Deeper Places
In this 7 session video series – author and teacher Dr. Matthew Jacoby – will share with you the rich portrait of authentic spirituality that we find in the Psalms. We will dive beneath the surface of mundane Christian practice and find those deeper places of real relationship with God. This video teaching series is based on the book Deeper Places-The Spirituality of the Psalms.
Watch the Group Leaders Guide Video now.
Visit our online store for more information and to purchase.
Introductory Session.
This is a standalone introductory session which we encourage you to view together as a group at least a week before you start your study. You can use this video (which only runs for about 3 minutes) to introduce your group to the series and encourage them to purchase the book prior to starting Session 1.
Session 1. Spiritual Apathy.
We find our minds crammed with ideas about God, with concepts and facts about who God is and what he has done, but too often the reality of God is as remote to us as the reality of black holes and supernovas. It’s not surprising then, that we have no emotional connection with these facts. They’re as abstract as a mathematical equation. I cannot love an idea. I can only love a person with whom I have some experience.
SESSION 1DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 2. The Pursuit of Sadness
In a way, Christians should be the saddest people in the world, and the most joyful, at the same time. We should rejoice that we are saved, but all the more should we lament that others are still lost. We rejoice in what is available to us in Christ, but all the more should we lament the fact that we actually experience so little of what is available to us. It is the taste of joy in sadness that drives us forwards to greater joy.
SESSION 2DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 3. Anger Management.
We must allow ourselves to feel what we feel, and we must give expression to it. But we must also do that in a healthy way that doesn’t drive it further in. When you feel angry you have to get it out of you and the only way to do that is to express it in all its fiery intensity before God.
SESSION 3DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 4. Faith Complains
Too many Christians are paralysed by suppressed disappointment. The psalms teach us that the very disappointment that too often paralyses us can be turned into a launching place for faith. It all depends on what we do with our disappointment.
SESSION 4DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 5. The Waiting Room
If we put all the years of biblical history together, most of it consists of people waiting for God to do something. And often they waited in very dire circumstances; circumstances that made the wait all the more difficult. Why?
SESSION 5DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 6. The Rest of Worship
You’re exhausted. You need rest, right? But, let me ask you this, do you really know what you need rest from? Most people don’t get the rest that they need because they don’t know what it is they need rest from.
SESSION 6DISCUSSION STARTER
Session 7. The Praise of Enjoyment
When you think of praise, you probably think of singing songs in church, right? And this can be an expression of praise. The idea of ‘praising God’ however goes much deeper than this. I mean, why does God want us to praise him? Is he not feeling very good about himself? Does he need encouragement?
SESSION 7DISCUSSION STARTER
Deeper Places Books
Subscribe to the Thrive Bible Reading Guide
