Session Extras

Year 1

Commissioned: Session 5
Commissioned to be Pilgrims on a Journey

Digging Deeper:

• In the article “Help for the Reluctant Witness” Doug Pollock offers several questions about witnessing and encourages us to talk about God’s good new all the time.
• The sermon “Vulnerable Guests, Missionary Hosts: Discipleship in a Broken World” based on Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 by Luke Bretherton is available in print form or as a webcast or podcast.
• Read the article “The Road to Emmaus” by Pastor Ed Visser
• Listen to a message (mp3 file) by John Witvliet on Luke 24 called “The Emmaus Road.” In this passage, Jesus’ followers go from despair to great hope.  It is also about Jesus’ actions of coming alongside and walking with the followers, teaching how the Old Testament points to his coming.
• God nudges, God speaks, and God corrects. Read the article “In His Steps: Following God's Lead In Helping People Grow” by Alice Fryling about how God commissions us in our everyday life to urge others to follow him.
• In the article “New Ownership,” Eric Reed discusses how a church can be missional.
• Jonathan Edwards reminds us that we are pilgrims on a journey to heaven in the sermon “The Christian Pilgrim” from the 1700s.
• The entire text of Bunyon's Pilgrim's Progress is available online.

For the Leader:

• If this is the last time you will be meeting with your group, spend a moment sharing what you have learned from this study or from each other. Thank the group for the valuable contributions they have made and for the time they have give to this study.
• If you have used all five books in this series, reflect on the work you have done and what you have learned. Print out the resource list or bring some of the books to your meeting and challenge your group to do more reading about discipleship.
• Consider singing one or two songs during our time together. Here are a few suggestions from Sing a New Creation: “The Servant Song” 277, “Go to the World” 294, “My Friends May you Grow in Grace” 288

Submit your ideas!

Do you have suggestions for this particular session? Something that was especially meaningful for you or your group? Extra reading you’d like to suggest? Help others get the most out of this session. Send your ideas to editors@FaithAliveResources.org and we’ll consider adding them here!