Thursday, December 25, 2008

The Great Sadness - the story of Mack's loss

1. Mack’s loss of his daughter Missy resulted in "The Great Sadness," a suffocating burden of grief, guilt, and pain. Can you relate to his disappointment? What events in your own life, or the lives of friends and family members have made you doubt God's love - maybe even his existence?


How have you responded to these disappointments with God?


2. What was your relationship with the church during this difficult time in your life? Did other believers help or hinder you? In what ways?


3. Would you be willing to share your faith journey with the group?


4. In your opinion, what was the significance of the Legend of the Indian Princess? (pg.27-31)?


The sacrifice of the Indian Princess required by the Great Spirit in the legend, and the sacrifice of Christ by God, made Missy think both were ‘mean.’ Have you ever thought the God of the Bible is mean? If so, why?

5. Let's look at an example in the Bible where God seemed cruel to better understand how God might deal with us. Please turn to the book of Job 1:8-12.

The Lord asks Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil.”

Satan replied to the Lord, “Yes, but Job has good reason to fear God. You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is! But reach out and take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!”

“All right, you may test him,” the Lord said to Satan. “Do whatever you want with everything he possesses, but don’t harm him physically.” So Satan destroyed Job's wealth and family.

Job 1: 20-22 Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. He said,

“I came naked from my mother’s womb,
and I will be naked when I leave.
The Lord gave me what I had,
and the Lord has taken it away.
Praise the name of the Lord!”

In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.

Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?

What if these tragedies had happened to you? Could you have responded in worship?

In your opinion, what gives a believer the confidence in God to respond this way?

6. It gets even worse. Please turn to Job 2:3-10

Then the Lord asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil. And he has maintained his integrity, even though you urged me to harm him without cause.” Satan replied to the Lord, “Skin for skin! A man will give up everything he has to save his life. But reach out and take away his health, and he will surely curse you to your face!”

“All right, do with him as you please,” the Lord said to Satan. “But spare his life.” So Satan left the Lord’s presence, and he struck Job with terrible boils from head to foot. Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.”

But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.

In Job 19:25-26 he says, “But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God!”

Job's friends thought God was punishing him for sin. His wife thought he was being a religious phony. In spite of this, Job continued to trust God. In your opinion, what made Job's faith so resilient?

What can we do to keep or faith from crumbling?


7. During Job's intense suffering, God was silent. Like Mack, Job also experienced a 'great sadness.' He cursed the day of his birth and expressed his anger at God's unfair treatment. Finally, in Job 38-41, God responded to Job. As you glance through these chapters, how does God's response to Job compare with his response to Mack in The Shack?


Do you think God's response to Job was harsh? In James 5:11, Jesus' brother writes, "We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy." Why do you think James viewed God's response to Job as 'full of tenderness and mercy?"


8. In Job 42:1-6, after God had finished challenging Job, he replied to the Lord: “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’ It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me.


You said, ‘Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.’ I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”

How does Job's response to tragedy compare to Mack's?


9. Based on Job's story, how should we respond to life's disappointments and tragedies? How can we do this without feeling phony?


10. If you had the opportunity to meet with God like Mack, what would you ask him? Based on our study today, how do you think he might respond?

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Introduction

The Shack is an unlikely success story. Written by first-time author, William Paul Young, a former office manager and hotel night clerk from Oregon, the novel was rejected by several publishers. Self-published in 2007, it soon became a best seller. The Shack has maintained its position as #1 on the NY Times Best Seller list for 29 straight weeks with over 5 million in print (as of 12/24/08).

Young originally wrote The Shack as a Christmas gift for his 6 children with no intention of publishing it. After letting several friends read the book, he was urged to make it available to the public. Young and his two partners formed Wind Blown Media (http://windblownmedia.com) with the sole purpose of publishing this book. The Shack has achieved its success almost entirely by word-of-mouth.

The author explained in a telephone interview that the title is a metaphor for “the house you build out of your own pain." He described it on a radio talk show as "a metaphor for the places you get stuck, you get hurt, you get damaged...the thing where shame or hurt is centered." Readers are moved by the depths of Mack's suffering, his resulting "great sadness," and his amazing discovery of a God whose love makes sense of a tragic life.

The plot is based on the story of Mackenzie (Mack) Philips, who has lost his youngest daughter to a serial killer. Mack's journey of honest questioning bring the reader to a surprising discovery. In the process of facing his pain Mack meets with God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.

The three persons of the Trinity appear to Mack as three distinct personalities, "Papa," a jovial African American , "Jesus," an approachable Jewish carpenter, and "Sarayu," a mysterious Indian gardener. Mack experiences the love these three share with one another, and begins to understand the depth of God's love for him.

The Shack is a spiritual catalyst. It raises questions about who God is and how he works in our lives. This blog is intended to provide a study guide that will help lead users into a deeper relationship with their Creator and each other.