In this session you'll discover ways to experience the joy we have in Jesus even in the middle of difficult circumstances.

Taste and See (20 minutes)
While enjoying the snack, find a partner—someone you don’t know very well—and take a few minutes to tell your partner a few things about yourself:

• Where did you grow up?
• What brought you to where you live now?
• What brought you to the group?

If this is your first time together as a group, record each other’s contact information, either at the start or end of this session.

Gather back together as a large group. Take turns introducing your partner to the group by sharing one thing you learned about him or her that you didn’t already know. Choose one of the following questions to answer and share with the group.

• The “prison food” you had today wasn’t exactly “comfort food.” What is your favorite comfort food?
• What’s something or someone you turn to for comfort when life becomes difficult?

Read the following Bible passage:

Philippians 1:1-19
1This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus. I am writing to all of God's holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders and deacons. 2May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. 3Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. 4Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, 5for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. 6And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. 7So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. 8God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus. 9I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. 10For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. 11May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God. 12And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News. 13For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. 14And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God’s message without fear. 15It’s true that some are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry. But others preach about Christ with pure motives. 16They preach because they love me, for they know I have been appointed to defend the Good News. 17Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me. 18But that doesn’t matter. Whether their motives are false or genuine, the message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice. 19For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance.

Digging Into Scripture (30 minutes)
As a group, discuss:
• What thoughts or emotions came to your mind as you read this session’s Bible passage?

Now break into subgroups.

Tip: To maximize participation and also to have enough time to work through the session, we recommend breaking into smaller subgroups of three or four at various points during the session.

Subgroup Leaders: Find a place where your subgroup can talk with few distractions. Plan to come back together in 15 minutes.

In your subgroup read Philippians 1:1-11 and the following “A Sense of History” feature, and answer the questions that follow.

A Sense of History
Paul and the Church at Philippi The church at Philippi was started during Paul's second missionary journey. The first person to become a Christian there was Lydia, a businesswoman who had previously converted to Judaism (Acts 16:12-14). Lydia’s entire household gave their lives to Jesus, and her home became both a place for the young church to gather and a base of operation for Paul's work.

It is widely held that at the time he wrote the epistle (letter) to the church at Philippi, Paul was in prison in Rome, under house arrest. The Philippian church showed its love for Paul by sending financial support both before and after his arrest (2 Corinthians 11:9; Philippians 4:15-16). The fact the Paul had rejected similar offers from the Corinthian church (2 Corinthians 11:7-10) suggests that his relationship with the Philippians was close enough that he could accept their generosity without compromising his ministry or feeling obligated to “pay them back.”

• Think about the “prison food” you ate earlier, and then think about Paul’s circumstances and his response to those circumstances in the verses you just read. If you found yourself in similar circumstances, what do you suppose your attitude would be? Why?

• According to Philippians 1:1-11, where does Paul’s joy come from? How does Paul’s “small group”—the church at Philippi—add to his joy?

• In verse 4 Paul tells us he prays for the Philippians with joy. Whom in your life do you find yourself thanking God for, and why?

Come back together as a larger group, and share any highlights or questions from your subgroup discussion.

Did you know? Paul was also thrown into prison the first time he came to Philippi. You can learn more about this on your own this week by reading Acts 16:16-40.

Leader: Place the sponge on a baking pan in the middle of the group and give everyone a cup of grape juice.

As a group, take turns pouring your cup of juice onto the sponge. Then discuss:

• Was what happened what you were expecting? Why or why not?
• How is this like what happens when you pour out your love for others? How is it different?

Leader: Squeeze the sponge out into the bucket, and continue the discussion.

• How are we, as individuals, like the sponge?
• When you find yourself being squeezed by difficult circumstances, what kind of emotions or reactions generally overflow from your life?

Fast fact: The average used kitchen sponge carries about 7.2 billion bacteria. So filling one with grape juice is the least of your worries right now.

Making It Personal (15 minutes)
In your subgroups, read Phillipians 1:12-19, and answer these questions:
• When was a time you were able to be joyful, despite being squeezed by your circumstances? What kept you afloat during that time?

• Practically, what do we need to fill our lives with in order to ooze joy when we find ourselves under pressure?

• Verse 12 shows us that Paul was able to put his circumstances in perspective. What is a challenge you are currently facing that you need a fresh perspective on so it can to bring you joy?

Come back together as a larger group, and share any highlights or questions from your subgroup discussion.

FYI: It’s estimated that 200 million Christians are persecuted for their faith worldwide and that an average of more than 400 Christians are killed every day for their faith in Jesus. Since Jesus’ time, almost 45 million have been martyred for their faith—more than half of them since the beginning of the 20th century.

Touching Your World (25 minutes)
Review the following “weekly challenge” options, and select the challenge you’d like to do. Turn to a partner, and share your choice. Then make plans to connect with your partner sometime between now and the next session to check in and encourage one another.

Have an attitude of gratitude. Instead of letting minor problems overshadow the many blessings God has given us, commit to spend this week reflecting upon his blessings instead and to not let your circumstances distract you from that. Challenge yourself to make God’s blessings the first thing you think about in the morning and the last thing you think about at night.

Help someone who needs it. Come up with a way to meet the needs of others in your group or church—either individually or in your pairs. Maybe someone you know is sick or in crisis and needs meals delivered or a home or car repair that you can help provide for financially (or maybe can even do yourself or with a group).

Turn your trials into someone else’s joy. Maybe God has brought you through trials recently. Commit to find someone else at church, work, or your neighborhood going through similar trials, and encourage them regularly. (Don’t do it with the idea of giving advice—simply share how God brought you through your situation. It’s more important that they see that God’s faithfulness is real.)

Reach out as a group. Consider how your group should put its gifts and talents together to meet the needs of someone in your neighborhood or someone you know of that needs help, and then commit to do it. Give your group’s Outreach Coordinator ideas on whom you would want to reach out to and how. They can then plan an event that the entire group can participate in.

Come back together as a group. Share prayer requests. Before the leader prays, take a few moments to be silent and appreciate God’s goodness in your life.

Extra Impact: Use any extra “prison food” to take the Lord’s Supper together as a closing activity.

Leader: If you haven’t already, take a few minutes to review the group roles and assignments with the group. At a minimum, be sure that the food and supplies responsibilities for the next session are covered.

Until next time…

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Taking It Home:
1. Set a goal for how many times you’ll read through the Bible passage (Philippians 1:20-30). Make a point to read the “A Sense of History” feature.

2. Touch base with a partner to compare notes on how you’re both doing with the goals you’ve set.

3. I commit to touching my world this week by showing the joy of Jesus in the following ways