REALLIFE STUDY GROUP

“Show Up”

ICEBREAKER: What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?

CONFESSION:

I am not required to show off or to show out, just to show up

I will show up as God’s representative at home, at work, at play and in my community

If I show up, God will show up

If I show up, God says He will be with me

If I show up, God says He will put the words in my mouth

If I show up, God will give me the grace & strength

If I show up, God will make me to become an overcomer

If I show up, God will pay the bill

If I show up, God will make me look good

If I show up, God will provide the show

If I show up, God will send me helpers

If I show up, God will fight for me

STATISTICS

1. 43% of US children live without their father [US Department of Census]

2. 90% of homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes [US D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census]

3. 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes [Criminal Justice & Behaviour, Vol 14, pp. 403-26, 1978]

4. 71% of pregnant teenagers lack a father [U.S. Department of Health and Human Services press release, Friday, March 26, 1999]

5. 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes [US D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census]

6. 85% of children who exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes [Center for Disease Control]

7. 90% of adolescent repeat arsonists live with only their mother [Wray Herbert, “Dousing the Kindlers,” Psychology Today, January 1985, p. 28]

8. 71% of high school dropouts come from fatherless homes [National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools]

9. 75% of adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes [Rainbows for all God’s Children]

10. 70% of juveniles in state operated institutions have no father [US Department of Justice, Special Report, Sept. 1988]

11. 85% of youths in prisons grew up in a fatherless home [Fulton County Georgia jail populations, Texas Department of Corrections, 1992]

12. Fatherless boys and girls are: twice as likely to drop out of high school; twice as likely to end up in jail; four times more likely to need help for emotional or behavioral problems [US D.H.H.S. news release, March 26, 1999]

DEFINITION: SHOW UP:

· Show up means to obey God

· Show up means be where you’re supposed to be, doing what you’re supposed to do, getting what you’re supposed to get

· Show up means you be as prepared as you can be then let God do the rest

· Show up means you do the natural and watch God do the supernatural

· Show up means don’t worry about the naysayers, the poll takers, the pundits, the self-proclaimed prophets, and the opposition, just obey and let God be your advocate, spokes person PR agent, promoter, and personal president of your fan club

· Show up means to mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually get in the game (the difference between being there and being not all there)

· Show up means keep your promises, your commitments and your vows

OUTLINE: I CAN SHOW UP BECAUSE I KNOW GOD WILL SHOW UP....

1. God will show up because He cannot lie

“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.” (Titus 1:2 KJV)

2. God will show up because He is not a fallen man

“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Number 23:19 KJV)

3. God will show up because He has reputation, record and a history of showing up

“And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.” (Joshua 23:14 KJV)

“Pay attention, because I will soon die like everyone else. You

know with all your heart and soul that not one single promise which the Lord your God has given you has ever failed to come true. Every single word has come true.” (Joshua 23:14 GWT)

4. God will show up because He has the ability and the power to show up

“And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:21 KJV)

5. God will show up because He is faithful

“Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.” (Hebrews 11:11 KJV)

TEXT: Joshua 1:1-10

STUDY GROUP QUESTIONS:

1. Describe a practical way for Christians to “show up” in the world.

2. Identify a reason or a Scripture that proves or assures you that God will show up on your behalf.

3. Which of the above statistics do you find most alarming? Explain.

4. In Joshua 1, identify something that God commands Joshua to do.

5. SHOWING UP REQUIRES....Complete Trust, Total Courage, Absolute Commitment, Counting the Cost, Supernatural Confidence, Sincere Contrition, and Sterling Character. Which is most challenging for you?

6. If we don’t show up at the meal table we don’t get to eat. If we don’t show up at the reading of the will we don’t know what we have inherited. If we don’t show up for the battle, God doesn’t show up and the enemy continues to try to harass us. If we don’t show up to take the exam, we can’t pass the test. How would showing up in your world as a strong Christian change your community?

PRAISE & PRAYER REQUESTS:

ACTION POINT: Make a list of 10 things you would like to accomplish this year.