Hello Ladies!! We have just come out of chapters 3 & 4 so we now "Realize the way He Speaks". This is what we have established so far on the way He speaks to us. Our listening is where it all starts girls. And wow..that is sometimes difficult for me. I am in a very busy season in my life and due to the blessed opportunities that are coming my way, I often get 'lost' in those wonderful opportunities and find that I don't spend that time listening to Him as I should...with me anybody?? So, we know now, that in order to hear from the Lord, we must "listen" and that it where it all starts! I am the Mama of 6 lil bears and find myself using a passive approach to the sounds around me. My house has no volume control right now and I usually have what my Mama calls selective hearing. You know what I'm talking about.. that certain cry or tone in those lil voices. :-)...but this is where we have to turn off the passive selective hearing and turn on the intentional and aggressive listening. Priscilla just makes this so easy, she invites us into her personal study and prayer time and tells us how she gets into that deep and one on one time with the Lord. She does so by Worship. I love how she says that worship "rolls out the red carpet for God's presence to invade a space", don't we want that? I just want God to invade my space!! Prayerful listening, this is where we listen after we have emptied ourselves of all requests and petitions. But then, WE LISTEN and LISTEN some more!! Waiting expectantly for what He is saying to us at that moment. Giving us direction in our lives. Meditation, now don't misunderstand, this is not the meditation of sitting on a rug with our fingers touching, humming to the vibrations of our jaw teeth...I'm talking about taking God's Holy Word and pondering on it. Really running those words over and over in our minds and hearts. Seeing what He is saying to us through those words. Meditating on a passage is simply asking yourself: What does this verse reveal to me about Him? What spiritual principle does it teach? Am I living in a way contrary to its truth? How does it relate to my present circumstances? How should I respond to what I'm contemplating? All good questions right?
Now that we know how to get to that place of spending satisfying time with Him, let's talk about the Holy Spirit. We have learned that the Holy Spirit is to us what the control tower is to a pilot flying a plane. We cannot always see what is coming up ahead but He does, our control tower does, leading us in the direction that steer us in His direction. We find that as human beings we are composed of three parts: Body, soul and spirit.I love how that A.W. Tozer said,
"I believe that God has related these somehow: the voice of conviction in the conscience and the Holy Spirit, the point of contact, witnessing within man's being. It is always perilous to resist the conscience within.
There are 5 M's to correctly hearing God and I plan to close with that for now in fear of writing a post too long to read:
1. Look for the "M"essage of the Spirit: Pay close attention!
2. Search for the "M"odel of Scripture for guidance: 1st-stay in God's Word, 2nd-consider if what you are sensing contradicts the whole counsel or character of God as revealed in the Bible. 3rd-keep your eyes open for that Word in Scripture that grips your heart or leaps off the page speaking directly to you through your circumstances.
3. Live in the "M"ode of prayer: Take what your hearing and direct it back to God. Don't waste time and energy worrying about a specific issue. Take it directly to Him.
4. Submit to the "M"inistry of Eli: Read Samuel 3 . Because young Samuel was unable to discern whom was calling out to him, he relied on the counsel of a mature believer, Eli, and he helped Samuel to realize that was God speaking.
5. Expect the "M"ercy of confirmation: Look for God's use of circumstances, Scripture and other believers to confirm His direction in your life.
Well, girlies..it doesn't get any clearer than that! We now have a solid direction to go in. We can now with guidance, be able to begin to hear and discern the voice of God. This has already blessed me beyond measure to lead you girls through the teachings of Priscilla Shirer. Can't wait till next time! Prayers and blessings!!
In Him,
Shana
Monday, July 16, 2012
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Checking in..
Hello, Hello Gals!! How are you? I pray that you are getting as much out of our 2nd Chapter as I am! It has been ROUGH and TOUGH at times but I have came out of this week with such a knowledge of the Holy Spirit and how that the Spirit functions within the "temple of God", I can't wait to hear from you and hear your insights as to what we've been studying together! Let's get started..
