The Search For Significance

In this series, you’ll learn how to find your true identity in Christ rather than looking for it in earthly things. This series is adapted from Robert McGee’s book, The Search for Significance.

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The Search | Search for Significance #1

Posted: October 8, 2020
If we want to discover the things that hold us back from living a joyful life, we need to take the time to identify what’s broken within us.

Talking Points:

  • Self worth is our deep need to be loved and accepted. This can be a dangerous pursuit if you go looking for it in the wrong places.
  • In God’s economy, we come to him with nothing. We’re bankrupt and poor. But God pours worth and value into us. He takes his riches and gives them to us. Our worth, then, is a gift from God. It has nothing to with our looks or talents. It’s all about God and what he’s done for us. Titus 3:4-5
  • We need to turn the light on in our lives and expose the thoughts we’ve kept hidden in the dark and let the light of God’s truth tell us who we are in him. Psalm 139:23-24
Discussion:
  1. Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. Describe yourself. What are some of your accomplishments?
  3. How do you define success? How do you handle failure?
  4. On a scale from 1-10, how much do you struggle with self worth. (1 being never and 10 being always). Explain the number you gave yourself.
  5. What experiences have shaped how you view yourself, both positively and negatively.
  6. Read Titus 3:4-5. What does this passage seem to be saying about our worth?
  7. Read Psalm 139:23-24. Why is taking a self assessment important in your journey to understanding your true worth? What are some thoughts we might have that would be offensive to God?
  8. What excites you about taking the journey of discovering your true significance? What scares you about it?
  9. Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?

Adapted from the book The Search For Significance by Robert McGee

 

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The Performance Trap vs. God’s Justification | Search for Significance #2

Posted: October 15, 2020
The world says our value comes from our accomplishments but God’s word says something different.

Talking Points:

  • The Lie of the Performance Trap: One of the most common lies we believe about our self worth is that it’s based on our performance. If we’re good at something, then we have value. If we fail, then we are a failure and our worth is diminished.
  • Believing this lie affects us in many ways. We’ll chase perfection and fool ourselves into thinking we can do it all on our own. And when we fail, we’ll doubt ourselves and wonder if we will ever be good enough.
  • God’s answer to this lie is justification. We can’t ever do enough to be good enough for God. Only through Jesus can we be made right. 2 Corinthians 5:21, Romans 3:23-24
Discussion:
  1. Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. What would you say are your biggest accomplishments? What do those successes say about you? How hard did you work for that success?
  3. Describe a time in your life when you felt happiest. Can you think of a time you thought you would be happy about an accomplishment but you weren’t? Why do you think that was the case?
  4. What are some examples of empty pursuits people seek after to find happiness?
  5. Read 2 Corinthians 5:21. What stands in our way of having a relationship with God? What did Jesus do for us? What does his sacrifice mean to you?
  6. Read Romans 3:23-24. What does this passage say about us? How does this passage change the way you see yourself and your accomplishments?
  7. Moving forward, how will you respond to the lie of the performance trap?
  8. Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?

Adapted from the book The Search For Significance by Robert McGee

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The Approval Addict vs. God’s Reconciliation | Search for Significance #3

Posted: October 22, 2020
Don’t believe the lie that in order to feel good about yourself you have to be approved by certain people.

Talking Points:

