She Reads Truth : Hymn study

She Reads Truth Hymn Study

Day 1 / Blessed Assurance

Good Morning!

It’s Sunday…and this is my last day in Denver with my daughter and her family. What a blessing to be here, to spend time with my grandchildren and to enjoy the miraculous mountains. The glorious view on the way to Winter Park is beautiful beyond words. My husband and I were in awe.  How can we miss this link to our creator… the one who put the world into motion with His Word.  We forget WHO He is everyday…what He has done for us…& WHOSE we are. But here in the mountains, were faced with His glory as soon as we open our eyes! Look up with me all you skiers, hikers, and snowboarders!

On this day of the Lord, I decided to spend some time in another She Reads Truth Study. 😌

The Hymn Study drew me in right away.  I miss the old hymns.  I reallly do❤ I grew up in a Presbyterian church, and that is what I remember the most. Music and Lyrics that play over in my head…Amazing Grace, Great is Thy Faithfulness, His Eye is on the Sparrow, How Great Thou Art. There is something so comforting for me there. The words that escaped me as a child, now take on a greater meaning. It’s a combination of child like faith with an adult sinner’s gratitude.

The first day of the study has us look at the hymn Blessed Assurance, by Fanny Crosby, written in 1873.

I Love how Annie Downs puts it…

Jesus is mine…

“I’ve known it since I learned this song as a tiny kid. It is my assurance, that Jesus is mine. When I feel forgotten and think no one sees me, He sees. When I think no one will step in, He always steps in, to provide and protect. When I need to be rescued, He proves, again and again, that rescuing is His specialty in my life” (Colossians 1:13).

“Whatever I think I don’t have, I have Jesus.” -Annie Downs

“Without Jesus, I am the only one who takes care of me. With Jesus, I am never alone. I am loved deeply by God, and therefore, I can love and be loved by others “(Deuteronomy 31:6, 1 John 4:7-19). -Annie Downs

These words of truth and love stood out to me as well, and as I listened to this song, over and over, I had a picture in my mind…of those angels, sent by The Father…echoing mercy and whispering love…during the darkest of my days.

Have  you been there to? In that place where you are swallowed up by fear, doubt, pain, or sorrow? …and then, when the world feels completely dark and without hope…as you list all the things you don’t have in your mind…and then love is whispered in your ear?

For me, the darkness was often self inflicted…caused by a distorted view…by sin. Jesus stood with me, and at the same time was interceding on my behalf.

“Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” Romans 8:34

Assurance = a promise intended to give confidence

We can rest in confidence, that we have a promise from THE PROMISE KEEPER.

I am loved with an unfailing love… with the promise that in Christ, I am His and He is mine.

And so it is for you too, my Sister in Christ.

In Him,

FREE DOWNLOAD: February Bullet Journal Calendar

HAPPY WEDNESDAY! HOPE  YOU ENJOY THE FEBRUARY CALENDAR!

(I’d LOVE to see pics of YOUR Bullet Journal Calendar Creations!)

CLICK CALENDAR BELOW FOR PDF

CLICK HERE FOR COLORLESS CALENDAR (FEB)

 

PNG BELOW

For some GREAT ideas using the bullet journaling calendars go to Eden’s Blog at

https://faithjournaling.wordpress.com/

Bless you,

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT Day 12

I recently read that the got milk campaign is one of the most successful ad campaigns ever.

It was a simple message… and so is this…

WE ALL WANT FRUIT. (Love, joy, peace, patience, kindess, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control)

& because our human heart desires and craves it…we search for it…

often seeking out the fruit BEFORE we seek out the FRUIT GIVER.

I love the image of grafting.  Bound to our “Vine” (with a capital V) like being bound in a one legged race.  I want to be connected to the Father like this…not able to go anywhere without Him.

If you look at the  picture below, you will see that not only is the branch bound (grafted) to THE VINE, it’s roots are in the LIVING WATER.

I love how Amanda Bible Williams (I can’t say or write her name without using her FULL name…Bible and all!) puts it below…

“Jesus Christ comes to make us new. He comes to redeem the dead branches that we are and give us abundant life! Abiding in Him—resting, dwelling, remaining in Him— is the only source of our strength, our goodness, our fruit. Let’s press into the True Vine together today. Let’s be about the business of abiding in Jesus, and trust His Spirit to be about the business of bearing fruit in our lives.”

-Amanda Bible Williams

 

I LOVE this study on the Fruits!

Abiding is my “life word.”

Let’s be in the business of abiding.

Tie your leg up to God’s and run that race.

There we will find the full life God designed us to live.

Blessings,

Sue

 

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT / DAY 11 / Self Control

She Reads Truth : Fruit of the Spirit Study

This is such a timely topic for me today.

More on that later.

I have lots of notes today, and since I don’t have time (I have a morning meeting) to write them all, I thought I’d at least post my Doodle from my morning quiet time.

TALK SOON!

So…..Day 11 continued!

I apologize for the late addition to this post.  I have been busy planning our Annual Women’s Conference and traveling.

This day was a BIG journaling/ study day for me, and I knew it would take time to type out all God has deposited in my heart.

