Posts Tagged ‘Bible study’

Phases of Parenting

Posted in All Posts, Devotional Thoughts, Parenting, tagged , , , , , , , , , on March 7, 2013 | 2 Comments »

Imagine dividing up parenting into phases.  Andy Stanley* has suggested this breakdown:

Ages 1-5  Discipline

Ages 5-12 Training

Ages 12-18 Coaching

Ages 18+ Friendship

I’ve been thinking about this for a few weeks.  I have a 12-year-old middle schooler.  It’s crazy how suddenly she “grew up”.  It’s clearly a new phase of parenting.  We are shifting from “Mom decides” to “You decide with the help and influence of Mom”.  And on what basis is she making decisions?  On the basis of all the training I have provided (or not provided!) in the last 10 years.  Eeeekk.

Here are a few other bits of wisdom for the coaching years:

- If you fail to discipline and train your kids when they are young, then it’s too late.  You cannot suddenly add discipline when they are teenagers.  Doing so provokes rebellion and communication breakdown.

- You cannot “be friends” with your middle schooler.  You are the coach.  Coach is not the same as friend.

- “Don’t freak out.”  This is your mantra as long as you have teens in your house.  Don’t freak out.  Be calm.  If you freak out they will stop talking to you.  Don’t shut down the communication.  Leave them open to coaching.

- Say “Oh no, that’s terrible!  What are we going to do about that?”  See how you can use your words to communicate that you understand the drama and that you are on their side?  Then let them work out a solution.  Practice encouraging from the sidelines, not charging out into the middle of the field to sort things out.

- Remember that the most important things are not the urgent things.  (True for much of life!)  Do not allow seemingly urgent issues and activities replace the important things…

- Sometimes you say “no” to good things (sports, ministry, whatever) in order to invest more in your kids and have time with them.

- Don’t lie.  Don’t let them lie either.

- Teach them to honor their mother.

- Let them fail when the stakes are low.

- Help them see how their faith intersects three important things: 1. Decision making, 2. Relationships, and 3. School.  You can do this partly by talking all the time, everywhere, in a natural fashion about how your faith affects your thinking processes too.

- And finally remember that “Later is Longer”.  You have only a few short years of parenting, but you will be friends with your kids for 60 or more years.  Make the hard decisions now.  It’s ok to cry for a night.  Later is longer.  Always.

*Our Wednesday night dinner/small group has really enjoyed Andy Stanley’s “Future Family” series.  Session 5 he co-taught with his wife and they discussed parenting. http://www.northpoint.org/messages/future-family

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Old Testament – A Visual

Posted in All Posts, Devotional Thoughts, Discipleship Tools, tagged , , , , , , , , , on March 1, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Whoo hoo!  I finished Deuteronomy in my read-thru-the-Bible project… Can I get an amen?  Leviticus and Deuteronomy were the hardest parts!

OTVisualI am a visual learner, and a teacher in love of visual aids and a big white board!  So let me share with you this diagram that will help you, and your students, remember what’s going on in the first part of the Old Testament.

Imagine a map of the Middle East – from the Garden of Eden somewhere between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq, the nation of Israel, and Egypt.  The Mediterranean Sea is to the west.  Now follow the tracks of Old Testament characters on the map…

Genesis – The beginning.  We start in the east (Iraq) with Adam, Eve, and Noah.  Then Abraham left Ur and settled in Canaan (Promised Land to be).  After Jacob came the story of Joseph who is sent in capitivity to Egypt.

In Exodus the Israelites exit Egypt after 400 years of captivity.

Leviticus is the Law given at Mt. Sinai (see the Levite/priest in the book title?).

In Numbers the people are numbered and wander in the desert for 40 years.

Deuteronomy is the re-reading of the Law before entry into the Promised Land, which is why it is so similar to Leviticus and closes with all the blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.

Joshua crosses the Jordan River into the Promised Land with the nation of Israel and they proceed to slowly conquer most of it.

