By Dan Lentz

1. Of the following, which amazes you most and why?

• clear starry night

• surging ocean coastline

• majestic mountains

• lush fertile plains

Read Psalm 89:35-37; Isaiah 9:6, 7; and Matthew 1:18-23.

2. From these verses, what amazes you the most about the plan of Jesus coming to earth?

3. These verses compare God’s faithfulness to the endurance of the sun and moon. What other verses in this section remind you of the Lord’s faithfulness in your life?

4. Take some extra time to work through the following prayer exercise. As a group, you can choose to pray out loud, silently, or in writing. Spend time in each of these sections:

• Look BACK and thank the Lord for his faithfulness. Praise him for how he brought you from darkness to light and from death to life.

• Look FORWARD and make yourself available to the Lord for whatever he needs you to do in the future.

• Look INWARD and ask the Lord what needs to change in your heart.

• Look OUTWARD to whom you can share Jesus’ love with and pray specifically for those people. 

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

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