September Cell 2011

SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | overview

Bible Lives Welcome to September – the start of a brand new academic year – and the continuation of our exploration into this year’s theme of Lives / Lives!

This month’s cell groups are all about Bible Lives. We are going to look closely at four characters from the Bible, explore their stories, and find out what their lives can teach us about ours. And this month you will have the opportunity to plan many of the activities yourselves, not just leave it up to your cell group leader! These cell notes will help you discover some key skills of Bible study, bringing the black and white of the Bible text into colourful life in new and fresh ways.

In order to help you with this, we will use many of the ideas and concepts from Shelf Life, ALOVE’s new Bible study resource. If you were at Youth Roots or Summer School you should already have your own copy of Shelf Life. If you don’t have one yet, talk to your cell group leader, because Shelf Life is an essential part of this month’s cell groups. We would suggest that you read Shelf Life before you come along to your first cell group this month.

So, who are the four characters that we are going to look at this month? Well, out of the many who applied, we have narrowed down our successful candidates to Jonah, Ruth, Daniel and Hannah! Don’t worry if you have never heard of these guys before, you’ll know them very well by the end of the month.

And don’t make the mistake of thinking that, if you have heard about them a hundred times in Sunday school, you already know all there is to know about these people. This month we are going much deeper than a Sunday school story to allow these guys’ lives to change our lives!

Week One:

Lives of Forgiveness and Grace: The Story of Jonah

Week Two:

Lives of Friendship and Loyalty: The Story of Ruth

Week Three:

Lives of Faith in Action: The Story of Daniel

Week Four:

Lives of Fruitfulness and Blessing: The Story of Hannah

We would recommend that you take the time to read the stories of Jonah, Ruth, Daniel and Hannah in preparation. You could simply look them up in a children’s Bible storybook, or find their stories in the Bible itself. Jonah, Daniel and Ruth have their own books in the Bible, and Hannah’s short story can be found just after Ruth in 1 Samuel chapters 1 to 3. They are all in the Old Testament.

Our cell groups this month will, as always, be split into four sections and follow the same format each week. However, this month the sections are a bit different. They are: 1. Welcome: Introduction and Icebreaker A chance to get to know the theme, relax and get ready for a time of serious Bible study!

2. What’s his/her story?

This is where we will take time to really get to know the character and the events of his/her life as the Bible describes. You can do this through things like reading the Bible text, re-reading the story from a children’s Bible story book, looking at video clips or images created by artists. This section also includes research into the context of the story, thinking about things such as the person’s background, family, and culture; his/her relationship with God; what the world was like when he/she was alive; anyone else continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | overview (continued...) who is in the story; who wrote down this person’s life story for the Bible; how does the context make what s/he did any more amazing, shocking, brave, foolish inspiring etc?

3. Life lessons This section involves some creative ways to question and discuss the character and the story: What do you think the story means? What don’t you understand? What can you learn from other members of the group? And, perhaps most importantly for us this month, what does this character’s life say about our own lives? Are there qualities you admire, strengths you’d like to emulate, or weaknesses that you recognise in yourself? Can we find promises, warnings, commands and/or principles that are still relevant for us today? If so, how can we live these things out in our own lives?

4. Pray and commit A chance to pray with and for each other, and to commit yourselves before God to make the life changes you have identified. You will be able to encourage each other and be accountable in your challenges.

Shelf Life Apps Shelf Life is designed to guide you through your Bible reading and enhance your Bible reading experience. We came up with six ways of doing this – they are a bit like apps on a smartphone or tablet, so we’ve called them our Shelf Life Bible ‘apps’.

Each app outlines a specific element that is a vital part of quality Bible study, and we will be using each one of these in our exploration of our four Bible Lives this month.

Pray This app encourages you to pray before, during and after your Bible reading.

Read The ‘Read’ app offers a myriad suggestions to help with the reading and understanding of the Bible text; such as the right Bible version for you, how to use a concordance or commentary, and where to find online resources.

Explore The ‘Explore’ app is just that… exploring the Bible text in more detail, such as the context, the timeline and the principles underpinning the writing.

Question This app is all about investigating the Scripture through asking questions – taking a look beneath the surface by asking: Who’s who? What’s going on? What stands out?

Dig The ‘Dig’ app is about getting a part of the Bible inside you. It could be a single word, a whole verse, the meaning of a story or even the attitude of a character. This app presents several different tools such as paraphrasing, memorising and storytelling, to bring the Bible text to life in your life! continued over >>>

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Live Using the ‘Live’ app you discover how to live out the words of the Bible in your life, finding practical ways to action the truths of the Scripture on a daily basis.

Print out the following image on to card, cut out and keep with you during your Bible studies this month so that you can quickly and easily access whichever app you may need!

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SEPTEMBER 2011

celloutlines | overview (continued...)

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | overview (continued...)

Leader’s Notes Shelf Life As mentioned above, this month’s cell groups are utilising ALOVE’s Shelf Life resource, so if you or your cell group members don’t have a copy, contact the office now and we will send you as many as you need. For free! You will need to familiarise yourself with the content of Shelf Life, and ensure your cell group members do the same.

Get the young people studying the Bible!

As Shelf Life is all about encouraging young people to get into the Bible and give them skills that they need to do this, it would be really good to involve the young people themselves in as much of the preparation for these cells as possible. This is about enabling them to put into practice many of the skills discussed in Shelf Life, eg, give them opportunities to research the context; find ways to go deeper into the text; develop questions and feedback on how they can apply the text.

For example: Ask one person to find some images (or create their own) about the person/story that may help the group imagine the story in more detail or see it in a different way. Ask another person to source a really interesting version of the story that will bring it to life, such as from a children’s book.

Ask another person to research the context and bring five points of interest of what was going on in the background at the time this story was written. Ask someone else to bring one or more questions that they would like to discuss with the group about the story. Even ask someone to find or make up a game based the character’s life for your icebreaker!

Flexible Format This month is not about you giving the young people all the answers. As such, these cell notes do not provide all the answers either! It is hoped that through involving your cell group in the preparation you will create something of much more relevance and interest to your group than a generic cell outline that you follow step by step.

Several ideas are given for each section (some of which can be replicated each week) so you can pick which ones you feel would work best for your group or most closely follow the theme they wish to discuss. Of course, you may use all of your ideas as prepared by the young people, or a mixture of each.

As the group leader it would be essential that you have some background information on the characters and the story, and so some suggestions of web articles/resources are provided for you for further reading.

Although these are well known Sunday school Bible stories, don’t assume that your cell group know or remember the story. You may find reading the story from a children’s Bible storybook really helpful.

This will bring the story to life without the use of lots of complicated Bible language. A recommended children’s Bible storybook that contains all the stories is: 50 Favourite Bible Stories: Selected and read

by Cliff Richard; by Brian Sibley, Stephen Waterhouse and Cliff Richard. This also comes with an audio CD of Cliff Richard reading the stories! Others to consider include Bible Stories by David Kossoff (also in audio), and The Book of God by Walter Wangerin. continued over >>>

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Communication and Preparation Communication and preparation is the key to the success of this month’s cell groups. Communicating in advance, allowing your busy young people ample time for preparation, and telling them exactly what part you want them to play each week is vital. Type out handouts, emails, chase them on Facebook‌ just make sure they know what and how to prepare and when to have it done by!

