In case you didn’t know, OCF has a TON of great resources on the website you can use for your chapter. Here’s how to use the OCF blog.
Read an article and have a discussion.
- Visit ocf.net/blog.
- On the right, click on Tags
- Click on Chapter Discussion for articles
Create discussion questions.
You don’t need us to do all the work! After you read the article come up with some questions you can talk about during your meeting.
- Pick a specific moment or statement that spoke to you and ask your group what it means to them.
- Select a section you were confused by and ask your group what they think it’s trying to say.
- Highlight a part that made you think of a personal experience and ask your group if they can think of a moment in their life where they saw a similar thing happening.
- If you struggle with anything said in the article, ask your group for advice.
- Ask your group if they see any practical applications.
Using this blog on the What-If Demon as an example, here are some sample discussion questions:
- “It seems he especially likes to pester young Orthodox Christians with all sorts of what-if’s about dating, relationships, marriage, and monasticism.” What sort of what-if questions are you faced with? How do you handle them?
- “The present moment is the place where time and eternity meet and where God enters into our lives.” Where have you seen God entered into your life?
- “But the nasty What-If demon twists this necessary and spiritual undertaking into an anxiety-ridden, paralyzing question filling us with guilt, worry, and fear.” Sometimes I worry about what is going to happen for me after graduation. What if I don’t get a job or into law school? It fills me with fear for the future. Does that happen to anyone else? What do you do?
- “We can’t confuse his what-if’s with repentance for the past or discernment about the future. Don’t let him convince you that his imaginary situations where he replays your past with anguishing regret are the same as contrition or the images he throws before you with terrorizing anxiety of futures that haven’t happened need to be addressed to find God’s will.” What do you think this section is trying to say?
Sometimes, the article even has questions built in for you!
- “Do you say “yes” to Christ in this moment with this breath? Are you listening for His call in your heart right now? Can you see Him in the person or situation that’s right in front of you?” These are perfectly easy questions to discuss with your chapter!
Have a Bible Study.
How to Read the Bible and Where to Start
Never read the whole Bible? Confused by how it’s organized? Clueless as to where to begin? Never fear, OCF is here!
Resources for Bible Study
Help get your Bible Study going with the right texts and explanations from experts!
Here’s a great article from the OCF blog about the New Testament Canon to get you started!
Get advice on leading your chapter.
There’s also a whole section of posts on topics like getting more people to come to your meetings, managing chapter funds, working with other religious organizations, and more! Learn from others’ experience what works! Click on the tag Chapter Guide to access these articles!
Don’t see something you want or need?? Email us at blog@ocf.net with your questions and comments, and we’ll do our best to help you out!