Pain to Purpose Waypoint Discussion Points

 

Intro: Why Is There Pain And Suffering (And What Can I Do About Mine?)

  1. What is your takeaway from this video? 

  2. Before watching this introduction video, what was your  understanding and theology of suffering? 

  3. How would you have classified your understanding of suffering from a Biblical perspective? ?   

  4. God is not the cause of our pain. Do you agree or have you struggled to believe this? What can make it hard to believe this? ? 

  5. How does knowing that God is much more powerful than Satan make you feel? 

  6. “If we persevere we will prevail…” How have you found this to be true in your own life or in the life of others? 

  7. “The only way out of the valley is through it.”What does this mean to you? How does it make you feel as you think about your own valley? 

  8. Re-read 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (p. 12). In what ways have you experienced the truth of these verses?? 

Waypoint 1: Befriend Your Emotions - How do I get rid of these painful feelings? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?  

  2. In your current pain, trauma, or grief, what would it look like for you to “run toward the roar”? What steps would you need to take? 

  3. In your life, what does it look like when the train is being pulled by feelings rather than the facts? What are some signs and symptoms that your feelings are leading you? What are some patterns? What are some of your coping mechanisms in dealing with your feelings?  

  4. What can a person do to help them put the facts in front of their feelings to not be run by feelings?

Waypoint 2: Reframe Your Perspective - How do I get rid of these painful feelings?

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. How were you able to use the  feelings wheel this past week? What was that like? 

  3. How did the  Fact/Faith/Feeling train help you this week? What was that like? 

  4. What are some of your  Next Steps or Action Steps from this past week? 

  5. When thinking about the ABC’s of Emotions (Activating Event, Belief, and Consequent Emotion), what are the three ways our thoughts/beliefs are formed? (how we perceive the world, ourselves, and God) and which one(s) of the three do you think have shaped you the most? 

Waypoint 3: Unclog Your Bitterness - What will keep me paralyzed in this process more than anything else? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. Have you ever found it difficult to forgive yourself, someone else or even God? What has made it difficult to forgive? 

  3. What is currently keeping you from forgiving yourself, someone else, or God? What might be a next step for you on the path towards forgiveness?

  4. How does unforgiveness hurt us more than it hurts the person who has hurt us? What does it do to us? How can we begin to forgive?

  5. Why do you think forgiveness is a daily decision? What are we to do when a past pain feels fresh and new again? 

Waypoint 4: Nourish Your Spirit - How do I lean into God during this painful season of my life, rather than drift away from Him? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video? 

  2. What verses have been nourishing to your soul during a painful season? How can scripture be a source of nourishment in our hurt? 

  3. What role does worship play when you are walking through pain? How can incorporating worship into your daily rhythms be a source of comfort and healing for you? 

  4. How does prayer change our perspective and our heart?

  5. Why is it important to be a part of a community? Why is it important for believers to be connected to a local church? What do we do when we are wounded or disappointed by our community? What encouragement would you offer someone who has experienced church hurt? 

Waypoint 5: Rest Your Soul - I’m exhausted, frustrated, and empty. How do I find the strength to go on? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. As you think about your soul, what causes the most weariness–physical, mental, spiritual or emotional pain? How are we integrated mind, body and soul? What does this tell you about how we are to approach rest? 

  3. How much of the weariness of your soul (expressed in worry, anxiety, or fear) may be rooted in the lack of hope or trust in God? How could you start to move towards more hope and trust in God? 

  4. Identity is rooted in who we are not in our doing.” How can we become human beings instead of human doings? Where can we find our true identity? How can we remind ourselves of who we are in our everyday life? 

  5. What has your practice of Sabbath looked like? What are some ways you can grow in this spiritual practice? Why does it matter so much?   

Waypoint 6: Strengthen Your Body - How else can I battle anxiety and depression during this valley? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. What kinds of activities can you do that both strengthen your body and nourish your soul at the same time? 

  3. How have you cared for your physical self? Are you taking the steps needed to address physical concerns you have in your body? Have you seen a doctor or functional health practitioner? What makes it hard to do what you need to in order to care for your body?

  4. What is your sleep like? Which of the suggestions from the video can you implement to get more productive and restful sleep? Why is sleep so important to our mental, physical and spiritual health? 