And the Judges mark a period of rebellion and suffering in the land because “everyone did what was right in their own eyes”.

And then we go to I & II Samuel and the Kings.

I hope it helps you remember the history – it worked for me!

I start reading Joshua next week.  Yea!

 

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On Discipline and Repentance

Posted in All Posts, Jonah, tagged , , , , , , , , on February 13, 2013 | 3 Comments »

A few of my favorite quotes from “Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted”, homework from week 3, with Priscilla Shirer:

“Adversity is redemptive, not punitive.”

“Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” – Hebrews 12:10-11

On the heart:

“Whether or not Jonah knew God was never the concern.  Clearly he was well acquainted with God.  He could discern the leading of God.  Yet Jonah had a problem agreeing with God and changing his mind, attitude, and actions to comply with God.  His heart was out of alignment with the heart of God.”

On repentance:

“Jonah still did not desire to go to Ninevah… Repentance doesn’t necessarily require that your feelings have changed about what God is asking you to do… Repentance means that you are willing, despite those feelings, to put it aside and stop travelling the wrong way.  True repentance requires a change in direction.”

 

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Disciplined for Running Away?

Posted in All Posts, Jonah, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 5, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

A few of my favorite quotes from “Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted”, homework from week 2, with Priscilla Shirer:

A simple choice:

“There’s no gray area in obeying God either, you know.  When God speaks or allows you to see His hand, giving you the opportunity to participate in His purposes, you don’t have an array of options to choose from… It’s clear-cut, plain and simple.  You can either choose to obey or choose to disobey.  No neutral ground.  Choosing to do “nothing” is really a decision to delay obedience – and the word for delayed obedience? Disobedience.” (p.35)

On running away:

Sometimes we literally run from God, like Jonah did.  But more often we are “running away on the inside”.  We are more like Israel than we care to admit:  “The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me consists of tradition learned by rote.” Isaiah 29:13  “Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to Him, but repudiated Him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt.” Acts 7:39

On the Sin Cycle:Wrong-Way-Sign-K-6172

“It wasn’t this bad in the beginning… If only I’d known where those first bad decisions would have led me, maybe I would have chosen differently.” (p.43)

Then suddenly we stand with Jonah, with David after his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah, with the prodigal son and we ask – How did I get to here?!  What happened that brought me to this ugly place?!

That’s our wake-up call!  God is so gracious that He reaches down and shakes us sometimes – WAKE UP!  You’re going the wrong way!

How did you get there?  The answer lies in our very first decision to disobey, to ignore, to allow something that should never have been…

“Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.” James 1:14-15

The decisions you are making today will impact your tomorrows.  How you choose to respond to God’s leading right now will determine how your future unfolds. (p.46)  “Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God and receive His approval.” Romans 6:16

On the Lord’s discipline:

The Lord’s discipline in your life is a sign of His relationship with you.  Those whom He loves, He disciplines. “I will punish their sin with the rod, their iniquity with flogging; but I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.” Psalm 89:32-33

The conviction of the Lord is never to condemn us, but always seeks to restore us to a right relationship with Him.  Indeed, He waits for us to return like the father of the prodigal son… “Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” Isaiah 30:18

“Do you think a season of your life held wasted years with no redeeming qualities?  God can use anything.  He’s the Master of taking the bits and pieces of our leftovers and making something amazing out of it… for His glory.” (p.53)

Amen.

As a side note, I keep thinking of Les Miserables.  Jean Valjean’s choice to steal a loaf of bread sent him to prison and into a downward spiral he certainly never imagined.  The graciousness of the priest who gave him the silver was a chance for personal redemption.  Valjean grasps this opportunity and makes the choice (and keeps making choices) to live differently, righteously, correctly, for others.  It’s a beautiful picture of the horrors and unknowns of the sin cycle and the challenges and joys of redemption – don’t miss it.

