This week's chapter
One chapter a week for your group, following the church year. Read it slowly, sit with the prompt, and talk through three questions. The week changes every Sunday.
Scan for this week's chapter: stillingwaves.com/bible/this-week/
The coming weeks
All the readings
Advent Isaiah 40
After warfare and exile, God's first word is comfort. If you feel your way is hidden from him, picture the Shepherd carrying you close, and wait for renewed strength.
Three questions for the group
- Read Isaiah 40 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What would it be like to let yourself be small for a moment, and find that a relief rather than a threat?
- What word of God has outlasted your changing seasons?
For leaders
Advent Isaiah 55
Why spend your strength on what never satisfies? God invites the thirsty and the penniless to his table. Name your deepest hunger, and receive what he freely offers.
Three questions for the group
- Read Isaiah 55 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you find it hard to believe that his mercy is wider than your own?
- What has he spoken into your life that has not yet visibly grown?
For leaders
Advent Isaiah 41
Little Jacob is called a worm, yet God promises to hold his right hand. Feel your smallness without shame, and let God take your hand for today's road.
Three questions for the group
- Read Isaiah 41 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What have you been nailing in place, hoping it will steady you?
- What changes when you hear yourself addressed as chosen, and never thrown away?
For leaders
Advent Luke 1
Zechariah doubted and fell silent; Mary questioned and said yes. Somewhere between them is your own response to God's promise. Speak it to him honestly today.
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Who has been an Elizabeth for you, recognizing God's work in you before you could put it into words?
- Whom could you greet that way?
For leaders
Christmas Luke 2
Simeon looked for Israel's comfort; the widow Anna never left the temple. Both saw the promised child. What long waiting are you carrying? Let them keep you company.
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 2 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What are you being asked to hold without understanding?
- How might you keep it near God rather than forcing an answer?
For leaders
Christmas John 1
Two men began following Jesus, and he turned and asked what they were seeking, then invited them to stay the day. Spend this moment simply staying where he is.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What doubts or prejudices do you bring to Jesus?
- What would it look like to bring them along rather than waiting until they are gone?
For leaders
Epiphany Matthew 2
The wise men followed a star a long way, knelt, then went home by another road. What light is drawing you now, and which old road might God be closing?
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 2 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What does this chapter show you about God?
- Where does this chapter meet your week?
For leaders
The Baptism of the Lord Mark 1
Before dawn, with a whole town at the door, Jesus slipped away to a lonely place to pray. Where could you find your own quiet place before today's demands arrive?
Three questions for the group
- Read Mark 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where in your life do you feel untouchable?
- Where have you been more confident of God's power than of his willingness toward you?
For leaders
Ash Wednesday Psalm 51
After Nathan's visit, David hid nothing. Bring God the thing you would rather not name, and ask not only for pardon but for a new heart and restored joy.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 51 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What inward place have you kept closed, even from yourself?
- What praise have you not been able to voice?
For leaders
Lent Psalm 91
Dwell for a moment in the shelter of the Most High, as a chick tucked under wings. What night terrors or daytime arrows do you need to bring under there?
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 91 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you need company more than an explanation?
- In what ways might you be treating God's promises as a test he must pass?
For leaders
Lent John 3
Nicodemus came by night with careful questions, and Jesus spoke of wind no one can track. What questions do you bring to God in the dark? He welcomes them.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 3 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What would it feel like to come into the light without bracing yourself?
- Where might you, like John the Baptist, find joy in making room?
For leaders
Lent John 4
Weary by a well, Jesus asked a Samaritan woman for a drink and gently named her whole story. Let him know you that fully. What would you stop hiding?
Three questions for the group
- Read John 4 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What do you return to again and again that never quite satisfies?
- What might you set down, the way she set down her jar?
For leaders
Lent Luke 15
While the son was still far off, the father ran. Picture him running toward you, whether you are the younger son coming home or the elder standing angry outside.
