CoreGroup Guide | PEACE Part 4

December 20th, 2025
by Sarah Hines

CoreGroup Guide | Peace - Part 4
Written by Amanda Stanley and Denee Bowers

Welcome

Peace with God. How does that sentence make you feel? Perhaps, you are in a good place with your relationship with God and feel peace in their presence. Maybe you’ve had a challenging year and feel angry towards God. Having peace, feeling peace, and offering peace to God can feel tricky at times. Other times, it is our natural state of being. Let’s dive in more this week.

Opening Prayer

Creator, thank you for this Advent season. Thank you for these weeks and times with our CoreGroup. Thank you for helping us navigate peace in our hearts and minds, and in our actions. Show up for us today as we talk about what it means to be at peace with You, God of the universe. Amen.

Ice Breaker

What’s your favorite holiday meal?

The Head

Our scripture this week is the story of Mary learning she will give birth to the Son of God. It is a complicated passage with references to the Old Testament and other Biblical characters. Feel free to dig deep and pull up references to other passages to help frame your discussion.

Luke 1:26-38 (Common English Bible)

26 When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee, 27 to a virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 When the angel came to her, he said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” 29 She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. 31 Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. 33 He will rule over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom.”

34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I haven’t had sexual relations with a man?”

35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come over you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the one who is to be born will be holy. He will be called God’s Son. 36 Look, even in her old age, your relative Elizabeth has conceived a son. This woman who was labeled ‘unable to conceive’ is now six months pregnant. 37 Nothing is impossible for God.”

38 Then Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

There are a lot of details in this passage of scripture that might not be familiar. As a group, read Luke 1:5-25 to give reference to who Elizabeth was and where she plays a part in Mary’s story and ultimately Jesus' story.
How would your group retell this story to someone who has never heard it before?
What is the importance of who Joseph was related to?
Why do you think Mary was confused by Gabriel’s words when he greeted her?
Re-read verse 35. What does it mean that the power of the Most High will “overshadow” Mary? How does this contribute to Mary’s sense of peace?

The Heart

The idea of peace with God can bring up a lot of questions. Am I worthy of peace with God? Am I worthy of God? Let’s take a look at the characters in the story and at our own hearts in our world now and see where peace comes into play.

Mary and Elizabeth both received life-altering news from a celestial being and somehow emerged from that experience with peace. Have you ever had an experience that should have left you shaken, but you found yourself at peace? Describe this experience.
Have you ever watched someone else go through an experience like this? How did you see God at work?
Did you grow up in a peaceful home or a home full of turmoil? How did that shape your view of peace and God’s role in finding peace?
Do you believe God wants peace for us? How do you see God creating peace or not creating peace?

The Hands

We have spent the last four weeks talking about peace, examining it in scripture, and exploring ways to live it out. Let’s continue thinking about those past weeks as we consider new ways to find peace in the world.

What is one step you can take towards more peace with God this week?
What barriers will you need to overcome to experience more peace with God?
How can you offer yourself peace this coming week?
How do you feel called to be a steward of peace in the coming year?

Closing Prayer

Creator, thank you for this time together. Thank you for our discussion and openness to share with one another. Be with each of us as we enter the next week, busy with holidays. Please help us to remember all the ways we learned about and discussed peace over the last month. Help guide us into a more peaceful state of being. Amen.

Going Deeper

Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi (Prayer for Peace)

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me so love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen

From Pastor Charity

Enjoy your Christmas with family and friends. Thank you for leading or being part of a CoreGroup this Fall. Groups will reconvene in mid January. Merry Christmas!

Making-Advent-Special-2.pdf

CoreGroup-Guide-_-Peace-Part-3.pdf

Posted in CoreGroup Discussion Guides, CoreGroup Leader Hub