HOPE FELLOWSHIP CHURCH

The Wrong Place to Look (vv. 1–2)
Look to God for Help (vv. 2–8)
Willing to Ask for Help
How to Ask in Faith
Reflection Questions
START: Read Psalm 121 together before you begin.
The Incas sacrificed their own children to mountains they believed were gods, trusting the gods of the mountain could save them. What are the modern “mountains” we sacrifice for, hoping they'll come through for us?
Read 1 Kings 18:20–40. What does Elijah's confrontation with the prophets of Baal reveal about the emptiness of false gods compared to the living God?
Of the ways God “keeps” you in this psalm (immovable, never sleeping, your shade, guardian from evil, keeper of your going out and coming in), which one do you most need to hear right now, and why?
Peterson asks whether this psalm means Christians never get hurt, never struggle, never suffer. Have you ever felt like the promises of Psalm 121 or the bible didn't match your actual experience? What happened? How would you answer the cynic inside of you? 
Of the “three kinds of hope,” no hope (doubt), false hope (pride), or true living hope (childlike trust), which do you default to when you're struggling? 
Read Matthew 7:7–11. Do you actually believe God is a good Father who wants to give you good things? What makes that hard to believe sometimes?
Luke 18:1–8 describes the persistent widow. Is there something you've been praying about and have been tempted to give up on? What would it look like to keep asking, like she did? 
 
Close your time in prayer. 
“He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”

You Are God, the Eternal One (1-2)
We Are Dust, Time Comes For Us All (3-10)
Teach Us - A Different Kind of Prayer (11-12) 
Satisfy Us - The Heart of the Prayer (13-17)
Reflection Questions
START: Read Psalm 90:1-17 together before you begin.
Warming Up
 Western, American life trains us to optimize almost everything - our schedules, our health, our careers,even our faith. Where do you notice that same pragmatic instinct creeping into your prayer life or worship,chasing a result instead of simply enjoying God?
Looking at the Text
“Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations… from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” (Psalm 90:1-2)
Psalm 90 opens with Moses adoring God’s eternity before he asks God for anything. Why do you think he starts there instead of leading with requests? Why is this a good place to start in prayer? 
The Key of the Psalm: Verses 12 and 14
“So teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)
Moses doesn’t ask God for more time in verse 12 - he asks for a different heart. What’s the difference between wanting more time and wanting wisdom to rightly use the time you have?
“Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.” (Psalm 90:14)
The sermon distinguished “praying to get” from “praying to be.” What would it look like this week to pray simply to be with God, rather than to get something from him?
Living It Out
The sermon talked about the temptation to “stockpile” our days - treating security or certainty as something we can control for ourselves (see the rich fool in Luke 12:16-21). Where are you tempted to do this right now?
Closing in Prayer
Close your time by praying verses 12 and 14 together, out loud, as a group:
“Lord, teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom. Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”

Ephesians 3:14-19 
I bow my knees. (vv. 14-15)
I ask for power in the inner man. (v. 16)
Christ makes his home in me. (v. 17)
 
Reflection Questions
What has prayer taught you that study never could?
Paul had the whole treasury open to him and he chose to ask for strength in the inner man. Why do you think that was his first request instead of relief from prison? What does that tell us about what he believed we actually need most?
Jesus taught us to say Our Father and then immediately, hallowed be your name. How do you hold nearness and reverence together in the same prayer? Which one comes easier to you, and what does the other one protect you from?
The whole Bible builds toward the question of whether God will live with man again. Garden, mountain, tent, temple, and finally a human heart. Why do you think God chose people as his dwelling place instead of a building? What does that say about how he sees you? (Eph. 3:17) 
Christ did not make Gentiles into Jews. He made one new people out of two (Eph. 2:15). What does that ask of us in a church where people come from different backgrounds, generations, and histories? Where is that hardest to live out honestly? (Eph. 3:15)

Rock: Adoration (Psalm 145:1-3)
Tower: The Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:5-16) 
Lamp: Praying Scripture (Ephesians 1:15-23)
Beam: Intercession (1 Timothy 2:1-5) 
Amen: Benediction 
 
Reflection Questions
Rock (Adoration): Adoration comes before every request. Why is that order so hard for us, and what's one truth about God you can praise Him for before you ask Him for anything this week?
Tower (The Lord's Prayer): The Lord's Prayer moves in 6 major lines. Discuss each one and how they help us to pray holistically and with a framework. 
Lamp (Praying Scripture): Instead of guessing what to pray, we can pray God's own words back to Him. What's one verse you could turn into a prayer this week, and how might it shape what you ask for?
Beam (Intercession): Intercession moves us from "God, help me" to "God, help them." Where in the Bible can you think of people praying for others specifically? Who are you praying for and why?  
Amen (Benediction): Amen isn't just a closing word, it's a statement of trust that God will act. What's a prayer you've stopped praying because you doubted the answer would come? What would it take to pray it again in faith?

