Discuss the following questions during Family Meal and Discipleship Group (see How To Use This Booklet).
Family Meal
If you’ve been part of a church for any amount of time, you have encountered a conflict inside of the Church. So many times, unfortunately, these conflicts end up splitting a Church. If the Church survives in one piece without a split, however, it usually has been damaged by the deep conflict.
- Talk about your experience of conflict in churches. Was the conflict handled poorly or well? Don’t use names; just share your experience.
- In Acts 6, we see a conflict actually take the Church into a better place and more people come to Jesus. It wasn’t clean, it was a messy process, but it led to the furthering of the mission. What a glorious thing if that happened in our churches today!
- Read Acts 6:1-7. What does this passage show us about conflict in the Church?
Sometimes it is easy for us to notice when the Church has messed up, but we don’t step in and contribute to the health of the situation.
- What are ways that God is inviting you to work towards the health of the Church? Where can you commit to work towards growth?
Prayer: Spend some time together praying that the power that deepened the Church through conflict would deepen our Church today as well.
Discipleship Group
- Talk about your experience of conflict in churches. Was the conflict handled poorly or well? Don’t use names; just share your experience.
- How do you personally handle conflict? Do you lack humility and forgiveness? Do you fail to press into the tension and confront? What drives you in this?
- How are you sensing the Church needs to grow? How are you going to work toward health?
Record any insights from family meal and/or discipleship groups...