FOUNDATION

This phase will go through the foundational elements of what it looks like to be in a personal relationship with Jesus. No matter how long you've been a believer, these concepts are crucial for our relationship with God and for helping others grow as well.

Are you struggling with wondering if you have really been saved? Do you know what it means to have "new life with Christ?"

Desired Outcomes

• To understand that because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can have confidence in our relationship with Christ. 

• We can know our salvation is secure, and that we are fully loved and accepted by God.

Opening Question

• Have you ever questioned your relationship with God, or wondered if you could lose your salvation?

Resources

• Stepping From Uncertainty to Confidence

• Stepping From Uncertainty to Confidence: Leader’s Guide

Reflection Question

• After today’s lesson, how would you describe to someone how they can be 100% sure of their salvation?

Practical Steps

• Memorize 1-2 verses from the lesson that you can turn to when you are struggling with doubt (i.e. John 3:16, 1 John 5:11-13). 

• Think of someone in your life who might need to hear this message. Plan a time to meet and walk through this lesson together. 

Additional Resources

• Worksheet: Assurance of Salvation

• Cru Article: “Your New Life in Christ” 

We live the Christian life in the power of the Holy Spirit. As we walk with God, His Spirit transforms us more and more into the image of Christ. We want to live lives dependent on the Spirit, and not on our own strength. 

Desired Outcomes

• To understand the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives, and to depend on His power to live the Christian life.
  (Did you catch that?! As fully God, we refer to the Spirit as He, not it 😀)

Opening Question

• • Can you think of a specific area in your life in which you’ve tried to live the Christian life in your own strength? What has been the result?

Resource:

• • The Spirit-Filled Life lesson from The God Tools App

    • Discussion questions (walk through the SFL tool, answering the questions along the way)

Reflection Question

• What is the importance of the Holy Spirit in our lives? 

• How can we depend on His power?

Practical Steps: 

• • Spiritual Breathing (as you saw in the SFL lesson in the GodTools app) is a helpful way to describe what it looks like to walk in the Spirit. Read through this brief article and practice it a few times this week. Record any insights in your journal, and share them with your discipler the next time you meet.  

  • After going through this lesson, spend some time with the Lord in prayer, asking Him if there is a specific area of your life in which you need His power to change?

Additional Resources:

• • Chocolate Milk Analogy (video)

  • Your New Life in the Spirit

  • How to confess and "breathe spiritually"

"Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, praise His name; proclaim His salvation day after day.
Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all peoples."
Psalm 96:1-3 NIV

Desired Outcomes

• That by looking at God’s heart for the lost we, in turn, would have compassion on those who don’t know Him and be motivated to share the Gospel.  

• Practice and growth in confidence as we initiate and navigate spiritual conversations with non-believers on campus.

Opening Question

• What feelings or emotions come up for you when you think about sharing the Gospel or having a spiritual conversation with someone who isn’t a believer?

Resource

• Read and discuss the following Bible passage:

  • Matthew 9:35-38

    • What do you notice about what Jesus did, said, and felt in this passage? (observe)

    • How should this impact the way we see non-believers and share our faith? (interpret)

    • In seeing Jesus’ response to the crowds, how would you describe the state of your own heart in this moment toward those apart from Christ? (apply)

• How to use Soularium  

  • Do a brief training on Soularium and then in pairs, practice initiating at least two conversations with students on campus. 

  • Come back together and debrief your experiences. What was challenging? What was encouraging as you talked with students?

Reflection Question

• What’s something you want to remember from today that encourages you to share the Gospel?

Practical Steps

• Take some time for a prayer walk on campus this week (bring a friend if you’d like!) and ask God to give you His eyes and heart for the students and faculty you see. 

• Ask a trusted friend who doesn’t yet know Christ if you can share your testimony with them and get their thoughts. 

• Practice doing Soularium with one of your friends. 

