Just Like Jesus Day 3

SOAP verses for today are Luke 1:45-50 Write Out Scripture: "Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!" And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me--holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation..." Write down one or two Observations from the passage. I particularly was struck by the part of the passage that said,"...for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant." Of course he is mindful of me, his servant! Sometimes I feel as though I am alone, but He is ALWAYS mindful of me. He knows what is going on with me whether or not I am filling MY mind with his presence! The other observation I have is the verse,"His mercy extends to all those who fear him, from generation to generation...." I am so blessed to come from Christian families for generations, and His mercy has certainly been extended to me and my family. For that I am truly thankful!! Write down one or two Applications from the passage. The applications are from these same verses in the passage. I need to be more mindful of Him at all times. I had an experience this morning to show grace to my oldest child instead of being angry with him, and I thank God for this opportunity. I am really trying to use Lent to give up my tendency to overreact and raise my voice at my family. Of course, I haven't been perfect with this, but I am MINDFUL of it, and that is making it better day by day. This is an area where I can change my life and start that change during Lent. This same child of mine is trying to change his life by worrying less and trusting God more in a particular area of his life, which again makes me so proud!!! What a wonderful gift he is to me, and I need to celebrate the gift of my children more!!! Second application: pray for those who have NOT have generation to generation of Christians in their life. I need to pray that those that are the first generation to come to Christ that they can continue to be faithful and witness to the generations to come of His grace and unconditional love. I have had it 'easy' in that way....to not have to BUILD the habit of going to church each week...that habit has been instilled in me from birth. I love that my youngest child LIVES each week to go to church, even though he attends daycare in our church building!! He knows the difference in 'daycare' and 'church', and talks about church and his friends from church all the time. I LOVE IT!! I WANT them to grow up loving church and wanting to be there, and I thank God for the opportunity I have each day to share Christ with them!!! Pray over what you have learned from today's passage.

Just like Jesus day 2

SOAP verses today are Luke 1:37-38 "...For no word from God will ever fail." "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "And may your word to me be fulfilled." Then the angel left her. Observations Mary was in a huge scary situation, and here she was a young teenager, being disgraced and probably being berated by her family, yet she had faith that the angel spoke the truth of the Lord. Oh, to have faith like Mary!!! Applications For no word from God will ever fail....but do I always trust that?? Do I give him my full trust, or expect to handle it myself?? I need to totally give everything over to the Lord!! Did this on Friday but forgot to post it!! Ooops!

Living Like Jesus Day 1

I'm doing a Bible study with my church, but I am so enjoying and getting something from The Word, that I decided to start an additional one with the Good Morning Girls called Living Like Jesus, based on Luke 1-8. There are specific things to do each day, but I am going to post them here instead of printing out paper, to be a better steward of the Earth! I'm not starting on Monday, so I'll have to adjust my days to have my week start on Thursday! Today's reading is Luke 1:1-25, and the SOAP scripture is Luke 1:1-4. S stands for write out the Scripture. Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myslef have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may knwo the certainty of the things you have been taught. O stands for Observation. Write down one or two observations from the passage. I had never realized that the letter was written to Theophilus....never read these verses closely, apparently! I alppreciate that these verses were first passed down by those who were eyewitnesses and passed down orally. A stands for Applications. Write down one or two applications from the passage. I need to be more diligent about telling the stories of my ancestors to my children, and most importantly, writing them DOWN before they are lost from my mind, and get my parents to tell me stories and write them down as well! P stands for Pray. Pray over what you learned from today's passage. Also, while I am writing things, I'll say that I am trying to 'give up' two bad habits during Lent: saying curse words, and raising my voice at my family. So far I've not done the best on raising my voice! I could blame it on the fact that I am in the midst of a horrible fibromyalgia flare and have sick family members on both sides of the family to boot, but that is really no excuse. I can do better, and with God's help, I will!!

Study: 1st Corinthians

Once again, I have more time and attention to do Bible studies in the summer...so let's see if I can actually work through one!!

Read 1 Corinthians 1:1-3

(The Message) "I, Paul, have been called and sent by Jesus, the Messiah, according to God's plan, along with my friend Sosthenes. I send this letter to you in God's church at Corinth, believers cleaned up by Jesus and set apart for a God-filled life. I include in my greeting all who call out to Jesus, wherever they may live. He's their Master as well as ours! May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father, and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours."

1. Who wrote this letter (book) of 1 Corinthians? (1:1) Paul & Sosthenes

2. To whom was it written? (1:2) the people of Corinth and any who call out to Jesus

3. Are the recipients of this letter Christians? (Believers in God / Jesus) (1:2) yes

4. What was the reason for your answer to question 3? (1:2) refers to believers cleaned up by Jesus and to those who cry out to Jesus, which makes me believe that the others would be ones who understood Jesus' purpose and power!

I read this page to learn more about Corinth in Paul's time.

