Diagnosing Disconnection

1. How hard is it for you to admit to yourself or others when your way isn’t working?
2. What are some obvious signs in your life when you disconnected from the Lord?
3. When have you experienced the truth of John 15:5, “Apart from me you can do nothing”? What are some ways you have failed when relying on your own strength?
4. How is the metaphor of a vine and a branch helpful to illustrate what it means to stay connected, rooted, and attached to Jesus?
5. Whether or not you think much about your feelings, your emotions reveal a lot about what’s going on inside your heart. This means discouragement, fatigue, frustration and anxiety often reveal a state of spiritual disconnection. Which of these emotions do you most relate to right now? What do you think is the root of it?
6.  Have you ever felt like God was asking you to do something that seemed illogical or inconvenient? What did you sense from God and how did you respond?
7. Jesus (not a fisherman) told Peter (a professional fisherman) to "put out into deep water and let down the nets" even though Peter had been fishing all night and caught nothing (Luke 5:1–8). How would you have reacted if you were in Peter’s position? Why?

The Way of Connection

1. Imagine thirteen men showing up in your home at dinner time. Put yourself in Martha’s shoes. Has something like this ever happened to you? What would you do?
2. Martha frantically cleaned the house, entertained her guests and cooked dinner for a group of hungry men. Mary sat at the feet of Jesus. Of the two sisters, which one do you tend to be the most like? Why?
3. Busyness and stress kill our ability to sit at the feet of Jesus. What’s clawing for your time, energy and attention? What are some current distractions that pull you away from what's most important in life?
4. As you think about your relationship with the Lord, do you tend to put first—production for Jesus or connection with Him? Why do you think this is?
5. The challenge for most of us is that when our way isn’t working, we instinctively double down on production and make things happen through our own strength and determination. Have you found this to be true in your life? 
6. Consider the difference between things that are urgent and what’s most important. Why does connection always feel like it can wait, but production needs to happen right now? 

The Purpose of Pruning

1. When God prunes us, He has a picture in mind of what He’s shaping us to be. According to Romans 8:28–29, what is that picture? 
2. When you think of yourself as a branch and God as the Gardener, does that image encourage you or does it make you nervous? Why?
3. Do you trust the Gardener? He holds the pruning shears. He promises to make it beautiful, make it grow, and in the end, He will make it better when He’s done. Why is it comforting to know that God does not hack away at your life, inflicting unnecessary pain or punishment, but He has a plan and purpose for all things? 
4. It hurts to have things cut off in our lives, especially when those things seem good and healthy to us. Why does God want to prune or cut back healthy branches and things that are good in your life?  
5. What is one thing in your life that you know God wants to remove or prune?
6. One of the most common ways God prunes us is through the counsel of others who love and know us well enough to see when things aren’t healthy. What are some practical ways to address the fruit, or lack of fruit, when someone’s way isn’t working?
7. Jesus doesn’t say, “I am the vine; you are the branch.” He says, “You are the branches.” It’s plural. What does this imply about how we should read this metaphor and apply it?

Grafted and Growing

1. We live in a world with access to more information than ever before. How have you witnessed the impact of “information overload” in your life?
2. What's your go-to source for most information?
3. How do you respond when you lose your phone or can't find it?
4. Is it easy or hard for you to unplug from the constant stream of information or turn off your notifications? When was the last time you intentionally disconnected for a time of silence and solitude? 
5. In what ways do you think the information overload has negatively affected your life or the people around you? In what ways are you burned out or tired from being connected 24/7?
6. Jesus says He is the True Vine. What are some imitation or substitute vines that promise life-giving energy and nourishment, yet fail to deliver and leave you even more exhausted than before?
7. Consider Jesus’ words in John 15:4-6. What happens if you remain in the Vine? What happens if you don’t?
8. When your way isn’t working, the most important thing you can do is stay connected to Jesus. Why is it important to remain rooted and attached to Jesus? What does Jesus offer? 
9. What fruit do you see God producing in your life right now? Consider the fruit of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22 23— love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. What do you sense God doing in you and through you?