Discuss: 1) What are obstacles to a lifestyle of service that you have experienced? 2) What are things you can do this week in service to someone in your life and/or those living in poverty? 3) Ask God to give you His eyes for those in need. Ask Him to show you opportunities to serve someone who needs it. Thank Him for the work that He will do in your own heart as you move toward a lifestyle of service.
Introduction Peter leads a large group of disciples to an isolated (perhaps secretive) meeting where Jesus will once again give them their marching orders. Then they make their way back to Jerusalem to await the coming Holy Spirit as the movement switches into its...
Introduction After rising from the dead, Jesus appears to His disciples on several occasions. Paul lists the appearances in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8. He appeared to many people individually — to His leaders on several occasions and even to a group of disciples numbering...
I think obstacles I see is just being tired a lot and not having a lot of time to myself. I find myself being constantly busy and trying to be others focused that I forget about my needs which leads to burn out. Ways I can help people is just listening to them and showing patience. I actually experienced it today where the other night I mentioned a boy named David that I teach. He came up to me today and told me he enjoyed me as a coach and enjoyed me as teacher. I began to ask him just questions about his life and getting to know him more. Lord I ask you to give me your eyes to show me who it is you want me to help.
Some obstacles to a lifestyle of service that I have come across are providing consistent time to serve particular individuals. When a lack of time management occurs in these areas, we reach a burnout. I have felt this many times when trying to serve.
For me the more I understand and see through the lends of God, as said in the reading, I think time and presence is the real act of service you can give someone. I would want to reach out to veterans that come into the shop more and just have deeper conversations with them. There is an individual I have grown close to and I would want to treat him to a meal and conversation.
God I pray that you would give me not only the ears to hear those who are in need, but also the eyes to recognize those that appear fine, but deep down need to hear you. Thank you for all the opportunities you give us to reach out and serve in your name. AMEN
(from Roger)
1) the biggest obstacles I’ve encountered to a lifestyle of service is my self-centeredness and the way I was brought up really. That is, in addition, of course, to sufficient resources. I am truly a selfish and self-centered person as evidenced by my 25 years in drug addiction. I cannot begin to describe how small my world became and how limited my scope was. In addition to that, I basically lost both parents quite young (my mom passed when I was 17 and she raised us, and my dad basically was out of the picture for decades of my life until he passed in 2019). I always, since I can remember had to fend for myself. No one was coming to help me when a bailout was needed. My siblings and I were brought up to be independent and we never asked one another for help. It’s essentially the reverse of how a family is supposed to be. Thus, as a result, I lived by the mantra of me against the world. I always had to carve out enough for me and that selfishness extended well into my adulthood, and exists in abundance within me. I am trying to change that and live differently today.
2) today I can give my time and attentiveness to others. I am still working on finding the balance between helping others (materialistically or financially) because I’ve been burned many times. I’ve considered myself to be a solid friend and in the past, maybe overcompensated for the many bad behaviors I was acting out on by coming to the aid of “friends” almost without question, only to get shown that each of us, value our own survival above morals, etc. also, within the na fellowship I always lend an attentive ear and help provide emotional support where I can. I also spend time sharing what god has done for me to other circles of friends.
3) god thank you for all that you are and have done for me within a short period of time. You know as I know that I have come to lean on you heavily during the past few months. As is often the case with me, sometimes I can’t see outside of myself. Bless me with
From Thao
Obstacles include lack of time, energy, selfishness, not feeling I have enough resources to help that person in need.
This weekend, our group is meeting up at a convelence home to be with the elders that needs God’s light and love into their lives. Duy and I are also housing Karen and David who are coming down to OC for the weekend. They needed a place to stay because renting a hotel is too much money right now for their budget.
God, I know that there are many things that I cannot do, but please show me things that I can do to serve those in need. Give me a heart of service to serve with a grateful and joyful heart.
Amy
Time – work, kids and family. I want to do children ministry but at the same time, Nolan’s nap/ sleep schedule and separation anxiety is hard for me to commit anything at the moment. Even attending small group on Saturday is challenging now with nanny is out on weekend and vu is working everyday including weekends.
Checking in with our employees including chi thanh on her motherhood to see if she needs anything. I need to learn how to be proactively reach out and build relationships with others. Building trust is important and a key step for people to open and receive help from me.
