LEADER PREP

BIG IDEA:
The Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us power to walk with God by faith moment by moment.

THE PROBLEM:
We sin and short-circuit the life and power of Christ God intends for us to experience.

OUR RESPONSE:
By faith repent from our sin (stop moving away from him and step toward him in specific areas of our lives that are displeasing to God) and chose to yield to the power of the Holy Spirit and live with Him in control moment by moment.

THE IMAGE:
Just like this little child is able to confidently run into the wild ocean when he’s with his father, we can do bold things for Jesus as we walk with Him and depend on the Holy Spirit who lives in us. When we fall, He will pick us up.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

What I want the group to know and understand: How to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.
What I want the group to experience: The freedom, peace, and power of living with the Holy Spirit in control.
How I want the group to respond: By repenting of sin (Exhaling) and yielding control of their lives to the Holy Spirit (Inhaling).

IDEAS AND STUFF

Click here to find great ideas to you can use to teach this study better.

THE STUDY

LAUNCH

Keisha has a passion to dunk a basketball on a 10-foot rim. So she’s been working out her lower body, wearing ankle weights, and practicing every time she gets the chance. But she’s only 4-feet 10-inches. So it doesn’t seem like she’ll ever be able to dunk. How would you feel if you were Keisha? How is this like what we sometimes feel in our relationship with God when we try to follow him but feel like we don’t have the power to do so?

EXPLORE

1. Read Ephesians 5:18. What two things does the writer talk about in this verse?
Getting drunk and being filled with the Spirit.

2. How does being drunk affect a person’s thinking, speech, and actions?
Allow the group to discuss. Being drunk influences people to think, say, and do things they normally wouldn’t because of the influence of the alcohol.

3. Why does this verse say not to get drunk?
Some Bible translations say it’s “debauchery” or “dissipation.” The basic idea is that getting drunk ruins your life.

4. Why do you think it’s God’s will for us to be filled with his Spirit?
It’s not just a command to obey; God has purposes behind it that line up with how he created us. For instance, we want to follow him and be like him but can’t on our own. That’s why he provided the Spirit to live through us.

5. Just as people think, say, and do things we normally wouldn’t when drunk, we think, say, and do things we normally wouldn’t when we’re filled with the Spirit. Read Ephesians 5:19-21, Galatians 5:22-23, and Acts 1:8. What are some of the things we should expect to see in our lives when we’re filled with the Spirit?
Allow the group to discuss. Some of the things we should expect include God-centered conversation, hearts and voices that praise God, giving thanks to God, character qualities like love and joy, and talking to others about how Jesus has changed our lives and how they can know him.

6. Read 1 John 5:14-15. Based on these verses, how do you think God will answer if we ask him to fill us with his Spirit since we know from Ephesians 5:18 that this is his will?
He’ll fill us with his Spirit simply because we ask in faith.

APPLY

7. Take a minute for silent prayer. If you’d like to have Jesus in control of your life, ask him to fill you with his Spirit right now.

8. We all get off track with God every day. How do you think “Spiritual Breathing” (“Exhaling” by confessing our sin to God as soon as we become aware of it and “Inhaling” by asking Jesus to fill us again with his Spirit) can help keep Jesus at the center of our lives consistently?
Allow the group to discuss. Spiritual Breathing helps us keep a close connection with God by reducing the time we spend on the throne of our lives and making the Spirit-filled life more of a lifestyle.

9. How should we handle it if we don’t feel any different after asking God to fill us with his Spirit?

Allow the group to discuss. The example below may help…

If we are flying in a plane we need to place our faith in the trustworthiness of the plane and pilot. Our feelings of confidence or fear don’t affect the ability of the plane to transport us, but they do affect how much we enjoy the flight. In the same way, we don’t depend on feelings or emotions to tell us if we’re filled with the Spirit; we place our faith or trust in the trustworthiness of God and the promises of his Word.

10. Think of something happening in your life right now that’s really important to you. What’s a specific way you’d like to experience his power to change you in this area and know him better as you trust him to fill you with his Spirit?
Allow the group to discuss.

What ideas do you have that could improve this study? Are there creative things you do to bring this topic home to your students? Please share with the community clicking the FEEDBACK button or leaving a comment below.

FEEDBACK

EMPOWER

LEADER’S GUIDE