1. Give an example of something you really wanted, but as you look back on it, the price was far greater than you ever thought it would be.

2. Have you ever “walked into a firefight” (storm)? What was it and why didn’t you run the other way?

3. Tom said “there are no shortcuts to success!” Do you think that is true? How has it been true for you?

4. Read Luke 22:42b, - The entire spectrum of events involving the suffering, the pain, the rejection, the mocking, the scourging, the spitting. Why would a loving father give this “cup” to drink?

5. Read Psalms 42:7 What event have you been immersed in, and what did you learn from that “baptism”?

6. God prepares us by handing us difficult things, but what does He prepare us for?

7. Read Mark 10:42-45 and discuss and contrast the “gentile style” of leadership vs. the “Jesus Style” of leadership.

8. What does “striving for position” do to you and others?

9. What happens when churches or Christian organizations appear to be competing? Who wins?

10. You hear Christians say, Jesus died so you wouldn’t have to die! Is that true, or is it more accurate to say that Jesus will walk with you through death so that you come out victorious on the other side of death? Read - John 11:25-26