SERIES TITLE
30 Days To Live Week 5
series overview
What if you knew you only had 30 Days to Live?
What would matter most?
Who would you prioritize?
What would you change?
This powerful new series explores how clarity about our time can transform the way we live right now. We’ll discover how to focus on what truly matters, let go of what doesn’t, and live with deeper purpose, greater faith, and lasting impact.
Don’t just count your days. Make your days count.
sermon TITLE
Leave Boldly
Creating A Lasting Legacy
weekend in review
In the final message of the “30 Days to Live” series, Gene asked a pointed question: if you had 30 days to live, what would you want to be known for? Drawing on 1 Corinthians 13:13, Gene argued that the supreme legacy any person can write is one of faith, hope, and love — with love being greatest because it alone crosses into eternity. Using Paul’s sweeping claims in 1 Corinthians 13, Gene showed that eloquence, knowledge, miracle-working faith, and even martyrdom are worthless without love. Grounded in Galatians 5:6, he called the group to stop saying “someday” and to start expressing faith through love — right now.
WARM UP
Gene opened with a name-association game — Frank Lloyd Wright, LeBron James, Beyoncé — to make the point that everyone is known for something. What is one person in your life (past or present) whose name immediately brings a legacy of love to mind? What quality made that so visible in them?
DISCUSSion
Select questions from the list below to guide your discussion time.
- Gene cited 1 Corinthians 13:13 — “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love,” and explained that love is the greatest because it is the only one of the three that carries into eternity. What kind of assessment does that eternal perspective give you in regards to where you’re investing your time and energy right now?
1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV) - In 1 Corinthians 13:1–3, Paul stacks up an impressive list — eloquence, prophetic insight, mountain-moving faith, generosity, and even martyrdom — and declares each one worthless without love. Which item on that list do you find most surprising or convicting, and why?
1 Corinthians 13:1–3 (NIV)
- Gene shared a memory of returning to his childhood home and being struck not by anything his father said, but by his father’s daily practice of faith, hope, and love at the kitchen table. Who in your life has written a legacy like that on you? What specific habits or moments made that legacy stick?
- Galatians 5:6 says, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” Gene used the story of Eric Jacobs — a husband and father who left a video legacy for his family before an unexpected death — as a picture of this verse in action. What is one relationship in your life where your faith is not yet expressing itself through love as clearly as it could be?
Galatians 5:6 (NIV - Have 4 different people in the group read one of these 4 scriptures out loud, paying close attention to the urgency of time talked about in each one: Ephesians 5:15–16 (NIV), James 4:13–14 (NIV), Psalm 90:12 (NIV), Proverbs 27:1 (NIV). Gene said the most dangerous word in the English language may be “someday,” and he closed with three words as the antidote: “Start right now.” He invited everyone to write a one-or two-sentence legacy statement. Share yours with the group if you’re willing — or share what kept you from writing one. If it’s helpful, give 5 minutes to the group to write a first draft of one to share. Then answer this: What is one concrete step you can take this week to begin living toward that legacy?
WRAP UP & PRAYER
Close your time together by praying specifically for one another. Consider praying through these themes:
- Pray for each group member to have the courage to identify and begin living toward a specific legacy of love — not someday, but now.
- Pray for the relationships in your group where faith needs to express itself more clearly through love — marriages, parenting, friendships, and workplaces.
- Pray for anyone grieving the loss of someone who left a profound legacy — that their grief would be mixed with gratitude and godly inspiration.
- Pray that your group, and your church, would become a community so marked by love that it becomes the first thing others think of when they hear your names.