Better Habits

Better For It, Pt. 1

Every time we gather as a group, these are some ways we ensure the best group discussion:

• We make the circle safe by staying honest and transparent - leave the masks at the door.

• We keep it inside the circle. Each person’s story is theirs alone to share.

• We look to the Bible for wisdom and truth, and work together to let it shape how we see the world.

• We don’t try to fix each other in front of each other or give unsolicited advice. We lovingly save hard conversations for private moments.

• We respect each others’ time by starting and ending when we say we will.

• We believe that in Jesus Christ, there is hope for everyone.

John Dryden

“First we make our habits and then our habits make us.”

If nothing changes… nothing changes.

Four Areas to Focus on

• Financially

• Relationally

• Personally

• Spiritually

Keystone Habit

A small habit that affects every other habit and area of your life.

Psalm 1:2-3 (NLT)

They delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

Colossians 2:7 (NLT)

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Reading the Bible four days a week…

• Feeling lonely drops 30%

• Anger issues drops 32%

• Bitterness in Relationships drops 40%

• Alcoholism drops 57%

• Feeling spiritually stagnant drops 60%

• Viewing pornography drops 61%

• Sharing their faith jumped 200% 

• Serving and living beyond themselves jumped 230%

Psalm 119:105

“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”

Think Small

“Habits are the compound interest of self-development. The same way that money multiplies through compound interest, the effects of your habits multiply as you repeat them. They seem to make little difference on any given day and yet the impact they deliver over the months and years can be enormous. It is only when looking back, two, five, or perhaps ten years later that the value of good habits and the cost of bad ones become strikingly apparent.”

-James Clear

Galatians 6:9

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Choose a TIME and PLACE.

Don’t forget to check out this week’s Better Habits Workshop and talk about it as a group! Remember, it’s ALL about putting what we learn into practice!

Start with M.U.D.
Memorable + Understandable + Doable

• What was the most memorable part of the message or service this weekend for you personally? Why?

• Did anything you heard challenge or influence how you think about God or your life?

• How can what you learned influence or change how you live in everyday life? What tangible steps would it take to make that change a reality?

Additional Questions

Jodi said we are all likely on one of three paths at all times… the path to same, better, or worse. And a crisis like Covid has the power to turbocharge those paths and turn the cracks into canyons.

• Overall, what path do you feel like you’re on right now?

• Have any cracks turned into canyons this year?

Jodi encouraged us to consider four areas of our lives that have been affected by this pandemic: the financial, relational, personal, and spiritual. Try giving each area a simple health rating between 1-10.

• Which of these areas did you rate the highest? What has contributed to that success?

• Which of these areas did you rate the lowest? How has that affected you?

• What habits, rhythms, or disciplines do you wish you would’ve had in place before March 2020 in these areas? Looking back honestly, why weren’t they in place?

A Keystone Habit is a small habit that affects every other habit and area of your life.

• Do you have a keystone habit that you center your day, habits, wellbeing, or life around?

Jodi encouraged us to think small and focus on the compound interest of tiny gains over a long time.

• What compound interest from bad habits is working against you in this season?

• What makes it so hard to focus on long term gains like this? How can we stay motivated to stay steady when there aren’t many immediate gains?

Engaging with God by reading the Bible at least four times a week has been proven to make a major difference in people’s lives (more info in Message Notes above).

• What’s your weekly Bible engagement look like right now? Is that different or the same as it has been in the past?

• Have you seen the benefits of regular Bible engagement in your own life or someone else’s?

• What stops you from engaging with the Bible? What help do you need?

• Are you ready to commit to this keystone habit? What will be your time and place?

Better Habits Workshop / Replenishment Cycle Questions

Watch the Better Habits Workshop →

• What’s on your long list of energizing/life-giving activities?

• Of the four categories Jim talked about (physical, intellectual, emotional, or spiritual)…

  • Which category are you naturally strongest in?

  • Which category needs the most attention?

• What obstacles will stand in the way of you practicing your Replenishment Cycle?

• Who else needs to know about your replenishment cycle so they can support you and hold you accountable to it?