Additional Resources

• • God's heart for those who don't know Him

  • Other Cru Evangelism Tools

    • See the Evangelism Tools page to learn about the following tools and more:

      • KNOWING GOD PERSONALLY (KGP)

      • SOULARIUM

      • GODTOOLS (app)

      • PERSPECTIVE CARDS

"Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts."
Colossians 3:16 NIV

Desired Outcomes

• As we grow in our relationship with Christ, we mature by making certain spiritual rhythms a regular part of our lives. As we study the Word, pray, take part in a godly community, and share our faith, our roots in Christ will grow deep. 

Opening Question

• Since coming to Christ, what has caused you to grow in your faith?

Resource

• Growing in Maturity 

Reflection Question

• Following our discussion on spiritual maturity, what specific action do you feel God is prompting you to take to deepen your faith? (i.e. relating to community, time in the Word, etc)

Practical Steps

• Word and prayer: Pick one of the Gospels (John is a great place to start!), read a chapter each day, and talk to the Lord about what you are learning. 

• Fellowship: If you aren’t currently connected to a church, pick one this weekend to attend. Bring a friend with you! 

• Sharing your faith: Identify one or two people in your life who don’t know the Lord, and begin praying for them. Look for appropriate opportunities to tell them about the difference that Christ is making in your life. 

Additional Resources

• • Learn more about prayer in the lessons on prayer in Phase 3: Exploration

  • Learn more about studying the Bible in the lessons in Phase 3: Exploration

"You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit."
Ephesians 2:19-22 NIV

Desired Outcomes

• To understand that we are all one in Christ.

Opening Question

• What are your initial thoughts or experiences when you hear the phrase 'racial reconciliation'?

Resource

• What Does the Bible Have to Say About Ethnicity?

  • Go over the questions and steps in the article together.

Reflection Question

• Based on what we've read:

  • What is one practical step you can take this week to contribute to racial reconciliation, either personally or within your sphere of influence?

• What is one way your understanding or perspective on racial reconciliation has been impacted or shifted?

Practical Steps

• Take steps as laid out in the resource above.

Additional Resources

• “I am From Cards” 

  • It’s important to understand the unique culture and family we each come from. “I am From” cards are a great way to learn about each others’ backgrounds and how that impacts your life and relationship with God today. 

  • Each leader should have a deck but if you don’t, check out this website and you can see the decks online. 

• “Deeply Formed Life” (book by Rich Villodas) Read Chapters 3-4 

• Video Sermon on Racial Reconciliation (by Rich Villodas- 50 min)

• Read Ephesians 2 and respond to the following questions:

  • What caused division between the Jews and Gentile believers?

  • How could such division hurt the spreading of the early church?

  • What was Paul's response to the ethnic separation?

• “Starting Racial Reconciliation in Your Home” (pdf)

Special Note: We value dignity and oneness in all diversity. To learn more about sexual diversity, see the Compassionate & Faithful lesson in Phase 3: Exploration.

As a follower of Christ, the Bible is our foundation for understanding God and His purpose for us. We trust that the Scriptures are without error and have the authority to speak into and transform our lives. 

Desired Outcomes

• To grow in our confidence that the Bible is the inerrant, infallible Word of God, and that it has ultimate authority to speak into our lives.

Opening Question

• Have you ever wondered why we can trust the Bible to be God’s Word and/or why we are called to submit our lives to what the Scriptures say?

Resource

• Why should I trust the Bible?

Reflection Question

• After having read the article above, what gives you confidence that the Bible is from God?

Practical Steps

• Ask a friend who is not a believer if they have ever read the Bible, and what their thoughts on it are. Discuss together what you learn. 

• Brainstorm together some areas of our lives that Scripture should speak into? (i.e. how we handle conflict, dating and marriage, how we spend our money). Think through some practical examples of how God’s wisdom informs how we live in these areas. 

Additional Resources

• • Video: Why you can believe the Bible 

    • (57 min- worth it!) A great talk on why we can trust the Bible to be God’s Word. 

