• Start
    Here
    • Start Here: Find Freedom with God’s Truth
    • Barb’s Books
    • About Barb
    • Leader’s Guides & Resources
    • Contact
  • Renew
    Your Mind
    • Renewing of the Mind Tools
    • Renewing of the Mind Project
    • Grow Closer to God
    • Transformation 101
    • Renewing Your Mind Bible Study
    • Renew Your Mind Seminar
  • Live
    with joy
    • How To Live with Joy
    • Anger
    • Worry/Fear
    • Depression & Discontentment
    • Insecurity
    • Stress
    • Boredom
    • Other Emotions
  • Overcome
    Procrastination
    • Freedom from Procrastination
    • How to Start a Habit
    • How to Pursue a Goal
    • Goals and Productivity
    • Ministry and Blogging
  • End Emotional
    Eating
    • How to Lose Weight
    • Weight Loss Resources, Classes, & FAQ
    • Taste for Truth Christian Weight Loss Podcast
    • Christian Weight Loss App
    • Weight Loss Bible Study
    • Weight Loss Blog Posts
  • Books &
    Bible studies
    • Barb’s Books
    • Leader’s Guides & Resources
    • Free Bible Studies
    • Online Bible Studies
  • Podcasts &
    Online Courses
    • Current & Upcoming Online Courses
    • Christian Habits Podcast
    • Taste for Truth Christian Weight Loss Podcast

Barb Raveling

Renew Your Mind. Transform Your Life.

Subscribe

  • Home
  • Podcasts
    • Taste for Truth Christian Weight Loss Podcast
    • Christian Habits Podcast
You are here: Home / Bible Studies/Worksheets / The “I Want to Be Great” (or at least avoid being a loser) Bible Study

The “I Want to Be Great” (or at least avoid being a loser) Bible Study

August 14, 2015 By: Barb Raveling

This post may contain affiliate links. View our disclosure policy here.

Do you ever feel like you want to be great? Not because greatness is so appealing in and of itself–but because you think people will respect you or like you more if you’re great?

The "I Want to Be Great!" (or at least avoid being a loser) Bible StudyUnfortunately, we live in a world that defines greatness by numbers.

It might be likes on Facebook, a number on the scale, a dollar amount on a paycheck, followers on social media, or even the number of people in our church pews.

The numbers we’re looking for vary depending on our stage in life and vocation, but the message doesn’t: If you want to be great, work on those numbers.

And because we live in the age of the Internet where people can often see our numbers, it’s more tempting than ever to focus our efforts on being great.

If we’re going to break free from our obsession with great, there are several things we’ll have to do:

  1. See greatness from a biblical perspective (it’s not a number).
  2. Let go of our need to have others respect and think well of us. Let God be enough.
  3. Focus our efforts on loving God and others well, rather than getting them to respect and love us well.
  4. Renew our minds whenever we catch ourselves worrying about what others think of us.

Here’s a Bible study that will help you renew your mind if you struggle with this issue.

 The “I Want to be Great” Bible Study

Read Mark 10:35-45 and answer the following questions.

  1. How do you think James and John defined great?
  2. In what area of your life are you trying to be great?
  3. How would you define great in that area?
  4. Why do you want to be great in that area of your life?
  5. Do you think you’re believing any lies? If so, list any lies you’re believing and the truth for each lie.
  6. Read Mark 10:42-45. How does Jesus define great in this passage?
  7. Think of the area of your life where you’re trying to be great. How does the world define greatness in that area?
  8. How is Jesus’s definition different than the world’s definition?
  9. What did Jesus say in Mark 10:42-43?
  10. Think of that area where you want to be great. How would it change your outlook if you were to focus on serving others rather than getting everyone to think you’re great?
  11. What would it look like to serve others in your current vocation or stage of life?
  12. Read Mark 10:45. Serving others usually involves sacrifice. What might you have to sacrifice to serve others well in your current vocation or stage of life?
  13. Do you think your life would be better or worse if you developed a servant’s heart in your current vocation or stage of life? Explain.

