Location: Open Door Church Mountain View (1667 Miramonte Avenue, Mountain View, 94040) in the Fellowship Hall. (Note that Open Door Church Mountain View is located on the campus of First Presbyterian Church of Mountain View at the corner of Miramonte and Cuesta.) See ODCMV.org for more information about Open Door Church Mountain View.
Time: Tuesdays, 7-9 p.m., July 6 - August 24
Sign Up: See below for details on what each of our four groups will be studying. If you are sure that you are coming and know which group you’d like to be a part of, please contact the facilitator before the first meeting to let them know so they can plan accordingly. (The facilitators’ emails are listed below with their group's description.)
If you’re not sure about whether you're coming or which group to join, please feel welcome to just show up on the first night and select a group at that time. For the sake of continuity, people are encouraged to stay in the same group throughout the summer.
NOTE: The study on the topic of "Money" has been canceled for this summer's session. Those of you who expressed an interest in that study are encouraged to consider joining in on one of the other studies below.
Group 1 – Bible Study
Applying God’s word to our daily lives for the purpose of His glory and our transformation
Facilitator: Dave Gutierrez
Email: dbgutierrez@yahoo.com
Details: During the eight weeks of our study we will review and discuss designated Bible passages from both the Old and the New Testaments. Each week an assigned chapter or a set of verses will be reviewed and discussed in effort to learn how we, as individuals, can apply God’s word to our daily lives. The goals and discussion topics of each week’s designated passage will include asking how this Word from God enables us to:
- Receive God’s love?
- Show our love for God?
- Serve God and others today?
- Apply it to our daily lives for the purpose of sanctification and transformation?
- Dedicate our lives and our actions to God and his glory?
- Mature and enable us to grow in Christ in our walk as Christians and children of God?
Prepare Ahead: Reading, pondering and praying over the selected passages ahead of time will enhance our discussion time. Week 1, July 6: Philippians 4:4-9 and James 4; Week 2, July 13: Psalm 37.
Group 2 – "I told me so"
Self deception and the Christian Life
Facilitator: Andrea Kwan
Email: andrea.kwan@gmail.com
Details: This group will read and discuss the book, "I told me so" - Self-deception and the Christian Life, by Gregg Ten Elshof, philosophy professor at Biola University. Topics for discussion will include:
- How self-deception manifests itself in our lives
- Why we engage in it, how it prevents us from experiencing the fullness of the Gospel
- What we can do to better manage it
Prepare Ahead: You are encouraged to purchase the book and read chapter 1 prior to our first meeting.
Group 3 – Spiritual Formation
Insights from history on deepening your relationship with Christ
Facilitator: Gennaro Kukonu
Email: gennaro.j.kukonu@alumni.upenn.edu
Details: The great endeavor of the Christian life is to pursue God simply with the intent of knowing Him. When we simply seek to know Jesus, not for His benefits, but to grow deeper in our relationship with Him, we begin to know the infallible character of the mighty God we serve, and to value what is most important to Him. Then, when we share the Lord Jesus with others, we do not come to them with empty religion, but have the authority to testify about the Jesus we already know.
This study will challenge and inspire us to deepen our relationships with Jesus, through a series of brief studies focusing on the insights of spiritual leaders from different eras of history, representative of the great spiritual traditions, which collectively form a balanced Christian life.
- July 6: Preparing for the Spiritual Life
- July 13: The Prayer Filled Life (Contemplative Tradition)
- July 20: The Virtuous Life (The Holiness Tradition)
- July 27: The Spirit Empowered Life (The Charismatic Tradition)
- August 3: The Compassionate Life (The Social Justice Tradition)
- August 10: The Word-Centered Life (The Evangelical Tradition)
- August 17: The Sacramental Life (The Incarnational Tradition)
Prepare Ahead: You are encouraged to pray for our study time together, that God’s Spirit will be present; guiding us as we seek His wisdom for living the abundant life Jesus came to give us.
Group 4 – Servant-hood
Who wants to be a servant, anyway!?
Facilitator: Mark Hanson-Kahn
Email: markhk1@yahoo.com
Details: Most of the time, if we’re honest, we prefer the idea of serving ourselves rather than being a “servant” to someone else. But both our spiritual reality and the reality of much of our daily activity is that we are servants. In the Bible, the word servant or slave is used almost 1,000 times! The concept of “doulos,” or “bond-servant,” is prominent in the Scripture. Jesus spoke of himself as a servant. Paul called himself a servant. The Bible refers often to being God’s servant. In this group we will discuss “Being a Servant as a Way of Life” and will practice this by planning the Carnival for Signs of Hope camp. The eight week syllabus is as follows:
- July 6: Introduction - Should we really think of ourselves as slaves?
- July 13: Domestic Doormats or Equal Partners? - Servant-hood and your family for single adults
- July 20: Self Assertion vs. Humble Servitude - Servant-hood and work
- July 27: Giving and Taking: How much and to whom? - Servant-hood and Christian community and friends
- Aug 3: To Sacrifice or not to Sacrifice, that is the question! - Servant-hood and mission
- Aug 10: How to work with foster kids
- Aug 17: Finalization of Signs of Hope Camp Carnival
- Wednesday, August 18: Carnival at Signs of Hope Camp
- Aug 24: Summer Impact Celebration
Prepare Ahead: You are encouraged to pray for our time together, that God’s Spirit will be present, guiding us as we seek His empowering presence in our lives, enabling us to follow His example in serving others as He serves us.
We hope to see you there!