  • Bible Project: the Inspiration of the Bible 

    • (What does it mean that God inspired or “breathed” the Scriptures?)

We experience God’s continual love and forgiveness through the process of confession. His Spirit also empowers us to change and turn from our sin.

Desired Outcomes

• To cultivate a deeper understanding of God's forgiveness and embrace the liberating experience of confession in our personal relationship with Him.

• To know how to actually put these into practice in their daily lives (1) between ourselves and God and (2) between ourselves and others.

Opening Question

• Since coming to faith in Christ, how have you experienced His forgiveness? How has it affected the way you live?

Resource

• Stepping From Feelings of Unworthiness to Forgiveness

• Stepping From Feelings of Unworthiness to Forgiveness: Leader’s Guide

  • Discussion questions (refer to the article for questions)

Reflection Question

• What is the purpose of confession in our relationship with God?

Practical Steps

• Practice incorporating daily confession and repentance (turning from sin) into your rhythm with God.

• Memorize 1 John 1:9

  • Ask the Spirit to bring this verse to mind when you sin, remembering that Christ has not only secured your freedom but has also empowered you to turn from sin and walk in obedience to Him.

Additional Resources

• • Worksheet: Relationship vs. Fellowship

  • Cru Article: “Your New Life in God’s Love”

A core doctrine (belief) of our Christian faith is the triune nature of God, meaning He is one in essence, yet three in person. Let’s dig into what that means.

Desired Outcomes

• To understand that our God is one, eternally existing in three distinct persons- Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

  • He is one in being, yet three in person, with each member of the Trinity possessing equally all of the divine characteristics. 

• To think through the implications of ourselves as relational beings by understanding that God is relational within Himself (the Father, Son and Spirit all relate and interact with one another) and that we are made in His image.

Opening Question

• What do you think it means that God is three in one?

Resource

• Understanding the Trinity

• Read the article and discuss the following questions:

  • Why isn’t God being “three in one” a contradiction?

  • How would you describe the difference between the term “essence” and “person” as relates to God? 

  • As we see in the article, the Holy Spirit is not a “force”, He is a person. How do we see evidence of this in the Scripture? (i.e. how does He act/what does He do?)

  • Having understood that God is relational within Himself, and knowing that we are made in His image, what does that say about us as human beings?

  • Knowing that God is three in one, how does this apply to our prayer lives? (see the application section of the article)

Reflection Question

• Using your own words, how would you describe to a new believer what it means that God is three in one? 

• What is the role of each of the members of the Trinity?

Practical Steps

• Look up some passages together where the members of the Trinity are mentioned and make some observations. 

  • How are the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit described? 

  • What role do they each play? (Refer to the article above for Scripture references)

• Take a moment to practice describing the Trinity with someone.

Additional Resources

• • Video: Nabeel Qureshi explains the Trinity (8 min) (A former Muslim gives a helpful explanation of how God is three in one)

  • Video: Bible Project Video (8min) “How God is Both One and Three At the Same Time”

Spiritual maturity, much like physical and emotional growth, is profoundly impacted by time and our spiritual well-being. While new believers naturally require time to deepen their faith, individuals who fail to mature spiritually despite sufficient time may be experiencing spiritual health issues or residing in environments that hinder their growth. The importance of spiritual maturity lies in its direct correlation with a vibrant and resilient faith.

Desired Outcomes

• To understand that we need a healthy environment for spiritual growth to ensure that we mature in our relationship with God.

Resources

• • Stepping from Being Undeveloped to Maturity

  • Stepping from Being Undeveloped to Maturity: Leader’s Guide

Guiding Questions

• WHY do you think many believers fail to grow spiritually at a normal, healthy rate?

• WHAT might be some evidence of spiritual immaturity?

• HOW would you feel if, after many years, you looked back and realized you had failed to grow in the most important area of life, your relationship with God?

