2.      Prayer and Fasting Guide: Church leadership is inviting all small group leaders to participate in our two-week prayer and fasting time as we seek God’s will in our lives over the next year. Please find the “2011 Fasting and Prayer Guide” submenu under Small Groups on the front page of the website (www.eastside-cc.com).

3.      Small Group Study Guides: Please consider the Small Group Study Guides we are developing for each sermon series for your small group materials. The idea is to take the information that is preached on Sunday morning and plunge even deeper into the concept. This has been shown to be a powerful way to unite a church family. May we all move forward with a spirit of unity in 2011, so that with one heart and mouth we may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (see Romans 15:5-6 – that is also this week’s memory verse)!!

Sincere thanks for all you do to share in the building of God’s Kingdom…

2.     Mission Focus: We need SIX more baskets to fulfill our goal for the moms over at Richmond Manor.  The cost to put together a basket is approximately $86.  Please encourage your small group members to consider doing it as a family or get your entire small group to pitch in. Let’s make a very positive and practical impact on the women over at Richmond Manor.  Contact Carla Perry for details.

3.     Prayer: We have our first CONNECTION COACH commitment!!!  Yeah!  Amy Collins has agreed to become our first CONNECTION COACH! As the number of small groups grow over the next year or so, I will be looking for another 3-4 small group connection coaches.  This role will not come with a huge responsibility – it will simply be a way for me to keep in closer contact with all the small groups through a small network of coaches that help me keep track of everyone and how they are doing.  If you might be interested in this type of role, please ask the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts and contact me for details.

You’re Fooling Yourself

Posted: 16 Nov 2010 11:30 PM PST

There’s loads of knowledge to be found, but wisdom is a rare commodity. Why? Because wisdom is one of sin’s first casualties. It’s hard to admit, but true none the less: sin reduces all of us to fools. And the fact is that no one is more victimized by your foolishness than you are.

You see the empirical evidence of the foolishness of sin on almost every page of Scripture. For example, you see foolishness in full operation in the tragic story of David and Bathsheba. This is why David says, “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place” (Psalm 51:6 NIV).

You read the story of David’s sin, and you say to yourself, “What was he thinking? Did he really believe that he’d get away with this? Did he completely forget who he was? Did he think that God was going to stand idly by and let this happen?” But David is not some extreme case of foolishness gone wild; you see evidence of the same foolishness in each of our lives daily. People could say of us again and again, “What was he thinking? What was she thinking?”

What does foolishness look like? Here are four of its most significant aspects.

1) The Foolishness of Self-centeredness

We were created to live for something, someone bigger than ourselves. We were designed to live with, for, and through the Lord. God is meant to be the motivation and hope of everything we do. His pleasure, his honor, and his will are the things for which we are meant to live. But the foolishness of sin really does cause us to reduce our lives to the size and shape of our lives.

Often our living has no greater purpose than self-satisfaction and self-fulfillment. Does this sound harsh? Well, ask yourself, “Why do I ever get impatient with others?” “Why do I ever say things I shouldn’t say?” “Why do I get discouraged with my circumstances?” “Why do I give way to anger or give in to self-pity?” The answer is that, like me, you want your own way, and when things don’t go your way or people are in your way, you lash out in anger or you turn inward in discouragement.

2) The Foolishness of Self-deception

We’re all very good at making ourselves feel good about what God says is bad. We’re all very skilled at recasting what we’ve done so what was wrong doesn’t look so wrong to us. I’ll tell myself that I didn’t really lash out in anger; no, I was speaking as one of God’s prophets. I’ll tell myself that that second look wasn’t lust; I am simply a man who enjoys beauty. I’ll tell myself that I’m not craving power; I’m just exercising God-given leadership gifts.

Foolishness is able to do something dangerous. It’s able to look at wrong and see right. Had David been able to see himself with accuracy and if he’d been able to see his sin for what it really was, it’s hard to imagine that he would have continued to travel down that pathway.

