This small group discussion guide draws directly from Jeremy Wood's sermon “Royal family Kids Camp Commissioning Sunday” so you can keep engaging with the message all week. Read, reflect, and share it with your small group or friends.
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE Sermon: "You Are Going As Family — Sent to Reveal the Father's Heart" Scripture: James 1:27 | Matthew 25:40 Time Needed: 60–90 minutes
OPENING PRAYER (2–3 minutes)
Leader, open your time together with this prayer or one in your own words:
Father, we come to you as people who have received from your table — broken, welcomed, and loved before we ever performed. As we open your Word together today, do what only you can do. Speak to the ones who are ready and the ones who are barely holding on. Let this conversation be more than discussion — let it be an encounter with the God who runs toward us while we are still a long way off. In Jesus' name, amen.
ICEBREAKER QUESTION (5–10 minutes)
Before diving into the sermon, take a few minutes to connect as a group.
Think back to a time when someone simply showed up for you — not to fix anything, not with advice, just with their presence. It could be a small moment or a significant one. Who was it, and what did their presence mean to you?
Leader note: Keep this light and conversational. You're warming the room, not going deep yet. Share yours first to set the tone.
SCRIPTURE FOCUS (5–10 minutes)
Primary Passages: James 1:27 and Matthew 25:40
Have someone read each passage aloud. Invite the group to listen as if hearing it for the first time.
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." — James 1:27
"Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." — Matthew 25:40
Observation Questions:
- What words or phrases stand out to you in these two passages?
- James uses the phrase "pure and faultless religion." What do you think he means by that? What is he contrasting it with?
- What does Matthew 25:40 suggest about how Jesus personally identifies with vulnerable and overlooked people?
MAIN DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (30–40 minutes)
Sermon Understanding
Pastor Scott made a distinction between going to fix children and going to love them. In your own words, what is the difference — and why does it matter for how we show up for anyone who is hurting?
He described three movements in the message: we go to love, not fix; we carry the Father's heart; and we receive before we pour out. Which of those three resonated most with you, and why?
Personal Application
Pastor Scott said, "Children may not remember every activity. They will remember who looked them in the eye, who listened, who celebrated them, who stayed." Where in your own life — with a child, a coworker, a family member, a neighbor — are you being called to offer that kind of presence rather than a solution?
He shared the image of the father in Luke 15 watching the road, running before the son even arrived. Is there someone in your life you've been praying for who seems far off? What would it look like to keep watching the road for them — to believe God is already moving in them in ways you can't yet see?
Pastor Scott issued a specific invitation: Write down one name. One person who needs someone to carry the Father's heart into their life. Pray for them by name every day this week. Did a name come to mind during the sermon? Are you willing to share it with the group so we can pray together?
Spiritual Growth
He said, "You cannot give what you have not received." Where in your life right now are you trying to pour out from an empty place? What does it look like practically for you to return to the table — to receive from Jesus before you go back out?
Pastor Scott connected consistent community — gathering outside of Sunday mornings, doing life together around kitchen tables and back porches — to the rhythm of receiving before pouring out. What is one honest obstacle that keeps you from that kind of regular, relational community? What would it take to remove it?
PERSONAL REFLECTION (5–10 minutes)
Invite the group to take 2–3 minutes of quiet before answering. These questions are for personal use — sharing is optional.
Reflection Questions:
Am I more often a "fixer" or a "presence" in the lives of people around me? What does that reveal about what I believe love actually requires?
Is there a child, a person, or a relationship in my life where I've quietly given up — where I've stopped watching the road? What would it mean to start watching again?
What is one specific way God might be inviting me to carry the Father's heart somewhere this week — not in a program or an event, but in an ordinary moment?
After the quiet, gently invite anyone who wants to share one thing that came up. Don't pressure — just open the door.
GROUP ACTIVITY (10–15 minutes)
Activity Title: "The Name on the Road"
Materials needed: Paper or index cards, pens
Instructions:
- Give everyone a card or small piece of paper.
- Ask each person to write down the name of one person they sense God is calling them to carry the Father's heart toward this week. It might be someone far from God, someone hurting, someone they've been meaning to reach out to, or someone they've quietly given up on.
- Invite everyone to hold their card and spend 60 seconds in silent prayer for that person — simply asking God to move in their life in ways that can't yet be seen.
- Then, in pairs or triads, share the name (if comfortable) and one specific way you plan to show up for that person this week — not to fix, just to be present.
- Close by praying briefly for each other's person by name.
Purpose: This activity moves the sermon's central invitation from concept to commitment. Writing a name makes it real. Sharing it with one other person creates accountability. Praying over it together makes it an act of faith, not just intention.
CLOSING PRAYER (3–5 minutes)
Leader, close your time with a conversational group prayer, or use this as a guide:
Invite each person who is willing to pray one sentence aloud for the person whose name they wrote down — simply saying their name and one thing they're trusting God for on their behalf. Then close with:
Father, we go from this room as people who have received from your table. We don't go in our own strength or with our own love — we go carrying yours. Make us people who show up, who stay, who see. And for every name that was spoken in this room tonight, would you run toward them? They are not too far. You are already on the road. In Jesus' name, amen.
TAKE-HOME CHALLENGE
The Challenge: One Name. Every Day. One Move.
This week, do three things:
Write down one name — someone in your life who needs someone to carry the Father's heart to them. Put it somewhere you'll see it daily: your bathroom mirror, your phone wallpaper, your car dashboard.
Pray for that person by name every day this week — not a long prayer, just a real one. Ask God to move in their life in ways you can't see yet. Ask for the courage and opportunity to show up for them.
Make one move toward community — if you are not currently gathering regularly with people from this church outside of Sunday morning, make one phone call or send one text this week. Invite someone to your porch, your kitchen, your yard. Not to do a program — just to do life together.
Why it matters: The kingdom doesn't get built in dramatic moments alone. It gets built in ordinary faithfulness — one name prayed over, one presence offered, one table gathered around. These are not small things. These are exactly the things Jesus said matter most.
At your next meeting: Be ready to share — did you make the move? What happened when you showed up?