Week 4 Sermon Questions For Groups

You in Five Years: From Evening to Morning

Introduction:

Nowadays, there is all this hype around morning routines. In fact, the topic of morning routines has become one of the most popular topics overall, gaining an incredible amount of attention. But is all that attention warranted? In this message, we look at evenings to mornings rather than the other way around. Because it is the evening to morning where it can be most profitable for us: that is where we sleep, the next day’s priorities and where we have the opportunity to address the other parts of our life that need addressing.

Bottom Line: If I treat my morning and evening the right way, 8:00-5:00 come what may, I’ve already had a great day.

Something To Talk About:

Who will you be in 2023? What do you want to accomplish 60 months from now. Often getting to where you want to be is to think evening to morning rather than the other way around. Think in these terms:

Get sleep: A good night’s sleep is incredibly important for your health. In fact, it’s just as important as eating healthy and exercising. Unfortunately, our culture and our lifestyle tends to interfere with our sleep patterns. As a result people are now sleeping less than they did in the past, and sleep quality has decreased as well. There is no magic number for the number of hours of sleep needed, although most experts suggest 8 hours a day. If we don’t get enough sleep, problems can and do happen. Things like a lack of alertness, impaired memory, relationship stress, quality of life, greater likelihood of car accidents, etc. Sleep is vital to our health, strength and physical renewal.
Go deep: Go deep or be all in spiritually. The idea of being all in is simple: if Jesus is not Lord of all then Jesus is not Lord at all. It’s all or nothing. You can’t earn it or buy the gospel. It can only be received as a free gift. But while it doesn’t cost anything, it demands everything. It demands that we “go deep.” Going deep means we place all that we are and all that we have in God’s hands. If we don’t go deep, we end up in a spiritual no man’s land. Going deep means we won’t miss out on everything God has to offer. Connecting with God remains the first priority in our lives…when we remember to trust His Word and promises more than life itself. Taking risks for my faith—for Him—and step out to represent Him to those around me. That’s what going deep means. The same applies to going deep physically, and creatively.

Discussion Questions:

How does how we spend our evenings to mornings impact who we will be in five years?
Why is sleep so important? What happens when you don’t get enough sleep?
Do you find it easy to look for the ways God might be at work in your everyday life, or do you find yourself limiting God to particular times, places or circumstances?
What does the “go deep” mean to you? What have you found helpful in keeping that idea of “going deep” at the front of your mind in day-to-day living?
How can a Christian be all in and out at the same time?
How does being connected to God’s presence enable you to go deep spiritually?
What are some ways we can go deep physically?
What are some ways we can go deep creatively?
What part of this message resonated with you?
What can we do this week to put this message into practice?

Take one thing home with you

The apostle Paul instructs us to use our time wisely “because the days are evil” in Ephesians 5:15-16: “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (NASB). Paul is telling us we we need to use every moment with wisdom “because the days are evil.” So regardless of whether the time is evening or morning, it is important that we use our time for purposes of spirituality and Godliness. To be the person we want to be in 5 years we must carefully discipline ourselves to use our time and our gifts for the glory of Christ Jesus.