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 15 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- In what corner of your life do you feel lost and unlooked for?
- What celebration might you be refusing to join?
For leaders
Lent John 11
Near Lazarus' tomb, Jesus wept alongside Mary before calling his friend out. He does not hurry past your grief. Let him stand with you at whatever tomb you face.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 11 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where does God seem to have arrived late in your life, and what would it be like to tell him so as plainly as Martha did?
- Who might you help unbind, and who might help unbind you?
For leaders
Holy Week Luke 23
Dying beside Jesus, a criminal asked only to be remembered and was promised paradise that day. If you had one sentence left to say to him, what would it be?
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 23 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you see hope in this chapter?
- What is hard or puzzling here? Talk about it honestly.
For leaders
Easter Day John 20
Mary did not recognize Jesus through her tears until he spoke her name. Be quiet for a moment and imagine him saying yours, in a voice that knows you completely.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 20 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What doors have you locked lately, and what are you afraid of behind them?
- What honest conditions have you, like Thomas, set for God?
For leaders
Easter Luke 24
On the Emmaus road two grieving friends walked beside Jesus without knowing him until he broke the bread. Where might he be walking beside you, unrecognized, in a sad season?
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 24 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where has your hope slipped into the past tense?
- What would it be like to tell Jesus the whole story, as they did?
For leaders
Easter John 21
Over breakfast by a charcoal fire, Jesus asked Peter three times whether he loved him, echoing three denials. Let him ask you too, and answer honestly.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 21 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you return when you feel lost?
- Whose story do you find yourself comparing with your own?
For leaders
Easter Psalm 23
Notice where you are hurrying today. Let the Shepherd slow you to the pace of grazing sheep. What table is he setting for you, even with trouble nearby?
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 23 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where are you walking at present, in green pasture or in shadow?
- Lately, how much have you been talking about God, and how much to him?
For leaders
Easter John 14
Thomas admitted he did not know the way, and Jesus answered with himself. Bring him the question you are most afraid to ask, and listen for his peace.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 14 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What are you still waiting to see before you feel settled?
- What kind of peace does the world offer you, and how is it different from the peace Jesus leaves?
For leaders
Easter John 15
A branch does not strain to make grapes; it simply stays joined to the vine. What would it look like today to stop straining and simply remain in his love?
Three questions for the group
- Read John 15 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- How do you usually picture yourself before God: as a servant, a visitor, or a friend?
- What has been cut back in your life lately?
For leaders
Easter John 17
Before his arrest Jesus prayed not only for his friends but for all who would believe through them. Rest in this: long ago, you were already in his prayer.
Three questions for the group
- Read John 17 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you most need keeping right now, rather than rescue?
- Who are you divided from, that you could pray for today?
For leaders
Pentecost Acts 2
At Pentecost the Spirit is poured out, and visitors from many lands hear God's deeds in their own languages. Ask the Spirit to fill you and speak to your heart.
Three questions for the group
- Read Acts 2 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you most long for the Spirit's life in your days?
- When do you count yourself too ordinary for God's gift?
For leaders
Trinity Sunday Matthew 28
On the mountain some worshiped and some doubted, yet Jesus sent them all with the promise of his presence. Bring him your mixed heart; he goes with you.
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 28 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What mixed feelings are you holding toward God right now?
- Whom have you written off, perhaps even yourself, that Jesus might still call family?
For leaders
The Sunday before Advent Revelation 21
God makes his home among his people, and every sorrow ends. Bring your grief into the light of a city whose lamp is the Lamb.
Three questions for the group
- Read Revelation 21 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What in you, or in the world, do you long to see made new?
- What thirst could you name before God right now?
For leaders
Ordinary time Romans 8
When you cannot find words, the Spirit prays within you. Rest in that, and list the fears you carry; not one can separate you from God's love.
Three questions for the group
- Read Romans 8 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Which comes most easily to you: approaching God as a judge, an employer, or a Father?