You could begin by printing out or emailing the above cell introduction before your first meeting, making sure they have Shelf Life and encouraging them to read it and the relevant Bible stories before your month begins!

celloutlines

SEPTEMBER 2011

celloutlines | overview (continued...)

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SEPTEMBER 2011

celloutlines | week one These Cell Outlines are written by ALOVE UK. They are available each week from our web site. For more information and other cell resources, visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/alove/resources

Lives of Forgiveness and Grace: The Story of Jonah You will need: • Copes of Shelf Life for everyone • Study Bibles / Life Application Bibles and/or Bible commentaries • Props for any icebreaker games • Laptop or some other way of showing YouTube clips if needed (download via catch video.com) • Pens/paper • Large sheets of flipchart paper / wallpaper • Scissors/glue and old newspapers if you want to make the collage

1. Welcome: Icebreaker and Introduction a. Choose from any of the following ‘Jonah’ related games, or design your own!

• Catch Jonah with the whale. A silly and simple online game you can find at http://www.akidsheart. com/bible/ot/jonah/catchjonah.htm. This may be simply something you could have going on your computer screen as cell group members are arriving!

• Download the ‘Jonah and the whale’ app on to your iPhone and have fun playing!

• Try the online Jonah Trivia Quiz at http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz38977479380.html • Try a spot of ‘Jonah and the Whale’ word mining. That is, ask the group, in teams or as individuals, to see how many other words they can find within the phrase ‘Jonah and the Whale’. Rules are as follows: Words that require a capital letter are not allowed (names like David or Sally)

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Words that are pluralised simply by adding an ‘s’ are not allowed (cats, dogs, owls) though their singular is allowed (cat, dog, owl) Words that require punctuation are not allowed (eg, can’t, don’t) To make word mining more challenging, you can also disallow 1-, 2- and 3-letter words b. Introduce the theme of this month, give out Shelf Life (if your group haven’t already got it) and explain.

Introduce this week’s theme of ‘Lives of Forgiveness and Grace: The Story of Jonah.’ c. Pray

2. What’s his story?

a. Read the Bible continued over >>>

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Depending on how long your group can concentrate on reading the Bible text, pick out the key passages from the story of Jonah and read them together. Try Jonah 1:1-17; 2:1-3, 9-10; 3:1-10. (NB It would be helpful if you could have asked the group to have already read the whole book in preparation for the cell group.)

b. Get to know the story Use any of the following means to explore and become familiar with Jonah and his story as you feel appropriate. If you have asked any of your cell group members to prepare anything for this section, allow time for them to share this here.

• Read the story again from a children’s Bible storybook, with pictures.

• Listen to an audio recording.

• Look at a variety of pictures/images based on this story. (Easily done via a Google image search).

Discuss how they help you imagine the story or think about it in new ways. Here are three examples of very different images. mingsing0221.blogspot.com beingbob.wordpress.com biblebios.com • Watch a video clip (search on YouTube if you don’t have any clips to hand). Veggie Tales has produced a fantastic version of the story of Jonah!

Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie Second Chances Song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yf6f-8Kd50Y Or try this fun animation to the Newsboys song ‘In the Belly of a Whale’. http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=wH5NEDzv-os&feature=related

c. Explore the context Explore the context of this character. Eg, What is his background, family, culture? What do we know about his relationship with God? What was the world like when he was alive? Who else is in the story and why are they significant? Does the context make what he did any more amazing, shocking, brave, foolish, inspiring etc?

If any of your cell group members have a Study Bible or Life Application Bible, these often contain interesting character profiles, facts about the history, maps, timelines and other details that may be of interest to share here. Also see the notes at the end of the outline for further points.

As you discuss it may be useful to scribble down notes on flipchart paper, or encourage the group members to make notes themselves. That way you can refer back to your points as you discuss in the next section. continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

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3. Life lessons Use any of the following ideas to explore the life lessons that we can learn from the story of Jonah. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

a. Symbol Questions Use the symbol question method as outlined on page 26 of Shelf Life.

Expand with some of the following questions if you wish: • What was Jonah’s response when he heard God’s call?

• How did God respond to Jonah when he ran away?

• Why do you think God left Jonah in the whale for three whole days?

• Why was Jonah angry that God forgave the Ninevites?

• How many miracles are there in the story of Jonah? What are they?

• Have you ever tried to run away from doing what you knew was right or what God wanted you to do? What happened? b. Jonah’s Life Lessons Place a piece of flipchart paper in the middle with the words ‘Jonah’s Life Lessons’ in the middle. Take time to brainstorm together all the different things you feel we can learn from the story of Jonah. This may include things like: It’s not a good idea to run away from God; there is nowhere we can go to flee from God’s presence; God always gives us a second chance if we mess up but come back to him in repentance, because God’s forgiveness and mercy stretch to everyone; who are we to judge other people? – only God has the right to do that. c. Emotions Rollercoaster

On a large piece of flipchart paper or wallpaper try to draw out the emotional journey that Jonah went on throughout this story. Ask the group to try to identify what Jonah is feeling at each different point in the story and why, eg, When he is in the belly of the fish he must have felt scared, lonely, depressed, angry with himself. Draw it out as a line that goes up when Jonah feels good, and down when he feels bad.

Ask the group to then try to identify with Jonah. Which of those emotions do they feel at the moment?

Which have they felt in the past? Are there any that they have never felt? How did Jonah move from a ‘down’ phase into an ‘up’ phase? How can we? d. Focus the discussion in on the themes of forgiveness and grace.

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week one (continued...)

Get some current newspapers/magazines and create a collage of all the ‘bad’ stuff going on in our world today. Consider how our world is similar to or different from Nineveh.

Use some or all of the following discussion questions to explore the themes of forgiveness and grace: • What is the difference between forgiveness, mercy and grace? Can you give examples of these in your own life or someone else’s?

• Where do we see God’s forgiveness demonstrated in this story and to whom is it extended?

• Are there some evil acts / bad people (perhaps illustrated on your collage) that you feel should never be forgiven? Why? • How does it make you feel to know that God does forgive those things (think about this in relation to what is on your collage)?

• Consider if there are any people in your life that you still need to forgive.

• Consider if there are any people that you may have hurt in some way that you need to ask forgiveness from.

• Consider if you feel that there are things in your own life that God couldn’t possibly forgive. If so, you may find that you live with guilt or fear. It is a good idea to share these thoughts with someone you trust and pray together about it.

e. Use the ‘Live’ diagram as outlined on pages 42-44 of Shelf Life to enable group members to draw together and personalise all of the above discussion into clear steps into action. You can keep this as a private exercise or share with each other.

4. Pray and commit Use any of the following ideas to pray together and commit to make any changes that you feel God is asking of you. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

a. Ask each person to try to rewrite some or all of the prayer of Jonah (Chapter 2) in their own words.

