Rewrite The Story - Journey Church

40 Days 2026 – Week 4

Rewrite The Story – Deuteronomy 8:2-3

If you would like to continue this conversation, join us on our Journey Church podcast! Just search for “Journey Church with James Hilton” wherever you tune in.

Mark your calendar and plan to attend Consume, our Good Friday Worship Service, on April 3, at 6:30 pm, at our Orange City location. Just a reminder that childcare is not provided, so please start planning now.

Easter is a season of new life and fresh starts. Someone in your life is waiting for an invitation—who will you invite to join you on Easter weekend? A simple “Come sit with me at church!” could change someone’s life forever. Whom do you know who is far from God but close to you?

Memory Verse for Week 4: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2, NIV

Everyone has a story, but pain, disappointment, and lies can distort what we believe about God, ourselves, and the future. True freedom starts when Jesus rewrites that story, replacing lies with truth, shaping our thoughts and lives with hope and the power of His Word. This week, we will explore the idea that the story you believe shapes the life you live.

If your life were a movie, what would the narrator’s voice in your head sound like during a stressful week? Would it sound more like a worried news reporter, a harsh critic, an encouraging coach, or something else? Why do you think that is?
Pastor James talked about how the Israelites were physically free from Egypt but still thought like slaves in the wilderness. What stood out to you about their response to difficulty after experiencing God’s miraculous deliverance?
Pastor James also mentioned that “the story you believe shapes the life you live.” What examples from the sermon or your own observations support this idea?
What was significant about God leading the Israelites into the wilderness rather than straight to the Promised Land? What was God’s purpose in that season?
Read Deuteronomy 8:2-3. Why did God lead Israel through the wilderness for forty years? What was He trying to teach them about how life actually works?
Pastor James explained that “pressure exposes the lies in your story.” Looking at the Israelites’ complaints in Exodus 16:3, what lies about God and their situation were revealed when they faced hunger in the wilderness?
Can you share about an area of pressure or difficulty in your life? What story is your mind telling you about that situation? How might that internal narrative be shaping how you’re experiencing or responding to the circumstances?
When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness in Matthew 4:4, He quoted the same principle from Deuteronomy 8:3. How did Jesus use God’s word to combat the enemy’s attempt to distort His story?
Pastor James explained that God used manna to teach Israel that “man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” What would it look like practically for you to “live by God’s word” rather than by what you see in your circumstances?
Read Romans 12:2. How does transformation actually happen in a believer’s life? What’s the difference between conforming to the world’s patterns and being transformed?
Pastor James said many believers live with this tension: “I can believe Jesus with all my heart, but sometimes it is harder to live with Him in my head.” Can you relate to this struggle? When do you find it hardest to align your thoughts with what you know to be true about God?
Pastor James mentioned that the enemy “enslaves people with deception” rather than chains. If he can shape the narrative running through your mind, that narrative will begin shaping your beliefs. And once your beliefs are shaped by deception, your behavior will eventually follow. When was the last time you felt angry, scared, sad, or anxious? What belief led you to feel like that?
Read 2 Corinthians 10:5. Every thought that comes into our minds is either truth or a lie. Either it calls us to rest in God’s goodness, or it draws us away from God with a lie. How important is it to determine where our thoughts are taking us? How can we take every thought captive?
This Easter, we believe God is preparing a harvest. We believe we are about to see one of the greatest movements of salvation in the history of our church. God is going to do it the way He always has. Through ordinary people like us, offering a simple invitation. Who do you know that is far from God but close to you?

Write their name down.
Begin praying for them every week leading up to Easter.
Invite them to sit with you.
Because someone’s eternity could change because of your invitation.

Prayer

Father, thank You that in Christ I am truly free – forgiven, adopted, and made new. But I confess that sometimes my mind still tells the old story. When pressure comes, I find myself listening to lies that say I’m stuck, that nothing will change, or that You’re not really going to come through for me.

Help me recognize these lies when they surface, and give me the courage to replace them with Your truth. Teach me to live by Your word and not just by what I can see around me.

When fear whispers that I’m on my own, remind me that You will never leave me. When shame says I’m still defined by my past, help me remember I’m a new creation. Lord, rewrite the story in my mind with Your truth so I can live in the freedom You’ve already given me. I don’t want to just be free – I want to live free. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Would you consider serving at one of our Easter services? We will have many first-time visitors on campus, and we want everyone to feel at home. If you would like to help, please scan the QR code and complete the Volunteer Interest Form. You would not be committing to a team (although you might fall in love with it!); we simply want to discuss where you could help out. Weekend Experience, data entry, and Journey Kids will be where we have the greatest need on Easter Weekend.