Remember to prep for your group
- Pray for your group by name.
- Review the sermon recap, key scriptures, and takeaways.
- Choose which questions you will use for your group.
- Plan the prayer and ministry time.
🎬 Sermon Recap
The sermon reflected on 25 years of God’s faithfulness through the story of Every Nation Church Seattle—how God called Bruce and Carol Fidler back to Seattle, how the church began in a living room, and how God has used ordinary obedience, sacrifice, and community to build something beautiful.
Two main themes shaped the message: gratitude and perspective. Gratitude for salvation, for the church, for those who sacrificed and served, and for the privilege of participating in God’s mission. Perspective in remembering the past, living fully in the present, and looking forward to the future hope we have in Christ.
Using Peter’s life and letters, the sermon reminded us that our past failures, disappointments, and painful seasons do not define us. Like Peter, we are defined by who God says we are: chosen, called, restored, and sent. Because of God’s grace, we can live fully today and continue forward in mission with hope.
Two main themes shaped the message: gratitude and perspective. Gratitude for salvation, for the church, for those who sacrificed and served, and for the privilege of participating in God’s mission. Perspective in remembering the past, living fully in the present, and looking forward to the future hope we have in Christ.
Using Peter’s life and letters, the sermon reminded us that our past failures, disappointments, and painful seasons do not define us. Like Peter, we are defined by who God says we are: chosen, called, restored, and sent. Because of God’s grace, we can live fully today and continue forward in mission with hope.
Key Scriptures
- Isaiah 51:1
- Isaiah 51:5
- 1 Timothy 1:12–14
- 1 Peter 2:9
- 2 Peter 3:14
Key Takeaways
- God is faithful across seasons, even when we do not fully understand what He is doing in the moment.
- Our identity is not defined by our failures, disappointments, or past pain, but by who God says we are in Christ.
- We are called to live fully and faithfully in the present while remembering God’s past faithfulness and looking forward to our future hope.
- The church is not just a building; God’s people are the living stones, called to be a light to the nations.
- Every season, assignment, job, relationship, and act of service matters in God’s kingdom.
Leading the Group
👋 Welcome
Thank everyone for coming and making this group a priority in their lives.
💛 Vision
Why We Meet as a Group
We are here to grow as disciples who are being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and boldly doing as Jesus did.
We are here to grow as disciples who are being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and boldly doing as Jesus did.
📬 Announcements
📍 Introduction
We are in a journey together to explore Jesus’ famous sermon on the mount, where He gives us his vision of the good life; what life lived under his rule and in His kingdom is like in the midst of a broken world.
Read Main Text
- 1 Peter 2:9
Open in prayer
🔥 Warm-Up
- What is one place, season, or community in your life that God used to shape you in a significant way?
- When you look back over the last few years, what is one thing you are grateful for that you may not have recognized at the time?
💬 Suggested Discussion Guide
Please choose ahead of time which of the following questions you want to use for your c-group.
Discussion Questions
You don't have to answer all of these. Choose the most helpful for your group.
- 🧠 HEAD — Understanding God's Word
How does Peter’s story help us understand our identity, calling, and hope in Christ?- In 1 Peter 2:9, what words or phrases describe who God’s people are?
- Why is it significant that Peter identifies himself as “a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ” rather than by his past failures?
- What does Peter’s life show us about the grace of God after failure, weakness, and restoration?
- The sermon emphasized past, present, and future perspective. How do Peter’s letters help believers live faithfully while suffering or facing difficulty?
- What does it mean that God’s people are called to “proclaim” His excellencies? How does that connect to the church’s mission?
- ❤️ HEART — Examining Our Trust and Desires
Where do we need to receive God’s grace, trust His faithfulness, and live from our true identity in Christ?
- Are there any past failures, disappointments, or painful seasons that you are tempted to let define you? What would it look like to let God’s Word define you instead?
- The sermon reminded us that Peter had both highs and lows, but he lived from grace. Where do you need to believe more deeply that God has forgiven, restored, and called you?
- When you look back on your life, where can you now see God preparing you, even if you did not recognize it at the time?
- What current season are you in where it is hard to live “100%” present and faithful?
- How does the future hope of being with Christ forever give you strength for today’s pressures, sacrifices, or disappointments?
- 🤲 HANDS — Practicing Prayer and Love
How can we live fully in our current season and participate in God’s mission together?
- What is one area of your life right now—work, family, school, church, neighborhood, or friendships—where God is inviting you to be fully present and faithful?
- The sermon encouraged us to serve where God has placed us, even when it is not our “dream” situation. What would faithful obedience look like for you this week?
- Who has God placed in your path that you can love, encourage, host, serve, or share the hope of Jesus with?
- How can our group help one another remember God’s faithfulness and not be defined by past failures or disappointments?
- Every Nation Church Seattle was described as called to be a light to the nations in the city. How can we participate in that calling personally and as a group?
Practical Applications
Of all we have discussed tonight, what is one step God is calling you to take in order to follow Him more fully this week?
🙏 Prayer
Close your time by praying into these themes. Invite the group to pray either in smaller groups (men with men or women with women) or all together using this guide.
- You can ask for additional requests for the upcoming week, just encourage folks to be brief.
- You can pray for the next steps each person named.
- Make sure everyone gets covered by prayer and then close with this suggested prayer:
Pray that God would fill us with gratitude for His faithfulness, give us perspective for the season we are in, and help us live from our true identity in Christ. Ask Him to heal what needs to be healed, restore what needs to be restored, and strengthen us to live fully today for His glory and the advancement of His kingdom.
Additional Helps
Living it Out: You can mention one or more of these steps to consider if people need guidance.
- Take time this week to remember God’s faithfulness: write down one past season where God guided, provided, restored, or prepared you.
- Identify one current responsibility or relationship where you need to live “100%” present and faithful, and take one concrete step of obedience.
- Reach out to someone God has placed in your life—at work, school, church, in your neighborhood, or among the nations in the city—and intentionally encourage or serve them.
- Reject one false identity from your past and replace it with what God says about you in Christ.
- Pray for renewed strength to continue in the mission God has given this church and community.