(9.24 - 9.27) Session 2

Find your people!!! 

Monday Night // 6:30 pm
West Group
Julie w/ the Kelly's
19612 Wyndham Lakes Dr
Odessa, FL 33556

Tuesday Night // 6:30 pm
East Group
The Friedman’s
20439 Lace Cascade Rd
Land O’ Lakes, FL 34637

Thursday Night // 6:30 pm
Central Group
Bob w/ the Michehl’s
3602 Fyfield Ct.
Land O’ Lakes, FL 34638

M.S. & H.S. Group // 6:30 pm
Wednesday Night
Brian & Cheryl
2938 Mingo Dr.
Land O’ Lakes, FL 34638

• Watch the teaching video BEFORE group. 
• Take notes from each video here on your study guide. 
• Look over the group discussion questions and answer them.
• Show up for group ready to discuss and learn :-)

VIDEO TEACHING

The following are a few key thoughts to note as you watch the teaching.

Cultivating a healthy soul can seem like a daunting task. What steps should we take? What is good for our souls? The answer is found in Scripture. God has given us a blueprint to live healthy, successful lives on the inside.

Genesis to describes the original environment God created for the human soul. Here we see the context in which the soul can thrive.

When sin entered the human race, it became the most detrimental, destructive, and dominant issue. That is why Jesus came to earth. Now that our sin is covered through Jesus, we can go back to the original creation account and discover the elements that are healthy for our souls.

The Garden of Eden was a beautiful, flawless, sinless Utopia. It was pleasing to the senses and restful to the soul. This illustrates the first element of a healthy social environment: rest.

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve could eat from all the trees except one. Besides showing us how gracious God is, this also shows us the second element of a healthy soul environment: restriction. The word “no” is one of the most powerful words for the human soul.

God gave Adam a job: to tend and keep the garden. This shows us the third element of a healthy soul environment: responsibility. Work is a gift from God. God wants us to enjoy our labor and our jobs.

The most important element of a healthy soul environment is seen in God’s creation of eve:                relationship. God said it was not good for man to be alone, so he was intentional about giving Adam the perfect companion. This is a picture not just of marriage but also of the importance of friendship and companionship.

GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1.  Is it hard for you to slow down and enjoy life? Why or why not?

2.  What benefits do you find when you get enough rest?

3.  Have you noticed how restrictions and limits actually help your soul? What are some good examples of a “good no,” or areas of life where restrictions are necessary and healthy?

4.  Why do you think work tends to have such a bad connotation in our culture?

5.  Describe sometimes when you saw firsthand how work and responsibility we’re good for your soul.

6.  Are you intentional about your friendships? What benefits have you experienced personally from the relationships in your life?

WEEKLY CHALLENGE

Rest: take a minute to evaluate your sleep patterns and your stress level. What is one practical thing you could do this week to help you truly rest?

Restriction: what is one thing you could decide say no to this week that isn’t necessarily wrong or bad but is not healthy for your soul?

Responsibility: write down the top two things you dislike about your job (or responsibilities, if you aren’t employed). Then decide if you need to (a) change jobs, (b) change something specific about your job, or (c) change your attitude. Which did you pick?

Relationship: who are the people with the most influence in your life? Is there someone specific you should add to your circle of friends who is good for your soul? Is there someone who is influencing you that you need to limit because he or she is actually harming your soul?