Breaking Ground
Who is your favorite public figure (celebrity, musician, artist, actor, etc)? Why?
The Dig
This Sunday, we continued our In Excess, using a scene from King David’s life to explore the topic of excess in creating, sharing, & preserving images of ourselves.
The human desire to create & share images of ourselves & our lives has existed for all of history. However, this practice has become more common than ever in our social media age, where we devote more time to curating & presenting images of ourselves & our lives than ever before.
Why do we, as humans, want to create & present images of ourselves to others? What role does this play in our lives & culture?
Next, read 2 Samuel 11:1-17 & 12:1-10. Here, we find one of the darkest moments from David’s life; where, after committing adultery, he attempts a truly horrifying cover-up. First, David tries to manipulate Uriah (the husband of the woman he’s slept with) before having him murdered after his plot fails. After this, God confronts David through the Prophet Nathan, calling him to account.
What do you think leads David to carry out this cover-up? What image of himself is he trying to protect in hiding this part of his life from others?
How might this story reveal some of the dangers of excessively trying to create & preserve images of ourselves?
Consider your life right now.
Where do you currently engage in image creation & presentation (via social media or otherwise)? Do you feel like you engage in this to a healthy or excessive degree?
In sharing images, what images of yourself do you project to others? Does this ever contradict a more full, realistic image of who you are? If so, what from your character or life do you most often try to hide from others & what fears reside behind doing so?
Where do you need to reorient your relationship to image preservation in order to be a more healthy person on the other side of Lent? What do you need to change in order to make that a reality?
Coming Out of the Hole
Take time to reflect on the Sunday sermon & how this week’s teaching might speak into your daily life.
- Read 2 2 Samuel 11:1-17 & 12:1-10. Consider this scene & the role that image preservation plays within it. What image of himself is David trying to protect in having his adultery covered-up? What is he afraid of happening if it is discovered? How does this attempt ultimately make things worse?
- What images of yourself do you project to others? Do these ever contradict a more full, realistic image of who you are? What fears might this reveal?
- How might David’s story & this Lenten season challenge you to reorient your relationship with image creation & preservation in this next season?
Journal, reflect, & pray on how God might be speaking to you through each week’s teaching. Share your experience with your growth group next week!
Additional Resources*
New Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton
Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter
Falling Upward by Richard Rohr
TheBibleProject.com
Coming Up This Week:*
Sunday, March 17th: Join us next Sunday for week 5 of our series In Excess, where we’ll be exploring several key moments from the life of King David!
* Please see mye3.org for details.