WED OCT 16 2019 – SMALL GROUPS
INNER CIRCLE

INWARD PRAYER

QUESTIONS:
Did you take the challenge to write down 3 things about a song or a show you watched INNER INNER last week? What did you learn about the stuff you are consuming?
For this week, in your groups:
Take the ‘target’ drawing and write in the names of those in your inner most circle i.e. close friends and family (siblings) with your name in the center
Draw arrows to show who influences you, who you influence, and which relationships go both ways
Put a + sign over the positive influence arrows, and a – sign over the negative influence arrows
Talk about what you each wrote down
Who influences you the most on your drawing?
Is there anyone that influences you negatively? If so, how?
What are you going to do to change that?
How do we influence our inner circle people?

OUTWARD PRAYER

THIS WEEK’S CHALLENGE:
Come up with a game plan to turn one of the arrows around so that you are being a positive influence or revaluate a relationship in your life with a negative influence on you and make a decision how you are going to change that.

WED OCT 16 2019 – MESSAGE NOTES
INNER CIRCLE

INNER CIRCLE – YOU ARE WHAT PEOPLE THINK OF YOU
(ANOTHER LIE)

WHAT’S THE MAIN POINT: Who I spend time with influences me

WORD UP: John 12:42-43
These verses specifically talk about people who in their hearts and minds wanted to follow Jesus, but outwardly didn’t show it or talk about it out of fear. The fear could be that they didn’t want to be ostracized from their community or that they wanted to fit in with others. These few verses speak to us as well. We aren’t necessarily afraid of getting kicked out of the synagogue, but definitely speak to trying to fit in with the closest people around us.

1 Samuel 18-20
I don’t recommend reading all of these chapters out loud to the youth as it will take a long time, but feel free to tell the story. But in doing so, tell the story from the perspective of Jonathan who is both the friend of David and the son of Saul. These two are very close to him and in a lot of ways Jonathan is metaphorically pinned to the wall. He is stuck between his father who wants to kill David and David who is his best friend. Jonathan has to make a choice that upsets one person from his inner circle and honours/saves another. What we learn from this is that we need to be aware how our inner circle impacts us. If we don’t think about the people who influence us (family and friends) then we can very easily be led away from a heart that pursues Jesus and His ways.

WAKE UP:
Here are a few ideas for starting off your devotional or during it that could grab the attention of the youth you are teaching:
Share a story of how a friend or family member has influenced you, either to pursue Jesus or away from him, or even just silly phrases or mannerisms you have picked up from them.
Play this video of Dumb and Dumber with Friends background music: https://youtu.be/2qMpGuo-W5w And then you can say, “If you’ve watched the 1994 classic Dumb and Dumber you know of Lloyd’s and Harry’s friendship and how they influence each other to do dumb thing after dumb thing together. What dumb things have your friends done or have influenced you to do?

WHY DO I CARE?
Who I hangout with will determine the quality and direction of my life
It is often difficult to see the influence family and friends have on me
My heart is trained rhythms of life by following examples around me
I can grow my love for Jesus and for others by simply hanging out with people who want to follow Jesus and follow His ways.

WHAT DO I DO?
Examine the closest people in my life
Ask myself and the Holy Spirit how I am influenced by these people
Identify one way I could change an influence that is moving my heart away from Jesus
THIS WEEK’S CHALLENGE:
(Done in small group time) Take the ‘target’ drawing and write in the names of those in your inner most circle i.e. close friends and family (siblings) with your name in the center
Draw arrows to show who influences you, who you influence, and which relationships go both ways
Put a + sign over the positive influence arrows, and a – sign over the negative influence arrows
Try to do this as accurately and honestly as possible
This week, try to turn some of the arrows positive instead of negative and revaluate a relationship in your life with a negative influence on you