We most often focus more on how we feel than on what we know to be true. This discussion guide is designed to help us focus more fully on “faith in God” and not “faith in feelings.”-
Read John 14 out loud together:
Twice Jesus said, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled” in this passage. (Locate those instances)
Think about the meaning of those commands in line with the surrounding context of them. (Sentence, paragraph, passage, book)
Take a few minutes and quietly/individually think through and write down your thoughts on the following:
-What are some things Jesus did not mean?-
This is the same word used to describe how Jesus “felt” in John 13:21. He was “troubled in his spirit.” In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus was deeply “troubled.” He was under such physical/emotional stress that blood was expressed from his sweat glands.
What are some things that Jesus did not mean by “Do not let your hearts be troubled?”
What are some things he did not mean by “my peace I give you?”
-What did Jesus mean?-
What did Jesus do despite “feeling” troubled?
How does Jesus connect love for him with obedience to him in this chapter?
How is peace tied to life choices, rather than mere feelings, just as love is?
Think about what Jesus is telling us when he says, “Do not be troubled” and what is he promising us when he says, “My peace I give you?”
Go through the following questions together
Q1: Have you felt (or do you currently feel) “troubled and afraid”? Have you felt a lack of “peace” as an emotional sense of well-being? If so, what was (is) the circumstance? What was going on “inside” you and “outside” you?
Q2: Has it confused you or made you doubt God’s love or goodness or promises when you have not received emotional relief from being troubled and afraid? (If those words don’t describe how you have felt, what words would you use to describe your feelings? Angry, detached, etc.)
Q3: Using Jesus’ life as your example, what are some specific ways you could demonstrate what it means to “not let your heart be troubled, trust in God.” (Or what are some ways you have or are doing this now?)
*Perhaps you feel troubled and afraid and yet you are continuing to love your family, engage in community, live by faith in God’s promises, etc.
Q4: We can train our emotional responses over time. For instance, children can learn to regulate emotions as they mature. This is not merely the result of passing time, it is a process of mentoring and training. We don’t always choose our immediate emotional responses, but our choices over time do have the capacity to shape our emotional responses. We can continue to “grow up.” How are you training your mind and emotions to reveal your trust in God? What are you doing to continually become more like Jesus in your inner and outwards responses? You have agency here, even though it is a long-term project.
Q5: In the short run, we respond internally and externally with the maturity level we currently have obtained. What are you doing to respond in a Christ-like way even when you feel troubled and/or afraid? How are you choosing to “not let your heart be troubled, but trusting in God?”
Prayer: Confess your feelings of insecurity, doubt, and fear. At the same time, confess your faith in God and his promises. Ask him to help you see where you have been disillusioned because you have had demands or expectations of him that he never actually promised to you.