Finding Strength in Surrender

Mended Life Talk is designed to take you deeper into this past week’s sermon, helping you explore and understand biblical truths while applying them to your daily life. Our goal is to guide you in growing your faith, strengthening your relationship with God, and equipping you to face life’s challenges with a renewed perspective.

1. START TALKING.

Get the conversations started and dive into this past week’s scripture.

• Warm-Up Questions:

  1. When was a time you felt completely weak or powerless? How did you navigate that moment?

  2. Can you share a time when surrendering to God brought unexpected strength or clarity?

2. START DISCOVERING.

Context is Everything! Anything stand out in this week’s scripture?

1. Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-25:

   • How does Paul describe the message of the cross as both “foolish” and the “power of God”?

   • Why do you think the cross is a stumbling block for some and nonsense to others? How does this contrast with God’s wisdom?

2. Reflect on Isaiah 55:8-9:

   • God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours. How does this truth challenge the way we view surrender?

   • Why is it important to trust God’s wisdom over our understanding, especially in times of weakness?

3. Examine 2 Corinthians 12:9-10:

   • “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” How do these words encourage us when we feel inadequate?

   • How can we embrace our weaknesses as opportunities for God’s power to work through us?

4. Discuss the Unifying Power of the Cross:

   • Paul reminds us that the message of the cross unites us as believers. How does surrendering to God’s plan bring unity to our lives and our communities?

   • What does it mean to boast only in the Lord?

5. God’s Way is Different:

   • Reflect on the biblical examples of God using the weak, unlikely, and unqualified for His glory. How does this give us confidence in our own calling?

3. START APPLYING.

Apply it to my life.

• Personal Reflection:
  Identify an area in your life where you struggle to surrender control to God. How can embracing His strength in your weakness transform your perspective?

• Action Steps:

  1. Write down a fear, weakness, or area of struggle that you feel holds you back.

  2. Pair it with a Scripture that reminds you of God’s grace and power (e.g., 2 Corinthians 12:9, 1 Corinthians 1:18).

  3. This week, intentionally pray about this area, asking God to use it for His glory.

• Challenge:
  Practice gratitude for your weaknesses by thanking God for His strength in your life. Share with someone how God has worked in your life despite your struggles.

4. START PRAYING.

Be bold. Pray with power.

• Group Prayer Focus:

  • Thank God for the message of the cross and the way it reveals His strength in our weaknesses.

  • Pray for courage to embrace surrender, trusting in God’s wisdom over our own understanding.

  • Ask for unity in your family, church, and community as you all live out the truth of the cross.

• Personal Prayer:
  Spend time in prayer, surrendering specific areas of weakness to God. Thank Him for His grace and ask Him to work through your life in ways that bring Him glory.

5. START DOING.

Personal Response. Growing people change.

• Next Steps:

  • Reflect on 1 Corinthians 1:30-31: “God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit, God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin.”

  • Find one way to surrender control this week, whether through prayer, forgiveness, or stepping out in faith.

  • Share the message of the cross with someone who might view it as “foolish” or irrelevant. Invite them to see how God’s wisdom and grace have transformed your life.