(See page 32 of Shelf Life for more info on paraphrasing.) Then use these in a time of prayer together.

(If you think this will be too difficult for your group, try printing out Jonah’s prayer in different translations and reading these together instead. See BibleGateway.com.)

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b. Read Psalm 139:7–10. Spend some time thanking God that he is always with us… even when we may be running away! He will always forgive us, give us another chance, love and protect us. As an extra challenge you could ask the group to memorise these verses for next time! (See page 36 of Shelf Life for more info on memorising.) c. Place a bucket or bowl of water in the middle of the group. Scatter some whale-shaped pieces of paper around it. Ask each person to take as many whale shapes as they need. On the shapes they should write down any areas of their life they want to bring to God in repentance, to ask for his forgiveness. This could also include the names of any people they need to forgive, or people they need to ask forgiveness from. In an attitude of prayer give time for each person to screw up their whale shapes and place them in the water, using this action as a symbol of bringing that area of their life to God, asking for and accepting his forgiveness, and for a clean slate to start again.

For next time Read the story of Ruth.

Tell each person which part of next week’s cell group you would like them to prepare (see the leader’s notes for ideas on how to do this).

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Some brief additional notes on the story of Jonah along with suggested web articles for further reading.

Jonah was a prophet from Galilee and his story takes place somewhere between 780 BC and 760 BC (though of course it could have been written down or told later). During this period of history, Assyria was a powerful, evil nation and Israel’s most dreaded enemy.

The name Jonah (Hebrew: Yonah) means ‘dove’. He was the son of Amittai, of the tribe of Zebulun (Joshua 19:13), and from the city of Gath-hepher which is in the region of Galilee. It is believed by some of the Jewish Rabbins that Jonah is to be identified with the dead son of a widow from Zarephath who was raised to life by Elijah (1 Kings 17), but there is no basis at all for such an assumption.

In 2 Kings 14:25 Jonah is mentioned as being a prophet of God during the reign of King Jeroboam II (793-753 BC). Jonah foretold of the wide extent of this king’s conquests and the expansion of Israel’s territory under his leadership. As a result of this very popular prophecy, which was fulfilled in a relatively short time, Jonah must have enjoyed great popular respect as a true prophet... which may explain his reluctance to accept a less popular commission going to the city of Nineveh.

Technically, the book of Jonah is anonymous, although Jewish tradition holds that the author is Jonah himself. In more recent years it has come to be believed that the book is about Jonah rather than by him, and so could have been written as a parable many years later using Jonah’s name as the central character (as Shakespeare wrote about Caesar and Macbeth).

Jonah is the only ‘minor prophet’ ever to be mentioned by Jesus Christ. He is also the only OT figure that Jesus likens to himself (Matthew 12:39-41; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32). Although some contend that Jonah never actually lived, 2 Kings 14:25 speaks of him as an actual historical figure.

Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire. The Assyrians worshipped nature; they had a tree god, a sun god, a rock god, etc. The Assyrian army was known for brutality and cruelty. It soldiers skinned people alive and made pyramids of human skulls from their conquests. When capturing a city they put fishhooks in the jaws of their captives, chaining them together to lead them away. You could imagine that for both their cruelty and pagan religions, Israel hated them.

Through the preaching of Jonah, and the repentance of the people of Nineveh, the city was spared at this time. However, history tells us their repentance was fairly short-lived. Soon they had fallen back into their sinful way of life. The prophet Nahum was then sent to these same people. However, they failed to repent (as they had with Jonah), and thus were destroyed in 612 BC. The above information – and much more – can be found in the following web articles.

‘The Minor Prophets: Jonah’ by Al Maxey http://www.zianet.com/maxey/Proph8.htm ‘A Whale of a Tale’ http://www.dyeager.org/post/2009/01/whale-tale ‘Radical Discipleship: Jonah the Moaner’ – Part 1 Background notes for small group leaders http:// www.elim-coventry.org.uk/media/Small%20Group%20Notes/Background%20Notes%20Apr-%20 Jonah%201.pdf ‘Fishing for Life’s Big Lessons in the Book of Jonah’ by David Arnow http://www.forward.com/ articles/8277/#ixzz1NGW6Y8Sg

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‘Inspiring Bible Characters: Jonah’ http://www.biblelessonconnection.com/season6/lesson2/6-2-jonah.pdf ‘Jonah And The Whale Bible Story’ http://www.essortment.com/jonah-whale-bible-story-43926.html ‘Jonah: God’s Compassion’ (Spring Harvest Bible studies) by Elizabeth McQuoid

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week two These Cell Outlines are written by ALOVE UK. They are available each week from our web site. For more information and other cell resources, visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/alove/resources

Lives of Friendship and Loyalty: The Story of Ruth You will need: • Copes of Shelf Life for everyone • Study Bibles / Life Application Bibles and/or Bible commentaries • Props for any icebreaker games • Laptop or some other way of showing YouTube clips if needed. (Download via Catch video.com) • Pens/paper • Large sheets of flipchart paper / wallpaper

1. Welcome: Icebreaker and Introduction a. Choose from any of the following Ruth/friendship-related games, or design your own!

• Famous Friends: Think of pairs of famous friends, eg, Ant and Dec; Lucy and Mr Tumnus; Ron and Hermione: Barbie and Ken! Write the pairs out on a card and stick a card on the back of each group member without their seeing it. The game is for them to ask questions of the other group members to try to work out who their famous friends are. The people answering can only give ‘yes’ or ‘no’ replies!

• Try the online Ruth Trivia Quiz at http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz47439571210.html or http:// biblequizzes.org.uk/quiz.php?ruth.

• If you have a Wii then the Wii Party game has an interactive four-player game about how well you know your friend! Quite good fun, but could take a bit of time!

• Play Ruth and Naomi online hangman at http://www.myonlinebiblegames.com/kidsbiblegames/ hangman/ruthandnaomi.html (may be a bit easy for an older group) • There is also an online wordsearch game which a younger group may enjoy. http://www. myonlinebiblegames.com/kidsbiblegames/wordsearch/ruthandnaomi.html Check up on the memory verse challenge from last week, if any of your group members did it. b. Introduce this week’s theme of ‘Lives of Friendship and Loyalty: The Story of Ruth’. c. Pray

2. What’s her story?

a. Read the Bible Depending on how long your group can concentrate on reading the Bible text, pick out the key continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week two (continued...) passages from the story of Ruth and read them together. Try Ruth 1:1–18; 2: 1–16; 3:1–14; 4:13–17. (NB It would be helpful if you could have asked the group to have already read the whole book in preparation for the cell group.)

b. Get to know the story Use any of the following means to explore and become familiar with Ruth and her story as you feel appropriate. If you have asked any of your cell group members to prepare anything for this section, allow time for them to share this here.

Read the story again from a children’s Bible storybook, with pictures. A short version can be found here: http://www.childrenstory.info/biblestoryforchild/chdbblruthandnaomi.html Listen to an audio recording.

