Stop, Look and Listen (Pentecost 6C Gospel)

Download a PDF of the Word One Bible Study for Pentecost 6 Gospel.

Text: Luke 10:38-42 for the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost, Lectionary Series C

OBJECTIVES

Participants will:

1. Discover the distractions keeping them from a deeper relationship with Jesus.
2. Find ways to remove those distractions.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Bibles

GROUP GUIDELINES

This study is best used in groups of 5-6 people. Once these groups have been formed, the person with the curliest hair will serve as the group leader. The leader’s role is to guide the group through the Bible study activities, make sure each group member gets a turn to talk (when the person feels comfortable) and to keep the discussion on the Bible study and not on what happened last Friday night.

BUILDING COMMUNITY

1. Take a few minutes to complete the following sentences and share your answers with the group.
   1. A distraction is . . .
   2. I am most easily distracted by . . . Why?
   3. The most embarrassing time I got distracted was when I . . .
2. The leader will pick a group member to read the following situation out loud. Then each person will be given two minutes to think of what they would do.

It is Thursday afternoon, you are sitting at home doing nothing. Suddenly the phone rings. It is the publicity agent for your favorite movie star. The star is traveling through town and heard you were a fan. The star wants to stop by your house to visit and to have some publicity pictures taken.

1. Who would the star be?
2. What would you do to get ready for the visit?
3. What would you do during the visit?

LOOKING AT GOD’S WORD

1. Read Luke 10:38-40. Take a few minutes to answer each of the following questions. Share the answers.
   1. What preparations might have been distracting Martha’s attention?
   2. When do you have a chance to visit with Jesus and hear His words?
   3. What distractions do you have during those times?
2. Read Luke 10:41. Comment on the following questions.
   1. How did Martha’s distractions hurt her relationship with Jesus?
   2. How have the distractions I experience hurt my relationship with Jesus?
3. Read Luke 10:42. How did Mary improve and deepen her relationship with Jesus? Look at verse 39.

REINFORCING WHAT HAS BEEN LEARNED

Read the following questions allowing time for each group member to share their answers.

1. From Martha’s example, I learned . . .
2. From Mary’s example, I learned . . .
3. What distractions do I need to work on removing from my life so I can be more like Mary?
4. What can I do to remove some of the distractions and when will I start to remove them?

CLOSING

Close with a group prayer. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you, and the members of your group, strength to remove the distractions in your lives that hurt a relationship with Jesus.

By Greg Sawyer

Originally published in Discovery Bible Studies. Updated for youthESource in June 2016