Group Bible Study Discussion Questions

  1. Do you think people in the pre-Internet age had to struggle with the “I want to be great” syndrome as much as we do? Why or why not?
  2. Why do you think we feel like we have to be great?
  3. Do you usually like and/or respect people based on how “great” they are? Why or why not?
  4. If not, what usually makes you like and/or respect them?
  5. How can we pursue excellence and difficult goals without turning it into a quest for greatness?
  6. How do you know when you’ve crossed the line into trying to be great?

Related Bible Studies

  • Bible Study: Temptations of Blogging and Ministry
  • Bible Study: When God Asks You to Do the Impossible
  • Bible Study: Working with God on Your Goal
  • Bible Study: When Ministry and Blogging is Hard
  • Bible Study: God’s View of Your Goal

Related Posts:

  • Christian Loneliness: How to Stop Being Lonely
  • How to Stop Being Angry – 12 Tips
  • 8 Signs You're People Pleasing and How to Stop…
134 shares
  • Share13
  • Tweet

Comments

  1. Floyd says

    August 25, 2015 at 10:38 am

    I’m with you on this, Barb. When I was coaching I used to constantly remind the kids that you can’t measure a life by a number and it is measured across a lifetime.

    I thought you were taking a break. I haven’t been receiving any new posts in my email?

    • Barb Raveling says

      August 25, 2015 at 12:12 pm

      I think something’s wrong with my email delivery or something – I’m signed up to be notified by both wordpress and mailchimp (I only have a couple people on mailchimp as I was just testing it and am planning to move my whole list over at sometime) when I do a blog post and i didn’t receive emails from either of them. :( Not sure what the problem is, but need to make it a priority project to figure it out one of these days! Thanks for letting me know you aren’t getting them either!

  2. Wise Hearted says

    August 28, 2015 at 6:10 pm

    Great points Barb on being great. I remember wanting to be great at something, anything. Thought was going to happen to a group I was singing with years ago. But God had different plans, plans to put me in a remote location in a third world country where I was awful at language learning, and actually at being a missionary. I watched as others seem to excel at language, translation and my biggest claim to fame was frying chicken. Good post.

    • Barb Raveling says

      August 30, 2015 at 6:40 pm

      Well, at least there’s the chicken, right? :) I know how you feel as far as the failure goes. I had similar feelings when I first started to write, but God has definitely used it for my good – I’m guessing He has for yours as well. That’s the wonderful thing about God – He redeems difficult situations!

  3. adrian jurju says

    September 19, 2017 at 9:22 pm

    very good teaching

    • Barb Raveling says

      September 20, 2017 at 4:36 pm

      Thanks, Adrian!

7 Week Mastermind Class on Transformation Coming 1/28/25! Click on image to learn more.

Search Blog

Connect with us online

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

Popular Posts

  • Kyle Idleman: Every Thought Captive
  • How to Meditate on Scripture
  • Spiritual Attack: 10 Tips for Spiritual Warfare
  • How to Break Free from Idolatry
  • How To Renew Your Mind
  • Weight Loss Bible Study: Day 1
  • 14 Practical Ways to Get Closer to God
  • Do You Have an Idol? – Idolatry Quiz
  • Christian Loneliness: How to Stop Being Lonely
  • 29: 6 Steps to Breaking Free From Self-Condemnation

Archives

Categories

  • Anger
  • Bible Studies/Worksheets
  • Boredom
  • Christian Habits Podcast
  • Depression/Discontentment
  • Goals and Productivity
  • Grow Closer to God
  • Habits Blog Posts
  • Insecurity
  • Letting Go of Negative Emotions
  • Marriage
  • Ministry and Blogging
  • Other Emotions
  • Stress
  • Transformation 101
  • Uncategorized
  • Weight Loss Blog Posts
  • Weight Loss Podcast
  • Worry/Fear
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB (www.lockman.org).
Copyright © 2025 • Custom blog design by The Pixelista • Built on the Genesis Framework
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT