This Proverbs mini-series is focused on developing a biblical anthropology of “the heart.” In the first three weeks, we will ask: What is the heart? How is it shaped? And how does it become wise? In the second three weeks, we will deal with common heart problems.

OPENING DISCUSSION
What comes to mind when you hear “discipline?”

BIG IDEA
According to Proverbs, wise people understand that their hearts need discipline.

Read Proverbs 3:11

• Share about a time when you believed the Lord was disciplining you. What was going on in your life?
• During this season, did you ever find yourself “despising” or “growing weary” of what you were going through?
• How did you come to discern that what you were experiencing was, in fact, the Lord’s good discipline in your life?

Read Proverbs 3:12

• According to this Proverb, why should we not despise or grow weary of the Lord’s discipline?
• What is one trial you are going through right now that is painful, disappointing, or frustrating? And how does this Proverb reframe that trial for you?

Read Hebrews 12:3-17
The author of Hebrews tells us that God’s discipline is a sign that he loves us and that we are his children in Christ. The author also tells us in verses 10-11 that God’s discipline, though painful in the moment, makes us more holy and yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

• What do you think the phrase “peaceful fruit of righteousness” means? 
• How have you seen God’s discipline yield good fruit in your life?