Corinth was a city in what country? Greece

Approximately how many people lived in Corinth and its 'suburbs'? about 650,000

Thinking now about where YOU live, is Corinth larger or smaller than the town or city in which you live? much larger

Let's think about why Corinth was such a large city of over « million people (actually about 650,000):

Was it a "college" town such as Athens, Greece? No

Was it a big commercial center? Yes

Was it on a major trade route with highways and seaports? Yes

What was its predominant "culture"? Greek

Since Corinth's culture was based on the Greek way of living and thinking, what kinds of things were important and emphasized in Corinth? (Circle your answer from the choices below. ... Hint: More than 1 answer may be correct.)

............Greek Philosophy............Man's Wisdom.............Man's Knowledge.........
............Art and Culture................Intellectual pride...........Oratory.............
............Worship of many gods & goddesses.....................education......
............learning...........................sacrificing to pagan gods and goddesses...
............immorality.......................physical beauty.............Sports..................
............worship or adulation of men who are wise and knowledgeable............................

Read I Corinthians 1:1-9 and highlight in blue every time you see the word Jesus or a phrase that refers to him. I'll go back up and do that in the above verses.

I already typed out 1-3, so here is 4-9: "Every time I think of you--and I think of you often!--I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There's no end to what has happened in you--it's beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives. Just think--you don't need a thing, you've got it all! All God's gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that."

Does Paul seem to have concern and love for the Church and its members? Yes

Does Paul seem to have concern and love for the Church and its members? Yes

How can you tell? What does he say to them that makes you think that he loves them and is very concerned and interested in their Spiritual growth?

He reminds them that God has given them everything that they need, and that He will never forget them. He wants them to be assured of this, and of God's presence in their lives each day!

Dwelling in His Presence chapter 2

Read Genesis 3:8-13. What are some of the ways that God uses to call us to come out of hiding?

Asking us directly, asking how we know what we did was wrong, asking why we did what we did

In what ways to do you tend to hide from God?

I hide in my busy-ness

Dwelling in His Presence chapter one

Using his words in Phillipians 3:7-8 as a guide, write out your desire to be intimate with the Lord.

I want to discard the things that the world sees as important and spend my time cultivating a relationship with the Lord, for that is much more important in my eyes. I don't need to follow the world's rules and policies--the only one I need to worry about pleasing is the Lord!

How does God's invitation to intimacy stir your heart?

It brings back to mind what I so often forget in the busy, fast paced world: that God loves ME for ME, nothing more or less. He created me and knows even my innnermost thoughts, and loves me anyway. He WANTS to spend time with me and thinks I am wonderful just the way I am. Why would I avoid spending time with one who loves me so completely and unconditionally??

What are some hinderances or distractions that keep you from consistently dwelling in His presence?

I'm 'too busy', I'm 'tired'...I spend time doing mindless tasks that could be discarded forever instead of taking the time to spend with the Lord. I have to make Him the priority He desires to be, and spend the time with Him that He so wants me to spend!!

Prayer: Dear Lord, I am humbled by Your invitation for intimacy. May I not be content just to stand in the door; I desire to enter in and stay in order to enjoy the richness of Your grace and love. Amen.

Made to Crave--Chapter One

1. One weight loss company personifies craving as a little orange monster that chases us around, tempting us to eat unhealthy foods. Take a moment to reflect on your own experience of craving, recently and over time.
If you could personify craving based on your experience of it, what form might it take? Would it be like the little orange monster or would it take a different shape? Describe what your craving looks like and how it behaves. If you could sit down and have a conversation with this imaginary craving, what do you think it might say to you? What questions would you want to ask it? How do you imagine it might respond?

I would see it as a little green devil on my shoulder, telling me all the Devil's lies about why I deserve to give in to my cravings. It sneers and jeers at me when I make healthy choices. I think it talks to me in smooth, soothing tones until I argue with it, and then it is nasty and smart back to me.

2. How do you respond to the idea that God made us to crave? Have you ever pursued a craving--a longing, passion, or desire--that made a positive contribution to your life? What do you think distinguishes that kind of craving from the craving that leads you to eat in unhealthy ways?

The thing that comes to mind is how with all 3 pregnancies, I physically craved ice water! It was what my body needed and the desire for it took place of all the cravings I might have had for sugar sweetened drinks. It was a good craving that felt empowering and positive to fulfill, unlike fulfilling the desires for bad for me foods, etc. I didn't feel guilt after consuming it like I do other things.

3. If it's true that we are made to crave, how might it change the way you understand your cravings? Do you believe there could be any benefits to listening to your cravings rather than trying to silence them? If so, what might these benenfits be? If not, why not?

If I use it as a stepping stone to pray instead of reach for the things I want to eat, it can definitely be a good thing! It will lead me to a closer relationship with the Lord!

There are other questions, but these are the ones that struck me.....I only shared my answers to these, and will do so for the other chapters as well.