Opening Prayer – 5th Sunday of Easter
Lord,
You call us out of the darkness to follow you in the light.
You show us the way to which leads to the Father.
You fill us with the Holy Spirit to show others how to serve.
You gave your life so we might remain with you forever.
Lead us Lord.
Wrap us in your love.

Journal/Reflection Questions
Acts 6:1-7
• Who in your community is neglected? What can you do for them to help them?
• What need do you see that is not being met? How can you, the community, the church do to help meet the need you see?
1Peter 2:4-9
• Share a time when Jesus could be described as a “stone foundation” to you. What has kept you strong in your faith?
• Share a time when you “stumbled” in your faith. What tripped you up? What helped build your faith back up?
John 14:1-12
• What do you think Philip was thinking when Jesus said, “I am in the Father and the Father is in me”? The mystery of the Trinity was not known to the disciples at this time. How could Philip make sense of what Jesus was telling him?
• Jesus knew he was going to have to leave but the disciples didn’t understand. Share a time when you had to leave someone in your life. How is it similar to different to Jesus’ leaving?

General Questions for Journaling
• Brainstorm examples of people in your community who feel neglect. Where can they find help?
• Do you belong to a community of faith? How does this community help to build you up?
• Where do you see the good works of the community in action? What do you do to help the cause?
• How does it make you feel when you see a need in the community not being met? Are you empathetic? Sympathetic? Do you feel the need it too big or gotten out of control? Do you feel helpless and unprepared to be able to change the situation? Seek God’s wisdom to help you find out what you should do to help.
• What does it mean to you to be called a “chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation”? How do we live as if these statements are true?
• What darkness has God called you out of in your life? How do you continue to be strong and not fall back into the darkness? What hope can these readings give?
• How is God’s love shown to us through these readings? Are there examples of this type of love in your life today? Where do you see God’s love at work in your community?
• How do you deal with loss? What is your reaction to death? What helps you to carry on? How can you practice hope in your faith?

Closing Prayer
Leader: You are the way;
ALL: though the path may be rocky, you are always with us!
Leader: You are the truth;
ALL: all of your works and promises are fulfilled!
Leader: You are the light;
ALL: even in my darkest hour, your light shines through!

Challenge for the Week: Have you ever had someone close to you in hospice care? This process helps prepare people to go through the letting go of a loved one. Jesus tried to prepare those close to him for his death but they couldn’t understand what he was telling them. We too need to go through a letting go process in order to be a follower of Jesus. We need to work on letting go of the things we deem important to refocus our desires on what God wants for our lives. What is something you can let go of this week to help you get closer to God? Maybe it is a bad habit, perhaps it is placing something in higher regard than God or another loved one, or maybe it is something that distracts us from doing what we should be doing or keeps us from our relationship with God. Search yourself for something you should “let go” of in order to make more room for God and take a step toward the light!