When I found out that some theater company in the Philippines was going to stage Rent in February, I was ecstatic. Rent is my all time favorite Broadway musical. I cried when I found out that it was going to have it’s last Broadway run in New York last year. I had already been planning a US trip centered mostly around watching it on stage there. I know almost all the words by heart. I even sort-of like the movie (shhh…).
This is an example of what I wrote about it just last week:
I can’t… I’m so… It’s just…. argh! Can’t type… Can’t think… No words… Can’t breathe just now… so excited… emotions flooding…
Wait.
deep breath
There.
RENT is showing again in Manila. At the same time that I’m going there. And my schedule is free. At ticket prices I can afford. More than willing to spend for actually.
I remember how I cried over it. I remember how I SQUUEE’d over it. I remember how I laughed over it, and loved over it, and never got over it. I remember each line of every song. I remember reading the entire libretto in one timeless afternoon. I remember listening to the Original Broadway Cast recording over and over and over again and mouthing the words to the lyrics. I remember goosebumps and heart flutters every time I read or hear or encounter anything that it even remotely mentions it.
And that was just a part of it. So yeah, saying that I kind of like the play is a huge understatement. Simply put: I love it. Just thinking about it gets me all excited and smiley-happy.
It’s very easy to be excited about something that gives us pleasure. A mellow song, a heartwarming story, a feel-good movie — all these are very easy things to catch our attention and be excited about.
Besides, where do you think excitement comes from? God made us to appreciate fine things. He gave us eyes to see and ears to hear didn’t He? He made it so that we can feel the depth of emotions that we are able to feel. He gave us love, but also He gave us passion.
In terms of Godly things, it’s very easy to read and follow the Bible when you’re in the ‘lovey-dovey, sunshiny-bright’ portion of Psalms. “The Lord is my shepherd” and all that. It’s very easy to worship God when the lights are low, and the music ministry is playing a song we know, maybe even our favorite one, something melodious that uses comforting words. It’s very easy to praise when a good band is playing, and everyone is getting into the spirit of dancing, singing their hearts out, jumping around and declaring with their entire bodies a full on love for Jesus Christ.
But what about when we get asked to do the harder things? What about when our love for Him calls for us to obey something difficult to do? What about when trusting Him means letting go of something that is hard to release, like our time, our resources, or our pride?
We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us — this is something that we know and hold on to. But it refers to the time when the challenge is already upon us, when the time to act on the call is at hand. What about before that?
Before you ask for the bodily strength and mental and physical ability to achieve the things that you are being called upon to do, you have to remember to ask for spiritual strength first. You have to ask for God to put the love of serving in your heart, and the spirit of service in your soul. When you serve, do so with a happy and accepting heart, one that delights in and longs to please the Lord.
Because ultimately, it is Him whom we serve.
- Be strong (v 3-4)
- Do not fear (v 5)
- Trust God (v 6-8)
- Be at peace (v 9)
Questions for NB
- What are some of the preconceived ideas that you might have about your caregroup? Can you trace the root or basis of these?
- Are you excited about your caregroup? Why?
- Do you compare your caregroup with other caregroups? How do these comparisons affect you?
- What about our church – are you excited about the ministries our church is engaged in?
- Are you proud of your caregroup? Of our church? Why?
- Do you have a tendency to compare yourself with others? Why?
- Do you know God’s plan for your life? Have you seek God and ask Him to reveal to You His plan for your life?
- There is a reason why you are in this church, what do you believe is the reason?
- Do you know how our church started? What are some lessons that we can learn from the humble beginning of our church?
Questions for VC
- What are some symptoms or outward signs of a discouraged Christian?
- What are some common causes of discouragement (Nehemiah 4 tells us that discouragement can come from those who oppose the work of the Lord)?
- How do you help someone who is discouraged?
- How do you overcome your feelings of discouragement (refer to 2 Timothy 4:9-11 for an example on how Paul dealt with his discouragement)?
- Are we focusing on the wrong things when we evaluate our caregroup and church?
- What is the most important factor determining the success of our efforts to build God’s House?
- How can we be sure that God’s presence is with us in our effort to build His House? How did God assure the builders in v. 5?
- How can we ensure God’s continual presence with us in our effort to build His House (refer to 1 Chronicles 28:9)?
- Is your caregroup excited in being involved in building God’s House?
- Does it make sense to challenge the members of the caregroup to work when they are discouraged? Why?
- Can spiritual work be a source of encouragement to us? How?
- What will happen to the caregroup and the church if every one of us do not dare to take up the risk to build God’s House?
- How can we boost up our courage and overcome our fear in building God’s House?
Questions for CT
- Is your caregroup going through a period of discouragement? How is the group dealing with it?
- How can the caregroup be motivated to press on (how did God encourage Elijah to press on in 1 Kings 19) despite the discouragements faced?
- How will time spend in solitude with God help us overcome discouragement? What are some of the things that we can do when spending a time of solitude with God?
- How does the knowledge that God is in control of everything help us in our time of discouragement?
- What do you hope to see in your present caregroup? In the church?
- Is what you hope for in line with what God desires?
- What are you willing to invest to see your hope for your caregroup and church coming to pass?
- Do you have a goal of how many friends you want to plunder from hell to populate heaven for this year (7 months to go)? This quarter? This month? This week? Today?
- Do you think we should set numeric goals for salvation? Why?
- Is God interested in numbers? Search for some biblical support (e.g. Luke 15:3-4 It implies that God counts His sheep otherwise there’s no way He can know when one of the sheep is lost).