Our church body participates in an annual fast this time of year. Fasting is a spiritual discipline and can look different for each individual.

If you’re interested, there is a nice article on fasting at CRU.ORG (The 7 basic steps to fasting)

So, for me…fasting of any kind requires a HUGE amount of self-discipline. ..and not something I can easily muster up myself! I have a little wee passion for food.  I love to cook, I love to eat:) Loving others through food is something I learned from my Mom. She always served “more than enough.”

Anyone who knows me, knows that I tend to cook for large crowds, regardless of the crowd😜 I learned this from Mom…no one goes without.

Now that it’s just my husband and I, unless my youngest is home from college, cooking large amounts = wasting food.  I’m trying to learn to adjust, but for now it seems, I’m becoming a food drop off center.

ANYWAY…back to the study.

When I mentioned in the first half of the post that this day was especially personal, I was regarding my journey with fasting.

When fasting, I experience a freedom from the chains of reaching for food for comfort, reward, and relief from anxiety.

When food is out of the picture I go stratight to the real source of comfort, reward, relief…instead of settling with an imposter who never meets my expectations.

For me, fasting is many things, but in regards to the Fruit of Self- Control it is a “resetter.”  A physical way to refocus my mind and my heart with a heavy reliance on the Holy Spirit.

Food can be a source of sin in my life.  Glutany, over spending, idol worship.  So this exercise of obedience through fasting, frees me from these chains and enables me to receive from the Lord without distraction.

When I replace the power of the Holy Spirit with my own “form of self made fruit/power, my city has no walls!

Without righteous (from the Lord) self-control, my heart is wide open to attack. I cannot muster enough on my own.  Can you? Who has a pint of Graeter’s Raspberry Chip in their freezer calling????? Or a pic that just needs posting, or a comment that needs to be made, or a you fill in the blank…regardless of who it hurts…including yourself.

I love how Debbie Eaton states it:

“Self- Control is a Fruit of the Spirit, not a fruit of our determination.

“The Holy Spirit in us is not subject to our desires, but rather He conforms our desires to Christ’s Will.”

“Apart from me you can do nothing.” -John 15:5

“Self- Control comes when I relinquish ultimate control to Jesus.”

period.

We think Self-Control is a “bad word” that robs us of all our fun.

When practiced, it provides the opposite…BLESSING that brings pure JOY.,.better than any fun we can think of:)

Here are my pages for this day.

Blessings,

sue

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT DAY 10 / Gentleness

She Reads Truth Study : Fruit of the Spirit

When I think of gentleness, I think of my friend Brecken. I am sad to say her body is fragile. Due to a disease that plagues her, she must be treated with great care and gentle hands…and although her body conjures up the thought of gentleness, it is her heart…her words and actions that impact me most…for they are full of gentle CARE and compassion for others. She lifts others up with her heart for God.

To be faced with GREAT physical pain and limitations on a daily basis is hard for most of us to imagine, but Brecken lives there in that place.

So, I know, that her reliance on the Lord is critical.  Her life depends on it. It is her King, her Father, that supplies her with the Hope she needs daily. It is evident that she “walks” in the fullness of her heritage. Brecken is an earthly example of living in “a manner worthy of her calling.”  -with all humility, gentleness, and patience, she loves others.

Now I realize that we all have “good days” and “bad days.” It is our bad days that serve as a reminder of our need. I am sure that even Brecken has her bad days…and I have seen her dig in on some of those days…to rely more on her Father. It is a process for us all. We won’t perfect this until we see our Lord face to face…and even then, HE will do this work in us.

Vivian (from the she read truth post today) refers to her friend Helen.  The bug saver. Brecken is my Vivian.  She looks beyond her circumstance to love others…Brecken is definitely a bug saver.

I have to say that I tend to fall into that category (bug saver) though if I’m honest, instead of saving a bug, I might just ingore it…just let it live in the house, knowing that if it remains it will eventually die.  Isn’t that just as bad a being a bug squasher????

Squashers are not walking in a manner worthy of their calling, BUT, in order to walk in a manner worthy of my calling, I must know my calling. In order to know my calling, I must know God’s Word on this.

I often go straight to Ephesians 1 for confirmation.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us[b] for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known[c] to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee[d] of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it,[e] to the praise of his glory.

wow.  I just can’t read this passage enough.

“Blessed with every spiritual blessing,” “Holy, blameless,” “adopted IN LOVE”

IN HIM WE HAVE AN INHERITANCE / our CALLING is one of Royalty.

(A hereditary monarchy is one in which the crown is passed down from one member of the royal family to another.)

We will “one day reign with Christ.” -2 Tim 2:12 …and for now, I am called to live “like Him.”

“Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” -1 John 2:6

We’ve seen the posts…”I am the daughter of the King”

Let that sink in for a minute.

Sisters, you and I should be wearing our crowns today.

When we stand upright, centered in Christ, secure in our hope and future, lacking nothing, it is THEN, that we can extend gentle humbleness to others…for we lack nothing,

I don’t want to be a bug squasher. I don’t want to ignore the bugs either!

