Discussion Questions

Joe Williams promised to donate “one of the sow’s offspring to the Lord,” but when the stillborn piglet appeared, he concluded, “The Lord’s Pig died”; what does that reaction expose about how people can technically keep a vow while protecting what they most want to keep for themselves? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does Joe’s reaction show about how someone can “keep” a promise to God on paper while still holding on to what they really want to keep?

The congregation “prayed fervently” and “the Lord answered their prayers” by healing the sow; what picture of God’s responsiveness and expectations does this story present, especially in light of Joe’s later attempt to minimize the cost of his pledge? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does the sow being healed after prayer say about how God responds to prayer, especially when Joe later tries to make his promise cost him less?

David Bercot says he once labeled Joe a hypocrite but later realized, “I was no different than Joe Williams”; what helps a person move from judging obvious hypocrisy in others to recognizing subtler versions of it in themselves? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What helps someone stop only calling others hypocrites and start noticing the quieter ways they do the same thing?

In Bercot’s family, the nightly Bible reading and prayer time was understood as “the Lord’s time”; what does it mean to treat a block of time as belonging to God, and what does that assume about God’s rights over our schedule? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does it mean to treat a certain time each day as “God’s time,” and what does that say about how much control God has over our schedule?

The turning point came when the Holy Spirit convicted Bercot in bed after he canceled devotions to finish a puzzle; what does this episode suggest about how conscience and the Spirit operate around “small” decisions, not just major moral failures? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does this story suggest about how the Holy Spirit and our conscience speak to us in small choices, not just big sins?

Bercot admits that when “unexpected things came up,” it was “always the Lord’s Pig that died,” never “one of my pigs”; what are the modern equivalents of “my pigs” that Christians protect, and how do we rationalize sacrificing spiritual practices first? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What are some “my pigs” today—things Christians protect—and how do we talk ourselves into dropping prayer or Bible time first?

The chapter insists that for devotions to work, you need “a firm commitment” that “it would be our pig that would die”; what kinds of concrete rules or boundaries could embody that commitment without turning devotional life into mere legalism? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What clear rules or limits could help someone keep devotions a real priority without turning it into empty rule-following?

Bercot warns, “Satan will do what he can to throw a monkey wrench into your devotional hour so that it won’t become a fixed habit”; how do you discern the difference between genuine providential interruptions, simple poor planning, and spiritual opposition? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How can you tell whether an interruption is something God allowed, the result of bad planning, or spiritual attack meant to break your habit?

Anthony Blume challenges the illusion of indispensability: “Does the salvation of the world truly depend on the letter you are writing…?” and urges, “Whatever happens, I will not budge”; what does this confront in modern Christian work culture, ministry culture, or productivity-driven identity? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does Blume’s challenge say to Christians who feel they must always be busy or “needed” in work or ministry?

Blume says to disturbances, “I am here, but not for you,” and Bercot ends by hinting at “continual communion with God”; how do fixed devotional hours and continual communion relate—do they compete, reinforce each other, or expose self-deception when one is claimed without the other? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How should a set daily prayer time connect with staying close to God all day—do they help each other, get in each other’s way, or show when we’re fooling ourselves?