  • The Lie: If I’m approved by others, then I have value. The preoccupation with how others view us and seeking their approval can so consume us that it becomes an addiction. Galatians 1:10
  • The fear of rejection can bring out unhealthy emotions of anger and resentment towards those who reject us. We might become controlling people because we work hard to create the perception we want others to have of us. Or, we can become closed off to authentic relationships and hide behind the facade we’ve created for ourselves.
  • Reconciliation means we go from being enemies of God to friends of God. This is what Jesus did for us when he died for our sins. He made us worthy of God’s love because he took away our brokenness and replaced it with his goodness. Colossians 1:21-22, Romans 8:38-39
Discussion:
  1. Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. How big of a role does social media play in your life? Explain.
  3. What do you think people’s motives are in what they choose to post on social media? What would you say are typically your motives for what you choose to post?
  4. Who are the people in your life for whom you seek approval? What does their approval mean to you?
  5. As a way to prove yourself, have you ever overcommitted to something or someone? Why did you do it? What would you do differently today?
  6. Have you been rejected by someone before? Explain. How did that rejection affect your life?
  7. Read Colossians 1:21-22. Identify everything this passage says about Jesus and you. What does it mean to you that you can be a friend of God because of Jesus?
  8. Read Romans 8:38-39. How much does God love you? How should knowing that you are fully accepted by God change the way you view yourself? What’s holding you back from fully embracing God’s love and acceptance?
  9. Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?

Adapted from the book The Search For Significance by Robert McGee

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Blame Game vs. Propitiation | Search for Significance #4

Posted: October 30, 2020
When we fail to measure up to a standard, we tend to take the focus off of ourselves and look to blame someone else.

Talking Points:

  • The Lie: “When I fail, I’m unworthy of love and deserve to be punished. This lie takes an isolated incident and turns it into a character trait.
  • Believing the lies leaves us with two options when we fail. We either blame ourselves or someone else. If the former, we will expend a lot of energy on self loathing thoughts that leave us feeling deflated. If it’s the latter, we will spend a lot of energy blaming someone else for what went wrong.
  • God’s answer to this lie is propitiation. Jesus came to take the punishment we deserve for our sins upon himself. He absorbed God’s wrath on our behalf. In him, we are victorious. We don’t have to fear punishment from God for our past failings. Romans 5:7-11, 1 John 4:9-10
Discussion:
  1. Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. Describe a time you failed in something. How did that situation affect you?
  3. When you fail, are you more likely to blame yourself or someone else? Explain. Why do we have the need to find fault when failure occurs?
  4. Define propitiation in your own words.  What does it mean to you that Jesus absorbed the punishment you deserved?
  5. Read Romans 5:7-11. At what point did Jesus die for us? Why is that timing significant? What does that say about your value to God?
  6. 1 John 4:9-10. How different would our relationship with God be if we had to earn his love? What does it say about God that he loves us despite our failings?
  7. Based on this lesson, how should you view failure moving forward?
  8. Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?

Adapted from the book The Search For Significance by Robert McGee

 

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Shame and Regeneration | Search for Significance #5

Posted: November 5, 2020
Shame makes us think we are not capable of growth and change but God says we can.

Talking Points:

  • The Lie of Shame: I am what I am. I can’t change. I’m hopeless.
  • When we feel hopeless, we might make choices that reinforce those feelings of hopelessness. We might turn to substance abuse or other reckless choices because we want to numb the pain. We self sabotage because we have no hope for anything better.
  • God’s answer to this lie is regeneration. Regeneration means new life. Regeneration is more than just making self improvements or cleaning up our acts. It’s a miraculous thing that God does in us. 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ezekiel 36:26-27
Discussion:
  1. Initial reactions to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. Can you relate to the sentiment that you can’t ever really change? Explain.
  3. Why is true change hard to bring about? What are typical obstacles that get in your way from making true change?
  4. What are some other common ways people self sabotage when they feel worthless and hopeless? How have you self sabotaged in the past?
  5. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. What does this verse say about our ability to change? Why is it significant that we are new creations in Christ?
  6. Read Ezekiel 36:26-27. What does this passage say about our ability to change? How does the Holy Spirit help us?
  7. Read Titus 3:4-7. This passage says we have a new birth in Christ. How should you view your past failings in light of these verses?
  8. Moving forward, how should you look at your past? What will you do with your feelings of shame and hopelessness?
  9. Is there a step you need to take based on today’s topic?

Adapted from the book The Search For Significance  by Robert McGee

 

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