FirstStep Booklet
FirstStep Booklet
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Our goal for the next four weeks is to discover what a balanced,
integrated, and healthy life of a disciple of Jesus looks like,
specifically within the context of Manna Church.
7
FIRSTSTEP
8
MY NEW LIFE
3 VALUES
1. Love God (Luke 10:27)
2. Love Each Other (Luke 10:27)
3. Love the World (Matthew 28:19–20)
6 APPLICATIONS
LOVE GOD: Inspiring Worship Experiences
1. Attend one
2. Serve at one
LOVE EACH OTHER: Life-Giving Small Groups
3. Attend one
4. Lead one
LOVE THE WORLD: World-Changing Outreach
5. Bring others in
6. Go out
9 HEALTHY HABITS
LOVE GOD: A Life of Devotion
1. Bible reading
2. Prayer
3. Worship (including tithing)
LOVE EACH OTHER: It’s All About Relationships
4. Fellowship
5. Accountability
6. Forgiveness
LOVE THE WORLD: Catching God’s Heart for the Lost
7. Evangelism (witnessing/sharing your story)
8. Serving the needy
9. Generosity
9
FIRSTSTEP
T H E G R E AT C O M M A N D M E N T
On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.
“Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read
it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and
with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
Luke 10:25–27 (NIV)
T H E G R E AT C O M M I S S I O N
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven
and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I
am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18–20 (NIV)
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MY NEW LIFE
Love God
(UP)
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FIRSTSTEP
YOUR STORY
You have a story: who you were, who you are, and who you are
becoming.
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which
you used to live when you followed the ways of this world… But
now in Christ Jesus...you have been brought near through the blood
of Christ. Ephesians 2:1–2, 13 (NIV)
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,
and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God
and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 1:5–6 (NIV)
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MY NEW LIFE
...I press on to lay ahold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of
me. Philippians 3:12 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
Sharing your story can build your faith and strengthen your
relationship with Jesus. But, your story is not just for you. Your
story can also be a source of inspiration and hope to others. Your
story can be an inspiring example of the love and power of Jesus.
Share to Grow:
I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you
will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in
Christ. Philemon 1:6 (NIV)
Share to Win:
And they overcame him (the enemy) by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives
even unto death. Revelation 12:11 (NIV 84)
Share to Bless:
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MY NEW LIFE
GOING DEEPER
Take some time to think about and write down how you would
answer the following questions:
Resources:
https://billygraham.org/grow-your-faith/how-to-share-your-faith/tools
https://billygraham.org/story/sharing-your-faith-101
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FIRSTSTEP
MY STORY
16
MY NEW LIFE
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2
LOVE GOD:
A LIFE OF DEVOTION
2
A LIFE OF DEVOTION
VALUE 1
Love God: A Life of Devotion
...love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your strength and with all your mind…
Luke 10:27 (ESV)
APPLICATIONS 1 & 2
Inspiring Worship Experiences
1. Attend one: Find the site and service time that fit best for you,
and commit to attend as often as you possibly can. Don’t let
the weather, your feelings, fatigue, or other distractions keep
you from coming. We believe that when we gather together
during Manna’s Worship Experiences, we are not just having a
group meeting. We are gathering in the Presence of the Lord.
Once in the proximity of His Presence, anything can happen.
It is in the Presence of God that our lives can be transformed.
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FIRSTSTEP
“We first make our habits, and then our habits make
us.”eAnonymous
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass
away. Matthew 24:35 (NIV)
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A LIFE OF DEVOTION
Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes
from the mouth of God. Matthew 4:4 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
2 . P R AY E R : C O M M U N I CAT I N G WI T H G O D
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left
the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.
Mark 1:35 (NIV)
Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and
unsearchable things you do not know. Jeremiah 33:3 (NIV)
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A LIFE OF DEVOTION
3 . WO R S H I P : E N J OY I N G G O D
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Psalm 150:6 (ESV)
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FIRSTSTEP
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of
your heart. Psalm 37:4 (ESV)
Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, “How
have we robbed you?” In your tithes and offerings.
