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As I began reading the introduction to Week 2, I had the feeling, "has she been following me around?" because that sounds just like something that would happen to me!! Anyone else?? More importantly, "be intentional about your time with God," was an incredible follow up to "making room" for him from Week 1. Of course, it is the same 'ole thing most of us have heard our whole life, but putting it in perspective of idols...well, that's new to me.
**BEFORE I go on to this week's questions I want to point out a difference of opinion that I have with Kelly. Not that she's wrong and I'm right, because we are both human. And it might just be the way the question is worded but I didn't want to go on without pointing it out. Pg. 44. "This might be a hard question, but why do you think there are times when God purposely brings pain into our lives?" Here she is referring to God closing Hannah's womb. I, personally do not think God brings pain into our life purposefully. I believe that God gives us opportunities for us to grow and fully rely on him. You can't grow without pain. Have you ever noticed (which is sad to say but true) is when you are going through a rough time and you fully rely on Him, your relationship with Him seems to be stronger? Okay enough of that...anyone else notice that or have an opinion???????????????
I hope to hear from more of you this week. Thank you to all those that opened up last week, you are such a blessing to me!
Day 1 Question1 pg. 39 What sinful desires are obsurcing your identity in Christ?
Wow, when I really thought about each "for instance" the bottom line was selfish desires. And the majority of them are unintentional or "good" things that have become idols!! I absolutely love where she puts that "we become-hold your breath-normal." I do not want to be normal :)
Day 2 Question 1 pg. 42 How does Sarah's story encourage you to wait for God's perfect timing and fulfillment in your own life?
There are entirely too many testimonies of mine to tell on this one!! I KNOW His ways are best. Simply because I've been there. I've seen it. I've experienced it. My pastor has said several times from the pulpit," you can't tell someone who has experienced healing that miracles still don't happen today," that's exactly how I feel about God's timing.
I also love how she points out that we can "complicate the process!!" Oh girls, I have been there! So thankful He ultimately runs the show.
Day 3 Question 1 pg. 44 I already reviewed this one. I am going to post it below as well. "This might be a hard question, but why do you think there are times when God purposely brings pain into our lives?"
Here she is referring to God closing Hannah's womb. I, personally do not think God brings pain into our life purposefully. I believe that God gives us opportunities for us to grow and fully rely on him. You can't grow without pain. Have you ever noticed (which is sad to say but true) is when you are going through a rough time and you fully rely on Him, your relationship with Him seems to be stronger? Okay enough of that...anyone else notice that or have an opinion???????????????
I absolutely love where she puts, " I cannot think of anything less satisfying than having myself as the big answer to everything." And my favorite of the week..."He has used the flames of hurt to burn away the parts that need not linger. Good has been in His mind from the beginning."
Day 4 Question 1 pg. 47 Where did Aaron get the gold to make the calf?
Question 2 pg. 47 Where did the Israelites get their gold earrings from to make the gold calf?
Amazing, huh, the Israelites turned God's gifts into gods. Guilty? Me too. Husband, kids, job, blessings....easily can become gods. This was one of those "wow" biblical moments for me because I've read this all before but had not put two and two together. Thankful for those moments.
Day 5 Question 1 pg. 51 Go back and look at the verses that meant the most to you. What was the verse and how does it relate to your personal fear?
Mark 5:36 Don't be afraid, just believe. I loved how she put in perspective that it isn't really fear that we are afraid of ...it is the "what ifs" in life. I learned from a previous bible study (Esther by Beth Moore HIGHLY recommend it!!!) "What if...? Then God." For example, "What if I lose family member, job, house? Then God. Period. Just believe in Him.
Love you ladies!! Amber
DAY 1, Q1: I think that I idolize my free time which makes it a sinful desire. I want that time all to myself. It all goes back to letting God prioritize my life, rather than my mixed up order of things...bottom line, "God will give me a greater identity in a world of hungry people" if I use that time to serve them, instead of myself!
ReplyDeleteDAY 2: I grew up knowing about God's timing and His will...heard it over and over, but I wish I had been truly "walking" this concept 10 yrs ago. When I look back on the first 5 yrs of my (so far) 10 year marriage, I wasted so much of it feeling totally discontented. I was in such a rush to move out of our starter house and have babies. I wasted those "care-free" years with my husband, took for granted the tiny rent payment and much less responsibility of that phase of our life...but I am encouraged by Sarah's story and my own, because I have learned from both to give it to God. Might as well, it's His anyway. I see how no matter how I pushed, thankfully His perfect will and timing worked it all out...would take all day to explain why it would have been disastarous if I'd gotten the house and babies when I wanted. Thank you Lord, for teaching me this through a very difficult situation, and thank you that I have peace about my future, because I know you are in control and will work it out in Your perfect timing. (and yes, I still have to remind myself of this DAILY so that I dont try to take it back over AGAIN)
DAY 3: This question troubled me as well!! Like Amber said, I think it was the wording that made me have a difference of opinion. If she had said "Why does God allow pain?" I never would have thought twice about it. But to say "God purposely causes us pain" did not sit well with me at all! I think many times our pain comes from sin in our life, or the sins of someone else in our life, and sometimes bad things just happen to good people and I feel many times Satan is to blame for all of these examples...NOT GOD!! We know that God is in control, so He could stop this pain if He wanted, but He will allow it for us to learn from it and to build our faith through it! And during these times we lean on Romans 8:28 and how God is going to use what is bad for our good!!