- Where do you need to trust that he is working, though you cannot yet see it?
For leaders
Ordinary time Philippians 4
Instead of carrying worry alone, turn each anxious thought into a request with thanks attached. Then dwell for a while on whatever is lovely, and let peace stand guard.
Three questions for the group
- Read Philippians 4 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What would you need in order to be at rest today, and how large is that need, really?
- Who has stood with you in hard times, as the Philippians stood with Paul?
For leaders
Ordinary time Genesis 1
Before anything else existed, God spoke light into the dark and called it good. Let the steady rhythm of evening and morning remind you who made you.
Three questions for the group
- Read Genesis 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- You were made in the image of this God, and so was every person you will meet today. How might that change the way you look at a stranger, or at your own face in the mirror?
- Where in your life does something still feel without form?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 1
Picture a tree rooted beside running water, bearing fruit in its own season. Which streams are you drinking from this week, and which counsel is quietly shaping your steps?
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What words do you find yourself murmuring through an ordinary day?
- What phrase from Scripture could you carry with you this week, repeating it until it begins to repeat itself?
For leaders
Ordinary time Matthew 5
Read slowly through the blessings Jesus speaks over the grieving, the gentle, those hungry for righteousness, and the peacemakers. Which one lands on you today? Receive it as a gift.
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 5 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Who might you need to make peace with before your prayer feels honest?
- Whom do you find it hardest to pray for?
For leaders
Ordinary time Matthew 6
Birds that store nothing, wildflowers dressed finer than Solomon: Jesus points to both. Name one worry about tomorrow, then leave it with the Father who already knows your need.
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 6 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where has your heart been drifting this week?
- Whom are you finding it hard to release from a debt?
For leaders
Ordinary time Matthew 7
Two houses, one storm; the difference was the ground underneath. Where are you hearing without doing, and what small act of obedience could lay one stone on rock?
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 7 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Whose small faults have you been studying closely lately?
- What have you stopped asking for?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 46
Even if the ground feels like it is giving way, there is a river that gladdens God's city. Be still for a minute, and simply know that he is God.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 46 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What feels like shaking ground in your life?
- Where are you longing for morning?
For leaders
Ordinary time Romans 12
Offer your ordinary day, your body, your work, your meals, as worship. Then think of one person to bless today, perhaps someone who has made life hard.
Three questions for the group
- Read Romans 12 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Whose joy is hard for you to share right now?
- Whose sorrow have you tried to fix rather than stay with?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 139
You were known before you were born. There is nowhere you could go, not even the dark, where God is not already there. Let him search your heart.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 139 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Which is harder for you to believe: that God knows you completely, or that he looks on what he knows with kindness?
- What in you would you rather he had not noticed?
For leaders
Ordinary time Luke 10
Martha's welcome was real, but worry pulled her in many directions while Mary sat listening. Set down one task for a few minutes and simply sit at his feet.
Three questions for the group
- Read Luke 10 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Jesus asks not who qualifies as a neighbor, but who acted like one. Who is lying on your road this week?
- What does this chapter show you about God?
For leaders
Ordinary time 1 Corinthians 13
Read slowly through love's qualities and put your own name in their place. Where does it ring true, and where do you need God's patient kindness most?
Three questions for the group
- Read 1 Corinthians 13 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What tally have you been keeping, perhaps for years?
- What do you know only in part about God, and how might that partial knowledge be enough for today?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 121
As you go out today and come home tonight, picture a Keeper who never dozes off. Whatever you leave unwatched while you sleep, he is still watching.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 121 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What hills are in front of you this week?
- Where have you been looking for help, and what has that cost you?
For leaders
Ordinary time Ephesians 2
You were once far off, a stranger outside the household, and now you belong. Picture a wall coming down between you and someone else. What would peace look like?
Three questions for the group
- Read Ephesians 2 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Who do you quietly keep on the far side of a wall, a person or a group?