Look at a variety of pictures/images based on this story. (Easily done via a Google image search.)

Discuss how they help you imagine the story or think about it in new ways.

Watch a video clip (search on YouTube if you don’t have any clips to hand).

c. Explore the context Explore the context of this character. Eg, what is her background, family, culture? What do we know about her relationship with God? What was the world like when she was alive? Who else is in the story and why are they significant? Does the context make what she did any more amazing, shocking, brave, foolish, inspiring etc?

If any of your cell group members have a Study Bible or Life Application Bible, these often contain interesting character profiles, facts about the history, maps, timelines and other details that may be of interest to share here. Also see the notes at the end of the outline for further points.

For example, one activity you could do is to look at the following verses to see what you discover about the city/country of Moab. How does that change the way you view Ruth’s decision to go with Naomi?

Genesis 12:5; 19:29,30,36,37; Deuteronomy 23:3,4; Judges 3:28-30; Nehemiah 13:1; Psalm 108:9 (remember Ruth was a Moabite who chose to leave her own country and go with Naomi, who was a Jew, to the Jewish town of Bethlehem).

As you discuss it may be useful to scribble down notes on flipchart paper, or encourage the group members to make notes themselves. That way you can refer back to your points as you discuss in the next section.

3. Life lessons Use any of the following ideas to explore the life lessons that we can learn from the story of Ruth. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared. continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week two (continued...)

a. Symbol Questions Use the symbol question method as outlined on page 26 of Shelf Life.

Expand with some of the following questions if you wish: • Why do you think Orpah left Naomi and returned to her own people, but Ruth stayed with Naomi?

• What does Ruth’s decision to stay with her mother-in-law tell us about her character?

• How did Ruth demonstrate friendship and loyalty? What happened to her as a result?

• Who does the character of Boaz represent?

• Where do you see God at work in this story? What ‘coincidences’ are taking place? How is God outworking his plan?

• If you were in the story, which person would you want to be friends with? Which person would you avoid?

• What is significant about the genealogy included at the end of chapter 4? (Think about the town where all this is taking place!)

• What was Ruth’s reputation in the local community like? b. Ruth’s Life Lessons Place a piece of flipchart paper on the floor with the words ‘Ruth’s Life Lessons’ in the middle. Take time to brainstorm together all the different things you feel we can learn from the story of Ruth. This may include things like: trusting in God when times are tough; sticking beside our friends when they are having a rough time; no one is excluded from God’s provision, protection and plan; God is always at work in our lives and circumstances; if we are a good and loyal friend we will receive many blessings.

c. Emotions Rollercoaster On a large piece of flipchart paper or wallpaper try to draw out the emotional journey that Ruth went on throughout this story. Ask the group to try to identify what Ruth is feeling at each different point in the story and why – eg, very sad when her father-in-law, husband, and brother-in-law died; maybe confused when Naomi asked her to go back home to Moab; nervous about asking Boaz to marry her; happy when he said yes!

Draw it out as a line that goes up when Ruth feels good, and down when she feels bad. Ask the group to then try to identify with Ruth. Which of those emotions do they feel at the moment? Which have they felt in the past? Are there any that they have never felt? How did Ruth move from a ‘down’ phase into an ‘up’ phase? How can we? d. Focus the discussion on the themes of friendship and loyalty. i. Ask each person to create their own spider diagram of their own friendships. This can include family continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week two (continued...) members. Each person writes their own name in the centre of a sheet of paper and then draws lines outwards to the names of their friends. The closeness of their friends’ names to them indicates the closeness of the friendships. When they have finished, ask them to consider (perhaps by using different coloured pens) some of the following thoughts: • Which friends act as encouragers to you, support you and are unlikely to be jealous of any successes you may have?

• Which friends inspire you and spur you on in your relationship with God? • Which friends seem always to drag you down, get you angry, or make you feel inadequate in any way?

• Which friends have demonstrated real loyalty to you recently? How did they do this?

• Which friends would you trust with your deepest secrets?

• Which friends have hurt you the most?

• Which friends bring out the best in you?

• Which friends bring out the worst in you?

• Which friends have cared for you during a difficult time?

• Who have you shown real loyalty to recently?

• Who have you let down recently?

• Who have you hurt recently?

• Who have you been a good friend to?

• Who needs your encouragement at the moment?

• Who needs a kind word at the moment?

• Who do you need to apologise to?

• Who do you need to give more time to?

Take some time at the end of this exercise for people to discuss if they want to and write down their conclusions / points for action. ii. Brainstorm on to flipchart paper all the different characteristics of good friendship displayed in the story of Ruth. Then ask the group which of these characteristics they display in their own lives. How? Which ones do they need to work on? Discuss what loyalty means to each person and how they feel people can demonstrate loyalty to each other. How have they succeeded or failed in being a loyal friend in the past?

e. Use the ‘Live’ diagram as outlined on pages 42-44 of Shelf Life to enable group members to draw together and personalise all of the above discussion into clear steps into action. You can keep this as a private exercise or share with each other.

4. Pray and commit Use any of the following ideas to pray together and commit to make any changes that you feel God is continued over >>>

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celloutlines | week two (continued...) asking of you. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

Pray as Ruth: Thank God for his protection and provision; ask him to help you be a faithful and loyal friend and someone of good reputation; thank God for all your friends that you may have written on the spider diagram above.

Pray as Boaz: Ask God if there are any people around you who need a good friend at the moment and then commit to becoming a friend to that person; ask God to help you stick up for people that are normally ridiculed or bullied, or marginalised because of their race or any other difference.

Pray as Naomi: Thank God that he is always with you even in the hard times; that he can cause good things to come out of your difficulties; thank God for your friends; ask God to bring to mind one friend who always goes the extra mile for you and pray that God will bless them abundantly – perhaps decide on one practical way you can say thank you to them and bless them.

You could pray these prayers in a variety of ways: Create ‘Ruth’, ‘Boaz’ and ‘Naomi’ prayer stations around the room and ask group members to move to each station and spend a few minutes praying quietly by themselves.

You could all pray out loud together, perhaps facing in different directions when you are praying a different character as above. (You may find some background music will help to facilitate this – try ALOVE’s Spire CD!).

You could stay together in a group and take it in turns each to pray out loud one-sentence prayers on the themes above.

For next time Read the story of Daniel.

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Tell each person which part of next week’s cell group you would like them to prepare (see the leader’s notes for ideas on how to do this).

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week two (continued...)

See below for a summary of the book of Ruth (based on http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-ofRuth.html) followed by some suggested web articles / resources for further reading.

The story of Ruth is a tale of friendship, love and sacrifice. Through her story, we have an opportunity to see what true friendship and love for another person looks like.

Author: The book of Ruth does not specifically name its author, though there is a tradition that the book of Ruth was written by the Prophet Samuel.

