Summit Student Ministries

God made the human brain. He made everything actually. He knows what we need. He knows what helps us. He understands Science. The act of being thankful has been shown to improve mood, and actually bring health to our physical bodies.  Being thankful is more than just an idea, it is a conscious decision. It is a decisive act. It is something you do on purpose with your own will power and volition. It is something you do that can actually shift your mood and your mindset. I would compare it to working out. Being thankful releases endorphins in your brain and helps you feel better.  https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain  What does the Bible say about being thankful? 2 Chronicles 5:13 The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: "He is good, His love endures forever." Then

 Hee-Haw Jesus rode into town on a donkey, the week before he was to be crucified and set all of humanity free from death and destruction and the grave. He rode in a donkey. We have heard this story one million times, but this time reading it through hit me differently. Jesus was perfect. Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice for our sin because he had no sin. He carried perfection, holiness and purity in every step. His heart was never polluted with any hateful thought or bitter feeling or jealous strain. His mind never thought one sinful thought. His mouth said nothing unholy. I am in awe of this fact. I am overwhelmed in thinking that Jesus walked this earth for me, so that I could have eternity with Him. Everything Jesus did here on earth points to God and has fulfilled some epic prophecy. Jesus was mentioned and foretold to be born in Bethlehem. He fulfilled a prophecy that he would die and live again. Amazingly, this has never happened to me. I did not have my birth foretold. I have y

Mary came from family with three children. She was the youngest. She had an older sister Martha, and a brother Lazarus. Lazarus became ill and died. Jesus steppe into the scene and raised Lazarus from the dead! Lazarus is obviously grateful and is a legend in an of himself. Mary thought her life with her brother was done. She had to say goodbye to him and grieve his life. When Lazarus was returned to her and brought back to life, her only response was gratefulness and pure unadulterated worship. She forgot about the cost of things. She poured her most expensive and valuable item on the feet of Jesus.  When you walk through death and the trauma and grief that accompany death, only to have the Lord restore all that was lost, your perspective and values shift. They shift unexplainably. People who have not walked through the valley of the shadow of death or have not experienced what you have experienced will see your act of worship as foolish. Judas accused this pure hearted worship and af

 Jesus raised Lazarus back to life by saying 3 words: Lazarus, come forth. We do not need to complicate our prayers or elongate our prayers to help entice God to answer us. God hears every word we say and desires to answer us in the way we need Him to answer. God's answer is always better than our answer. He has better ideas than we every could. Martha ran out to meet Jesus after her brother had died. Jesus said to roll the stone away. Martha did not have instant faith. Instead she had a human, passive aggressive response. She told Jesus (who knows everything) that if they rolled the stone away, there would be an odor because Lazarus had been in the grave for 4 days. Jesus knew Lazarus was in there for 4 days. Jesus knows everything. Martha wanted to remind Jesus that he was late to the miracle. Martha wanted to remind Jesus that he was late to answer her prayer. Martha wanted to let Jesus know that she was mad and upset that Jesus hadn't come sooner to answer her prayer in the

 Chapter 1 :  Jesus is the light of the World  1. Read John 1: 19-28. 2. What do you notice about John the Baptist? 3. Read John 1:35-42 4. John the Baptists lost disciples to Jesus. Why did that not bother John? 5. What new name did Jesus give to Simon? 6. Read John 1:48-51 7. Jesus had a prophetic vision and saw Nathanael without physically being there. How did Jesus do this? 8. Bible Reading 9. Prayer Needs Chapter 2 : Wine Miracle / Cleansing the house 1. What stood out to you in this episode 2. Read John 2:1-12 3. How did Jesus treat his mother? 4. This was His first miracle. Why did he do it? (verse 11) 5. Read John 2:13-25 6. It says zeal for His Father's house will consume him. What other time was Jesus at his Father's house? 7. Verse 19 Jesus is speaking prophetically about what? 8. Verse 24 and 25 speak about Jesus and people's opinion of him. Did Jesus need people's approval? Chapter 3 :  Nicodemus Questioning Jesus / John the Baptist pointing to Jesus for sa

The Pharisees were fans of Grumbling. Jesus made one of the most audacious claims - He claimed to be the Bread of Life that has come down from heaven. *insert massive Pharisee eye roll. The facts they knew about Jesus were somehow contradicting the words Jesus was speaking before them. Here were the facts: Jesus was from Nazareth. Jesus had a mother Mary. Jesus had a father Joseph. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Yet...Jesus is saying that He came down from Heaven...ok. Pharisees assume Jesus is from the loony bin. Jesus regains some logical coherency with the Pharisees in verse 43 - 51. He starts describing the benefits of eating and partaking in the Bread of Life and eternal life. This sounds like a great deal! What a reward. I would love to eat bread and never hunger again. I would love to have all my needs met through eating delicious bread. I picture the Pharisees mentally coming back around after Jesus has spoken some of these persuasive and encouraging words. Jesus is leading them