3) The Foolishness of Self-sufficiency

We all like to think of ourselves as more independently capable than we actually are. We weren’t created to be independent, autonomous, or self-sufficient. We were made to live in a humble, worshipful, and loving dependency upon God and in a loving and humble interdependency with others.

Our lives were designed to be community projects. Yet, the foolishness of sin tells us that we have all that we need within ourselves. So we settle for relationships that never go beneath the casual. We defend ourselves when the people around us point out a weakness or a wrong. We hold our struggles within, not taking advantage of the resources that God has given us.

The lie of the garden was that Adam and Eve could be like God, independent and self-sufficient. We still tend to buy into that lie.

4) The Foolishness of Self-righteousness

Why don’t we celebrate grace more? Why aren’t we more amazed by the wonderful gifts that are ours as the children of God? Why don’t we live with a deep sense of need, coupled with a deep sense of gratitude for how each need has been met by God’s grace? Well, the answer is clear. You’ll never celebrate grace as much as you should when you think you’re more righteous than you actually are.

Grace is the plea of sinners. Mercy is the hope of the wicked. Acceptance is the prayer of those who know that they could never do anything to earn it. But the foolishness of sin makes me righteous in my own eyes.

When I tell my stories, I become more the hero than I ever was. I look wiser in my narratives than I could have been. In my view of my history, my choices were better than what they actually were. Often it isn’t my sin that keeps me from coming to God.  Sadly, I don’t come to him because I don’t think I need the grace that can be found only in him.

Here is what all of us must face, sin really does reduce us all to fools, but happily the story doesn’t end there. The One who is the ultimate source of everything that’s good, true, trustworthy, right, and wise is also a God of amazing grace.

You don’t get freed from your foolishness by education or experience. You don’t get wisdom by research and analysis. You get wisdom by means of a relationship with the One who is Wisdom.

The radical claim of the Bible is that wisdom isn’t first a book, or a system, or a set of commands or principles. No, wisdom is a person, and his name is Jesus Christ. When you and I are graced into acceptance with him, we’re drawn into a personal relationship with Wisdom, and Wisdom begins a lifelong process of freeing us from the stronghold that the foolishness of sin has on us. We aren’t yet completely free, but there will be a day when our every thought, desire, choice, action, and word will be fundamentally wise!

It makes such sense then, that a repentant man (David) would reflect on his need for wisdom. Sin, in reducing us to fools, causes us to do foolish things, even though we think we’re wise. And for this we need more than information, education, and experience. We need exactly what we find in Christ—grace.

Wisdom is the product of grace; there is simply nowhere else it can be found.

]]> http://ebcsmallgroup.wordpress.com/2010/11/18/david-the-weakness-of-self-anything/feed/ 0 ebcsmallgroup http://ebcsmallgroup.wordpress.com/2010/11/15/small-group-nation-t3-for-november-15-2010/ http://ebcsmallgroup.wordpress.com/2010/11/15/small-group-nation-t3-for-november-15-2010/#comments Mon, 15 Nov 2010 19:13:28 +0000 ebcsmallgroup http://ebcsmallgroup.wordpress.com/?p=403 ]]> 1.    Prayer: We have our first CONNECTION COACH commitment for 2011!!!  Yeah!  Amy Collins has agreed to become our first CONNECTION COACH! As the number of small groups grow over the next year or so, I will be looking for another 3-4 small group connection coaches.  This role will not come with a huge responsibility – it will simply be a way for me to keep in closer contact with all the small groups through a small network of coaches that help me keep track of everyone and how they are doing.  If you might be interested in this type of role, please ask the Holy Spirit to captivate your thoughts and contact me for details.

2.    Small Group Leaders Conference – Sunday December 12^th 4:00pm – 5:30pm: Etch in your calendars! This is a very important event for you to attend to help cast vision for small groups at Eastside in 2011 and beyond. Please make every effort to attend.  Thank you!!