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Interruptions, Invitations, and Eternal Significance

Posted in All Posts, Jonah, Quotes, tagged , , , , , , , on January 29, 2013 | 1 Comment »

A few of my favorite quotes from “Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted”, homework from week 1, with Priscilla Shirer:Jonah

…what he considered an interruption was really an invitation to participate in [God's plan]… (p.12)

God doesn’t need us to complete His purposes, yet He still chooses to ask us to partner with Him… You are the one He has singled out as His partner for a particular project. (p.17)

…the most eternally significant part of Jonah’s life comes after God interrupted. (p.18)

…they could only leave a lasting imprint to the extent that they chose to yield to and follow God. (p.19)

The mark you make and your eternal significance will be found in yielding to the divine intervention God sends your way.  … Your story begins with God’s call.  It is not your legacy or lack thereof that makes you significant.  It is God’s call and your willingness to obey it. (p.22)

“Blessed are those who hear the word of the Lord and obey it.” – Luke 11:28

You were created with specific intention and recreated at the moment of your salvation with specific attention to detail so that you would be equipped to walk in the plans God mapped out for you long ago.  You cannot reach complete satisfaction in life apart from your decision to engage in His predetermined plans.  For Jonah and us, this means giving Him the position of prominence in our lives and restructuring our plans so that we can partner with Him. (p.27)

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Eph 2:10

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The Laws of Moses

Posted in All Posts, Laws of Moses, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 22, 2013 | 1 Comment »

Leviticus.  Sigh.  Leviticus is usually the point at which my Read Through The Bible plan comes to a screeching halt.law

Then I skip over most of Deuteronomy and start again in Joshua.  Let’s go conquer Jericho!

Offerings, feasts, clean and unclean animals and other things, sacrifices, altars, washing bowls, incense, and blood poured out and sprinkled on all kinds of things.  Really?  Who wants to read the Laws of Moses?  The whole system certainly seems confusing.  Complicated.  And extremely exact.  There is only one right way to keep the Law, and if you screwed it up you were guilty of trespass – ignorance was no excuse.

Well, by golly, it’s been at least five years since I read the Laws of Moses.  How about you?  I am determined to get through them… and not only that, but to make some sense of them.  As I read along, I would like to share with you the big pieces of the puzzle – the broader framework that the Laws of Moses hang on.  I hope you’ll find the Big Picture helpful.

The explicit purpose for each law or statute is rarely given.  However, most of the laws are designed with fundamental principles in mind:

The Laws of Moses were designed to teach the Israelites:

1. To honor and respect God above all else,

2.  To honor and respect people and their property, and

3. How to be holy and aware of their separateness (from the nations around them) as a God’s specially chosen people.

The Laws of Moses provided a national framework for what was right and wrong.  As Moses told the people, “You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing what is right in his own eyes!” – Deut. 12:8

The laws must also be viewed in the context of the life and times in which the Israelites were living.  They were surrounded by death, wicked kings, and nations that practiced child sacrifice.  Keeping that in mind, we realize that the Laws of Moses impose an incredibly high standard of ethical conduct on the nation.  We also find that the laws are unique (for that era) in teaching the value of a human life, the importance of due process, and the necessity of judicial fairness/equal justice.

Indeed, the laws were established for the good of the people.  (Why do laws not always feel like they are for our own good?!)

As Moses said, “Now, Israel, what does the Lord require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statues which I am commanding you today for your good.” – Deut. 10:12-13

We also know from reading Romans that it is the Law that makes people aware of what is sin (3:20), even though our conscience often makes this clear to us anyway (2:14-15).  We also know that no one was ever justified before God by keeping the Law (3:20, 3:28, 4:13) and only Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Law.  And we know that the blood of bulls and goats could never take away the guilt and sins of the people (Hebrews 9:9-10 and 10:1-4,11) and that we are cleansed only in the blood of Jesus Christ, the perfect sacrifice.

So just remember that the Laws of Moses were a framework of right and wrong, were designed to teach important principles, and were for the good of the people.  I am so glad that Jesus Christ came as our perfect high priest and instituted a time of reformation (Hebrews 9:10-11) so that we are not bound by the Laws of Moses!