Date of Writing: The exact date the book of Ruth was written is uncertain. However, the prevalent view is a date between 1011 and 931 BC. Purpose of Writing: The book of Ruth was written to the Israelites. It teaches that genuine love at times may require uncompromising sacrifice. Regardless of our lot in life, we can live according to the precepts of God. Genuine love and kindness will be rewarded. God abundantly blesses those who seek to live obedient lives. Obedient living does not allow for ‘accidents’ in God’s plan. God extends mercy to the merciful. There is also an underlying insistence that God’s love extends beyond his ‘chosen people’ even to those belonging to an ‘enemy’ nation.

Key Verses: Ruth 1:16 – ‘But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”’ Ruth 3:9 – ‘“Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she said. “Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer.”’

Ruth 4:17 – ‘The women living there said, “Naomi has a son.” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.’

Brief Summary: The setting for the book of Ruth begins in Moab, a region northeast of the Dead Sea, but then moves to Bethlehem. The story takes place during the dismal days of failure and rebellion of the Israelites, when there was no secure government, called the period of the Judges. A famine forces Elimelech and his wife, Naomi, from their Israelite home to the country of Moab. Elimelech dies and Naomi is left with her two sons, who soon marry two Moabite girls, Orpah and Ruth. Later both of the sons die, and Naomi is left alone with Orpah and Ruth in a ‘strange’ (meaning ‘foreign’) land. Orpah returns to her parents, but Ruth determines to stay with Naomi as they journey to Naomi’s home of Bethlehem. This story of love and devotion tells of Ruth’s eventual marriage to a wealthy man named Boaz, by whom she bears a son, Obed, who becomes the grandfather of David and thus the ancestor of Jesus. Obedience brings Ruth into the privileged lineage of Christ.

Foreshadowings: A major theme of the book of Ruth is that of the kinsman-redeemer. Boaz, a relative of Ruth on her husband’s side, acted upon his duty as outlined in the Mosaic Law to redeem an impoverished relative from his or her circumstances (Leviticus 25:47-49). This scenario is repeated by Christ, who redeems us and makes us his kinsmen.

Practical Application: The sovereignty of God is clearly seen in the story of Ruth. He guided her every step of the way to become his child and fulfil his plan for her to become an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). In the same way, we have assurance that God has a plan for each of us. Just as Naomi and Ruth trusted him to provide for them, so should we. We see in Ruth an example of a godly life: continued over >>>

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her devotion to her family, her faithful dependence on God, her loving, kind and respectful words and actions.

‘Ruth and Naomi’ http://www.womeninthebible.net/1.13.Ruth.htm ‘Lessons from the Book of Ruth’ by Wayne Jackson. http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/1110lessons-from-the-book-of-ruth ‘Bright Faith in a Dark Hour’ by Jeff Smith http://www.biblestudyguide.org/ebooks/jeffsmith/ruth.pdf ‘Great Women of the Bible: Gaining Wisdom from Ruth.’ http://www.biblelessonconnection.com/ season4/lesson5/4-5-Ruth.pdf ‘Ruth: Love Honour and Obey’ (Spring Harvest Bible Studies) by Elizabeth McQuoid

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week three These Cell Outlines are written by ALOVE UK. They are available each week from our web site. For more information and other cell resources, visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/alove/resources

Lives of Faith in Action: The Story of Daniel You will need: • Copes of Shelf Life for everyone • Study Bibles / Life Application Bibles and/or Bible commentaries • Props for any icebreaker games • Laptop or some other way of showing YouTube clips if needed. (Download via Catch video.com) • Pens/paper • Large sheets of flipchart paper / wallpaper • Print out of Daniel Chapter 6 (see below)

1. Welcome: Icebreaker and Introduction a. Choose from any of the following Daniel-related games, or design your own!

• Try the online Daniel Trivia Quiz at http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz2701711eee7b0.html • Download the ‘Daniel and the Lions’ app on to your iPhone and have fun playing!

• Try the online ‘Daniel in the Lions’ Den’ jigsaw puzzle – surprisingly difficult! http://www.jigsawplanet. com/?rc=play&pid=3045400b4b73 • Make up your own version of the old favourite ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’, but in this version use ‘Daniel, Lions, King’.

Make up an action for each of the three characters: Daniel, Lions, and the King. Each character’s action must feature a pose, hand motions and a noise. Teach the group the actions and then practise a few times so everyone gets the hang of it. Explain that the characters win or lose on the following basis: Daniel beats the Lions: because they could not eat him!

The Lions beat the King: because they would not do as the King commanded!

The King beats Daniel: Because he threw him in the lions’ den in the first place!

Ask the group to pair up and stand facing each other. Count down ‘3,2,1 Go!’. On ‘Go!’ each person must make their chosen action: Daniel, Lions, or the King. The partner that ‘loses’ is eliminated. The remaining players find other partners. Continue until you have a winner! (If you want to play without the elimination factor, have each person total up the times they win and see who has the most when you decide to stop the game.) b. Introduce this week’s theme of ‘Lives of Faith in Action: The Story of Daniel’. c. Pray continued over >>>

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celloutlines | week three (continued...)

2. What’s his story?

a. Read the Bible Daniel is the longest book we are looking at this month, and so for this cell outline we are only going to focus on two aspects of his story – how he put his faith into action by his ability to live differently from those around him, and his escapade in the lions’ den! Depending on how long your group can concentrate on reading the Bible text, pick out the key passages that outline these events and read them together. Try Daniel 1:1-21; 2:1-13, 24-30, 46-49; 5: 1-12, 25-30; 6:1-28.

(NB It would be helpful if you could have asked the group to have already read the whole book in preparation for the cell group.)

b. Get to know the story Use any of the following means to explore and become familiar with Daniel and his story as you feel appropriate. If you have asked any of your cell group members to prepare anything for this section, allow time for them to share this here.

• Read the story again from a children’s Bible storybook, with pictures. A short version can be found here: http://www.childrenstory.info/biblestoryforchild/chdbbldanielandthelions.html • Listen to an audio recording.

• Look at a variety of pictures/images based on this story. (Easily done via a Google image search.)

Discuss how they help you imagine the story or think about it in new ways.

• Watch a video clip (search on YouTube if you don’t have any clips to hand).

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c. Explore the context

Explore the context of this character. Eg, what is his background, family, culture? What do we know about his relationship with God? What was the world like when he was alive? Who else is in the story and why are they significant? Does the context make what he did any more amazing, shocking, brave, foolish, inspiring etc?

If any of your cell group members have a Study Bible or Life Application Bible, these often contain interesting character profiles, facts about the history, maps, timelines and other details that may be of interest to share here. Also see the notes at the end of the outline for further points.

As you discuss it may be useful to scribble down notes on flipchart paper, or encourage the group members to make notes themselves. That way you can refer back to your points as you discuss in the next section. continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week three (continued...)

3. Life lessons Use any of the following ideas to explore the life lessons that we can learn from the story of Daniel. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

a. Symbol Questions Use the symbol question method as outlined on page 26 of Shelf Life.

Expand with some of the following questions if you wish: • Why were Daniel and his three friends given new names?

• Why did Daniel refuse the king’s food and ask for a different diet?

• To Daniel and his friends, what do you think it was like to maintain their diet day after day?

