7 Letters, Guide: Renunciation Reflection #3
Take Communion
Leader Note: Begin this time by taking communion together, whether as a full meal or some version of the bread and the cup before or after your meal. If you don’t already have a Communion liturgy, have someone read through this prayer based on the Lord’s Supper in Luke 22 and the Wedding Supper in Revelation 19:
All-loving God, we praise you and rejoice in your presence. We come to this table together with hope and longing love, sharing the Lord's Supper, to eat and drink a foretaste of that future Wedding Supper. Jesus, we are making ourselves ready: tuning our hearts and training our appetites to desire you and you alone. Infuse our lives with your presence as we share your body, broken for us, and your blood, poured out for us. You wait with longing for us to drink anew in your kingdom, so we say: Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly.
Read This Overview Aloud (3 minutes)
Throughout the season of Lent, we are engaging in the practice of Renunciation: giving up a particular (often good or neutral) appetite that we tend to use as a substitute for something God already wants to give us. And, as a reminder, we will spend the remainder of this teaching series reflecting on our practice of Renunciation in light of the themes found in one of the seven letters in Revelation.
Tonight, we’ll reflect on Jesus’ letter to the church of Thyatira, in which he calls them to reject prominent false teachings and to return to Jesus’ vision for the good life. It’s important that we too take time to name and acknowledge the people who are influencing our lives and discipleship to Jesus, for good or ill. It is so easy to grow impatient for the things we want from God that might not be coming on our terms or in our timing—whether it’s a sense of belonging, comfort, peace, community, rest, or something else. In that impatience, we may be tempted to replace God’s best with lesser loves. So tonight, we’ll join the church in Thyatira by reflecting on the influences that impact our journey with Jesus.
Do This Practice Tonight (20 minutes)
To begin our practice for the night, let’s take a moment to think back to the first week of our Renunciation, remembering what it was that we desired for God to give us rather than to try and take for ourselves. Let’s take just a moment to remember, and then we’ll share in one or two words what that good gift is.
Leader Note: Give everyone 20 seconds or so to think, and then invite people to share in one or two words.
Last week we focused on cultural influences that pull us away from our practice, so this week we want to focus on those who pull us towards it. So let’s take a few moments in silence to take note of the people who most influence us towards Jesus and the better love that he is offering us. If it’s helpful, feel free to use a journal or piece of paper to write down any thoughts. Then we’ll come back together and share one or two people each.
Leader Note: Give everyone 1 minute or so to think, and then invite people to share a name or two each.
As we have all experienced, it’s helpful to have people in our life who influence our relationship with Jesus. But more than just learning from someone, it’s important to share the journey of discipleship together. In this season of Lent, we get to do that by practicing Renunciation alongside one another—not necessarily giving up the same things, but identifying where we see God in each other's practice.
With that in mind, let’s have a discussion about our Renunciation and what this invitation might look like.
How has your practice of Renunciation been going this week? (e.g. Where did you feel God’s presence? Where did you feel resistance?)
Who are you letting into your practice of Renunciation, and how is that helping you?
Based on the last question, who is someone you could carry your practice of Renunciation with, and what might that look like?
Read The Practice for the Week Ahead (1 minute)
Our Practice for the week ahead is to continue our Renunciation and Reclaiming through the season of Lent. Remember, Renunciation is about joy and desire! Because we are human beings, we will always be susceptible to reaching for something that God wants to give us. In our Renunciation, we are asking God for what he already desires for us and learning to receive from him rather than taking it for ourselves. So, this week, let’s resolve again to renounce our good or neutral appetites and receive God’s kindness and love.
End in Prayer (5 minutes)
Leader Note: Close your time together in blessing prayer for one another, asking God to continue growing each person through the Practice of Renunciation.