DAY 4: Just like Amber, I thought this is what I love about bible study...the way it helps me to get so much more out of sciptures I have breezed by in the past. I am definitly guilty of turning gifts into idols. My prayer is for God to help me get those gifts back in the correct order BEHIND HIM so that He can see that I am truly grateful for these gifts...never realized how ungrateful I must seem when I put these gifts above Him.
DAY 5: John 14:27 Jesus said, "I give you peace, unlike the world, don't let your heart be troubled, don't be afraid!" Wow! Jesus made it sound so simple and it is! I just let the world complicate it...I let the negative images from the news, movies etc penetrate my mind and fill me with fear (mainly concerning my kids safety, fear was not really a part of my life 'til I had kids) and steal my peace that Jesus wants to give me. Thank you Amber for the reminder from the Esther study...SO POWERFUL and applicable to all our fears!!
Day 1 Q 1:
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of what may be obscuring my identity in Christ has to do with comparing myself with others- what their life is like, what they have, am I as good at my job as them? I thought about day 1 a lot as I went through this week and it made a big impact on me. As I was driving to work in the morning I thought- I may have a bad day at work today, someone may have a bad opinion about me but thats ok because my career does not determine my identity. My identity has already been determined and the world can't change it! I like when she says "the only way to find yourself is to realize that God has already found you- and that is everything."
Day 2 Q 1:
It reminds me that "God's best" is better than my best could ever be. There is no way that my worrying or planning could bring into frution any faster and that trying to make it happen my way can be disaterous!
Day 3 Q 1:
I agree Amber, Kelly's choice of words wasn't the best here. I think she knew it may not have been when she said that she hated to write it and was afraid someone would read it the wrong way. I don't believe that God initiates anything that is evil or negative, but that there are times when he doesn't stop them from affecting us. An example just hit me- like when a Dr. prescribes a medicine that has some pretty rough potential side effects because he believes the benefits outway the risks. It's easy to drift away from God when everything in our lives is going smoothly and beautifully, I think hard times are necessary to bind us together with him. These are the times when real growth takes place.
Day 4 Q 1:
The calf was made from gold earrings that God provided for them from the Eqyptians. I think it's easy to turn Gods gifts into idols without even realizing it. Maybe because we think "God gave this special thing to me, I better take care of it and treasure it"- but we lose site of the giver.
Day 5:
John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid" He promises to comfort us if we can just allow him to do it and not try so hard to be in control. He's saying there is nothing in this world that can give you this peace so stop searching for it!
I am loving this Bible study so far. I think as a wife in ministry, and as a mother, I am often left scratching my head in terms of "who am I?" apart from my husband or kids. I think for me, this week's lesson reminded me that before I was any of these things, I was (and still am) a daughter of Christ. Often I have relied on my identity in or apart of others. And as Minter says, those good things aren't all bad. However, I think at other times I let those other roles in my life become a REPLACEMENT for my identity in Christ. I am so thankful that even when I have been far from Him, returning to my "roots" is just a breath away.
ReplyDeleteI want to learn to see less of my own will and more of His will in my life.
Hi girls, I'm just gonna post a few comments that hit home with me this week. First let me say I have a very sick baby and she is sitting in my lap as I type so I hope this turns out to make sense!
ReplyDeleteThe BIGGEST thing for this week was FEAR! For at least the last 5 or 6 years I have lived in fear. It's something I always pray about but I have never been able to let it go. It all started when I thought I might not be able to have children. Like Sarah, I had to "complicate" the process. I wont go into details because time wont allow me but this is where the fear entered into my life. Since then, I've learned to be fearful of everything. I live my life with "what if". What if one of my children dies (this is my biggest fear), what if I die, what if Kyle dies, what if I don't do certain things and I cause bad things to happen to my family or what if I choose to do certain things and cause bad things to happen. Are ya'll getting my point?? I've always had strong convictions but they are too the point that I fear if I do or don't do something I will "curse" my family. I constantly worry about my family, friends, and my patients at work. I see now how this fear has brought false idols into my life. I'm not "fixed" of this problem yet but I'm glad this all is starting to make sense to me.
