12^th Sunday Ordinary Time

Opening Prayer

Lord

You are the maker of all things;

You do not make junk.

Change my mind;

rid me of all worry and stress.

Allow me to let go;

and let you direct my life.

Guide me through your Word;

so I may live more for others than myself.

Journal/Reflection Questions

Job 38:1, 8-11

• What is God trying to teach Job in this scripture? What lesson does God want you to learn?
• Are you going through a storm in your life right now? Identify the source of the storm; was it self-made, man-made or created by God?

2Corinthians 5:14-17

• How has the love of God called you into action? 
• Define what it means to you to be a “new creation”?

Mark 4:35-41

• What in your life causes you to be paralyzed with fear? How do you overcome fear?
• The disciples were there together; who do you turn to when you see a storm coming? 

General Questions for Journaling

• What do you do when you see a storm coming? How do you feel?
• When you see a storm coming how do you react? Push on? Pull back? Simply hold on?
• Do you believe God sets limits? What do you believe God limits?
• Have you experienced a storm where you know God was with you?
• Have you experienced a storm where you questioned God’s presence?
• Reflect on who or what you live for; is it in honor of someone or something, it is for your own good, is it for Christ’s glory, or something else?
• Are there things in your life which you missed out on experiencing because of fear? Do you have any regrets? What do you think God wants you to do about the things you regret?
• Where do fears come from? How do they start? Do you believe fears are something each person is born with or are they something a person develops?

Closing Prayer

Leader:  Be the calm in the storm when I am going down…

ALL:  Come to me!

Leader:  Be the gentle water washing away my selfish thoughts…

ALL:  Wash over me!

Leader:  Be the filter which keeps my thoughts and actions pure…

ALL:  Cleanse me!

Leader:  Be my floodgate to hold me back from temptation…

ALL:  Surround me!

Leader: Be the waves which drive my actions…

ALL:  Consume me!

Leader:  When I pursue you…

ALL:  I am overwhelmed by your loving presence!

Challenge for the Week:  Make the decision to let go of control of ONE THING in your life and allow God to take over.  Focus on that ONE THING in prayer, not asking God to do what you want Him to do in the situation but to truly hand it over to him.  Imagine that ONE THING as an onion; as you start let go of your control over the situation, allowing God to take charge, think about each layer of the onion being peeled away.  As you pray to allow yourself to let God take over, you might also imagine yourself as that onion; allowing God to shed the weight of the worry, anxiety, stress you carry because of that situation.  This process takes time; it takes attention and lots of practice!  If you aren’t patient, you can end up with a smelly onion which only makes the situation worse; however if you allow God to take over your situation the onion will become nothing and the situation won’t seem as daunting.