Welcome & Vision | 5 Mins
Welcome everyone and particularly any newcomers this week.
Remind each other of the vision of CIS and the purpose of the weekly group meeting. (Consider using CIS videos and resources to keep this fresh each week).
Remind those graduating to fill in this form using a non-university email address so Christians in Sport can stay in touch with them after they leave university.
Prayer & Evangelism | 10 Mins
In pairs look back on your week of sport and discuss how last week’s group meeting helped you. Follow up with anything people asked for prayer about.
In pairs share prayer points for the week of sport ahead and spend time praying for each other.
Some weeks pray more widely for other clubs and teams in your university which are not represented in the group. Alternatively, you can also use the CIS prayer diary to pray for the whole mission of CIS.
You might also want to use this slot to discuss and plan your evangelistic event for the term and pray specifically about it.
Reach the world of sport for Christ | 20 Mins
Intro
As we continue to reach the world of sport for Christ this session will help us to think about how to engage in difficult conversations about faith.
Read
1 Peter 3:8-17
Reflect
How do you feel when people ask you questions about your faith?
Explain
Outdated, boring, restrictive, and many more.
There are many opinions about the Christian faith, and often they bring up some difficult conversations from those in our clubs.
In this passage, Peter helps us think about how we should respond when people push back against our faith. No matter what the situation, whether difficult question or tricky worldview, our response can be the same.
First, we get our heads right. Revere Christ, don’t fear man. If we are going after Christ, then we have the ‘eyes’ and ‘ears’ of God with us, the God of the Universe is on our side. King Jesus has died for us and has brought us into God’s family. We are blessed by God, and no mere human can compete with Him!
Secondly, we need to prepare. As we revere Christ as Lord, we will live and play differently. So, we need to be ready to explain to those in our clubs why we live like that; that in Christ we have a true and lasting hope.
Finally, we need to back up what we say with how we say it. ‘Gentleness and respect’ is the phrase Peter uses. Which means we neither respond argumentatively, nor do we respond timidly. Rather we respond by imitating Christ, the humble self-sacrificial saviour who has been raised to the position of King.
Discuss
What would it look like to ‘revere Christ as Lord’ this week?
What is your answer to those who ask you ‘to give the reason for the hope that you have’?
Are you more at risk of answering people argumentatively or timidly?
Pray
Thank God for Jesus the Lord.
Pray for wisdom as you prepare to face difficult questions.
Pray that God would help you to speak with gentleness and respect.
Notices | 5 Mins
Update everyone on the key messages for the week. These might include:
Promoting your evangelistic event for the term
Reminding people about carol services and other events the group can make use of.
Resources to share
Encourage group members to sign up for Back Pages Online to stay up to date with the latest videos, blogs, stories, podcasts and prayer content from Christians in Sport.
