Small group discussion 11.05

Key Scripture Passages

-Numbers 21:4-9 - The Bronze Snake

-Job 6:1-13- Job's Response to Suffering

-John 3:14-15- Jesus as the Bronze Snake

Opening Prayer & Icebreaker: Share about a time when you thought something would be easier

than it turned out to be. How did you respond?

Discussion Questions

Part 1: How Did We Get Here? (15 minutes)

1. Israel avoided the "good difficulty" of entering the Promised Land and ended up wandering in

the wilderness for 40 years. Can you think of a time when avoiding a necessary challenge led to

greater difficulty later?

2. "How did we get here?" Why is this question so important when we face difficulty? What

keeps us from asking it?

Part 2: Coping Mechanisms

3. Israel's coping mechanism was to complain and romanticize Egypt (their past slavery). What

are some common unhealthy coping mechanisms we use when facing difficulty?

4. "Biting the hand that feeds you" versus showing gratitude. Share an example of how gratitude

has helped you (or could help you) navigate a difficult season.

Part 3: Looking to Jesus

5. God didn't remove the snakes—He provided a way through the consequence by having people

look at the bronze snake. What does this teach us about how God deals with our difficulties and

consequences?

6. "God is not fragile." How does knowing this change the way we bring our struggles,

questions, and even complaints to God?

Closing Prayer "What 'good difficulty' might God be calling me toward that I've been avoiding?"

Memory Verse: "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be

lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him." - John 3:14-15