Summary: In 2 Samuel 7-10, King David’s life is trending upward. He’s winning battles, ruling justly, and receiving amazing promises from God. And then, seemingly from nowhere, David sees Bathsheba bathing on a nearby rooftop and his life spirals into conspiracy, adultery, and murder.<br><br> How can such good and such evil reside in the soul of one man? How can he display such incredible godliness and shocking wickedness in such a short span? What happened to David? And what can we do to avoid his disasters when we sense the same coexistence of good and evil in our own souls? Most importantly, what does this story teach us about the patience and purpose of God in the world?<br> Usually, failure teaches more than victory. This week, we will learn from both.<br> <br> DOWNLOADS<br> SEE IT // BE IT<br> (WEEKLY COMMUNITY GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE)<br> Title: Rise and Reign: “O my son Absalom, my son!” // Scripture: 2 Samuel 13-19:8<br> ARRIVAL / SOCIAL TIME 15-20 minutes Spend the first 15 minutes or so of your time together catching up and socializing with one another. Also find time to catch up together on how the assignments from last week turned out.<br> SERMON REVIEW 5-10 minutes<br> This week we continued our series Rise and Reign through the books of I and II Samuel by focusing on one of the major tensions in David’s life—the tension between David as a king and as a father. This is a tension all of us face in our own lives. How do we make sense of both work and home? How do we thrive as a professional and as a parent? This week Jon challenged us through the devastation and destruction of David’s home life to avoid this potential tragedy and turmoil in our own lives. We saw how David’s inaction and disengagement at home led to ruin in his son Amnon’s life and rebellion in his son Absalom. These short-comings in David’s parenting life left David exposed in his professional life. Similarly, when we neglect our home life, this neglect and inactivity will eventually cost us both at home and at work. Living in the midst of challenging and difficult times, where parenting and profession have dramatically changed, we will need to invest as much in learning how to parent as we do in our professional life. Because no matter how much success we have had in our profession (for David as a warrior, poet, and king), none of this will ensure the same kind of success in our lives as a parent. Also when it comes to making an impact in life and among the next generation, how we parent is at least as important as anything we can do in our profession.<br> THE MAIN THOUGHT keep this in mind as you facilitate discussion.<br><br> Parenting is not like breathing—we must learn to do it well.<br> SEE IT – Questions 10-15 minutes<br> Picture (What is the story saying?): What stood out to you most from Jon’s sermon this week? Why? Who were the main characters in the story? (David, Amnon, Tamar, Absalom, Joab) Which of these characters do you resonate with most? Why? What mistakes did David make as a parent in II Samuel 13-19? (Inaction, Disengagement) How did these mistakes wreck David’s family? How do you think David could have parented differently?<br> Mirror (Where am I in the story?): Where have you made the same mistakes David made in his parenting? How do these mistakes affect your family? How are you trying to parent differently than David? What resources have been most helpful to you in your parenting? What would you say your greatest achievement as a parent has been?<br> Window (How does the story change how I see those around me?): What are the distinct challenges you think we face as parents today? How does David do things differently with Solomon? How does this give you hope as you face your own challenges as a parent? How would you define success in your parenting? Why?<br> BE IT – Practice<br> At Grace each week we use the ideas of Worship, Word, and Wonder to guide our Sunday morning experience...
