Undaunted Book Discusion Questions

I recently finished reading Undaunted by Christine Caine and I absolutely loved it!  It usually takes me longer to read non-fiction books, but this one was so inspiring I wanted to keep reading.  (I was also going to be leading a discussion based on the book so that helped to keep me on track too.)  As I was reading, I could hear Christine's voice with her Australian accent talking right to me.  She is such a powerhouse and conduit of God's love.  This book is a call to action to make time in our lives to see the needs right in front of us, to look honestly at the horrors of injustice and motivate us to get involved.  Christine's story of overcoming past hurt and abuse and following God's promptings to rescue others is amazing.  I long to hear God's voice as clearly as she does. 

Two examples in her book actually gave me chills. 
"Your plane will be leaving from Gate A21."
"I just wanted you to know that the thing you have scheduled to do on Monday isn't the only option."

If you want to host your own discussion of Undaunted you will not be disappointed or have a lack of things to discuss.  Here are the questions we used for our group:

 

Discussion Questions

 

Part 1 – God Knows My Name

“God’s love, which knows you and claimed you before you were even born, can take you beyond yourself.  Love like that can release you from every prison of fear and confusion.  And love like God’s can fill you up till it spills out of you, and you have to speak about, share it, spread it around.”

 

1. What are some of the things that people in our world tend to use to establish their sense of value, identity, and purpose in life?  Why is it dangerous to base our worth on these sorts of things?
2. Christine talks about how in a single moment, when she learned she was adopted, everything in her life changed.  Yet, in a very real sense, nothing changed.  Her fundamental identity was still the same.  What are the things about you that will never change, no matter what you face, because of who you are in Christ?
3. The bible tells us that God’s works are marvelous.  God made you and me.  This means we are marvelous!  Tell something marvelous about yourself (or the person next to you) why is it so hard, in a day-to-day way, to see ourselves as marvelous in God’s sight and truly valuable?

Part 2 – God Knows My Pain 

“The biblical model is that God deliberately chooses imperfect vessels – those who have been wounded, those with physical or emotional limitations.  Then he prepares them to serve and sends them out with their weakness still in evidence, so that his strength can be made perfect in that weakness.  It’s our weakness that makes us capable of serving, because those we serve identify with our pain.

 

1. Christine tells about looking at her adoption papers and reading “unnamed” where her name should have been.  She saw that she was just a number when the adoption papers were processed.  Tell about a time when it seemed as if you were just a number or an unknown face in a crowd.  How did this make you feel?
2. Describe some of the ways God has healed your heart, your past or a situation? How does this experience of healing help you reach out to others with the restoring power of Jesus?
3. Christine says “God likes to show off through ordinary or even messed up people.”  Who are some of the ordinary or even messed-up people used in the Bible and how are their lives testimonies of how God can use people like you and me?

 Part 3 - God Knows My Fear

“When you let fear dictate how you spend your days, you allow life to pass you by.  You close yourself off from anything that might hurt or cost or make you uncomfortable – including opportunities to serve God and claim his promises.”

Read Luke 4:18-19.  Each time this passage uses the word me, it is referring to who Jesus was and what he did.  But if we, as his followers, are to think and live like Jesus, it also refers to us.  (Read out loud together)

 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
    because he has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
    and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

 

1. What is one way your life might change if you woke up each morning quoting this passage and believing that it should direct your day?  (Empowered and Focused were words that came up in our discussion.)
2. Christine talks about her fear of flying and how she talked to God.  “I’m willing to go, Lord, as long as the transportation is on the ground, within my comfort zone.  I’ll go anywhere for you as long as I don’t have to fly.”  What are the things that can get in the way of bringing the love and grace of God to a broken world?  What tends to get in your way?  What is your most common excuse and is it really valid?

Part 4 - God Knows My Destiny

“There are so many daunting things in the world that we must overcome.  Only the undaunted – the undaunted in Christ – will be able to triumph over them.

1. When we discover God’s plan, purpose, and destiny for our lives, our whole outlook changes.  What can we do to grow in our understanding and awareness of God’s plan for our lives?
2. If you have gained some direction and clarity concerning God’s plan and destiny for your life, share what you have received.  Let them know how they can encourage you and pray for you as you seek to follow God’s plan.
3. God has a plan for your life, a purpose for each of us, a destiny.  What are some of the unique and God-given abilities you have?

Part 5 - The Challenge 

“When you decide enough is enough, that the darkness of this world must be lit with the hope of Christ and his transforming love, and that you are a conduit of that love, you will not rest.”

1. When Christine walked through Auschwitz and was faced with the reality of what happened to thousands of Jewish people in that concentration camp she was changed for life.  How can looking honestly at the pain and suffering of this world move us to action? Describe a time when you were confronted by the depth of human sin and evil and how that experience has shaped the way you see the world today.
2. Who are the people I can walk right past and not really acknowledge or treat with the love and value God assigns to them.
3. We can’t meet every need we encounter, but can do our part, each day, as the Holy Spirit leads.  How can we know when God is calling us to stop and meet a need we encounter?  What helps you discern when God is nudging you to take action?
4. Being busy and running too fast can cause us to hurry past needs right in front of us.  Evaluate your pace of life.  In what ways can you slow down enough to create space in your heart and schedule to cross the road and help people in need?