  5. Play for adults, just like children, has so many benefits such as stress release, improved brain function, improved creativity, increased energy and productivity and better sleep. What types of play do you engage in? What have been some of the benefits you’ve noticed as you have enjoyed fun and play? Why is play so important to our overall health? ?

  6. What are some of your self-care routines that are restorative and helpful to you when you’re walking through a difficult season? 

Waypoint 7: Maximize Your Development - What might God be trying to teach me in my valley? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. How have you seen the  fruit of the spirit grow in you as God has been working in this season of pain? 

  3. In what areas do you want to grow more in as you walk through this valley of suffering and pain?

  4. Does God feel closer or farther away right now in your journey? What can we do when God feels distant in our pain? How can we move towards Him?  

  5. Davey mentioned the enemy will tempt us in our identity. If he can get our identity off track, he can get our activity off track. He even tried this with Jesus in the wilderness. How might the enemy be attempting to attack your identity? How can you fight back? How can you remind yourself of the truth of who you are in Christ? 

  6. Trials can either “toughen our skin and soften our heart”, or “toughen our heart and soften our skin.” What have you found to be true in your life and in the lives of those around you?

  7. God could be trying to make you more effective or increase your capacity. God doesn’t want to “shake your faith”, but He wants to “shape your faith”. Your pain could become your platform, your mess can be your greatest message, your misery could become your ministry, your test can become your testimony”. How do you see this playing out for you in your life? 

Waypoint 8: Cultivate Your Community - Why do I feel so lonely and what can I do about it?

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. What is your relationship with family and friends? Do you feel as though you have deep connections and a system of support? What has impacted your relationships most in this season?

  3. What is your connection like with a spiritual community? Where do you find connection and support amongst other believers? 

  4. Who has been a safe place for you in your pain? What made that person feel safe? How did they support you well?  

  5. What does the statement, “community is not created for our happiness but it's created for our holiness” mean?

  6. What are some of the secondary losses you have experienced? How do you find healing from that pain? 

  7. Comparison can often lead to hurt and disappointment. How has looking at the lives of others caused you unnecessary hurt? How can you celebrate with others even when you are hurting?  

Waypoint 9: Discover Your Purpose - How do I find a new sense of purpose out of my pain? 

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. “My trial is not an interruption to my destiny, it’s an invitation to an even greater destiny” In what ways can our trials be an invitation to something greater? How can this perspective help us better understand our purpose in our pain? 

  3. After the fall, work went from fruitful to frustration. In what ways does work lead to frustration in your life? What might God be inviting you into in your frustrations? 

  4. “He works all things together for the good of those who love Him.” This passage is often misapplied to our pain. It tells us that not all things in our lives are good, but rather that God will use everything for our good. How have you seen this to be true in your life or in the life of someone you love? What should we do when it feels as though something has not been worked together for our good yet? 

  5. Where have you seen redemption in your own story? How might God be repurposing your pain? 

  6. How might the trials we have experienced be used as a tool to minister to others and be a source of comfort to them in their pain?

Waypoint 10: Design Your Plan - How do I take what I’ve learned, move forward in my valley, and prepare for future valleys?

  1. What is your takeaway from this video?

  2. What are you feeling after watching this video? 

  3. What may be some of the ways God is inviting you to move from pain into purpose? 

  4. What are some of the practical next steps you need to take? How can you commit to doing what God is asking of you? 

  5. What does your community look like? Do you have people who can help you on your pain to purpose journey?

  6. In the video, Davey talks about how  God guides us with the next step to create a relational reliance on Him and be protected by Him. He mentioned that when God was leading the Israelites out of Egypt, they were first asked to step into the water - a step of faith. It was then that God parted the water. How do we step into the water before we see God part it? How do we move forward in faith ? 

  7. The illustration Davey provides with the bodies of water in Israel is powerful. We need to create a proper balance of getting poured into and pouring out. How are you getting both poured into and pouring out?

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES each class member has for the 12 weeks

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    • Use this participant link: https://mypaintopurposeplan.memberspace.com/member/plans/77b675499c

OTHER RESOURCES FOR YOU AND YOUR PARTICIPANTS

Amy Sylvestre