Small Group

I was asked to take notes for some unspecified reason, but I figure it must be to share them so here goes.

Paula M_ led us in worship. We meditated on Psalm 147 as we listened to a worship song (Won't you reign in me again) and then shared aloud the thoughts and insights we had received. Paula spoke about Julian Adams' word, where he felt that the Lord is saying to us as individuals and to the church that He is doing a new thing - to put off the old and move with God as He ushers in the new thing He is doing in us and with us and through us.

Paula Dickson had been drawn to verse 7: Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make music to God on the harp. Yesterday she and Christina were breaking up an old piano - once they had taken away the shell, they were left with the strings which could now be plucked to make a different sound: they had changed the piano for something like a harp; changed something old for something new, something different.

Paula M_ read from Hosea 2, linking the mention of a gate in the Psalm to the mention in Hosea of the gate of trouble becomes a door of hope.

Hope was the word which Chris had, too.

Beverley had also focused on the verse about the gate: 'for he strengthens the bars of your gates' . Beverley suggested that the gate is to keep evil out and also to safely preserve the good things within - Beverley spoke about how we need to strenthen the gates of our minds to ensure that we treasure within the things of God and lock out anything which will contaminate that.

Barbara had a cross-reference in her Bible against this verse to Deuteronomy chapter 33 v 25: The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days.

In Psalm 147 it speaks of God's understanding having no limits, and Christina had focused on this theme - that our understanding has a limit. Also on the idea that we are asking God to 'reign in me AGAIN' - ie that we want God to reign supreme in our lives as He has before.

Trish brought a reading from Isaiah 58 on the kind of fasting God desires of us, and all the promises it holds: Your light will break forth like the dawn and your healing will quickly appear ...

Christina gave us the Lord's Prayer to read and a list of questions. We broke into groups of 3 and worked through the questions together, listening for what God would say to us through the questions and answers.

An interesting debate arose on the subject of forgiving yourself - is it biblical, or simply to be dismissed as 'new-agey'? I googled it this afternoon and found this interesting article: http://www.allaboutgod.com/forgiving-yourself.htm