Our helper inside

01 · GATHER ROUND

Start with a question.

“Have you ever felt a little “uh-oh” inside right after you did something wrong? What did it feel like?”

Normalize the feeling. That inner nudge is often a kindness from God.

03 · OPEN THE BIBLE

Recalculating.

You’re riding in the car when the map app says, “Recalculating… make a U-turn when possible.” It doesn’t yell. It doesn’t call anyone a bad driver. It just tells the truth—you’re headed the wrong way—and shows you how to get back.

The Holy Spirit helps us in several ways. The first is a little like that voice. The Bible says the Spirit convicts us of sin. To convict means to show us clearly that something is wrong—like that uh-oh feeling after you snap at someone or tell a lie. The Spirit shows us our sin so we can turn from it and run to Jesus.

That’s different from shame. Shame says, “You’re terrible, so hide.” The Spirit says, “That was wrong. Come back to Jesus, who forgives you.” His voice always points toward home.

Second, the Spirit helps us pray. Our Bible verses say to pray in the Spirit at all times. When we don’t know what to say, the Spirit helps us. The Bible even says the Spirit prays for us when we can’t find the words. You don’t have to pray perfectly for God to hear you.

Third, the Spirit helps us understand God’s Word. Our verses call the Bible the sword of the Spirit. Reading the Bible without the Spirit is like trying to read a map in the dark. The Spirit turns on the light, so we can see that the words on the page really are God speaking to us.

The nudge after you do wrong, the moment you don’t know how to pray, the page you don’t understand—you have a helper for all three, and he never gets tired of helping. You can simply ask, “Holy Spirit, please help me.”

04 · WONDER TOGETHER

Let’s talk about it.

1. What’s the difference between the Spirit showing us our sin and feeling ashamed?
2. When is it hard for you to pray? How could the Spirit help?
3. Why do you think we need the Spirit’s help to understand the Bible?

Try answering one yourself first. “I don’t know yet” is a fine place to start a conversation.

06 · TALK TO GOD

Let’s pray.

Holy Spirit, thank you for being our helper. Shine your light on our sin so we can turn away from it and run to Jesus. Help us pray when we don’t know what to say. Open our eyes to understand the Bible and to hear God speaking to us through it. We need you every day. Amen.

Then invite everyone to add one thing they want to tell God.

07 · MAKE IT STICK

A little truth to learn by heart.

Three helps, three motions: a hand on your heart for showing us our sin, folded hands for praying, and hands opened like a book for understanding God’s Word. Say the answer with the motions, then play a round where one person does only the motions and everyone else says the words.