However, we’re still going to read them – because we can learn from them!

Here is an excellent commentary on the purpose of the law:  http://agapegeek.com/2010/05/14/understanding-the-bible-definition-and-purpose-of-the-law-of-moses-pt-1/

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The Two Main Areas of Christian Development

Posted in All Posts, Discipleship Tools, tagged , , , , , , on October 2, 2012 | 1 Comment »

“Your Christian development can be divided into two main areas of concentration:

Learning to follow Christ and learning to make Christ known.

Following Jesus involves repentance, baptism, reading and studying God’s Word, obedience and surrender (AKA – just do what He says already!), and accountability. Growth in Christ is impossible without those basics, but your personal growth alone is not the objective of Christianity.

As much as God loves you, He’s really not content with just having you or doing things for you, so it’s imperative you grow up so you can effectively make Christ known to others. Our God wants the rest of humanity, too, and He wants to use your converted and sanctified life to reach them! Making Christ known starts with a willingness to identify yourself with Jesus. That involves becoming an active part of a church body, serving others, discovering and using your spiritual gifts, knowing and sharing the gospel message and your testimony as often as you have opportunity, and inviting people to be a part of what has made a difference in your own life.

These are the parts and pieces that make for an active and effective Christian life vs. a fairly passive and useless religious life spent attending church, listening to sermons, singing songs and waiting to be asked to do something. I pray you’re one of the Christ-followers that brings glory to His name and Kingdom because, quite frankly, we’ve got to shrink the ranks of the Christian onlookers and temporary volunteers.”

- guest blog by Susie Walther, The Well Bible Study Ministry (Tampa, FL)

http://www.thewellbiblestudy.org

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Is going to church all the time changing you?

Posted in All Posts, Devotional Thoughts, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 25, 2012 | 7 Comments »

I’ve noticed something since moving to the South last year.  People sure do go to church a lot.  Every time the door is open – Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, and a few Mondays and Fridays thrown in too.

People are busy DOING things at church too.  Singing in the choir.  Volunteering in the nursery.  Teaching Vacation Bible School or Sunday school.  Collecting food donations.  Even going on mission trips!  People are really BUSY… serving and helping.  Doing good things.

So here’s my question – with all this “doing” have we forgotten the importance of “being” – or rather “becoming more like Christ”?

I have met very few women who have a spiritual hunger, a desire to know more of Jesus and to become more like Him.

So many women I see are… well… just busy at church… but not changed, not growing, not renewed and transformed, and not even excited about Jesus and all He is doing in their lives.  Mostly they are tired.  And over committed.

A friend wrote this week, “Unfortunately, for the most part, bunches of women attend Bible studies week in and week out, and church Sunday morning after Sunday morning, but nothing at all changes.  They attend, and attend, and attend with spiritually little to show for all that attending they do. They’re content to be a “good enough” Christian or worse, to possess a “form of godliness that has no power” (2 Tim. 3:5). Their bad habits don’t change. Their speech doesn’t change. Their attitudes and thinking don’t change. They’re still unforgiving. They still treat their husbands with disrespect. They still don’t invite anyone they don’t know to Bible study or church. They still haven’t shared their faith with anyone. They still don’t read their Bible or do their Bible study.

But they come week after week regardless, and I have to ask, why? Is it just to get out of the house? Is it because they believe there’s a righteousness in being a part of church? Is it because they believe Jesus is pleased when they attend Christian things?

And so I hope session after session that women in my Bible study are different from the majority of women out there who are “always learning but never come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7).” – Susie Walther, www.thewellbiblestudy.org

I hope you’re not in the same spiritual place you were at this time last year!!

If you are, ask God to give you a spiritual hunger for His Word.

Ask Him to help you find some other hungry women and then study His Word with them.

Ask Him to help you re-prioritize the way you spend your time – your precious little time!