3.    New Curriculum:  New Small Group Curriculum for November / December Sermon Series, He Came:

a.     Our sermon series for November / December is entitled, He Came.  We will be focusing on six important Biblical responses to “Why did Jesus come to earth?”

b.    You will have small group resources at your fingertips, complete with handouts, background materials, helpful links and notes.  All materials will be available to you on the Eastside website and the Small Group Nation Blog.

c.      There is powerful synergy when sermons and small group studies are aligned! Therefore, the plan going forward is that ALL SERMON SERIES will have a Small Group Study Guide that corresponds with the series.  Your small group will then have an option of following the series or choosing another curriculum.

Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”  Let’s make some noise for the Kingdom…



These materials are a guide to help you facilitate discussion with your Small Group. Use them as resources to lead your group in discovering and owning the truths of God’s Word. There may be questions you do not want to use and there may be instances where you just want to focus on a particular point or truth. Some questions may bring out emotions and cause people to dwell on their relationship with God. Your role is to facilitate this experience and not to complete the discussion guide. Use these resources as flexible teaching tools  – not as a rigid teaching task list.

SERIES:  TEXT!     SERMON: DING!     DATE: NOVEMBER 7, 2010

• MASTER STUDY GUIDE – DING – 11_07_2010
• RESOURCE: Overview of the Bible
• TEXT_ Bookmark_wk1
  

SERIES:  TEXT!     SERMON: 2GTBT     DATE: NOVEMBER 14, 2010

• MASTER STUDY GUIDE – 2GTBT – 11_14_2010
• RESOURCE: Chronology of OT
• RESOURCE: Manuscript Evidence for Reliability of the New Testament
• RESOURCE: Gospels Reliable
• TEXT_Bookmark_wk2
  

SERIES:  TEXT!     SERMON: RYB     DATE: NOVEMBER 21, 2010

• MASTER STUDY GUIDE – RYB – 11_21_2010
• RESOURCE: Bible Reading Plans
• RESOURCE: Activating the Mind of Christ

a.      Our sermon series for the first three weeks in November is entitled, TEXT! Our Pastor will focus on the importance of scripture, the amazing Book we so often take for granted, and the daily habit of reading and studying God’s Word.

b.      You will have small group resources at your fingertips, complete with handouts, background materials, notes and video segments.  All materials will be sent to you electronically and also available on the Eastside website and the Small Group Nation Blog.

c.       There is powerful synergy when sermons and small group studies are aligned! Therefore, the plan going forward is that ALL SERMON SERIES will have a Small Group Study Guide that corresponds with the sermon series.  Your small group will then have an option of following the series or choosing another curriculum.

2.      Prayer: As the number of small groups grow over the next year or so, I will be looking for about 3-4 small group connection coaches.  This role will not come with a huge responsibility – it will simply be a way for me to keep in closer contact with all the small groups through a small network of coaches that help me keep track of everyone and how they are doing.  If you might be interested in this type of role, please ask the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts and contact me for details.

3.      Small Group Leaders Conference: Etch in your calendars Sunday December 12^th from 4pm – 5:30pm at Eastside for the first Small Group Leaders Conference.  This is a very important event for you to attend to help cast vision for small groups at Eastside in 2011 and beyond. Please make every effort to attend.  Thank you!!

1.    Events:  We need trunks!  Harvest Celebration is coming up this weekend and we need “large candy depositories.”  We have a half-dozen or so trunks lined up to serve our children, but we would like to triple that amount.  Please ask your small group if anyone would be willing to open up their cars from 6:00 – 6:45pm this Saturday…they will be glad they did (and so will area dentists).

2.    Curriculum:  New Small Group Curriculum for November Sermon Series, TEXT!

a.     Our sermon series for the first three weeks in November is entitled, TEXT! Our Pastor will focus on the importance of scripture, the amazing Book we so often take for granted, and the daily habit of reading and studying God’s Word.

b.    You will have small group resources at your fingertips, complete with study guides, background materials, and handouts.  All materials will be sent to you electronically and also available on the Eastside website and the Small Group Nation Blog.

c.     There is powerful synergy when sermons and small group studies are aligned! Therefore, the plan going forward is that ALL SERMON SERIES will have a Small Group Study Guide that corresponds with the sermon series.  Your small group will then have an option of following the series or choosing another curriculum.

