September 15th, 2015 began my second semester as a Bible Study Leader in my church. I am humbled and blessed to have the opportunity to allow Christ to use me to be instrumental in the Molding, "Shedding & Shredding" sometimes even Bending of His "Believing God" Girls. We are all in this TOGETHER. The title of our study is Believing God, Experiencing a Fresh Explosion of Faith by Beth Moore. I've chosen to blog throughout this semester in the hopes that it will encourage "as many as He deems necessary." (You'll hear more about this prayer phrase soon.) Maybe, you will even decide you are ready for a Fresh Explosion of Faith...
I began this study on March 8, 2008 the very first time. It had been a difficult 9 months prior that ultimately led my path to cross with this study. Let's backtrack to 2007 for a minute. Early that year, both my parents were fighting cancer. I was overwhelmed to say the least. What with carting them to treatments, doctors appointments, trying to be a wife, mother & sibling all the while watching Mom's body get weaker & weaker from the cancer and treatments and the cancer Meds messing with my Dad's mind. We were 9 years into my Mom's Breast Cancer and just shy of 2 years into Dad's Lung Cancer at this point.
Loosing one parent was emotional enough but loosing two at or near the same time seemed devastating to say the least. So I began praying, petitioning, pressing in to God for some kind of peace. I was looking for His assurance in this tumultuous time. I asked Him for something to help me rest and enable me to continue day by day. I knew I could ask since God speaks to His people through His Word, His people, Prayer and Circumstances. I only needed to listen for Him and He would make Himself known to me. In time, He gave me June. I know that's a strange answer. I had no clue what it meant, but I had a pretty good idea. As unusual as it seemed at the time, that answer helped me to continue to walk through this storm.
June turned out to be the month we spent caring for my mom in her last days. It was surreal; almost as if I were living a dream every day. Mom passed away on July 4th. Since she was a Believer of Christ, she traded her worn out cancer ridden body for a new fully Healed body! We could be at peace because she was now FREE from cancer forever. Mom was the glue in my family and our champion! I struggled with grief after the reality of her death settled in. The hardest times of course when I would go to the house to visit and care for my Dad.
Three very short months later, my daughter's best friend was in a serious car accident. The ER staff did everything possible for her but she did not live. The realization of more grief began to settle in. However, this was not the end of our grief only the Beginning of the Middle as six months later, my Mother-in-Law was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Brain Tumor. So there we were, in less than 12 months, we had lost two Grandmothers and a Best Friend, three significant people in our lives! And they were gone...
Grief became our Auto-Pilot... At this point, I was just hoping to Survive as a family but even my hope couldn't get me much past flailing at best!
Oh,,, but for God.... God engineered the Circumstances for "Believing God" by Beth Moore to cross my path in March, 2008 just before my Mother-in-Law's cancer was fully diagnosed. And, I was fully into this study by the time she passed away. A Divine Intervention I will always be grateful for.
To say "Believing God" was a LIFE SAVER is truly an understatement! God used this study to create LIFE in me as He orchestrated and is still orchestrating Healing & Deliverance from Death, Grief and All Kinds of Trials over the last 7 years of my life! I saw God and Life's Circumstances in a whole new way. I tell people all the time that I would have never Chosen these events, but I Absolutely Would Not TRADE them for the life I have lived since the deaths and "Believing God". Most importantly, God Miraculously held our family in the Palm of His Hand; He never let us go! God blessed us far beyond what we could've ever asked or imagined. He was Faithful! and continues to be Faithful. He is our Redeemer, Restorer, Deliverer! He is our peace, forever and ever.
Romans 12:1-2, "Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive, holy, and pleasing to God – which is your reasonable service. Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God – what is good and well-pleasing and perfect."
This scripture writing reminds me of the sacrifice that is ultimately necessary when God has a Bigger Purpose in your Circumstances than you can see or know in the beginning. For us, the purpose of Death is Life. The purpose of Grief is Healing and the purpose of Deliverance is Faith. Oh, how He Loves us, BGG's! I still cling to Life, Healing and Faith in the good days and the bad days. I can't wait for you to join me next week as we continue our study together!