- Where are you still trying to earn a welcome that has already been given?
For leaders
Ordinary time Matthew 11
From prison John sent a doubting question, and Jesus answered him kindly. Later he invited the weary to share his easy yoke. Bring him your doubts and your tiredness together.
Three questions for the group
- Read Matthew 11 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- How might you keep God at arm's length by finding fault with how he comes to you?
- In verse 29 Jesus describes his own heart as gentle and humble. What would it mean to learn from someone like that?
For leaders
Ordinary time Philippians 2
Christ did not cling to his status but stooped to serve, all the way to the cross. Where could you lower yourself today so that someone else is lifted?
Three questions for the group
- Read Philippians 2 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where are you anxious to protect your standing?
- Who has quietly served you, and how might you thank them?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 103
Name, slowly, some of God's benefits to you: forgiveness, healing, rescue, kindness. Then rest in this: he knows you are dust, and he is tender with you as a father.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 103 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What would it be like to stop carrying something God has already carried away?
- What part of your inner life needs waking today?
For leaders
Ordinary time Colossians 3
Each morning you choose what to wear. Today, picture yourself putting on compassion, kindness, humility, and patience, and over everything, love. Whom will you meet wearing them?
Three questions for the group
- Read Colossians 3 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Whom do you find it hardest to bear with just now?
- Where might thankfulness, mentioned more than once in verses 15 to 17, soften your day?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 27
If you could ask God for only one thing, what would it be? Sit with that desire, then answer his invitation to seek his face, and wait.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 27 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you most need light today?
- What old abandonment have you never quite told God about?
For leaders
Ordinary time Mark 4
A farmer scatters seed, sleeps and rises, and the grain grows in ways he cannot explain. What growth can you leave to God without needing to watch it?
Three questions for the group
- Read Mark 4 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Most of us have known the hard path, the shallow joy, the crowded thorns and the good soil, sometimes in a single week. Which one sounds like your inner life at present?
- The disciples wake him with something closer to an accusation than a prayer, asking whether he cares at all. Notice that he calms the wind before he questions their fear. When have you spoken to God like that?
For leaders
Ordinary time 2 Corinthians 4
A treasure carried in a fragile clay vessel: that is you. Name what feels cracked or worn today, and let God's light show through those very places.
Three questions for the group
- Read 2 Corinthians 4 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What are you looking at most today: the things that are seen, or the things that are not?
- What is wearing out in you, and where might renewal be happening unnoticed?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 34
Taste something slowly today and let it remind you that God's goodness is meant to be tasted, not just believed. Is your heart broken anywhere? He is near there.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 34 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What has your gaze been resting on this week?
- What peace have you hoped for but not yet pursued, a call or a conversation?
For leaders
Ordinary time Hebrews 11
Abraham set out not knowing where he was going, and many died still looking ahead to promises. Where are you walking by faith without a map? Tell God honestly.
Three questions for the group
- Read Hebrews 11 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- How much does your faith depend on things turning out well?
- Where are you living as a stranger, longing for a home you cannot yet see?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 42
Speak to your own soul as this psalmist did, honestly naming its thirst and its sadness. Then remind it, gently, that you will yet praise God.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 42 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What was a season like when worship felt full and easy, and what is it like now?
- What do you remember of God that you miss?
For leaders
Ordinary time James 1
James pictures someone glancing in a mirror and walking away, forgetting their own face. What word from God have you heard and not yet lived? Ask for wisdom to begin.
Three questions for the group
- Read James 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- When did you last listen fully before answering?
- Which good gift have you overlooked this week?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 62
Sit in silence for a minute, waiting for God alone, with nothing else propping you up. Then pour out whatever is in your heart. He can hold it all.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 62 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where are you leaning on something that weighs less than a breath?
- Which do you find harder to trust, God's strength or his love?
For leaders
Ordinary time 1 Peter 5
Peter invites you to hand your worries to a God who cares. Name each worry slowly, and place it in his strong, gentle hands.
