By Dan Lentz

1. Begin your group time by talking about your place in your family. Are you an only child, first child, middle child, or youngest child? How do you think your birth order impacted who you are today?

Read Genesis 21:12-14, 17-21, 26:2-5, 12, 13.

2. Despite some the tensions between Ishmael, Isaac, their mothers, and their father, what do these verses reveal about God’s heart for each member of the family?

3. The Lord uses us to bless people beyond our own generation. What are ways you’ve been blessed by older generations? What are ways you’ve been blessed by younger generations?

4. How do you hope to be a blessing to future generations? What are you doing today to make sure younger generations know the hope of Christ? 

5. Pray for families as you close your group time together. Set aside times to pray specifically for your parents and grandparents, or if they are not living, then pray for people you know of their generation. Then shift to praying for your kids, grandkids, or people of their generation.

Dan Lentz works for the Small Group Network in Whitestown, Indiana.

For more small group ministry resources, visit www.smallgroups.com.