Resolve right now that this year will be different – this year you’re going to pursue Jesus and allow Him to change your life.

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The Retaliating Tongue (#24)

Posted in All Posts, Taming the Tongue, tagged , , , , , , on June 5, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

“Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.  Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing…” 1 Peter 3:8-9

Gosh, it is so hard to not fight back when someone says something unkind, unfair, or nasty about you!  We have an overwhelming desire to rise up and strike back!  We are looking for justice when we have been wronged – and it feels good to spit something back out at our offender.  But it isn’t good.

Of course, Jesus is our ultimate example of how to respond to suffering at the hands of others.

“When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” 1 Peter 2:23

I think the trick must be to trust God to take care of things, more than yourself.  Satan surely wants to take advantage of you and make you think that not striking back means you are weak… but that’s a lie.

Our book mentions that learning to NOT retaliate requires:

  1. Humility,
  2. A desire to understand the other person’s behavior,
  3. A commitment to obey and glorify God, and
  4. Trusting that God will bring forth justice in His own time (I added that one….)

Joseph is also a good role model for not retaliating – remember how worried his brothers were when they came to see him in Egypt?  He had every reason to torment them and have them put to death… but he says, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God?  You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.  So then, don’t be afraid.” Genesis 50:19-21

It’s really very difficult to not repay evil with evil… but we must learn some self-control in this area.

“Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.” Romans 12:17-19

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30 Days to Taming Your Tongue, a Bible study by Deborah Pegues

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The Complaining Tongue (#23)

Posted in All Posts, Taming the Tongue, tagged , , , , on June 3, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

“Do everything without complaining or arguing.” Philippians 2:14

Now that’s a clear command!  I understand it, I just cannot DO it….  Last week I was a “glass half empty” kind of person.  That’s odd for me, usually I am overly optimistic about most things.

One sure thing about complaining – you can always find more to complain about!  You could also argue that complaining is contagious… surround yourself with women who complain and in due time you will become like them.

I did a word study on complaining once – it was very convicting.  I started around Exodus 16 and followed the children of Israel after they left Egypt.  I marked the word “grumble” (NASB) or “complain” (NIV) or “murmur” (KJV) every time it appeared.  Gees, they complained a lot – and God was not amused.  Then move along to Numbers 11 -14 and they were still complaining… And God got angry and the fire of the Lord consumed the edges of the camp.  Then Miriam complained and started a rebellion and God gave her leprosy.  Next the spies brought back a bad report about the promised land and Israel grumbled again and God was ready to kill the whole lot and pick a new people group, until Moses intervened.  Slow learners, they complained again in Numbers 16 and God killed 15,000 of them with a plague during Korah’s rebellion.  And in Numbers 21 the survivors were still grumbling and God sent poisonous snakes among the people.

Get the picture? Even God tires of constant complaining.

“We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.  These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.” 1 Corinthians 10:9-11

I liked the quote in our book, “To murmur is likewise wicked for it takes God’s promises in vain.”  So when we complain, we are saying that we are tired of waiting for God, or that He has failed us in some way or another.  That’s serious business.

What do you complain about the most?  Can you think of one or two things?

There are basically two kinds of complaints – Useful and Useless.

The Useful category includes situations that are within your circle of influence.  That is, you can impact them directly or have access to someone who can.  You can DO something to change the situation.  Use your wisdom and diplomacy to see if you can change the situation.  Sometimes I say to my daughter – Would you like me to try to fix that, or are you just venting?

The Useless category includes situations that are simply time-wasters.  You cannot do anything about the weather, traffic, long lines, and most of life’s other annoying realities.  Your best bet is going to be to manage your life and time in such a way as to minimize the impact.  Change what you can – and resolve to not complain about the rest!

We can train our minds to focus on the good in life – the list of things we can be grateful for is always a lot longer than our complaint list, when we sit down and think about it.  We need to TRAIN our MINDS to follow Paul’s advice:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

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30 Days to Taming Your Tongue, a Bible study by Deborah Pegues

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