Belonging

Adam Leak tells his story of not being able to find direction and purpose as a teenager or having a place to fit in. This lead to a lot of free time, which resulted in him trying a number of drugs with friends. Over time the drug use got increasingly heavy and resulted in an addiction to meth, which took over his life by his early 20s. Getting arrested, and spending five nights in jail was the wake up call that Adam needed to decide he needed a heart change which ultimately lead to him giving up the drug use. Since then Adam has found a place to belong in his church who accepted him immediately, knowing his current situation. Over several years, this has lead to his heavy involvement in the men's ministry and as a youth sponsor providing both direction and purpose.

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About

Following Jesus Together is a resource supported by Ridge Christian in Broken Arrow, OK. In addition to offering a simple and free small group starter curriculum, this resource serves as a primer for local and global Disciple Making and Church Planting Movements. If you're interested in learning how to implement these principles in your church or community, we'd love to assist or connect you with others who can help. Feel free to reach out to us at go@ridgechristian.com

Small Group Instructions

Welcome

Take some time to talk as a group about how things are going in life.

Watch

Adam's Story

Discuss

In what way is your story similar to Adam’s? How is it different?

In what ways can you relate to Adam on a personal level?

Describe a period of time in your life when, like Adam, you felt alone, adrift or even hopeless.

Support

Adam describes a significant “turning point” where he realized he didn’t want to live the life he was living. Is your life in need of a real change?

Ask how you can pray for and support those in your group.

Pray for your group's needs.

Bible Study

Read Luke 15:13-24 & 32

Both Adam and the Son in the Luke 15 story experience a time of being adrift and hopeless. What do their stories teach us about being human?

The Son in Luke 15 found hope when he came home. Adam found hope in a community of believers. What do their stories teach us about God? About his people?

Summary

God calls each one of us from wherever we are in the moment. Whether life is going well, or we are feeling adrift and hopeless, our Lord desires to live in community with us… to give us meaningful partnership with other believers… and to give us hope and purpose.

Whether we are turning away from loneliness, drugs, or even jail… His call on our life is strong. It is in Adam’s story, the prodigal’s story that we hear him calling us!

Set Goals

How has this week’s story made you think about your own life?

When have you been adrift? Hopeless? Lonely?

Both Adam and the prodigal made clear decisions about “what to do next” when they reached their turning point. What do you need to do next?

Closing Thought

Dismiss the group.