DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Choose the questions for your group; no pressure to use all of them.
Start Off
- When you hear the word “kindness,” what comes to mind first? How has that definition changed (if at all)?
- Share a recent moment when someone showed you kindness. Why did it stick with you?
Reflect on God’s Word
- Read Luke 10:25-37. Why do you think the priest and Levite passed by the injured man? What pressures or fears might have influenced them?
- What makes the Samaritan’s actions so surprising or challenging in that cultural context?
- How does Jesus shift the question from “Who is my neighbor?” to “What does it look like to be a neighbor?”
- What thoughts come to mind for you as you reflect on Jesus’ words “Go and do likewise”
Go Deeper
- Eric shared a recipe for kindness: “a soft heart and tender action.” Where in your life do you feel your heart becoming hardened (toward a person, group, or situation), and what are some subtle ways we justify not being kind?
- Who is someone in your daily life that God may be putting in front of you right now?
- What does “tender action” look like in your current season (home, work, church, community)? 4. Read Colossians 3:12. How can our group/church be known for kindness in a divided culture?
Pray
- Go around, share prayer requests and things to be thankful for, and pray for one another.
- End your time in prayer by reading: God of KINDNESS, by the power of the Holy Spirit, fill us with your KINDNESS, so that it will overflow out if us, each day and every way, in the week ahead…Amen.
VERSE TO MEDITATE ON AND MEMORIZE THIS WEEK
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (Colossians 3:12, NIV)
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE (BETWEEN MEETINGS)
Day 1 - Heart Awareness
- Scripture: “Search me, God, and know my heart… See if there is any offensive way in me.” Psalm 139:23-24
- Practice: Ask God to reveal any hardness in your heart.
- Action: Write down one person or group you’ve struggled to feel compassion toward.
- Prayer: “God, soften my heart where it has become resistant.”
Day 2 - See People Fully
- Scripture: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition… Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.” Philippians 2:3-4
- Practice: Slow down and intentionally notice people around you.
- Action: Learn something new about someone (coworker, neighbor, cashier).
- Focus: Replace assumptions with curiosity.
Day 3 - Small Acts of Kindness
- Scripture: “Let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” 1 John 3:18
- Practice: Do one simple, intentional act of kindness.
- Ideas: Encourage someone, send a thoughtful message, or help meet a small need.
- Goal: Move from a soft heart to tender action.
Day 4 - Use Your Strength for Others
- Scripture: “Do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.” Galatians 5:13
- Practice: Identify a form of “power” you have (time, influence, resources, words).
- Action: Use it to benefit someone else intentionally.
- Reflection: How did that feel different from using it for yourself?
Day 5 - Be a Neighbor
- Scripture: “Which of these … was a neighbor? … The one who had mercy … Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:36-37
- Practice: Ask, “Who is in front of me today?”
- Action: Go out of your way to care for someone you might normally overlook.
- Prayer: “Jesus, help me go and do likewise.