Bible Study and Book Club Updates |
| Joseph Journey to Forgiveness | Week 2 Posted: 24 Jan 2016 08:58 PM PST Welcome back to online Bible Study at the Women's Bible Cafe™. We’re discussing WEEK TWO from the book “Joseph, the Journey to Forgiveness” by Melissa Spoelstra. This week we reflected on Joseph’s time in prison and his opportunities to forgive and reflect on his offenders. He was literally waiting…to be remembered and released from prison. While in prison he probably experienced a multitude of emotions. Have you experienced similar emotions in your own season of forgiveness? As I write this, one of my close friends is in a prison season. She has no control over the circumstances that brought her to a time of waiting. She does have a choice in her response, just as we learned this week in our study of Joseph. She can respond with anger, hurt, depression, worry or fear, and those emotions are often expected given her situation. It’s easy for her to gather a group of friends to validate her justified emotions. Yet another response is for her to pray, listen, and allow God to heal her heart. That response is much harder because it’s often done alone, in a prison season. We can produce fruit from the season of waiting: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). We can uncover tiny pebbles and big boulders in a season of waiting. We can draw closer to Jesus. Yet our flesh wants to respond with frustration, fear, revenge, gossip and regrets. As Sonya Morris Nelson says, “The wild horse is at it again!” My personal advice is to get off that horse, get on your knees, and petition your requests to God. Most likely He’s going to lead you to a healthy and permanent restoration of your heart… only when you are quiet enough to listen. Let’s move on with our lesson and learn the freedom of complete forgiveness! BIBLE STUDY TIP: Set a reminder on your cell phone with an alarm to attend a small group and complete your reading assignments in the study book. I am finishing online classes at Liberty University and this is how I keep up. I calendar the assignments and schedule time for them using a repeat alarm on my phone. Assignment For the Week
Discussion Questions – Answer in your small group or post a comment below
Praying for you,
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| Galatians: Free from Bondage God’s Way | Week 2 Posted: 24 Jan 2016 08:21 PM PST Welcome back to our online Inductive Bible Study on the book of Galatians, “Free from Bondage God’s Way” by Kay Arthur. We just completed Week Two, “Shackled by Your Past?” Do you ever feel like you are chained to your past? That your past hovers over you like a dark cloud and follows you everywhere you go? I would love to go back and have a “do-over.” Unfortunately, we cannot change the past, but there is good news! God can use our past for His glory! Yes, it’s true! God can shape our past into something beautiful for His Kingdom and His glory. You see, we all have a story to tell. We all have a testimony to share about what our life was like before we met Jesus. We saw this in the life of Paul. Before Paul met Jesus, he…. had a religion and was bound by the law was an unbeliever and condemned Christianity hated the church and wanted to destroy it persecuted Christians and wanted them bound and killed After Paul met Jesus, he … had a relationship and was saved by grace was a believer and preached the Gospel shared his testimony and the church grew glorified God What a testimony Paul had to share with the world! “For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it…” Galatians 1:13 Paul was bad news, but now he shares the good news. “And they were glorifying God because of me.” Galatians 1:24 No one is beyond the saving grace of Jesus Christ, no matter what your past looks like. Jesus can change us from the inside out. He makes all things new. He chases away the dark cloud and replaces it with a glorious light for all to see. Reminds me of a childhood song I used to sing, “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine…” Paul goes on to say: “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20 The same goes for us because as believers in Jesus Christ, we have been saved by grace. Re-read the above verse, but this time replace the “I” and “me” with your name. Kay Arthur writes in the “Thought for the Week”… “Rest, beloved child of God, for God saved you when it pleased Him. His promise is there to comfort and assure you that the Sovereign God–the God of all flesh– is able to cause all things, even your “before Christ” days, to work together for good. He will use them to make you like Jesus.” BIBLE STUDY TIP: When marking key words, keep a list of the key words on an index card along with the way you marked the word. Use the index card as a bookmark in your Bible so that you are consistent in marking the words the same way throughout the book you are studying. ASSIGNMENT FOR THE WEEK:
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THIS WEEK (answer in small groups or post a comment here)
Blessings,  |
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