First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

Icebreaker idea: If you could pick one person (not in the Bible) to be the king of your country, who would you pick and why?

A way to pray: Ask God to help us consistently put Him instead of ourselves on the throne of our hearts. Apply this request specifically to the areas shared in the discussion questions below.

Talk It Over:

• Treasuring God: How is God radically different from Samuel's warnings about human kings? Which difference do I especially appreciate?

• Being Transformed: How am I conforming to be "like all the nations" around me? How can I allow God to begin changing me in those areas?

• Loving Others: Is there any way I treat others like a human king does – seeking what is best for me rather than best for others?

• Pursuing Unity: Have I permitted anyone to speak correction into my life? Do I graciously offer correction to others? How does this build unity?

First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

Icebreaker idea: What do you like to do to remember / remind yourself of significant events or milestones?

A way to pray: Get into small enough groups (by gender may be useful) that you can spend time really confessing and praying for one another's repentance in the areas of our lives where we've been taking God too casually. Ask Him to help us walk in freedom and new life with Him truly in first place.

Talk It Over:

• Treasuring God: Read 1 Sm. 7:3-6. What does it look like practically for us to return to the Lord wholeheartedly, put Him in first place, and serve Him only?

• Being Transformed: What are some ways I can tend to take God too casually? What would it look like to take Him seriously in those areas instead?

• Loving Others: God can bring peace between enemies (see 1 Sm. 7:14). Who is someone I want to make peace with, God helping me? Where will I start?

• Pursuing Unity: Why might it be powerful to confess and repent together, not just individually? (See also James 5:16.) How will I put this into practice?

First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

Icebreaker idea: What is something in your life you'd like to throw away / get rid of and why? (It can be anything – an item, an attitude, an old memory, whatever.) An additional option could be to have people actually write it down and throw that away – see details on this post from SmallGroups.com.

A way to pray: Pray for those in our lives who have not yet accepted Christ's guilt offering for them – ask the Lord to open their eyes to His truth and give us opportunities to share His love with them as we seek to see 2,000 people by 2022 baptized and growing in relationship with Him through the Word, prayer, and community.

Talk It Over:

• Treasuring God: What are some ways we can show gratitude to Jesus for becoming the guilt offering for our sins? (See, for example, Hebrews 13:15-16, Romans 12:1.)

• Being Transformed: Where in my life have I taken God too lightly? What steps will I take to repent and give him the honor He deserves?

• Loving Others: Who in my life seems to question their guilt or dismiss God as "coincidence"? What are some practical ways I can show Him to them?

• Pursuing Unity: How can we remind ourselves of the debt Jesus paid for us? What are some examples of how this changes the way we treat each other?

First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

Icebreaker idea: What is one thing you are "Gung Ho!" about right now (and why)?

A way to pray: Pray for those we know who are headed toward experiencing God's heavy-handedness – ask God to rescue them and to give us opportunities to share His love with them, as we seek to see 2,000 people by 2022 baptized and growing in relationship with Him through the Word, prayer, and community.

Talk It Over:

• Treasuring God: Read verses 1-4. When has God removed or not allowed something in my life so that I might see Him as more valuable than that thing?

• Being Transformed: In what ways might I be tempted to treat God lightly and other things as more important? What steps can I take to combat this?

• Loving Others: Read verse 11. What are some specific ways we can show God's love to people in our lives who don't really want His presence near them?

• Pursuing Unity: Who can I ask to pray with me that I would not treat God lightly nor be too intimidated to share His loving presence with others? (Do it!)