Fasten your seat belts; you're in for the Ride of Your Lives if any one of you should choose to join us here!
http://www.lifeway.com/n/product-family/believing-god/?intcmp=BethMoore-Tiled-Tiled-BelievingGod-20141106
I began this study on March 8, 2008 the very first time. It had been a difficult 9 months prior that ultimately led my path to cross with this study. Let's backtrack to 2007 for a minute. Early that year, both my parents were fighting cancer. I was overwhelmed to say the least. What with carting them to treatments, doctors appointments, trying to be a wife, mother & sibling all the while watching Mom's body get weaker & weaker from the cancer and treatments and the cancer Meds messing with my Dad's mind. We were 9 years into my Mom's Breast Cancer and just shy of 2 years into Dad's Lung Cancer at this point.
Loosing one parent was emotional enough but loosing two at or near the same time seemed devastating to say the least. So I began praying, petitioning, pressing in to God for some kind of peace. I was looking for His assurance in this tumultuous time. I asked Him for something to help me rest and enable me to continue day by day. I knew I could ask since God speaks to His people through His Word, His people, Prayer and Circumstances. I only needed to listen for Him and He would make Himself known to me. In time, He gave me June. I know that's a strange answer. I had no clue what it meant, but I had a pretty good idea. As unusual as it seemed at the time, that answer helped me to continue to walk through this storm.
June turned out to be the month we spent caring for my mom in her last days. It was surreal; almost as if I were living a dream every day. Mom passed away on July 4th. Since she was a Believer of Christ, she traded her worn out cancer ridden body for a new fully Healed body! We could be at peace because she was now FREE from cancer forever. Mom was the glue in my family and our champion! I struggled with grief after the reality of her death settled in. The hardest times of course when I would go to the house to visit and care for my Dad.
Three very short months later, my daughter's best friend was in a serious car accident. The ER staff did everything possible for her but she did not live. The realization of more grief began to settle in. However, this was not the end of our grief only the Beginning of the Middle as six months later, my Mother-in-Law was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Brain Tumor. So there we were, in less than 12 months, we had lost two Grandmothers and a Best Friend, three significant people in our lives! And they were gone...
Grief became our Auto-Pilot... At this point, I was just hoping to Survive as a family but even my hope couldn't get me much past flailing at best!
Oh,,, but for God.... God engineered the Circumstances for "Believing God" by Beth Moore to cross my path in March, 2008 just before my Mother-in-Law's cancer was fully diagnosed. And, I was fully into this study by the time she passed away. A Divine Intervention I will always be grateful for.
To say "Believing God" was a LIFE SAVER is truly an understatement! God used this study to create LIFE in me as He orchestrated and is still orchestrating Healing & Deliverance from Death, Grief and All Kinds of Trials over the last 7 years of my life! I saw God and Life's Circumstances in a whole new way. I tell people all the time that I would have never Chosen these events, but I Absolutely Would Not TRADE them for the life I have lived since the deaths and "Believing God". Most importantly, God Miraculously held our family in the Palm of His Hand; He never let us go! God blessed us far beyond what we could've ever asked or imagined. He was Faithful! and continues to be Faithful. He is our Redeemer, Restorer, Deliverer! He is our peace, forever and ever.
Romans 12:1-2, "Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive, holy, and pleasing to God – which is your reasonable service. Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God – what is good and well-pleasing and perfect."
This scripture writing reminds me of the sacrifice that is ultimately necessary when God has a Bigger Purpose in your Circumstances than you can see or know in the beginning. For us, the purpose of Death is Life. The purpose of Grief is Healing and the purpose of Deliverance is Faith. Oh, how He Loves us, BGG's! I still cling to Life, Healing and Faith in the good days and the bad days. I can't wait for you to join me next week as we continue our study together!
Fasten your seat belts; you're in for the Ride of Your Lives if any one of you should choose to join us here!
http://www.lifeway.com/n/product-family/believing-god/?intcmp=BethMoore-Tiled-Tiled-BelievingGod-20141106
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