This fear has lead me to be very protective of my children. Yes, I realize most of us mothers are but mine is to the point that I wont spend any amount of time away from them. There are no trips without them, there are no shopping days without them, there is nothing without them! I need to let go a little, I need to realize that they will be OK without me or Kyle. I "idolize" them to the full extent! I want to do a missions trip later this year and my the only reason why I might not is because I will have to be away from them! I don't make enough time for God, myself, or my husband. I can't tell you how happy I am to see this as a fault in myself. I thought I was doing something "good" putting them before EVERYTHING! Ok, I have to stop now. Collins is not happy.
I am going to respond to a couple questions today and the rest soon beacuse I am at Starbucks using the computer...lol.
ReplyDeleteFirst can I respond to Amber statement about God and pain? I believe there are two types of "wilderness" in our lives. The wilderness we choose to walk through and the wilderness that is apart of life. For example, when I became pregnant out of wedlock and has to face the emotions and loleliness taht comes with it. Not to mention the struggles of custody and court....yadi yadi yah.....I chose that wilderness because I chose to disobey God with my actions. I had planty of reasons and red flags that would have prevented this turmoil. Yet...GOD is good and merciful. I am a stronger person today because of it and hvae been able to help others in my shoes.
The other wilderness is life. You know...the kind where someone may have a death in family, miscarriage, disease, etc. I feel that God shows His power at these moments and uses situations. I don't believe God puts these things on us. This is just my opinion. I wish this discussion was in person because I could talk about it for hours!!!!! :0)
Day 1 Question1 pg. 39 What sinful desires are obsurcing your identity in Christ?
My sinful desire that clutters me is my desire for companionship. I have been lonely in the past and would have company instead of my alone time with Christ. I am not referring to sin. Just my desire not to take advantage of being alone and learning that sometimes being alone means God is HIDING us for something better. He wants and needs that time with us. He craves our attention. I have such a peace this week knowing that being alone sometimes means protecting our purpose for something greater!!!! This may not mean much to you but my heart rejoiced in this this week!! ;)
Day 2 Question 1 pg. 42 How does Sarah's story encourage you to wait for God's perfect timing and fulfillment in your own life?
OK...so this hits home to me! God's timing and ordering our steps may not be the story we want Him to write...but the ending is perfect. I can testify to having to wait....especially since I am waiting NOW!!! I am waiting on numerous things in my life. I love being a mommy....but being a single mom??? ugh.....It is like 'ok God, I have done this long enough. Can yu please hurry and bring more stability my way NOW!" Haha....I respect God and his timing and learning that His ways are higher than mine so there must be something pretty amazing in store.
Day 4 Question 1 pg. 47 Where did Aaron get the gold to make the calf?
Question 2 pg. 47 Where did the Israelites get their gold earrings from to make the gold calf?
Ok....so guilty of putting my precious daughter before my time with God. I was convicted this week about putting things off...including prayer time. Then I realized..."wait Heather...why not pray with Rori. Why not allow her to feel His presence." I pray with her daily, but I am talking about that deep time with God. So many times growing up I remember my mother having devotions and hearing her cry out to God. I could feel His presence in the room. That is what I want for my daughter. I am guilty of not doing this due to putting her desires first.
Day 1-wanting to be like everyone else and trying to find my identity in other people instead of in Christ.
ReplyDeleteDay 2-it reminds me how muddled-up things can get when I get impatient and want to manipulate something to happen when I want it to. The blessing may still come, but consequences will as well!
Day 3-I did not give much thought to the wording of this question until Nancy asked me about it and I saw Amber discuss it. The way I thought of it was more in terms of He “allows” pain to happen so we learn to cling to Him alone and no other, so a greater good can come of it. I think of people like Beth Moore who went through horrible painful experiences who in turn ministers and teaches to thousands of people as a result. Or Lazarus—God purposely caused him to die, bringing pain to Mary & Martha, but then Jesus used his death for a much greater glory.
Day 4-oooh, this was very convicting!
Day 5-the day before doing this day’s homework, my daughter had 3 vials of blood taken at the pediatrician’s office. She has had unexplained fever and swollen lymph nodes for over 2 months and now significant unexplained weight loss. The doctor told me she was concerned, which made me even more concerned. That night I went to bed with all the “what-if’s” and crying to God to please take care of my Mary and to take my fear away. The next day I opened my book to the word “fear” and knew God was about to answer my prayers. So I did this lesson in terms of fear of my daughter’s lab results instead of my idols.
I was so moved by Matt. 17:7 which says “And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, ‘Arise, and do not be afraid.’” I pictured Jesus seeing the fear on his friends’ faces and tenderly coming to them and putting His arms on their shoulders to comfort them. Right then I felt like He was doing the same for me. It was so comforting.
(Thankfully, Mary’s labs came back this week as “just a virus” but they want to do more bloodwork in another week or two if the fever continues, which it still is, and she loses more weight.)
Tracy, I will be praying for your daughter. How scarey. Just wanted you to know if have someone praying for her and her health!
ReplyDelete