May the Lord teach me to daily rely on Him for all things. I must go to the throne room each day and put on my crown…so that I can lift up those who are in need,..with humble, gentle care.

Let’s gently pick up those bugs 🐜 . We were once one.

Blessings,

FruitoftheSpirit/SueCarroll

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT / DAY 9 / FAITHFULNESS

She Reads Truth : Fruit of the Spirit Study

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. -Hebrews 11:1

Right away we see 2 amazing PROMISES…

-that FAITH is the ASSURANCE  (word, promise, vow) of HOPE

-and the CONVICTION of things we cannot see.

I think we could all use a little assurance and a big spoonful of HOPE! (With a HEAVY DOSE OF CONVICTION ON THE SIDE)

The passage we start with today comes from Hebrews 11.

“The Wall of Faith.”

It’s a comfort and a hope to know that this faithful list relied on the Lord to provide…yet, stumbled just like you and me.

They each had their own journey…each very different….just like you and me.

Can’t you totally relate to Diana’s openings statement?!! I sure can.

Sisters….we have to stop comparing!!!!! Can I get an amen?!!!

And…it’s not about the BIG things we do…it’s about “walking in faithfulness” as we go to the dentist, empty the dishwasher, take time to talk to someone who is hurting…as we drive in traffic.

It’s about “WHO I’ve put my faith in…more than WHAT I am “doing.”

Aren’t you relieved to know that even our stumbling, insecure faith of a mustard seed can move mountains?

If we waited until we felt “qualified” we’d miss seeing God’s Glory in us on earth…and isn’t that the point?

I love Diana’s quote:

“FAITHFULNESS IS A FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT, NOT A FRUIT OF MY EFFORTS.”

I must GO to the Lord…be in His presence…ask for FAITH, and be ready to receive it.

What a loving Father we have…He ALWAYS GIVES US WHAT WE NEED.

Blessings,

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT / Day 8 / Goodness

She Reads Truth Study ; The Fruit of the Spirit

Day 8  Goodness

I could REALLY relate to Raechel’s school bus story.

Growing up, Goodness was a hunger for me. There were lots of reasons for that I suppose, but none the less…I worked at it with fervor.

I remember as a little girl (age 5 or 6) a relative decided to name their dog after me…”sugar.”  I was born with a heart that wanted to please others, which eventually equaled good to me.

I remember the first time my long time Bible teacher, (who became my mentor and treasured friend) shared this verse with me… Ephesians 5:8

It hit me hard…and my first response was to push back with pride.

“I’m not dark…I’m good, I’m light” He’s not referring to me! I’ve worked REALLY hard at being good, and I’m GOOD at it!

But she said it again, and her words were filled with awe and thanksgiving. His love pouring out from her heart to her lips.

and then, the Holy Spirit stepped in and pierced MY heart with the truth.  I guess I could have continued to deny it. I guess I could have shrunk back with shame…but God’s goodness…the goodness and mercy  that follows me, reached in and lifted me up to a place of relief (it’s not up to me anymore!) …to a place of gratitude (for this free gift of passionate unconditional love), to a place of praise (what a good and loving Father to award me this precious fruit when I didn’t deserve it!)

I could continue to “work at being good” never living up to my “Father-like” potential, or I could rest in the fact that Christ in me, brings perfect goodness.

Only God can grow the fruit of Goodness within us…because we were once dark. It’s a problem of the fall.

Without darkness, we cannot see light.  Can I get an amen?

I’m not afraid of the darkness anymore. It has no power…

for in Christ, our light never goes out.

 

Blessings,

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT / DAY 7

TODAY IS ALL ABOUT MEMORIZING.  STEEPING IN GOD’S WORD AND DRINKING IT UP.

Our She Reads Truth study is encouraging us to stop and take some time today to

 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ” 
- Galatians 5:22-23, NASB

How do you memorize scripture? It would be great to help one another in this!!

Bless you,

 

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT / DAY 6 / KINDESS

Day 6

To be honest, I’m still prayerfully processing today’s lesson…

Maybe it’s because I need a little more KINDNESS🙂

More later today….

How is your study going? What are you learning? I’d love to hear:)

So…Day 6 part 2.

I love that Hayley points out that Kindess leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4) Kindness has the power to transform our hearts. To change us from the inside out.

Kindness is GREAT for the the receiver, yes…but TRANSFORMING for the GIVER.

The thing that trips us up, is the attitude of our heart…in our fallen “state” we most often DO have …

“what’s in it for me” playing in the background…or a mind set of “let’s rack one up for the nice team.”

BUT, When we are led by the Holy Spirit, the fruit of  kindness will be developed in us as something more than just a deed…it changes the posture of our heart.

Our God isn’t asking us to do something we cannot do. But we can only do it with His help.

I LOVE those moments when I yield to the help of the Holy Spirit as He guides me to extend God’s grace to another. These moments are most often an awakening of sorts…when I realize my mind and my flesh did NOT want to extend grace, but I did it anyway. It is precisely then that I am aware of God’s powerful and loving presence. When I do the thing I would never do on my own…and I am left with…not dread, but PURE (UNEXPECTED) JOY….THAT IS THE REWARD GOD PROMISED.