3.    Prayer: As the number of small groups grow over the next year or so, I will be looking for about 3-4 small group connection coaches.  This role will not come with a huge responsibility – it will simply be a way for me to keep in closer contact with all the small groups through a small network of coaches that help me keep track of everyone and how they are doing.  If you might be interested in this type of role, please ask the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts and contact me for details.

Boo!!!

Check out the radio spot (attached) for the upcoming Harvest Celebration on SATURDAY OCTOBER 30^th from 6 – 8 PM!  Pretty cool…if you have speakers!!

Please talk with your small group about joining in the FUN!

• If your small group would like to host a BOOTH and play games with all the ghosts and goblins, contact Sherrie: church@eastside-baptist.com

• If your small group wants to host a TRUNK and COMPETE in the CONTEST to see who has the most SPOOK-TACULARLY AWESOME TRUNK, contact me: ggillum@eastside-baptist.com (PS – I hear the Gillum’s have the inside track in this contest, but you can still give it your best shot – I think they know the judge…)

• DINNER will be provided by one of our own small groups (TUESDAY NIGHT’S MEN GROUP ROCKS!)

• PLEASE DON’T STICK OUT AND BE NORMAL – WEAR A COSTUME!!!  BROOKE WILL JUDGE WHO HAS THE BEST GARB!!

Let’s have some fun…and serve our community like only EASTSIDE can!!!  Get “Involved in Community” to “Influence the World”

I hope everyone is doing well…I have been praying for each of you individually that God is working powerfully through your small group and that healing and transformation is happening for each of your members at their level of spiritual maturity.

We are now half way through “Life’s Healing Choices” and it’s about that time to be thinking (if you haven’t been already) about the future of your group.  Will it stay together and continue on?  Will it form into new groups?  Will it disband entirely and go in a different direction?  There is no right way, or best way, just lots to think about, right?

Just in case you don’t have this in your files, I have attached a copy of the HOST Orientation Manual for your review – it has some guidance on how to approach this question:

Will I be asked to continue leading this group after the six weeks?

We are so grateful for your gift of eight weeks!  As a part of your commitment we do ask that you prayerfully consider continuing to lead the small group, and that you facilitate a discussion about the future of the group.  Now would be a great time to introduce the possibility of staying together. This would provide members time to think and respond and for a new study to be selected. There are four options for this discussion.

Option A – Leader proposes to continue leading the group for all who want to go forward together. If accepted, then the group would agree upon a duration for this re-commitment.

Option B – Leader indicates s/he will not continue leading the group but proposes that the group go forward with someone else in the group as leader, i.e. the co-leader.

Option C – If there is no one in the group willing to lead, the HOST would call upon their Small Group Coach to see if another leader could be identified for the group, or assist in re-assigning members to other groups.

Option D - All agree to conclude the group at the end of the campaign.

And above all, know that I am here to help you sort through any issues that arise with you or your small group. I am praying for each of you and know that God is at work in our faith family.  Blessings to you all…

Here is the updated FMSC shift schedule. We may need to reopen the 9-11 Sat shift. David May has not filled it yet, but he is still working on it. I will let you know if we need to do that.

Friday Oct. 15

Set-up 3-5 (full)

Sat. Oct. 16

9-11 am (full)

12-2 pm (full)

3-5 pm (full)

6-8 pm (60 spaces left)

Sun. Oct. 17

2-4 pm (full)

5-7 pm (full)

8-10 pm (70 spaces left)

Mon Oct. 18

9-11 am 

(70 spaces left)

11-1 Clean-up (full)

Thanks,

Vivian Wallace

Volunteer Central Coordinator

Eastside Baptist Church

vivwallace@gmail.com

859.582.5600
“As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people…” Galatians 6:10