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Week 1 · The God Who Goes Before
Newsong Community Church · October 11, 2026
Deuteronomy 31:1–6
I. ENDINGS ARE PART OF GOD’S PLAN (Deuteronomy 31:1–2)
- Moses named his ending honestly.
- The ending was inside God’s story, not outside it.
- Grief is not a lack of faith. (Deuteronomy 34:8)
II. A LEADER’S HEART IS FOR THE PEOPLE (Numbers 27:15–17)
- Moses’ first prayer was for the people, not himself.
- God’s heart is for sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36)
- God answers with His provision: Joshua, and now Braden.
III. GOD GOES BEFORE YOU (Deuteronomy 31:3–6)
- God goes first; leaders follow. (v. 3)
- God has a track record of faithfulness. (v. 4)
- Our courage rests on His presence, not our strength. (v. 6)
TODAY’S RESPONSE (Acts 4:36–37)
- Covenant Card Sunday: bring your card forward as an act of worship, committing to the generous life of Newsong in 2027.
LOOKING AHEAD (Joshua 4:4–7)
- October 18: Fill out a memorial stone card naming what God has done through Newsong.
- October 25: Fill out a second card with your dreams for Newsong’s future under Braden’s leadership.
Reflection & Application Questions
- Moses told the people the truth about his ending instead of hiding it.
- Why do you think honesty matters so much during seasons of change, and how do you tend to handle endings in your own life?
- The people grieved Moses for thirty days, and Scripture doesn’t rebuke them.
- What are you feeling about this transition at Newsong, and what would it look like to bring those feelings honestly to God?
- When Moses learned he wouldn’t enter the land, his first prayer was for the people.
- Who in your life could you pray for this week the way Moses prayed for Israel?
- Moses said the Lord himself would go ahead of the people before he ever mentioned Joshua.
- Where have you been tempted to place your security in a person, a role, or a situation rather than in God?
- Moses reminded Israel of what God had already done to Sihon and Og.
- What is one specific way God has been faithful to you through Newsong?
- Start thinking about what you’ll write on your memorial stone next Sunday.
- God’s command to be strong and courageous rests on His promise never to leave or forsake us.
- What step of faith is God asking you to take in this season, and how does His presence change the way you face it?
Time of Response
Take a few minutes of silence. Allow your own thoughts to quiet and be still. Where does the Holy Spirit want you to decrease so that Christ could increase in your life? What part of your life, if reduced, would make more room for you to thrive spiritually?
QUESTIONS TO ASK WHILE READING SCRIPTURE
What does this reveal about God?
What does this reveal about you in relation to God?
What do you need to do about it?
The Covenant Prayer from John Wesley's Covenant Service, 1780 (adapted)
I am no longer my own,
but Yours.
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will.
Put me to doing,
put me to suffering.
Let me be employed for You or laid aside for You,
exalted for You or brought low for You.
Let me be full,
let me be empty.
Let me have all things,
let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to Your pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
You are mine,
and I am Yours.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.
I HAVE A QUESTION
SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS:
On this website's homepage.
Click on the card that says "Let's Talk."
https://newsongcommunity.church/lets-talk
QUESTIONS ANSWERED:
Wednesdays FaceBook Live stream 11:55am - 12:30pm
(On occasion, questions answered following Sunday.)
How Can I Be Intentional When Reading Scripture?
One Method To Use When Reading Scripture:
The S.O.A.P.S. Method
S.cripture: Write down the Bible passage you will be studying.
O.bservations: Examine the text and write down what you notice and see. Start with the obvious and move to the deeper.
A.pplication: Apply God’s Word to your life in a practical way. What is God saying about Himself, about you and about what He is calling you to?
P.rayer: Respond to God’s Word with your own words.
S.hare: Commit to share what God is showing you with someone else.
- Inductive Bible Study:
- Observation (what does the passage say?)
- What is happening in the passage?
- Who is involved in the passage?
- What happened before and after the passage.
- Where are they located and how is that influencing the passage.
- Interpretation (what does it mean?)
- What is the passage saying considering everything I have observed and what I know from the rest of Scripture
- What does the scripture say within context of the entirety of Scripture?
- Application (how does it apply to my life?)
- What does the passage say about God?
- What does the passage say about me and to me?
- What am I being called to DO because of the passage of Scripture?
How do I talk with God?
WAYS TO PRAY
One Way to talk with God is to:
Pause.
Rejoice.
Ask.
Yield.
ANOTHER OPTION
Adoration
Confession
Thanksgiving
Supplication: Requests
