Reading for Week Two:
Chapters Three and Four
SPIRITUAL PRACTICE: SILENCE
This week try to spend five to ten minutes in silence before you begin reading Scripture or responding to the reflection questions. (Feel free to go longer!)
Because our minds are chaotic and noisy even when we’re not speaking, it takes time to settle into silence. Sometimes it’s helpful to use a word or short phrase to return to focused, silent attention on God. This word could be a name for God revealed in Scripture or a brief declaration of your intent or longing. Whenever your mind wanders and distractions overwhelm you, return to quiet by offering this prayer word to God. Just as shared silence can be an expression of intimacy and trust with a friend, silent prayer is a declaration of trust: we do not need to use words to express our devotion to God.
In addition to using words to pray for your loved ones this week, try holding them before the Lord in silence. Trust the Spirit to pray for them with sighs too deep for words (see Romans 8:26). Picture God looking at you and them with love, giving each of you what you need.
What do you notice as a fruit of being silent with God?
Week Two: Day One
CHAPTERS THREE AND FOUR: CHARISSA (PP. 45-52 AND 75-79)
Scripture Meditation: Mark 4:1-9
Ponder your own capacity to receive the Word of God. What kind of soil are you? Speak to God about what you notice.
For Reflection and Journaling
1. Many of the things Charissa has named as fruit in her life have “instead been revealed as tares rooted in her desire for honor and recognition, her pursuit of excellence, her idolatry of reputation, and her addiction to esteem. . . . She had been choked by thorns without even realizing it” (p. 47). Do you share any common weeds or thorns with her? What chokes the life of the Spirit within you? What hinders fruitfulness? Speak to God about what you notice.
2. Charissa is tempted to want immediate results, to monitor her progress, and to compare herself to others. Are you tempted in any similar ways? What helps you to be patient with the Holy Spirit’s work in your life?
3. How do you feel when the Spirit exposes your sin? Do you gravitate toward self-condemnation and judgment or toward grace and freedom? What helps orient you toward grace?
4. Ponder the difference between “weeding your own garden” and submitting yourself to God’s revealing work. Which are you more prone to do? Why?
Week Two: Day Two
CHAPTERS THREE AND FOUR: HANNAH (PP. 53-57, 71-74, AND 88-92)
Scripture Meditation: Psalm 42
Read the psalm slowly a couple of times. Which words or images capture your attention? Which phrases best describe your experience or longings? Write the psalm in your own words and offer it as prayer.
For Reflection and Journaling
1. What do you notice about Hannah’s reluctance to speak her needs, desires, and the truth about what she’s feeling? How does this affect her relationships?
2. How readily do you speak the truth about what you want and need? What helps you to be honest? Practice naming your needs and desires aloud or writing them in your journal. Then pray for the courage to speak them to someone else.
3. Identify some of the symptoms of Hannah’s spiritual dryness (desolation). Have you ever experienced a season like this? If so, reflect on the ways God led you through it or met you within it. What did you learn in the process?
4. In what ways are you tempted to place your confidence in your words to God (see p. 74)? How might the practice of silence invite a deeper kind of trust? Speak to God about any resistance you notice to the practice of silence.
Week Two: Day Three
CHAPTERS THREE AND FOUR: MARA (PP. 58-65, 85-87)
Scripture Meditation: Romans 8:26-27
Read the verses slowly several times. Which words or phrases catch your attention and invite you into deeper rest in God?
For Reflection and Journaling
1. Identify some of the stress, conflicts, and heartaches within Mara’s relationships. Do you share anything in common with her? If so, name these struggles to God.
2. In what kinds of circumstances do you typically feel helpless or discouraged? What helps you connect with God and others during these times?
3. Mara is continuing to battle envy. Consider the types of people or situations you are most likely to be envious of. Are there any common denominators? What do you need to receive from God when you’re feeling envious?
Week Two: Day Four
CHAPTERS THREE AND FOUR: BECCA (PP. 66-70, 80-84)
Scripture Meditation: Luke 10:25-37
Prayerfully enter Jesus’ story with your imagination. Which character best represents you? Why? Speak to God about what you notice.
For Reflection and Journaling
1. What do you notice about Becca’s interaction with her friends and the ways she is trying to process her grief and regrets? Do you share anything in common with her?
2. Becca remembers her mother’s faith but isn’t able to embrace it. Why? In what ways do you struggle with faith? Speak with God about your doubts and disappointments. Name to him any obstacles that hinder your trust in his goodness, love, and power.
3. Have you ever experienced the compassion of a stranger? Recall the details and speak with God about what you received or learned through that encounter. How did that encounter reveal his love and care for you?
Week Two: Day Five
SUMMARY
Scripture Meditation: Psalm 139:1-6
Speak the verses aloud as prayer. Which words or phrases particularly capture your longings or hope?
For Reflection and Journaling
1. Who has loved and served you well? Bring to mind the details. Spend time thanking God for the ones who have revealed God’s heart to you.
2. Who has listened well to you? What was that experience like?
3. When have you listened well to someone? What does that posture require of you? In what ways can your listening also be prayer?
4. How is the practice of silence shaping you? What can you carry forward with this practice into future weeks?
Week Two: Day Six
REVIEW
Return to any questions you weren’t able to ponder during the week, or prayerfully review your notes. Do you notice any patterns emerging in your life with God? Speak to him about what you see, need, and desire.