Dear God, I ask for your guidance and strength to help me serve others. Please remind me that every person I encounter is created in your image and deserves to be treated with love and respect. Help me to see the needs of those around me and be willing to step in and help in any way I can. Whether it’s offering a kind word, a listening ear, or a helping hand, please give me the courage and compassion to serve others selflessly. Remind me that every act of service, no matter how small, can make a big difference in someone’s life. Whether it’s lending a hand to a neighbor or volunteering at a local charity, please help me to be a channel of your love and grace to those around me. I pray that you would guide my steps and direct my path. Help me to be a light in the darkness and a source of hope and encouragement to those who need it most. Thank you, God, for the opportunity to serve others. May my words and actions reflect your love and grace, and may I always seek to bring glory to your name.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
The obstacles to a lifestyle of service include the significant time and effort required to support those around me. Some might argue that financial constraints also pose a challenge, but it’s important to recognize that if money becomes the primary focus, we shift from serving others to simply engaging in charity. When I host international students, the commitment is substantial. Beyond providing accommodation, we invest time and effort in preparing meals for them. Despite their status as adults, we assume a guardian-like role, ensuring their well-being and spending quality time getting to know them. This commitment means sacrificing personal time that could otherwise be used for ourselves. However, it’s crucial to view this as an opportunity provided by God. These students may not yet know Jesus, and our actions during their stay allow us to demonstrate His love. In our role as hosts, we are a vessel through which God’s love can shine. Father Lord, please continue to use us as your instruments to reach out to the lost, especially the international students we are hosting. May your love radiate through our actions, serving as a testament to the message of Jesus.
From Calvin:
1. I remember when I was in high school youth ministry during my college years, the ministry took a lot of my free time. Between the planning meetings and leadership meetings and the weekend fellowship for the high-schoolers, and then actually planning the studies and caring for the high-schoolers, I didn’t have much free time for myself. But that was when I was a young college student without any major responsibilities. So now, being a parent to 3 young children, and having a busy full-time job, I’m responsible for providing for my family first and foremost. So spending that significant amount of time to a ministry would be very difficult.
2. I was actually able to help out a fellow brother this week. I was cleaning out my garage and found a bunch of baby items that I wasn’t using anymore. I immediately thought of my friend, Huy, who just had a new baby (so he’s very impoverished with sleep and energy). I figured he could use the items and offered to deliver it to him. I also remembered how tiring it is to be a new parent, so I also bought him and his wife some dinner. It’s been a particularly busy week for me, but I was happy to be able to help out a fellow dad.
3. Dear Lord, please help me to see those who have need. Please give me the strength and energy to provide for them in whatever way I can.
(Danny)
The obstacles to a lifestyle of service that I have experienced is socialize. The people have no socialize that make them a introvert, I have seen people that wanted to do something new that they have never experience before but what stopping them was who will be the person will help change that? I have seen people felt that way and I tend to not interact with them. Later on, I have changed my mind that I wanted to experience a different world of relationship because I have felt like the group I was hanging out before, they will eventually changed and vanish from existence. I decided to introduce myself to the people that I have seen, it turned out to be a better interaction and vibe because we had the same personality and mind alike but not appearance. I was grateful to make a choice to be friend with him and we are still bestfriend til this day. This week I want to interact with more people so I can make their day enjoyable and have a laugh, which define the kind of service I would do. I pray to God to give me the strength of benefit so that I could feel their sense of movement and want to help them out like I used to do.
1. I think my pride gets in the way of having a lifestyle of service because my pridefulness makes me kinda lazy because I feel like I don’t need to be serving people and like I’m better than that, but I should be serving people no matter what cause that’s what Jesus did and He’s way more powerful than me.
2. I think I can continue preaching the Gospel to those who are in poverty and I can just share how much God loves them and that they are created in the image of God.
3. Dear God, I wanna serve people right now, but I don’t know how. I’m lazy, prideful, and I find myself stepping away from serving people. Lord, help me to have the courage to serve to those who are in poverty, and those who don’t have peace. Give me the strength to just start yapping about the love of Jesus to people. I pray in Jesus Name, Amen.
1. I believe the main obstacles hindering my capacity to lead a life of service are finding enough time to dedicate to serving others and managing my time efficiently. Despite my desire to serve, I often feel like I am falling short due to the many responsibilities I have to fulfill. I am also worried that if I continue like this, I will eventually burn out.
2. I am not sure that I can do this this week because I am about filled up with personal things, but I will try to show companies to those who are living in poverty as soon as possible. I truly believe that every little action counts and can make a difference.
3. Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for giving me a beautiful day. I kindly ask you to give me your eyes to see people who living in poverty. I pray that you will show me the I can have the opportunity to serve those in need. Thank you for all your work and plan for me. I thank you that I am able to use the blessings you have given me to help others in need. Amen.