Malachi 3:8 (NIV)
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A LIFE OF DEVOTION
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything
I have said to you. John 14:26 (NIV)
...When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the
truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he
hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory
to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
John 16:13–14 (NIV)
If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to
your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the
Holy Spirit to those who ask him! Luke 11:13 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
GOING DEEPER
Bible:
Prayer:
Worship:
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A LIFE OF DEVOTION
27
LOVE EACH OTHER:
IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS
IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS
VALUE #2
Love Each Other
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have
love for one another. John 13:35 (ESV)
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FIRSTSTEP
APPLICATIONS 3 & 4
Small Groups
3. Attend one: Find a Small Group that interests you and fits
your season of life.
4. Lead one: Use what God has put in your life and lead one
yourself… Attend and complete LeaderStep! (Note: completing
NextStep and becoming a member of Manna Church are
prerequisites for participating in LeaderStep.)
HEALTHY HABITS 4 –6
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IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous
person has great power as it is working. James 5:16 (ESV)
Two are better than one, because they have a good reward
for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not
another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep
warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though
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FIRSTSTEP
We need trusted friends who know us, love us, and help us deal
well with our secrets, our weaknesses, and our life challenges.
6. FORGIVENESS:
Forgiving people for what they have done is often very difficult.
Forgiveness involves turning over to God the person who hurt
us and what they did (or didn’t do). It involves handing over to
God the “cases” we have built against other people. It involves
trusting God with our pain.
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IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander,
along with every form of malice. Be kind to one another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave
you. Ephesians 4:31–32 (ESV)
Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and
you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Luke 6:37 (NIV)
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall
I forgive someone who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus
answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Matthew 18:21–22 (NIV 84)
...Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Luke 6:28 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
Ask God to give you strength to choose to forgive them for what
they have done (or failed to do).
Then, choose to forgive and release them for what they have
done. Just do it!
GOING DEEPER
• Ask the Lord to show you who you need to forgive. Make a
list of the people, what they did (or didn’t do) that hurt or
offended you, and how their behavior impacted you.
• Choose to forgive each person for what they did and how it
impacted you.
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IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS
35
LOVE THE WORLD:
CATCHING GOD’S HEART FOR THE LOST
CATCHING GOD’S HEART FOR THE LOST
VALUE #3
Love the World:
Catching God’s Heart for the Lost
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal
life. John 3:16 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
APPLICATIONS 5 & 6
World-Changing Outreach
Be willing to tell your story. There will be times when the Holy
Spirit prompts you to tell others about Jesus—to share your
story. Your story is a unique, powerful expression of the love
of God. There is someone in your sphere of influence who is
looking for your story.
...Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole
creation. Mark 16:15 (ESV)
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CATCHING GOD’S HEART FOR THE LOST
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon
you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea
and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. Acts 1:8 (ESV)
Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 (NASB)
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FIRSTSTEP
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:
to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep
oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27 (NIV)
Connect with your Manna Church site leaders to learn how you
can serve those in need.
We are to love the world by reaching the lost and serving those
in need. Naturally, when you think about loving the world,
these two come to mind. But, if we want to accomplish these
things well, it will often involve financial resources.
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CATCHING GOD’S HEART FOR THE LOST
at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every
good work. As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts
to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.” Now he who
supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and
increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your
righteousness. You will be enriched in every way so that you can be
generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will
result in thanksgiving to God. 2 Corinthians 9:6–11 (NIV)
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people,
eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced
themselves with many griefs. 1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)
“Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How are
we robbing you?’ In tithes and offerings. Bring the whole tithe into
the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,”
says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates
of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room
enough to store it.” Malachi 3:8,10 (NIV)
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FIRSTSTEP
GOING DEEPER
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CATCHING GOD’S HEART FOR THE LOST
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FIRSTSTEP
Consider:
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FIRSTSTEP
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MANNA.CHURCH