The Pressure To Perform

• What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve posted or seen on social media?
• Which would make you feel the most pressure: going on the first mission to Mars, singing the national anthem before the Super Bowl, or anchoring the 5 o’clock news?
• May 19 is Plant a Vegetable Garden Day. What kind of vegetables would you plant in your garden?

Ask eGroup members to share their favorite points from the sermon, what spoke to them, a phrase or moment from the sermon they related to the most, or questions they have. If members have a hard time recalling the sermon, talk through your notes and share your favorite points.

• When’s the first time you had to perform as a kid? (e.g., reciting a poem, playing in a game, singing at a recital, etc.) Did you feel pressure?
• Our culture is consumed with the pressure to perform our lives for each other. How have you seen that play out? Talk about some ways people feel pressured to perform.
• Read John 7:1-13. Jesus faced pressure from every direction, but He didn’t perform for others. Where do you see pressure in this scripture? Can you relate to any of those pressures?
• What’s one way you feel pressured to perform? Who are you performing for?
• How does performing take your focus off God? Share a time when this happened in your life.
• Read Daniel 1:8-14. Daniel didn’t care what people thought — he knew he couldn’t please people AND please God. Who’s someone you know who’s really good at putting God ahead of others? What’s something you admire about them that you could emulate
• If you focused this week on performing for God, how would that change the way you experience pressure? How would that impact your relationship with God? With others?

Think about where you feel the most pressure to perform. Commit to spending this week avoiding it or changing your approach to it. (This could look like staying off social media, letting the right things motivate at you at work or at home, doing good things for the right reasons, etc.) Tell your group what you plan to do, and motivate each other throughout the week.

Ask eGroup members to share any prayer requests they have. Record any notes or prayer requests to pray for members during the week. Father, thank You for Jesus and how He modeled doing things with the right heart and the right motives. Give us clarity to focus and have a strong sense of priority in our lives so we can pursue You instead of performing for others. Help us keep our eyes on Your purpose for us. In Jesus’ name, amen.