• Why do you think many of the people around Daniel disliked him?

• In chapter 6, who set a trap for Daniel and what was it? Do you think Daniel was aware of this trap?

Would he have changed his actions if he was?

• What did the king feel like when he realised the implications of his decree? In his position what would you have done?

• What saved Daniel? b. Daniel’s Life Lessons Place a piece of flipchart paper in the middle with the words ‘Daniel’s Life Lessons’ in the middle. Take time to brainstorm together all the different things you feel we can learn from the story of Daniel. This may include things like: having courage to stand up for our faith in a hostile environment; acting with integrity even if it proves unpopular; trusting in God, being prepared to make sacrifices; serving God faithfully in whatever situation we find ourselves; expecting miracles!

c. Emotions Rollercoaster On a large piece of flipchart paper or wallpaper try to draw out the emotional journey that Daniel went on throughout this story. Ask the group to try to identify what Daniel is feeling at each different point in the story and why.

Draw it out as a line that goes up when Daniel feels good, and down when he feels bad. Ask the group to then try to identify with Daniel. Which of those emotions do they feel at the moment? Which have they felt in the past? Are there any that they have never felt? How did Daniel move from a ‘down’ phase into an ‘up’ phase? How can we? d. Scribblestorm Have a go at the Scribblestorm activity as outlined on page 33 of Shelf Life. Print out the text of chapter continued over >>>

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celloutlines | week three (continued...)

6 (see the example at the end of this outline) and stick the two pages together. Give everyone their own copy and put it out on the floor. Hand round coloured pens/pencils and ask each person to get highlighting, underlining, making notes, jotting down thoughts, questions and reactions to the text they are reading. (See page 56 of Shelf Life for an example.) Then take some time to share what each person has discovered/noted about this chapter. It may be a good idea to have someone taking down notes on a flipchart paper as each person is sharing, and then summarise all the discussion points at the end. e. Focus the discussion in on the theme of ‘faith in action’. i. Ask individuals or small groups to have a go at writing (or acting out) a modern-day story of Daniel in the lions’ den. What scenarios today could be like the lions’ den for us? What sort of actions or beliefs may get us chucked in there?! How could we be treated if we stood up for our faith in an environment that was set against God? See page 38 of Shelf Life for more on this. ii. Use the following questions for group discussion.

• What do you feel when you stand up for something you believe in?

• What often keeps you from taking a stand (lack of confidence, apathy, ignorance, time, fear, possible bad consequences)?

• What is your greatest resource for taking a stand (God’s power, family support, financial resources, others who share the same interest, prayers of my small group, encouragement from Scripture, other)?

• In your own life, have you ever experienced God in the midst of a ‘lions’ den’? Has your lifeline ever been only God and God alone? iii. Like Daniel, we are commanded to live Godly lives in an ungodly society. Where would you draw the boundary lines? Discuss how you would react in the following scenarios (or ask one of the young people to write their own scenarios that would be more relevant to your group): a. You are walking along one evening with a group of friends when you find a wallet on the road. You discover £50 cash, as well as credit cards etc. Your friends all tell you to pocket the cash and leave the wallet. They want you to take them out for a slap-up meal with your good fortune. b. You are out for an evening with a group of friends when they start making fun of you for not drinking alcohol. They are all getting served even though they are underage. They get you an alcoholic drink and suddenly you find everyone is chanting for you to drink it. c. The rest of your sports team are conspiring to ‘accidentally’ get a disliked player injured in the next training session so she/he is ruled out of future matches. They want you to play a major part in the ‘accident’. d. One of your church friends is taking a verbal battering in class for speaking up against the theory of evolution. You can see s/he is looking at you expecting your support.

f. Use the ‘Live’ diagram as outlined on pages 42-44 of Shelf Life to enable group members to draw together and personalise all of the above discussion into clear steps into action. You can keep this as a continued over >>>

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private exercise or share with each other.

4. Pray and commit Use any of the following ideas to pray together and commit to make any changes that you feel God is asking of you. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared. a. Ask each person to share one situation in their life at the moment where they feel the need to ‘take a stand’ in some way. Take it in turns to pray for that person, for strength, conviction, courage and blessing. b. Read 1 Corinthians 16:13-14.

‘Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions, give it all you’ve got, be resolute, and love without stopping’ (The Message).

‘Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love’ (NIV).

Allow some time to meditate on this verse (some reflective background music may help) and then ask people to pray one-sentence prayers based on this verse and their meditation. (For more on meditation see page 34 of Shelf Life.) (You could use this verse as a memory verse challenge for next week!)

For next time Read the story of Hannah in the first three chapters of 1 Samuel.

Tell each person which part of next week’s cell group you would like them to prepare (see the leader’s notes for ideas on how to do this).

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celloutlines | week three (continued...)

See below for a summary of the book of Daniel based on http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-ofDaniel.html and http://www.swapmeetdave.com/Bible/DanIntro.htm as well as some suggested web articles / resources for further reading.

The book of Daniel is almost two separate books. Chapters 1 to 6 describe six incidents in the life of Daniel and his friends (history), and chapters 7 to 12 are visions and prophecy.

Author: The book of Daniel itself identifies the Prophet Daniel as its author (Daniel 9:2; 10:2). Jesus mentions Daniel as the author as well (Matthew 24:15).

Date of Writing: The book of Daniel was possibly written between 540 and 530 BC, though many scholars believe parts of it at least, especially the second section, date from the time of a much later persecution, in the second century BC. Purpose of Writing: In 605 BC, Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, had conquered Judah and deported many of its inhabitants to Babylon – Daniel included. Daniel served in the royal court of Nebuchadnezzar and several other rulers who followed Nebuchadnezzar. The book of Daniel records the actions, prophecies, and visions of the Prophet Daniel.

Key Verses: Daniel 1:19-20 – ‘The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.’

Daniel 2:22 – ‘“He (God) reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells within him.”’

Daniel 3:17-18 – ‘“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”’

Daniel 4:34-35 – ‘His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?”’

Brief Summary: The first six chapters record six distinct events that took place over a 70-year period from about 605 BC to 535 BC. As the book opens, Daniel along with 10,000 other Jews had just been deported to Babylon from Judea by Nebuchadnezzar. The most talented of the exiles are selected for three years of training, after which they will serve in Nebuchadnezzar’s government as administrators. After completing this training, Daniel served in the government during the reigns of six rulers including Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus.

These first six chapters tell familiar stories of Daniel and his three friends being selected for service to the king and then choosing not to eat the king’s food. Nor did they bow down to the king’s image, even under penalty of death. With God’s help, Daniel was able to interpret two of Nebuchadnezzar’s dreams continued over >>>

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that told of God’s unfolding plans for Babylon and the Jewish exiles. The men described in these chapters are inspiring examples for us of living a faithful life in a troubled and sinful world. These are stories of faith, perseverance, and trust in God under good conditions and bad.

Practical Application: Like Daniel, we should always stand for what we know is right. God is greater than any punishment that could come upon us. Whether God chooses to deliver us or not, he is always worthy of our trust. God knows what is best, and he honours those who trust and obey him.

