We are drawing to a close of our study of Romans in Bible Study Fellowship (BSF). I could study Romans over and over again without fully exhausting all of its depth and riches. My work on the current lesson, however, came to an abrupt halt with this question:
What has the Bible taught you in the past week?
This is not a difficult question. I have been in BSF for years and years. I grew up in the church. I’ve been a Christian since I was a kindergartner. This is not a theological or doctrine oriented question. Why, then, did I sit there for minutes, starring at the blank spot on the page and finally move on, leaving just a question mark?
I’ve been thinking about it ever since.
What did you learn THIS WEEK? Not lately or this year or once, in college, when you went on an awesome retreat.
My week was full of many challenging, thought provoking activities. Our Small Group continues its study of marriage with the Love and Respect series. This week we looked at practical ways to apply what we’ve been learning. On Sunday the pastor preached an excellent sermon on forgiveness and healing. On Monday I gave the devotional and led the prayer time for my Moms In Touch group. The kids and I have been faithful to do our Proverbs study (even adding in a daily Psalm this week). I’ve read the Bible on my own several days this week.
Why did I find myself leaving this BSF question blank?
It hurts (in a convicting, challenging, heart penetrating sort of way) to think that my time in the Word this week hasn’t taught me anything. That the church activities and prayer groups have come and gone and I walked away without any new Biblical truth or insight.
* If I read my Bible and check off that box but learn nothing new about God’s character or His plan and will for my life, what good was that little check mark?
* If I do my BSF lesson but complete it in a quick and shallow way, how is God going to transform my life, renew my mind and make me more like Him?
* If I study Proverbs with my children but don’t pray for the Holy Spirit to give me wisdom and new understanding of these passages that are becoming more familiar, how does this profit me (or the children)?
* If I skip along through life, walking just behind the Lord, and never reach out and hold His hand, how will I know which way to go? How will I stay standing when the cracks in the path threaten to trip me? How will I navigate the darkness? How will I climb out of the pit (despair, loneliness, worry, worldliness, sin)?
I’m afraid I am a lazy person. I don’t want to work hard. I don’t want to struggle or wrestle through difficulties. I like checking off boxes and moving on to the next thing. This approach, however, is going to leave me with lots of blanks in my BSF lesson. And, more importantly, is going to rob me of the incredible riches of a full life in Jesus Christ.
We read Proverbs 2 today in school. One piece in particular struck me:
…and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.
A treasure is valuable and worth finding. Searching for it costs time and energy and effort and WORK. Finding it can change your life!!
What has the Bible taught you this past week?
Kathy
Oh Kathy, what a wonderful post…very thought provoking. I think I need to send that little award back to you.
What have I learned from the Bible? Honestly, I learned that God reaches out to us in ways that break His heart just for the sake of drawing us to Himself.
I’m thinking of His certificate of divorce even though He hates it,
of feeding a prophet from the beaks of birds when his courage has run out and doubts God’s protection,
of allowing His very Son to be ridiculed and lonely and broken to repair the damage done by those who say they love Him.
It’s really overwhelming to think of how God continues to endure the betrayal of the human heart in order to bring the faithful to Himself.
He IS good!
Great blog, Kathy. Unfortunately for me… very convicting.
Last night at church, our class (5th and 6th grade boys) reviewed a Incredible Creatures That Defy Evolution video, that one of the other leaders brought. I must admit, I don’t care that much about evolution, except as a good example of what happens when otherwise-intelligent people don’t challenge their assumptions. As a homeschooling Dad, I am a bit sheltered with regard to the extent to which evolution is touted as the only explanation for the world.
It was a cool video that raises some difficult and rather embarrassing questions for Evolutionists. One of the kids asked whether Jesus existed before dinosaurs, and I scurried to find this passage, in which Paul talks about the supremacy of Christ:
As I was reading this, I was struck by what a personal affront to Jesus that the so-called scientific theory of evolution is. It is as though you worked your whole life on building a complex and elegant invention of great value to mankind, and someone walked by and dismissed it as having happened by chance, ignoring all your careful design and craftsmanship.
I guess it isn’t really anything new, since I’ve studied that passage in Colossians many times before … but it seemed a somewhat new perspective to me, that Jesus might take His creation very personally and be displeased with those who downplay His role in it.
Kathy: Mom and I were particularly encouraged by this blog. In one sense we learn something new every day when we read the Word. But, in another sense, it is so familiar to us that we sometimes take it for granted and don’t realize that even if we didn’t learn anything new (intellectually) we are still eating spiritual food. I guess it’s like enjoying a favorite dish. It’s not new to you, but you’re enjoying it, and it is providing physical sustenance. I think it’s the same way with God’s Word. We grow spiritually by reading it – even if only checking off the box.
On another note. Thank you so much for putting the newsletter together for me. God has blessed you with nimble fingers and a quick mind. Thanks for your willingness to help. We love you. Dad
Great blog Kathy . . .very thought provoking!
Great post, Kathy. The Word has been my lifeline this week…funny (not really) how it always IS but when things are sunny and breezy we quickly forget and get just a tad bit independent.
Kathy, I’ve been mulling over this entry all day, trying to put my thoughts into words…here is my feeble attempt.
Two things come to mind, my relationship to my dh, Brian, the closest I can relate on human terms to my relationship to God and Tim’s entry last week about quantity vs. Quality.
There are many evenings when Brian and I sit together, he’ll read and I’ll stitch, we might talk now and again, but usually it is pretty quiet, but there is something so precious about these times, nothing earth shattering or thought provoking, just time spent with someone I love and care about deeply. Other times we spend hours talking about things that are happening in our lives, major things and important issue or maybe just chatting.
Our time in the Word or prayer might not always bring great truths, but I think they are so sweet to our Heavenly Father that we want to spend quantity time with him. We might not always gain something life-changing but just spending time with our God is such a wonderful way to spend time!
Thank you for sharing your heart. You had me thinking all day!
Thanks for all the thoughtful replies! Tim, I was very moved by the idea of evolution being a direct insult to Jesus Christ as the creator of our world. Wow! That’s powerful.
Jen-I often think of how God’s heart must break as He watches over us and reaches out to us. When my own children say or do something that hurts me in it’s foolishness or sinfulness, I think of God and how we must look like little, squabbling, whining children to Him. Thanks for writing! I love hearing from everyone.
Debbie – what a great (long) comment! You are so right about our relationship with God being just that, a relationship. At times we sit quietly in each other’s presence and at others we dialogue back and forth and at others we challenge, discuss, and work through big issues. I think you (and Tim’s Dad) are on to something in the idea that spending time in God’s Word is always precious and rewarding and valuable, even if it doesn’t yield “new” or convicting truths.
Thanks for the great dialogue, everyone!!!