Join us this Sunday! In-Person 8:00am, 9:30am & 11:00am, Online 8:00am, 9:30am, 11:00am & 5:00pm

Join us this Sunday! In-Person 8:00am, 9:30am & 11:00am, Online 8:00am, 9:30am, 11:00am & 5:00pm

Join us at the next Sunday worship service:
In-Person
8:00am, 9:30am & 11:00am
Online 9:00am, 10:45am & 5:00pm

WEEK 5 SERMON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR GROUPS

The ruthless elimination of hurry: Solitude

Introduction:

What if hurry, busyness, and resulting distraction are the biggest challenges facing our spiritual lives today? That is the question John Mark Comer addresses in his book The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. The title comes from a quote by Dallas Willard. Willard once said, “Hurry is our day’s great enemy of spiritual life. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.”

Something To Talk About:

Unhurried time alone with God is a way of discussing the spiritual practices of solitude and silence. We call it solitude, but we are alone with God. We say silence, but we are being quiet with God. This practice of regularly pulling back from our usual rhythms of life and work can breathe life into our souls and keep us refreshed for our long journey of life. No one can live on constant exhale. Create a system of solitude by:

  1. Time: To find time for solitude with God, you can intentionally set aside a dedicated quiet space and time in your day, free from distractions, to engage in prayer, meditation, or simply quiet reflection on scripture, allowing yourself to focus solely on connecting with God; this can be done early in the morning, during a lunch break, or before bed, depending on your schedule and what works best for you. For most people, first thing in the morning works best. You’re rested and fresh, and the day is young. For others, a more optimal time slot is when kids are napping in the late morning, or on a lunch break, after work, or before you go to bed. Feel free to experiment until you find the right fit. 
  2. Place: Where would I like it to be? A coffee shop. A Gazebo in the park. On the beach? The rocking chair in the family room? Jesus sought a solitary place, not a beautiful place. The place is not as important as the purpose.  Jesus emphasized that whatever we do, we need to be alone, so it’s just Him and us. Remove any distractions that could keep that from happening. Hide your smartphone so you can’t hear the notification chime. Let God know your time with Him is more important than anything.
  3. Plan for it in advance. Although unexpected moments when we sense God wooing us to be with Him are wonderful, it doesn’t mean we cannot plan for it either. Maybe you are a morning person and appreciate being alone with God in silence before beginning your day. Daily, creating margin is essential to have freedom and flexibility in our schedules to be alone with God. All of these are ideas we can choose to plan in advance. 
  4. Prayer: It is not unusual to hear someone say, “I’m struggling with finding time to be alone with God in prayer.” Finding time is a significant barrier to spending time in prayer. It is not always easy to sacrifice and give up something else. Most people have busy lives filled with so many meaningful activities involving family, work, ministry, and personal matters. We can be inspired by Jesus’ example of finding quiet time with God. Jesus faced His most vulnerable and intimate moments in Gethsemane, a familiar, quiet place to be on His knees, alone with Abba, His Father, in the hope of another way. “He prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44). Jesus rested in knowing His Father’s will.  It is God’s will for us to make time to be alone with Him in prayer. We might struggle, but it will not be a struggle one day when we least expect it. Our struggle will become a longing to be with our God, who loves us and whom we love.
  5. Intentionality: Intentionality is the key to everything. We can try many new techniques or buy every available resource on the market, but if we’re not intentional, nothing will truly work. I can spend hours in prayer without truly connecting with God if I’m not intentional. Please don’t do it to check a task off your to-do list, don’t do it for a picture-perfect Instagram post, and don’t do it to impress your friends and family. Spend time with God because you love Him and want to know Him more. You won’t find it if we’re not intentional about finding solitude and communing with God. 


Discussion Questions:

  1. Silence and solitude are difficult for many people. Is that the case for you, or do you enjoy it?
  2. Are you comfortable with silence? Why or why not?
  3. Why do you think Jesus would regularly slip away to “lonely places?”
  4. What role do you think the regular practice of silence and solitude played in Jesus’ emotional health and spiritual life?
  5. What challenges would Jesus have faced to carve out time alone with Himself and God? Do you face any similar challenges?
  6. What does solitude look like for you? Explain.
  7. If spiritual solitude is disconnection from the world to connect with God, what are things you need to disconnect from to connect with God?
  8. What practical steps can you take to integrate the spiritual discipline of solitude into your faith walk?
  9. Have you struggled to find time to be alone with God? If yes, why? If not, how do you find the time and sustain the practice?
  10.  What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful, or difficult to understand from this sermon?

Take one thing home with you:

It’s pretty much impossible to start any new habit if you try to start with too ambitious of a goal. Reading the Bible in a year might be a lot if you haven’t ever been consistent with reading the Bible. Spending time with God daily should be a priority, but it’s a lot easier to start with five or ten minutes than an hour of intense study and prayer time every day.

Make time with God daily a habit by evaluating where you’re at right now and then setting a realistic goal. If you have difficulty focusing on prayer, don’t try to pray for a specific time frame every day. Just pray daily, celebrate your successes, and grow your goals and vision for your growth as you succeed.