God has a plan, down to the intricate detail. God knows and is in control of the future. Everything that God has predicted has come true exactly as he planned. Therefore, we should believe and trust that the things he has planned for our future will one day occur exactly as God has declared.

‘Lessons from Daniel 1.’ http://www.virtualpreacher.org/sermon-notes/lessons-from-daniel/ ‘Daniel: Faith Under Fire’ (Spring Harvest Bible Studies) by Elizabeth McQuoid

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

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Daniel 6 Daniel in the Lions’ Den Darius reorganized his kingdom. He appointed one hundred and twenty governors to administer all the parts of his realm. Over them were three vice-regents, one of whom was Daniel. The governors reported to the vice-regents, who made sure that everything was in order for the king. But Daniel, brimming with spirit and intelligence, so completely outclassed the other vice-regents and governors that the king decided to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

1-3

The vice-regents and governors got together to find some old scandal or skeleton in Daniel’s life that they could use against him, but they couldn’t dig up anything. He was totally exemplary and trustworthy.

They could find no evidence of negligence or misconduct. So they finally gave up and said, ‘We’re never going to find anything against this Daniel unless we can cook up something religious.’

4-5

The vice-regents and governors conspired together and then went to the king and said, ‘King Darius, live for ever! We’ve convened your vice-regents, governors, and all your leading officials, and have agreed that the king should issue the following decree:

6-7

For the next thirty days no one is to pray to any god or mortal except you, O king. Anyone who disobeys will be thrown into the lions’ den.

‘Issue this decree, O king, and make it unconditional, as if written in stone like all the laws of the Medes and the Persians.’

8

9

King Darius signed the decree.

When Daniel learned that the decree had been signed and posted, he continued to pray just as he had always done. His house had windows in the upstairs that opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he knelt there in prayer, thanking and praising his God. 10

The conspirators came and found him praying, asking God for help. They went straight to the king and reminded him of the royal decree that he had signed.

‘Did you not,’ they said, ‘sign a decree forbidding anyone to pray to any god or man except you for the next thirty days? And anyone caught doing it would be thrown into the lions’ den?’

11-12

‘Absolutely,’ said the king. ‘Written in stone, like all the laws of the Medes and Persians.’

Then they said, ‘Daniel, one of the Jewish exiles, ignores you, O king, and defies your decree. Three times a day he prays.’

13

At this, the king was very upset and tried his best to get Daniel out of the fix he’d put him in. He worked at it the whole day long.

14

But then the conspirators were back: ‘Remember, O king, it’s the law of the Medes and Persians that the king’s decree can never be changed.’

15

The king caved in and ordered Daniel brought and thrown into the lions’ den. But he said to Daniel, ‘Your God, to whom you are so loyal, is going to get you out of this.’

16

A stone slab was placed over the opening of the den.

The king sealed the cover with his signet ring and the signet rings of all his nobles, fixing Daniel’s fate.

17

18 The king then went back to his palace. He refused supper. He couldn’t sleep. He spent the night fasting.

At daybreak the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. As he approached the den, he called out anxiously, ‘Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve so loyally, saved you from the lions?’

19-20

“O king, live for ever!’ said Daniel. ‘My God sent his angel, who closed the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. I’ve been found innocent before God and also before you, O king. I’ve done nothing to harm you.’

21-22

When the king heard these words, he was happy.

He ordered Daniel taken up out of the den. When he was hauled up, there wasn’t a scratch on him. He had trusted his God.

23

24 Then the king commanded that the conspirators who had informed on Daniel be thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. Before they hit the floor, the lions had them in their jaws, tearing them to pieces.

25-27 King Darius published this proclamation to every race, colour, and creed on earth:

Peace to you! Abundant peace!

I decree that Daniel’s God shall be worshipped and feared in all parts of my kingdom.

He is the living God, world without end. His kingdom never falls.

His rule continues eternally.

He is a saviour and rescuer.

He performs astonishing miracles in heaven and on earth.

He saved Daniel from the power of the lions.

28 From then on, Daniel was treated well during the reign of Darius, and also in the following reign of Cyrus the Persian.

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celloutlines | week four These Cell Outlines are written by ALOVE UK. They are available each week from our web site. For more information and other cell resources, visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/alove/resources

Lives of Fruitfulness and Blessing: The Story of Hannah You will need: • Copes of Shelf Life for everyone • Study Bibles / Life Application Bibles and/or Bible commentaries • Props for any icebreaker games • Laptop or some other way of showing YouTube clips if needed. (Download via Catch video.com) • Pens/paper • Large sheets of flipchart paper / wallpaper

1. Welcome: Icebreaker and Introduction a. Choose from any of the following Hannah-related games, or design your own!

• Try this online Hannah’s Promise jigsaw puzzle at http://www.dltk-bible.com/old_testament/hannahpuzzle.htm • Play the online trivia quiz http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz70981822d60.html • Cut up a variety of fruit, be sure to include some unusual ones, and keep them hidden. Blindfold your group members and let them each taste a piece of each fruit, and write down what they think it is! The winner is the person with the most correct fruits. (NB Check for allergies!)

Check up on the memory verse challenge from last week if any of your group members did it. b. Introduce this week’s theme of ‘Lives of Fruitfulness and Blessing: The Story of Hannah’. c. Pray

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2. What’s her story?

a. Read the Bible Depending on how long your group can concentrate on reading the Bible text, pick out the key passages from the story of Hannah and read them together. Try 1 Samuel 1:1-28; 2:18 – 21.

b. Get to know the story Use any of the following means to explore and become familiar with Hannah and her story as you feel appropriate. If you have asked any of your cell group members to prepare anything for this section, continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week four (continued...) allow time for them to share this here.

Read the story again from a children’s Bible storybook, with pictures. A short version can be found here: http://www.childrenstory.info/biblestoryforchild/chdbblhannahprayer.html Listen to an audio recording.

Look at a variety of pictures/images based on this story. (Easily done via a Google image search.)

Discuss how they help you imagine the story or think about it in new ways.

Watch a video clip (search on YouTube if you don’t have any clips to hand).

c. Explore the context Explore the context of this character. Eg, what is her background, family, culture? What do we know about her relationship with God? What was the world like when she was alive? Who else is in the story and why are they significant? Does the context make what she did any more amazing, shocking, brave, foolish, inspiring etc?

If any of your cell group members have a Study Bible or Life Application Bible, these often contain interesting character profiles, facts about the history, maps, timelines and other details that may be of interest to share here. Also see the notes at the end of the outline for further points.

For example: you could ask one group member to find out about the importance of having children in this culture.

As you discuss it may be useful to scribble down notes on flipchart paper, or encourage the group members to make notes themselves. That way you can refer back to your points as you discuss in the next section.

3. Life lessons Use any of the following ideas to explore the life lessons that we can learn from the story of Hannah. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

a. Symbol Questions Use the symbol question method as outlined on page 26 of Shelf Life.

Expand with some of the following questions if you wish: • What factors in Hannah’s life were causing her distress?

