Bible ReadingProverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
[39:35]1 Kings 3:5-9 “At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, ‘Ask what I shall give you.’ And Solomon said, ‘You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you. And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?’”
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
[44:26]Psalm 139:13-14 “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.”
[45:41]Judges 6:12-16 “And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.’ And Gideon said to him, ‘Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, “Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?” But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.’ And the Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?’ And he said to him, ‘Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.’”
Daniel 6:16-23 “Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king declared to Daniel, ‘May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!’ And a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him. Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. As he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, ‘O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?’ Then Daniel said to the king, ‘O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.’ Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.”
Daniel 3:19-27 “Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. Because the king’s order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these three men were bound into the burning fiery furnace. Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, ‘Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?’ They answered and said to the king, ‘True, O king.’ He answered and said, ‘But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.’ Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, ‘Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!’ Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.”
Observation questions- In Proverbs 3:5-6, what four actions are named before the promise about a straight path is given? [43:14]
- In 1 Kings 3:5-9, when God told Solomon to ask for whatever he wanted, what did Solomon ask for, and what responsibility was sitting in front of him?
- According to Psalm 139:13-14, what does the passage say God did for a person before birth, and what response does that lead to? [45:41]
- What are some of the labels and pressures people carry that can tempt them to lean on the wrong understanding about themselves? [54:19]
Interpretation questions- Solomon asked for wisdom instead of comfort or status. What does that reveal about the kind of help a person really needs when stepping into a big assignment? [42:45]
- Proverbs 3 says to trust the Lord with all the heart. Why is God’s love in John 3:16 such an important foundation for that kind of trust? [44:26]
- Gideon saw himself as the least, but God spoke purpose and presence over him. What does that suggest about how God’s calling can be stronger than a person’s insecurity or background? [48:33]
- The promise that God makes paths straight does not remove lions’ dens or fiery furnaces. What does that show about what God’s guidance really means in hard seasons? [01:03:08]
Application questions- What is one area of life right now where trusting God with “all your heart” feels hard—school, work, family, money, relationships, health, or something else? What makes that area hard to place in his hands? [43:45]
- Comparison can make people question how God made them. Where is comparison showing up most in life right now, and what would it look like to celebrate God’s design instead of competing with somebody else’s? [46:56]
- False labels can stick deeply. What is one label from people, the past, or the enemy that needs to be rejected, and which truth from God needs to be written over it instead? [55:30]
- Many people are carrying more than they admit. What load has been carried quietly lately—anxiety, pressure, conflict, disappointment, fear, or grief—and what would it look like to truly hand that to God in prayer? [57:53]
- Prayer does not have to wait for emergencies. What part of the day could become a regular prayer moment this week: the drive to school or work, the morning routine, lunch break, before class, before a meeting, before practice, or before bed? [59:14]
- God’s straight path often includes detours, delays, and hard places. Looking back, where has God already carried and kept someone through a season that should have taken them out? [01:00:18]
- Everything begins with a yes to Jesus Christ. For anyone still unsure, what seems to be standing in the way of that yes, and what would trusting him personally look like now? [01:06:25]
