you return to Jesus?
Read John 3:14-15. What parallels you see between what Jesus is saying here and the story you read in Numbers 21? What effect does re-focusing on Jesus have on our lives?
When in your life were you waiting for God to show up, either during a crisis or within the regular trials of life? Talk about what happened.
Often, our wilderness experiences allow the voice of God to break though the noise that exists all around us. Discuss why you think the wilderness allows us to hear “still, small voice” or “gentle whisper” of God (see: 1 Kings 19:11-13).
Why does God sometimes choose to communicate through a “still, small voice” and other times through a major crisis that reorients our lives?
(*Video available after Sunday services)
