Wednesday, October 26, 2011

$200 Christmas Shopping Spree Extravaganza



Welcome to the $200 Christmas Shopping Spree Extravaganza! I have teamed up with a group of bloggers to offer you an amazing giveaway prize -- the winner will receive TWO gift cards (1) $100 Amazon Gift Card for all your online Christmas shopping and (1) $100 Gift Card of your choice to use at your favorite store! Winner will be chosen by random.org.

WEEK ONE: Day 3..... The Blessing of Greater Peace

 The dove represents the Holy Spirit or the Holy Ghost in Christianity. The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus like a dove when he was baptized in the Jordan River:
Luke 3:22
... and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." (NIV)
The dove is also a symbol of peace. In Genesis 8 after the flood, a dove returned to Noah with an olive branch in its beak, revealing the end of God's judgment and the beginning of a new covenant with man.

Welcome everyone!  Let's start in prayer today asking God to teach us about the Blessing of Greater Peace
through His Word today and through the questions given that they will reach deep into our hearts and minds and help us to think critically and respond naturally.   Please pray for me to only lead as the Lord leads and only depend on His Word and Elizabeth George's books, Woman After God's Own Heart and the workbook to express her questions in my own words being guided by The Lord to do all this through His Name!  Amen!

 The main scripture passages for this study today are:

JOHN 14:26-27   New International Version (NIV)   26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

GALATIANS 5:22-26 
New International Version (NIV)
 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

PHILIPPIANS  4:6-9
New International Version (NIV)
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, 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. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.


  • HEARING FROM GOD
1.  Praying faithfully brings greater peace to women.  Please read Philippians 4:6-9 (a passage that was given above this) and then please write what you have learned about prayer and peace.   
[You may want to write out the passage and even try to memorize it.   Memorizing scripture keeps His Word in our heart and whenever we feel troubled, we can just recall this passage to memory.  Start by writing it on an index card.  Then each day when you are feeling at your best, pull out the card and start memorizing it taking a verse at a time, and then when you have memorized the first verse and can call it to memory, then go on to the next verse and do the same.   One thing I like to do is use a highlighter to concentrate on words that stand out to me and I find when I say the verse out loud.  Another good way to memorize scripture I read the card and say the words that are highlighted with greater emphasis than the words that are not highlighted.  One more way to memorize is to read the verse on the card and then shut your eyes and concentrate and try to remember what was on the card... especially the words you had highlighted!   Then ask a friend or loved one or even your children to hold the card and let you repeat the verse (one at a time) to them.  They can give you a highlighted word to help you get back on track if you lose your spot in recalling the verse! ]


2.  John 14:26-27 is about Jesus's words about the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit goes to God on our behalf and presents our prayers to Him.   In this passage Jesus is also talking about the peace He came to bring to you.  Please read these verses and then try to think about the times that Jesus has brought peace into your life.
Then please write down an answer to this question, "How is the peace of Jesus Christ different from any other?"


3.  Galatians 5:22-26 is another great passage to write down on an index card.
[I have an index box (like a recipe box) or just anything that you can find... a zipping baggie large enough to hold your cards so that you can even carry them in your handbag and use to memorize when you are somewhere where you have some idle time to pull one out and work on memorizing it.    I use the 4x6 cards for all my passages to keep them the same size.  Maybe you want to write them in a little notebook that can fit into your handbag.  Whatever works for you is great.   One word about the index cards.  If you can fit the whole passage on the front of the card, then something you may want to do is write on the back of the card what the passage means to you!  You can use the answers that you are writing down to put on the back of the card!  These are ideas and you will find something that meets your needs.]

This passage lists the "fruit of the Holy Spirit."  The fruit of the Holy Spirit comes to those who live by or keep in step with the Holy Spirit.  The primary way of staying in step with the Holy Spirit is through prayer.  Would you please list the fruits of the Holy Spirit that come to women who keep in step with the Holy Spirit through prayer and submission to God.    Then using that highlighter, please highlight the fruit.


A wonderful Christian Dutch woman, Corrie ten Boom (see her biography here on Wikipedia) has these words to share with us, "As a camel kneels before his master to have him remove his burden at the end of the day, so kneel each night and let the Master take your burden."  Corrie ten Boom knew much about suffering.  When you read the Wikipedia article about her you will learn about her suffering.  And another truth she wrote about is forgiveness. Wikipedia lists the books she has written.  From the Wikipedia article about her has been written:

Her teaching focused on the Christian Gospel, with emphasis on forgiveness. In her book Tramp for the Lord(1974), she tells the story of an encounter while she was teaching in Germany in 1947. She was approached by a former Ravensbrück camp guard, who had been known as one of the most cruel. She was reluctant to forgive him, but prayed that she would be able to. She wrote,
"For a long moment we grasped each other's hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God's love so intensely as I did then."
She also wrote (in the same passage) that in her post-war experience with other victims of Nazi brutality, it was those who were able to forgive who were best able to rebuild their lives. She rejected the doctrine that some asserted, of Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and wrote that it was without Biblical foundation.
She believes that such a doctrine left the Christian Church ill-prepared in times of great persecution, such as in China under Mao Zedong. She appeared on many Christian television programs discussing her ordeal during the Holocaust, and the concepts of forgiveness and God's love.

The Wikipedia article about Corrie ten Boom lists the many books she wrote in her lifetime.  Here is that list:

  • A Prisoner And Yet (1945)
  • Amazing Love (1953)
  • Not Good If Detached (1957)
  • Common Sense Not Needed (1957)
  • Plenty For Everyone (1967)
  • Marching Orders For The End Battle (1969)
  • Defeated Enemies (1970)
  • The Hiding Place, with John & Elizabeth Sherrill (1971)
  • Tramp For The Lord, with Jamie Buckingham (1974
  • Prison Letters (1975)
  • In My Father's House, with C.C. Carlson (1976), reprint 2011
  • Corrie's Christmas Memories (1976)
  • Each New Day 1977
  • Prayers And Promises For Every Day 1977
  • He Cares He Comforts 1977
  • He Sets The Captives Free 1977
  • Father Ten Boom: God's Man 1978
  • A Tramp Finds A Home 1978
  • Don't Wrestle Just Nestle 1978
  • This Day Is The Lords 1979
  • Clippings From My Notebook 1982
  • Not I But Christ 1983
  • Reflections Of God's Glory 1999
  • Messages Of God's Abundance 2002
  • I Stand At The Door And Knock 2008
 You can find these books at the library, at your favorite bookstore such as an online bookstore, Christianbook.com or Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble.com.  Or do a search for her books to see where you may purchase them at the best price for youNew or used.   

If any of you decide to read one or more of her books, I would love to have a book review from any of you to post on this blog!  Please think about this as there are many of you who may have already read one of her books and are able to do this, or someone who might want to read one of the books and write a review.  Maybe you are a blogger who would like to write a review on your own blog and you can submit to me a link of your review and I will post it on this entry for all to read!  Thank you!

[Something we talked about in yesterday's blog was STRETCHING!  Maybe now is a good time to go and get something to eat or drink and walk around a bit or take some good stretches and return to this when you feel energized and ready to do more!]



Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...