Study the material ahead of time and meditate on it throughout the week.
Are there any handouts, paper, tools, etc. - that you need to make sure to bring before the group begins?
Pray over the message – asking God to teach through you and cause learning to happen in a life-changing way.
Be familiar with the Participant’s Notes (PN) for each lesson, not just the Facilitator’s Guide (FG).
You will find a helpful glossary of terms here, to help you define certain terms and concepts that will emerge from your DBS.
It’s important to note that…
The Motivation and Encouragement section each week is for general use. It is not to motivate the group for that day’s lesson but to “Cast vision for who they can become in Christ or what God can do through them.”
The Context section is to give you important background information for the Bible text you will study that week.
In the Discovery Question section be sure to encourage specific application to lessons that emerge from the Bible passage you studied, in order to grow in Christ-likeness.
The Retell the story section encourages us to learn to retell the Bible story in our own words, as it will help us remember and give us the ability to share it with others.
The "I will-by when" statements are meant to allow all participants to capture what the Holy Spirit is impressing on them for specific application.
In the Looking Forward section, the meaning of each part is important:
Preparing involves some kind of equipping and practice, for skill development;
Pursuing encourages application;
Praying gives all the opportunity to entrust everything to the Lord - expressing dependence on Him to help us pursue Jesus and His mission.
The In Your Time with God section there are valuable resources that all can use, study or read during the week.
