How is your heart? God desires soft, tender hearts instead of hard, stubborn hearts. This is a companion to the Lent message series – HEART SAYINGS. The series, and this accompanying guide come with great hope for how God will soften each person’s heart for what lies ahead. As our hearts are softened, we develop tremendous anticipation for how God will use Vidalia Cornerstone Church for the people in Vidalia. As we prepare our hearts for what God will do, we will gather around the Heart Sayings in scripture. We will look to the Bible to see what it means to have a soft heart for God – a heart that allows us to see the world as God sees it. Use these scripture readings and prayer prompts for your personal times with God during Lent on the days between Ash Wednesday, March 5th and Easter, April 20th. Sundays are not part of the 40 days of lent because they are days for taking a break from retrospection to look forward to the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter. Join in worship for the Heart Sayings message series on the Sundays during Lent.

Instructions: (1) Use One Verse a Day

 (2) Read the Verse

 (3) Read the Passage – as time permits

 (4) Read the Notes

 (5) Pause/Consider Your Heart

 (6) Pray – begin with the Prompt

Lenten_Devotional.pdf

Disciple III: Remember Who You Are – In order to take this study, you must have previously taken Disciple I. Disciple III is a 32-week commitment (16 weeks in the Old Testament and 16 weeks in the New Testament). Our time in the Old Testament focuses on the Prophets and our study of the New Testament focuses on the Letters of Paul.

The Pursuit of Holiness- Christians are often confused about their role in bringing about holiness. In this classic, Jerry Bridges helps us see clearly just what we should rely on God to do- and where we need to accept responsibility. These timeless principles and guidelines will challenge you to joyfully obey God's command. Led by Madison Taufmann on Tuesday nights. College and Career Group for Women.

They Walked with God, Max Lucado- takes a closer look at 40 of the most inspirational characters in the Bible and shares a powerful message: if God can find a place for each character in the Bible, we can rest assured that He’s carved out a spot for us too. They Walked with God includes a series of meaningful, in-depth discussion questions that correspond with each biblical character that Max has highlighted, giving you a chance to reflect further about the incredible lives they led and the lessons we can learn from them. Lucado weaves together stories from Scripture with stories that offer a modern perspective, bringing each of these men and women to life within the pages of They Walked with God. Led by Lisa Chesser.

Parenting Class-  Led by Freddy Thompson. In this life-giving book, Paul Tripp offers parents much more than a to-do list. Instead, he presents us with a big-picture view of God's plan for us as parents. Outlining fourteen foundational principles centered on the Gospel, he shows that we need more than the latest parenting strategy or list of techniques. Rather, we need to rescuing grace of God- grace that has the power to shape how we view everything we do as parents. Freed from the burden of trying to manufacture life-change in our children's hearts, we can embrace a grand perspective of parenting overflowing with vision, purpose and joy.

The Samson Syndrome- is written by Mark Atteberry. The story of Samson is the perfect vehicle to reveal the twelve tendencies that can bring down strong men: disregarding their boundaries, struggling with lust, ignoring good advice, overestimating their own cleverness, and others. Written in compassionate, funny, and practical style, The Samson Syndrome offers readers powerful ideas for making sure they use their greatest strengths to honor God in every situation. Led by Randy Callahan. 

The Chosen Season 4 – Based on the TV Series created by Dallas Jenkins

This is a creative small group setting in which participants will alternate between watching an episode of the Chosen one week. The next week the participants will have the opportunity to read through and discuss the Scriptures used to make the episode they watched the previous week. This has proved to be an exciting new way to study the Bible and have the opportunity to discuss the way we form our interpretations of what the Bible is teaching.

Perceiving and Practicing Your Power in Prayer

John Morgan will lead this 14-week discipleship small group helping believers learn to pray more effectively. Sessions will begin with a reflection time, a teaching session, a “practice” session of prayer time, and will end with assigned reading and “homework” for the next week. Topical Outline: 1. Practicing Prayer; 2. Pursuing God in Prayer; 3. Praying in Private; 4. Praying with Partners and in Public; 5. Historic Prayer and Revival; 6. Praying the Word; 7. Faith and Effectual Prayer; 8. Fervency/Persistence in Prayer; 9. Prayer and Fasting; 10. Intercessory Prayer; 11. Prayer for Divine Healing; 12. Spiritual Warfare Added to Prayer; 13. Legal Power in the Courts of Heaven; 14. Reflection/Summary.