Week 2- NOOMA Trees- Rob Bell

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Scripture

In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.”  Genesis 2:9

On both sides of the river was the tree of life bearing 12 kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. 
The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations.  Revelation 22:2

For Discussion

1. Bell asks, “How is it that our world can be filled with such beauty and such order and such good, and yet at the same time filled with such heartache and such pain?”  How do you feel about the world?  Do you think it is getting better or worse?
2. “God says you can live how you want, or you can live how I created you to live.”  What does it mean to live how God created you to live?  If we believe God’s way of life is the best way to live, why is it so hard for us to do it?
3. Bell invites us to consider that the Bible’s story of creation is not just something that happened, but actually something that’s still happening.  Are we faced with the same choices as Adam and Eve?
4. “We’re told that we’ll actively participate with God in taking care of the world that we find ourselves in. It says there’ll be peace with each other, but that there’ll be peace and harmony with God, and in the middle of it all will be a tree.” How can we help God in taking care of the world?  Are you helping out?
5. Do you think what we do today matters for eternity?  Are the choices you’re making now shaping you into the kind of person you’ll be forever?
6. Does your faith help you understand the world we live in?  Does it make your life easier or more difficult on a day-to-day basis?
7. What are some places in the world where you see God?  Are you leaving some of your own fingerprints on the world?  What are they?
8. What does it mean to be partnering with God in making this world the kind of place God intended it to be?  Are you partnering with God?