Three questions for the group
- Read 1 Peter 5 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Who near you carries a weight you could help with?
- What would it look like to lead or serve without lording it over anyone?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 130
From whatever depth you are in, call out. God does not keep a ledger of your wrongs. Wait for him the way a night watchman waits for the first light.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 130 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What are you waiting for right now?
- Which of God's promises are you leaning your weight on while you wait?
For leaders
Ordinary time Ephesians 6
Truth, peace, faith, salvation, the word: piece by piece, God's armor is offered to you. Which piece do you most need today? Ask for it, then pray for someone else.
Three questions for the group
- Read Ephesians 6 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where do you feel worn down today?
- What might courage look like for you this week?
For leaders
Ordinary time Isaiah 43
Called by name, precious in God's sight: hear these words as spoken to you. What waters are you passing through, and can you trust he is in them with you?
Three questions for the group
- Read Isaiah 43 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What old rescue do you keep looking back to, when God may be doing something new in plain sight?
- In what ways have you grown weary of him that you could admit now?
For leaders
Ordinary time Psalm 90
Before the mountains were born, God was home for his people. Number your days with that in mind, and ask him to make the work of your hands last.
Three questions for the group
- Read Psalm 90 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- How have you been spending your mornings lately?
- What would it look like to begin tomorrow by asking for God's love before anything else?
For leaders
Ordinary time 1 John 4
Love does not begin with us; God loved first. Let that settle. What fear might loosen its grip if you let yourself be loved that completely?
Three questions for the group
- Read 1 John 4 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Who is hardest for you to love at present?
- Where does fear, in the sense of verse 18, still shape how you pray or act?
For leaders
Ordinary time Isaiah 53
The Servant is despised, silent before his accusers, carrying what was ours to carry. Christians have long seen Jesus here. Sit quietly before him and receive the healing he offers.
Three questions for the group
- Read Isaiah 53 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where have you misjudged someone's suffering, or your own?
- What would it mean to count yourself among the “we” of verses 4 to 6, and also among the many he carries?
For leaders
Ordinary time Ruth 1
Naomi comes home empty and asks to be called bitter, and Ruth simply stays beside her. Bring God your own honest grief, and notice who has refused to leave you.
Three questions for the group
- Read Ruth 1 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where might God be at work in your life quietly, offstage, without announcing himself?
- What would it sound like to say both your bitterness and your blessing aloud to God?
For leaders
Ordinary time Exodus 14
Trapped between the sea and Pharaoh's chariots, the people are told to stand still and see the LORD's salvation. Where do you need to be still and wait?
Three questions for the group
- Read Exodus 14 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- Where are you tempted to return to something that once held you captive?
- What would it look like to be still and keep moving?
For leaders
Ordinary time 1 Kings 19
Exhausted and wishing to die, Elijah is fed by an angel and meets God not in wind, quake or fire, but in a quiet voice. Rest, eat, and listen.
Three questions for the group
- Read 1 Kings 19 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- If God asked what you are doing here, what speech would you give, and how long have you been repeating it?
- What might be true that your tiredness keeps you from seeing?
For leaders
Ordinary time Galatians 5
Read the fruit of the Spirit slowly, like a harvest you are invited to walk through. Which one is ripening in you, and which still needs time and sunlight?
Three questions for the group
- Read Galatians 5 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What old yoke do you find yourself reaching for?
- Where are you just now: rushing ahead of the Spirit, lagging behind, or walking close beside?
For leaders
Ordinary time Ecclesiastes 3
Which season are you in: planting or uprooting, weeping or dancing? Rest in the One who makes things beautiful in their time and set eternity in your heart.
Three questions for the group
- Read Ecclesiastes 3 aloud, slowly. Which word or phrase stays with you?
- What part of today could you receive as a gift rather than a task?
- Which of your questions might simply be allowed to stay open for now?
For leaders