Practical Steps

• Develop an action plan for each of the relational characteristics of the growth environment.

  • UPWARD – Word and Prayer

    • Example: Take about 10 minutes each morning to continue reading the Gospel of John and talk to God about your day.

  • INWARD – Fellowship

    • Example: Go to church or to a Christian gathering.

  • OUTWARD – Witness

    • Example: Identify one or two people you care about and begin praying for them. Look for appropriate opportunities to tell them about the difference Christ is making in your life.

In John 10:10 Jesus says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” 

Jesus is speaking about every area of our life, including our sexuality. Unfortunately, many of us do not experience “life to the full” in our sexuality. The world around us says that sexual experiences are for our enjoyment any time and any way we want. We end up out of sync with God’s plan and full of guilt and shame. Thankfully, God offers something better. 

Desired Outcomes

• That we would have a shift in our heart posture regarding sexuality: a shift from the shame-based, behavior modification of purity culture towards the grace-based, loving wisdom of sexual wholeness.

• That we would take active steps towards growth in wholeness (as opposed to: steps towards perfection) and active steps toward removal of shame

Opening Question

• What has your journey with sexual wholeness been like?

Resource

• Stepping From Sexual Brokenness to Wholeness

  • Go over the questions and steps in the article together.

Reflection Question

• How can we move away from being shamed into sexual purity and instead move toward being loved into sexual wholeness?

Practical Steps

• Walk through The Intimacy Chart. 

  • Talk together about relationships you may have had in the past, currently have, or might hope to have in the future. 

  • If you have never been in a relationship or perhaps don't see yourself ever getting married, you can still use this chart to talk about friendship (and otherwise platonic) relationships as well.

• Share your struggle

  • If you are struggling with sexual wholeness, share this struggle with your discipler or a trusted peer of the same gender. Usually, there are men’s and women’s groups for sexual wholeness in Cru that you can connect with.

• Check in regularly

  • Commit to checking in with your discipler once a month about how sexual wholeness is going and pray together.

Additional Resources

• • Bible Study Series

    • Men's Study Series: FLESH SERIES: Sex, Lust, Porn and The Christian

    • Women's Study Series: DESIRE SERIES

  • Four Corners of Sexual Wholeness → shorter article w/ some practical application

  • God's Design for Sex → longer article with guiding questions

  • “The Deeply Formed Life - Rich Villodas” (VIDEO) → 52 min video

  • The intimacy chart 

  • Book Recommendations

  • LGBTQ+ Resources

    • See the lesson titled "Compassionate & Faithful" in Phase 3: Exploration.

    • As the topic of sexuality comes up, there is a chance your disciple will confide in you about being a sexual or gender minority. This is by no means the majority of cases, but it’s not necessarily uncommon either.

    • One of the best resources for LGBTQ+ people is community. If your disciple experiences same-sex attraction or any form of gender questioning, invite them to talk to Cru staff for help finding community.

    • The Center for Faith, Sexuality, and Gender: This is an organization founded by Preston Sprinkle, who has generated excellent content, trainings, and books regarding the intersection of faith and LGBTQ+ people. The Center will host conferences, post research articles, and occasionally host seminars (some free, some paid) over Zoom about various specific topics in this area. There is also a podcast Preston Sprinkle has called "Theology in the Raw," where there are many episodes about LGBTQ+ related things.

    • Revoice: This is another non-profit that hosts a conference once a year, specifically for sexual and gender minorities, and secondarily for pastors and ministers who want to learn more about this topic. They also have a chapter that meets for a discussion once a month at Park Hill Church here in San Diego.

  • Your Other Brothers: This is an online community for men who experience same-sex attraction. Their tagline is, “Navigating faith, homosexuality, and masculinity, together.” They have blogs, podcasts, retreats, and a discord server, all aimed at having good discussions about faith, sexuality, and gender. They are currently forming a similar community for women. So stay tuned on that one :)