Phil 4:6-7 (NLT) Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
If you have never read Max Lucado's, Fearless, I highly recommend it. It is a book that helps to refocus your thoughts from fear to faith, and a reminder that God will never leave us nor forsake us, regardless of what the circumstances look like.
May God's peace rule your heart and your mind today... Blessings, Debra
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Monday, October 18, 2010
Online Bible Study
If you are interested in seeing this online study continue, please let us know. So far we haven't had much response to the study, but if anyone is interested we will be more than happy to start a new study. You can either email me or post a comment.
Thanks... Debra
Thanks... Debra
Monday, September 27, 2010
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God
Daily Office Devotional....Read Genesis 32:22-26, 30
Jacob's name can mean "cheat" or "grabber," and he lives up to his name. He is manipulative , deceptive, and aggressive - not someone who could qualify as a well-scrubbed member of First Church. Jacob is a seriously flawed person growing up in a dysfunctional family. He seems to be either getting into trouble or just getting out of it or about to make some more.
Jacob's story is so universal because it is so personal. Throughout his life, Jacob had been stubborn and unwilling to trust anyone - even God. It is at the Jabbok Brook that Jacob is finally broken by God and radically transformed. He is given a new name and a new freedom to live as God originally intended. This comes, however, at the price of a permanent limp that now renders him helpless and desperate to cling to God. And it is out of this weak place of dependence that
Jacob becomes a nation (Israel) in order to bless the world.
In the same way God, sometimes, wounds us in our journey with him in order to move us out of an unhealthy, "tip of the iceberg" spirituality to one that truly transforms us from the inside out. When these come, we can deny them, cover them, get angry with God, blame others, or, like Jacob, we can cling desperately to God.
Question to consider: In what way(s) has God put your life or plans "out of joint" so that you might depend on him?
Prayer: Father, I relate to Jacob in striving, manipulating, scheming, denying, and spinning half-truths to those around me in order to get my way. At times, I too find myself serving you in order to get something from you. Lord, I invite you to teach me to live in dependence on you. Help me rest and be still in your love alone. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Jacob's name can mean "cheat" or "grabber," and he lives up to his name. He is manipulative , deceptive, and aggressive - not someone who could qualify as a well-scrubbed member of First Church. Jacob is a seriously flawed person growing up in a dysfunctional family. He seems to be either getting into trouble or just getting out of it or about to make some more.
Jacob's story is so universal because it is so personal. Throughout his life, Jacob had been stubborn and unwilling to trust anyone - even God. It is at the Jabbok Brook that Jacob is finally broken by God and radically transformed. He is given a new name and a new freedom to live as God originally intended. This comes, however, at the price of a permanent limp that now renders him helpless and desperate to cling to God. And it is out of this weak place of dependence that
Jacob becomes a nation (Israel) in order to bless the world.
In the same way God, sometimes, wounds us in our journey with him in order to move us out of an unhealthy, "tip of the iceberg" spirituality to one that truly transforms us from the inside out. When these come, we can deny them, cover them, get angry with God, blame others, or, like Jacob, we can cling desperately to God.
Question to consider: In what way(s) has God put your life or plans "out of joint" so that you might depend on him?
Prayer: Father, I relate to Jacob in striving, manipulating, scheming, denying, and spinning half-truths to those around me in order to get my way. At times, I too find myself serving you in order to get something from you. Lord, I invite you to teach me to live in dependence on you. Help me rest and be still in your love alone. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God
Daily Office Devotional: Read Mark 11:15-17..Jesus' intense anger and overturning of tables in the temple courts ought to make us gasp. He knows that if we don't get to God, invaluable treasures will be lost or obscured. We lose the space where we experience God's unfailing love and incredible forgiveness. We lose an eternal perspective on what is important and what is not. We lose compassion. We gain the world but lose our souls (Mark 8:36-37)
Question to Consider: How would you describe "what is secondary" in your life, the thing that might be "blocking the way" to experiencing God?
Prayer: Lord, help me to see how much I lose when I lose you. My perspective on my life and all of life gets distorted when I don't make space for you, obscuring your love for me. Your love is better than life and truly, I long for more tastes of that love. In Jesus' name, amen.
Question to Consider: How would you describe "what is secondary" in your life, the thing that might be "blocking the way" to experiencing God?
Prayer: Lord, help me to see how much I lose when I lose you. My perspective on my life and all of life gets distorted when I don't make space for you, obscuring your love for me. Your love is better than life and truly, I long for more tastes of that love. In Jesus' name, amen.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
DAVID VS GOLIATH
Hi Everyone! I apologize for the late post. I had some family stuff come up that needed my attention.
The scripture reference (from our EHS Workbook)is I Sam 17:26-45. In this famous story, the army of Israel faces the great army of the Philistines. For forty days, Goliath, described as nine feet tall and dressed in powerful weaponry, challenges any Israelite soldier to come out and fight him. When the Israelites saw him, however, "they all ran from him in great fear." The story begins after David hears, for the first time, Goliath's humiliating challenge to Israel's army.
Read I Sam 17:26-45 and answer the questions below.
#1) What question does David ask after hearing Goliath's challenge? (vs 26)
#2) What are some of the challenges, accusations, and messages David is getting from the people around him: From David's family (Vs 28), From Saul (vs 33,38) From Goliath(vs 41-45)
#3) What feelings might you be experiencing if you were David? For example, what feelings might you have towards your sibling? Towards a person in authority over you like Saul? Towards a Goliath.
