There are many ways to grow through God’s Word. One easy way is Discovery Bible Study (DBS). It’s used all over the world, and doesn't require an expert or teacher: the Bible IS the teacher! It’s simple, reproducible, and has led to huge movements of new followers of Jesus.
HOW IT WORKS
You'll read one story, discuss it as a group, and then pray for each other. You can adapt as you need with your group. If you have more than 6-7 people, consider breaking into smaller groups so that people can be actively involved in the conversation. You can use any Scripture, though for a gathering of 1-2 hours, you may want to stick to a story of 6-15 verses.
CONNECT
- Have each person share briefly: What are you thankful for this week? What's something that's stressful right now?
Read & SUMMARIZE THE STORY
- Have 2 people read through the passage out loud. (Listening twice helps us pick up on things more than hearing it once).
- Ask 1 or 2 people to summarize the story in a few sentences.
DISCUSS
1. What stands out from this story?
2. What do we learn about God?
3. What do we learn about people?
4. What from this story can I apply to my own life, and who's someone I can share what I learned with?
PRAY
- Pray for each other. If you have a larger group, break into pairs or 3s to pray. Rather than taking a long time to share prayer requests, you can pray based on what was shared during the connect time, or do a listening style of prayer where you ask God to direct your prayers.
NEW TO FAITH? LEARN WHAT IT MEANS TO FOLLOW JESUS
- Receive the Father’s Love - Luke 15:11-32
- Connect deeply with Jesus John 15:1-8
- Be filled with the Spirit Acts 1:4-8
- Stay true to God’s Word Psalm 119:1-16
- Intimate friendship with the Father Luke 11:1-13
- Follow Jesus’ Teaching (Be a house built on the rock) Matthew 7:15-27
- Get Baptized Acts 2:37-41
- Live in Transformational Community Acts 2:41-47
- Pass on what you know to others Matthew 28:18-20
7 SUPERNATURAL STORIES OF JESUS
- A Wedding Miracle John 2:1-12
- Healing the royal official's son John 4:46-54
- Healing a paralyzed man John 5:1-17
- Feeding a Huge Crowd John 6:1-14
- Walking on Water John 6:15-25
- Healing a blind man John 9:1-41
- Bringing a dead man back to life John 11:1-46
- Jesus the Way, Truth, and Life John 14:1-11
Photo by Beth MacDonald