Title: Hope

Series: Advent

Icebreaker: What’s the difference between hope and optimism? Which is a better trait to possess?

This Sunday our Bishop introduced a new sermon series as we enter the Advent season. Advent is a time for us to remember the miraculous birth of Christ and look forward to his coming return. Advent is a time for reflection on the promises of God, repentance for misplacing our trust in other things, and returning to the hope that is only found in Jesus.

Romans 15:13

I. Faith and Hope

• The word hope is found in Scripture over 200 times, and is often used in conjunction with faith. Hope can be considered the seed of faith. We know that without faith it is impossible to please God, but without hope it is impossible to stir up faith to begin with.
• Hope can be defined as confident expectation, enthusiasm, or strong belief that something good will happen. It is much greater than optimism or wishful thinking. Hope is supernatural and is synonymous with expectation.
• Expectation comes with action, it's a confident knowing that something is about to happen and requires our active preparation. Expectation also comes with intentionality, doing the things we know to do with the understanding that something will happen.

Discussion:

Have you ever been let down by a situation not going your way? How do you handle that disappointment?

II. Curse Disappointment (Romans 5:3-5)

• A problem that many of us have is misplacing our hope in things outside of God. We look to people, job opportunities, etc. to make a way for us and experience disappointment when those things fail.
• Anything we trust in that is not God is sinking sand, and often what we do is blame God for the disappointment we experience. Sometimes we even begin to lose hope because we have not seen the outcomes we were desiring.
• What are the things we’ve set our hearts on and have they taken God’s place? If so, our next step is repentance, a simple change of mind and direction. There is reason for us to rejoice, even in the face of disappointment, when we remember that Christ came once before and is going to come again. This promise alone is where we can anchor our hope and trust that God will not disappoint us.

UPCOMING EVENTS + REMINDERS:

Spanish Services at City Church: Spanish services are now in full swing at City Church! Every Sunday you can worship with us in the chapel at 10 AM, alongside our English service. We look forward to seeing you there!

GriefShare: Grief is one of life’s most difficult journeys, but you don’t have to go through it alone. If you, or someone you know, has lost a loved one you can begin your journey from mourning to joy through GriefShare at City Church. Meetings are held on Saturdays at 9:00 AM in the District Pastors’ Office. For more information please visit citychurchnola.life/GriefShare.

Wednesday Morning Prayer: You can participate in corporate prayer every Wednesday morning at 7 AM on Facebook. Join us each week as we continue to pray for our church, our city, and our nation.

City Life TV: You can watch our Bishop deliver thoughtful messages throughout the week. Tune in to WHNO, channel 20, Saturdays at 10:00 PM.

REPORT:

Please continue to report your in-person and virtual group meetings!

By using the same email you would normally receive, you may update your group information and report your weekly meetings.

If you need help with reporting, please contact your district pastor.

Have an amazing and spirit-filled group!