Job:Why do bad things happen? And what do we do about it?
o
Takeaway – The
book of Job is a profound meditation on the mystery (spoiler alert, there are
no easy answers!) of suffering & the nature of God. Whatever comes our way,
we can rest in the truth that God is present with us, even in the midst of
suffering & tragedy, & although there may never be a satisfying answer
or reason for the bad things that happen, we know that they do not have the
final say. God does. And God’s final say is love, grace, healing, & peace.
Discussion starters:
-
How
do you answer this question (why bad things happen) right now, at this point in
your life?
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What do you find helpful when you’re going through a hard time?
Unhelpful?
-
When have you experienced something that didn’t make sense to you?
Did you relate it to your faith at all?
-
What do you consider your most valuable possessions right now?
What are they & what do they mean to you? What would happen if you lost one
(or all!) of them?
-
Who are the most important people in your life right now? How do
they shape & impact your life? How do you support one another in difficult
times?
-
How can you begin to change the suffering you see in the world?!
Bible talk:
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Have
everyone turn to Job 1:13-22 & ask a volunteer to read.
o How would you react to
losing everything (material &
non-material)?
o What do you do in the face
of tragedy? How do you respond?
o After everything happened,
“Job fell on the ground and worshiped” What does that say about Job?
-
Now
move to Job 27:1-12
o How do we get a faith like
Job’s?
o What do you think it means
to have “the spirit of God in your nostrils”? Do you?
Activity
ideas:
·
Explore
the infographic.
o
Take note “God is big enough to take on Job’s challenge. God can take the
anger, hurt, suffering, and pain that Job expresses.”
o
You can go to God with anything. Even if it’s anger
or frustration at God.
·
Stand
your ground. – When Job questions God, God responds with basically saying, “brace
yourself.” How resilient are your group members?
Have
partners pair up & stand face to face, less than an arm’s length apart. Then
put their hands palm to palm. Then, they take turns pushing their partner’s
hands in an attempt to knock them off balance.
·
Fortunately,
unfortunately – This is a group story activity.
Create a story together. One person starts the story with “Fortunately…”
(e.g. the hotel had room service!) Next person continues the story with
“Unfortunately…” (e.g. the cooks didn’t wash their hands.) The story continues
with each person adding more to the story, by starting with “fortunately…” or
“unfortunately…” alternating. Continue until it gets out of hand/inappropriate J
·
Sitting
“shiva” (pr. Shiv-ah) – This
is a real life application. “Sitting
shiva," comes from Judaism. It is an emotionally and spiritually healing
time where people in mourning may spend time together and have friends and
loved ones come to support them with short visits after a tragedy. The main
idea is to just be present with the hurting person or people. Nothing needs to
be said. Practice this together as a
group- participants may have something they
choose to share or not, be prepared for silence. Offer
the opportunity for one another to share a hurt, struggle, challenge, or just
something they feel they need to get off their chest. There is no need to verbally respond. But affirm that person’s
sharing with eye contact & a time of silence. To facilitate, the group could
pass around a rock, a bandaid, or some other object.
o
There is deep power in just being with someone when/after they’ve experienced loss or a
difficult time. Is there someone in your life right now that could use a friend
to just be with them? Think on that for a bit, & if anyone does come to
mind, ask them if it would be alright if you came to just hang out with them.
They may say no & that’s ok. But if they say yes, do it! Our prayers are
with you as is the Holy Spirit.
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