#4) How does David live out his true self against the powerful forces and pressures that seek to mold him into someone he is not?
DEBRA'S COMMENTS: Before this confrontation with Goliath, David spent many years tending his father's sheep. During his wilderness experience, two things happened. First, David honed his skills as a warrior, protecting his sheep. Second, he came to intimately know his heavenly Father. Both of these things contributed towards his attitude towards Goliath (see vs 36-37, 45). Another important thing that happened during David's wilderness experience is that he had a lot of time to examine his own heart and get things straightened around before this moment. For example, he had been anointed by Samuel to be king over Israel, and here he was still tending sheep.
When the time for the confrontation came, David held onto his faith in spite of those around him; even his own brothers were against him. (vs 28) Satan loves to come and rob us of our faith, any way he can. So not only do we have to hold onto our faith, and fight the good fight, so to speak, but we also have to examine our own hearts and determine if there is something we are holding onto that is keeping us from exercising faith. It could be a buried emotion, a bad experience that we had, or something else that undermines our faith. Any place in our hearts that is not healed and not open to the light of the Lord is an area where the enemy can shipwreck our faith. God is never surprised by what's in our hearts. All He wants to do is forgive us our sins and heal us, but He can't do that until we open ourselves up to Him.
After you've had a chance to look at these questions and think about them, please feel free to comment, either by answering the questions or posting your comments related to this discussion. I look forward to hearing from you!
The scripture reference (from our EHS Workbook)is I Sam 17:26-45. In this famous story, the army of Israel faces the great army of the Philistines. For forty days, Goliath, described as nine feet tall and dressed in powerful weaponry, challenges any Israelite soldier to come out and fight him. When the Israelites saw him, however, "they all ran from him in great fear." The story begins after David hears, for the first time, Goliath's humiliating challenge to Israel's army.
Read I Sam 17:26-45 and answer the questions below.
#1) What question does David ask after hearing Goliath's challenge? (vs 26)
#2) What are some of the challenges, accusations, and messages David is getting from the people around him: From David's family (Vs 28), From Saul (vs 33,38) From Goliath(vs 41-45)
#3) What feelings might you be experiencing if you were David? For example, what feelings might you have towards your sibling? Towards a person in authority over you like Saul? Towards a Goliath.
#4) How does David live out his true self against the powerful forces and pressures that seek to mold him into someone he is not?
DEBRA'S COMMENTS: Before this confrontation with Goliath, David spent many years tending his father's sheep. During his wilderness experience, two things happened. First, David honed his skills as a warrior, protecting his sheep. Second, he came to intimately know his heavenly Father. Both of these things contributed towards his attitude towards Goliath (see vs 36-37, 45). Another important thing that happened during David's wilderness experience is that he had a lot of time to examine his own heart and get things straightened around before this moment. For example, he had been anointed by Samuel to be king over Israel, and here he was still tending sheep.
When the time for the confrontation came, David held onto his faith in spite of those around him; even his own brothers were against him. (vs 28) Satan loves to come and rob us of our faith, any way he can. So not only do we have to hold onto our faith, and fight the good fight, so to speak, but we also have to examine our own hearts and determine if there is something we are holding onto that is keeping us from exercising faith. It could be a buried emotion, a bad experience that we had, or something else that undermines our faith. Any place in our hearts that is not healed and not open to the light of the Lord is an area where the enemy can shipwreck our faith. God is never surprised by what's in our hearts. All He wants to do is forgive us our sins and heal us, but He can't do that until we open ourselves up to Him.
After you've had a chance to look at these questions and think about them, please feel free to comment, either by answering the questions or posting your comments related to this discussion. I look forward to hearing from you!
Monday, August 23, 2010
About to get started again
Hi Ladies!
Just wanted to let everyone know we'll be getting started again with the book club here soon! Debra Macon will be helping me out with posting and discussion. Please let us know if you'll be participating with us! I'll let you know as soon as we start up again!
Have a great day!
Pamela
Just wanted to let everyone know we'll be getting started again with the book club here soon! Debra Macon will be helping me out with posting and discussion. Please let us know if you'll be participating with us! I'll let you know as soon as we start up again!
Have a great day!
Pamela
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Summer
Just wanted to check in with everyone. Are you interested in continuing a study through the summer or are we needing a break? Let me know your thoughts. If we do something over the summer, Debra Macon has agreed to help me with the study and would be doing the posting. But I do want to make sure that we are all in agreement to move forward and not take a break. Please write your comments below! Thanks!
Monday, May 24, 2010
Keep Pluggin Away
Since everyone is at different places in this, please just let me know where you are or if you need anything. If you want me to post more pages that are completed so that you can see them, I'd be happy to do that.
If this is just too overwhelming, please just set it aside and just read the chapters. We aren't doing this to overwhelm everyone but just to look at a different way to study. So if it isn't for you, no worries. We'll do something different next time.
Let me know what you need, what tools, what questions you have or if you have scrapped this all together and are ready to move on to something else.
Where would you like to go now???
If this is just too overwhelming, please just set it aside and just read the chapters. We aren't doing this to overwhelm everyone but just to look at a different way to study. So if it isn't for you, no worries. We'll do something different next time.
Let me know what you need, what tools, what questions you have or if you have scrapped this all together and are ready to move on to something else.
Where would you like to go now???
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