It is my prayer for you that...
 
Your love overflows (v. 9)
You choose what matters most (v. 10)
 
Your life is filled with spiritual fruit (v. 11)
 
Reflection Questions
We believe in God and believe we have a soul, but how often do the two actually talk to each other? Where do you notice that gap in your own life?
What do you find yourself reaching for when you're anxious or overwhelmed, before you reach for prayer?
Think of a recent decision you made mostly on your own. What might it have looked like to bring that decision to God in prayer first?
Prayer is described as an open line to God with no waitlist and no cost. What tends to keep you from actually "picking up the phone" and praying, even when you know God is listening? 
What does Psalm 116:1-2 teach us about God, ourselves, and prayer?

Phillipians 1:27-30
Live Worthy of the Gospel
Stand Together in the Gospel
Live Like You Have Nothing to Lose
 
Reflection Questions
How can we discern areas in our lives where we may not be living in a way worthy of the gospel?
In what ways can understanding our identity in Christ change the way we interact with others?
How can we actively show love to those who may oppose our beliefs?
How can understanding that to die is gain influence our perspective on life's struggles?
In what ways can we build bridges rather than walls with those who may feel marginalized?

Jonah 1-4
I. Two Conflict Avenues God Uses
 
II. Narrative #1 – Jonah Runs and God Pursues
 
III. Narrative #2 – Nineveh Repents and God Relents
 
IV. Narrative #3 – Jonah’s Heart Exposed
 
Reflection Questions
When you think about conflict, do you usually see it as something to avoid or something God might use? Why?
Can you identify a recent situation where you felt “stuck” or conflicted? What choice were you struggling to make?
Jonah obeyed outwardly but not inwardly. Where in your life might you be doing the right thing without having the right heart?
Why do you think Jonah resisted God’s mercy toward Nineveh? In what ways might we struggle with similar attitudes toward others?
God ends Jonah with a question rather than an answer. What question do you sense God is asking you right now, and how will you respond?

Genesis 32-33
1. Fearful Plans – Controlling the Outcome (32:1–8)
 
2. Honest Prayer – Depending on God (32:9–12)
 
3. The Night Fight – Wrestling and Weakening (32:22–32)
 
4. New Name, New Walk – Israel the God-Wrestler (32:28; 35:9–12)
5. Limping into Reconciliation (32:30–33:20)
Reflection Questions
What’s been a major takeaway or major impression from this whole series in Genesis? 
Where are you living as “two camps” between trusting God and yourself (Genesis 32:7–12)?
Where has God allowed a “limp” or “thorn” in your life (Genesis 32:25, 31; 2 Corinthians 12:7–10), and how might that be a place of grace?
In your current struggle, what would it practically mean to stop fighting in your own strength and instead cling to God (Genesis 32:26; 2 Corinthians 12:10)?
Is there a relationship or past wound where God is calling you to “limp toward” reconciliation (Genesis 33:1–4; Luke 22:39–42; John 20:24–29), and what first step could you take?

Genesis 30-31
Introduction
Jacob waits 20 years in Laban’s house while God’s promise feels slow and messy.
This family grabs for blessing instead of trusting God to give it.
 
1. Mandrakes – Controlling Life
Rachel and Leah use schemes and mandrakes to get children.
God, not charms, is the one who “listens” and “remembers.”
 
2. Magic Sticks – Controlling Success
Jacob and Laban make a rigged deal and play breeding games with the flock.
Beneath the schemes, the God of Bethel directs the outcome.
 
3. Idols – Controlling Security
Rachel steals household gods as a backup plan.
The idols sit hidden under a saddle while God Himself protects Jacob.
 
4. The Faithful God
God keeps His promise despite everyone’s scheming.
The call: stop grasping for control and rest in His faithfulness in Christ.
 
Reflection Questions
Walk through the storyline again as a group, to refresh some of the key movements in the chapters 30-31 to refresh a more unknown part of Genesis. 
Where in your life right now does God feel “too slow” or “too quiet” for your plans? When you feel stuck waiting (like Jacob’s 20 years with Laban), what are your go-to reactions?  
Where do wise strategies and planning cross a line into over‑trusting our own hustle and smarts? Can you share a time when your careful plans didn’t work, but God still clearly took care of you?
What might be some “household gods” for Christians today—things we don’t call idols, but secretly lean on for protection and security?
How does 1 Peter 1:3–5 answer the fears that drive us to mandrakes, magic sticks, and idols?
 
Daily Prayer Prompts
Pray:  God, thank You that Your promise doesn’t rest on my schemes but on Your faithfulness. Show me where I’m grasping for control—chasing my own mandrakes, magic sticks, and idols—and teach me to lay them down and trust You to provide, protect, and lead. Amen.