• How long had she been feeling this way? continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week four (continued...)

• How did Hannah cope with the taunts and teasing from Peninnah?

• Why do you think the Bible says that ‘the Lord closed her womb’?

• Verse 18 tells us that shortly after Hannah prays, she feels some relief from her pain. Why this change? What does this tell us about Hannah?

• What was the changing point in Hannah’s life?

• What did Hannah do with the blessing that God had given her – her longed-for child? How easy/ difficult do you think this must have been?

• What did God do with Hannah’s offering? (eg, What happened to Samuel? Who did he become?

What did he do?) What do you think Hannah would have felt about this?

• Can you think of any other Bible characters that waited many years for the fulfilment of God’s promises in their life?

• Can you think of any other Bible characters who offered their most precious possessions back to God? What was the result?

b. Hannah’s Life Lessons Place a piece of flipchart paper in the middle of the group with the words ‘Hannah’s Life Lessons’ in the middle. Take time to brainstorm together all the different things you feel we can learn from the story of Hannah. This may include things like: trusting in God when times are tough; God will always fulfil his promises in our life; all our blessings come from God; we should be sure to offer all our possessions back to God for him to use; how to live fruitful lives for God.

c. Emotions Rollercoaster On a large piece of flipchart paper or wallpaper try to draw out the emotional journey that Hannah went on throughout this story. Ask the group to try to identify what Hannah is feeling at each different point in the story and why.

Ask the group to then try to identify with Hannah. Which of those emotions do they feel at the moment?

Which have they felt in the past? Are there any that they have never felt? How did Hannah move from a ‘down’ phase into an ‘up’ phase? How can we? d. Focus the discussion on the themes of ‘fruitfulness and blessing’. i. Put out a selection of whole fruit (include vegetables if you want to) in the middle of the group. Ask people to consider how a piece of fruit can represent any area of God’s blessing in their life or their own fruitfulness for God. This may sound bizarre… but give it a go! You may get responses like: • Grapes: ‘I’ve never thought I was particularly fruitful for God before but now I see how the small acts of kindness and generosity I do for my friends all add up to a lot in God’s eyes and he is pleased with what I do.’ continued over >>>

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• Apple: ‘A huge apple tree grows from a tiny seed and can produce loads of apples. But this takes time. I feel encouraged to do the small things that God has given me to do as I know it will one day make a big difference in his Kingdom.’

• Pineapple: ‘The hard spiky skin on the outside of the pineapple represents to me all the disappointments I have felt because I haven’t understood what God has been doing in my life. Now I can see that there is a beautiful soft fruit on the inside!’

• Raspberries: ‘Picking raspberries can be very painful because of the thorny bushes. It can be painful waiting for the fulfilment of God’s promises but I know that when it happens it will be delicious!’

(Though perhaps blackberries would provide a more painful example!) ii. Use the following questions for group discussion.

In verse 15 Hannah says, ‘I was pouring out my soul to the Lord.’ Have you ever experienced pouring out your soul to the Lord? How is that different from just praying? What kind of emotions is Hannah experiencing?

How does God use hardships to bring blessing into our lives?

Are there any promises that God has given you or your family that have yet to be fulfilled? What does it feel like still to be waiting for these things to happen? If appropriate, share with the group and pray for each other. iii. Jesus turned the idea of blessings on its head. Read and discuss the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-10.

e. Use the ‘Live’ diagram as outlined on pages 42-44 of Shelf Life to enable group members to draw together and personalise all of the above discussion into clear steps into action. You can keep this as a private exercise or share with each other.

4. Pray and commit Use any of the following ideas to pray together and commit to make any changes that you feel God is asking of you. Or use your own ideas or things that your group members may have prepared.

a. Allow some time to meditate on the prayer of Hannah (some reflective background music may help).

Afterwards give some time for people to share their thoughts and use this as a basis for your prayers.

(For more on meditation see page 34 of Shelf Life.)

The following is some of Hannah’s prayer from The Message paraphrase: Hannah prayed: I’m bursting with God-news! I’m walking on air.

I’m laughing at my rivals. I’m dancing my salvation.

Nothing and no one is holy like God, continued over >>>

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SEPTEMBER 2011 celloutlines

celloutlines | week four (continued...) no rock mountain like our God. Don’t dare talk pretentiously — not a word of boasting, ever!

For God knows what’s going on.

He takes the measure of everything that happens.

God brings death and God brings life, brings down to the grave and raises up.

God brings poverty and God brings wealth; he lowers, he also lifts up.

He puts poor people on their feet again; he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope, Restoring dignity and respect to their lives — a place in the sun!

He protectively cares for his faithful friends, step by step, but leaves the wicked to stumble in the dark.

No one makes it in this life by sheer muscle!

God will set things right all over the earth, he’ll give strength to his king, He’ll set his anointed on top of the world!

1 Samuel 2:1-10 b. Write or print some encouraging Bible verses on to separate pieces of card (see below for some examples). Spread them around the room and allow people time to walk around and reflect/meditate on the verses. Come back together as a group and pray for each individual according to the verse that means the most to them at this time.

• God is able to give us even more than we ask for! (Ephesians 3:20).

• Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).

• Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7).

• Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

• And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).

• From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another (John 1:16).

• But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). c. Take an ‘offering’ – not of money but something else that each person feels they could offer to God. As people bring their offerings ask that they commit themselves to being fruitful members of his family and always thankful for his blessings. continued over >>>

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See below for a summary of the book of 1 Samuel and the story of Hannah (based on http:// www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-1-Samuel.html) followed by some suggested web articles / resources for further reading.

Hannah lived during the period of the Judges, just as Deborah and Ruth did. Her story occurred toward the end of this time during which Israel had no king, approximately 1120 BC. Eli was both the high priest and the Judge of Israel at that time.

Author: The author of 1 Samuel is anonymous. We know that Samuel wrote a book (1 Samuel 10:25), and it is possible that he wrote part of this book as well. Other possible contributors to 1 Samuel are the prophets/historians Nathan and Gad (1 Chronicles 29:29).

Date of Writing: Originally, the books of 1 and 2 Samuel were one book. The translators of the Septuagint separated them, and we have retained that separation ever since. The events of 1 Samuel span approximately 100 years, from c1100 BC to c1000 BC. The events of 2 Samuel cover another 40 years. The date of writing, then, would be some time after 960 BC. Purpose of Writing: 1 Samuel records the history of Israel in the land of Canaan as they move from the rule of judges to being a unified nation under kings. Samuel emerges as the last judge, and he anoints the first two kings, Saul and David.

‘Great Women of the Bible: Hannah’ http://www.biblelessonconnection.com/season4/lesson4/4-4Hannah.pdf ‘The Son and the Psalm of Hannah’ http://bible.org/seriespage/son-and-psalm-hannah-1samuel-11-210 ‘Hannah, The longing of her Heart’ http://www.biblestudyplanet.com/bio4.htm ‘Hannah’s Prayer’ http://www.hannahscupboard.com/hannahs-prayer.html

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continued over >>>

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