Flourish: A Framework for Formation - Week FIVE Group Discussion
MILESTONES WORTH REMEMBERING
Joshua 4:4-8, 19-24
Deuteronomy 5:12-15, 24:18-22, 7:17-19
Open in Prayer
Think of a positive milestone in your life. Describe how you felt that day. How did this affect your outlook on life at that time?
Think of a challenging milestone or season in your life. Describe how you felt during that time. How did this affect your outlook on life at that time?
Read Joshua 4:4-8, 19-24
4 So Joshua called together the twelve men he had chosen—one from each of the tribes of Israel. 5 He told them, “Go into the middle of the Jordan, in front of the Ark of the Lord your God. Each of you must pick up one stone and carry it out on your shoulder—twelve stones in all, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. 6 We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 Then you can tell them, ‘They remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant went across.’ These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.”
8 So the men did as Joshua had commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan River, one for each tribe, just as the Lord had told Joshua. They carried them to the place where they camped for the night and constructed the memorial there.
…19 The people crossed the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month. Then they camped at Gilgal, just east of Jericho. 20 It was there at Gilgal that Joshua piled up the twelve stones taken from the Jordan River.
21 Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 Then you can tell them, ‘This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the river right before your eyes, and he kept it dry until you were all across, just as he did at the Red Sea when he dried it up until we had all crossed over. 24 He did this so all the nations of the earth might know that the Lord’s hand is powerful, and so you might fear the Lord your God forever.”
Discuss
How do you think the Israelites felt when they looked upon this monument? What stories and memories do you think came to mind for them? What do you see in the text that leads you toward that understanding?
What are some reasons we might tend to avoid remembering difficult milestones in our lives?
What are some benefits to remembering all kinds of milestones in our life (both good and difficult)?
Can you think of any unexpected lessons you learned over time through milestones in your life?
How can we remain open to allowing for God to shape us through the milestones of life, both the good and the difficult?
Close in Prayer
Ask God to bring to our remembrance milestones that he might wish to use to form us.
Pray for each other to be shaped by these experiences in the ways God would seek to form us
