Connect

The Gift Table - Introduction

January 04, 2026 0 0

 

4 January  - 15 February

Open the Resource Pack PDF for all the information on the weekly subthemes and the daily prompts and Bible readings which shape our Daily Worship and live streams.

 

There’s room at the table!

 

As a new year begins we gather round the gift table ready to discover the gifts God has for us! And while we’re there we will also uncover the gifts we ourselves bring to God. Gifts freely given — with no expectation of return — completely transform lives, transform communities, transform the world. Gifts of time, love, compassion and care have the power to save us, sustain us and spur us on. The act of giving a gift opens up a pocket of space and time that did not exist before the gift was given. A gift doesn’t maintain the status quo the way a like for like exchange does. Instead it gives the status quo a little nudge! And with enough nudges and enough momentum it can really get spinning!

And it all begins with God who gave us life, who gave us Christ. A chain reaction of giving that began long ago and yet is still felt in every selfless act, every generous gift. As a new year gets underway with Epiphany we will reflect on the gifts we have been given, the gifts we are carrying, and the gifts we have yet to uncover.

Our theme begins with God’s incredible gift to humanity — Jesus Christ, Emmanuel, God-with-us. We will join the Magi and bring our own gifts to Jesus. Then we will unpack what it means to receive the gift of Baptism. After that we will consider the gift of restoration and how the Bible can be a kind of repair shop — breathing new life into us. In the fourth week we think about “the gift to see ourselves as others see us” as Robert Burns famously wrote in his Scots poem To A Louse. Discipleship — shared life following after Jesus — is a gift of humility and new perspective that reminds us that we are not the centre of our own universe.

Then as the theme gets to its penultimate week it’s crunch time, you’ve got the gift, and the gift receipt — what are you going to do with it? How are we bearing the gift of the good news?  And then finally as we anticipate Lent we consider the gifts we need for the journey, for the mission ahead!

 

Weekly Overview 

  • God’s gift — Jesus!
  • The gift received — Baptism!
  • The gift of restoration — Bible!
  • The gift to see ourselves as others see us…  — Discipleship!
  • The gift receipt — Evangelism!
  • Gifts for the journey —  Mission!

These discussion questions adapt our monthly themes for small Connect Groups or personal Bible study. The questions are divided into 6 parts to correspond with the 6 weeks of the Daily Worship theme. They are offered as a guideline and there is no need to go through all the given questions in a single session, or in the following sequence. Feel free to pick and choose, or adapt to what interests you or your group.

Find how to get involved: Connect group Blog