We opened this week with a verse in:
I Corinthians 3:16- Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
I had no idea the impact that verse would have on me over the last week...Before I went any further I went to my Inductive Study Bible to get some history on what was going on during that time. Back in Paul's days, the Corinthians were intriqued with Greek philosophy, disciplined training and held athletic events. Thousands of prostitutes would gather and hold ceremonies to try and connect with the goddess Aphrodite (goddess of love). If you practiced sexual immorality then you were known as being "Corinthianized". Without condemnation they would eat well and satisfy their sexual urges. When I read this, I thought, "Not much different today..". We too are living in a time of sexual immorality and we are intriqued with philosophies and we are a culture of fitness and eating clean or no carbs or no meats (the list gets longer). Just last night I couldn't sleep and while flipping through our channels all that I saw were infomercials advertising, "Brazillian Butt Lift", "Insanity", "Turbo Cookers", "Juicing Machines" and I could go on and on and on..We are obsessed with our bodies and the foods we put in them so that we are sexier and slimmer...I am guilty of this in certain areas of my life as well. All of us make those resolutions to cut back and start exercising more. Nothing wrong with all of this as long as it is kept within the bounds of reason though. It's when we begin to put these things above Christ, and we begin to step outside those laws of God's Word and then sin begins to overrun and take control. Remember, the enemy starts out with the 'little' things and works his way up to the big things in our lives.
What if we turned this around? What if we were more concerned with the temple of God and what we are feeding our spirit, our human spirit?
As we read the opening of the Second Chapter, Priscilla gives us a warning, one that by going further, we would walk away with the capacity to begin hearing God, and that we had better be prepared to do what He tells us to. This chapter is all about the Holy Spirit and how that the Spirit functions within us. The Holy Spirit sees what we cannot and communicates information to us based on His knowledge. Listening for God to speak, discerning His voice and determining His will- the Holy Spirit is who we are listening for! As a child of God we have all of the Spirit, all His Power, all His wisdom, all His counsel, all His encouragement, all available to us, all the time. The question is, will we yield to His leadership in our lives? What would that look like you ask? Listening to Him is an exercise in hearing from within, not being directed by external stimuli that diverts your attention away from His direction. (P. Shirer)
So how are you doing with this chapter ladies? Let's talk..
IN Him,
Shana
We opened this week with a verse in:
I Corinthians 3:16- Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
I had no idea the impact that verse would have on me over the last week...Before I went any further I went to my Inductive Study Bible to get some history on what was going on during that time. Back in Paul's days, the Corinthians were intriqued with Greek philosophy, disciplined training and held athletic events. Thousands of prostitutes would gather and hold ceremonies to try and connect with the goddess Aphrodite (goddess of love). If you practiced sexual immorality then you were known as being "Corinthianized". Without condemnation they would eat well and satisfy their sexual urges. When I read this, I thought, "Not much different today..". We too are living in a time of sexual immorality and we are intriqued with philosophies and we are a culture of fitness and eating clean or no carbs or no meats (the list gets longer). Just last night I couldn't sleep and while flipping through our channels all that I saw were infomercials advertising, "Brazillian Butt Lift", "Insanity", "Turbo Cookers", "Juicing Machines" and I could go on and on and on..We are obsessed with our bodies and the foods we put in them so that we are sexier and slimmer...I am guilty of this in certain areas of my life as well. All of us make those resolutions to cut back and start exercising more. Nothing wrong with all of this as long as it is kept within the bounds of reason though. It's when we begin to put these things above Christ, and we begin to step outside those laws of God's Word and then sin begins to overrun and take control. Remember, the enemy starts out with the 'little' things and works his way up to the big things in our lives.
What if we turned this around? What if we were more concerned with the temple of God and what we are feeding our spirit, our human spirit?
As we read the opening of the Second Chapter, Priscilla gives us a warning, one that by going further, we would walk away with the capacity to begin hearing God, and that we had better be prepared to do what He tells us to. This chapter is all about the Holy Spirit and how that the Spirit functions within us. The Holy Spirit sees what we cannot and communicates information to us based on His knowledge. Listening for God to speak, discerning His voice and determining His will- the Holy Spirit is who we are listening for! As a child of God we have all of the Spirit, all His Power, all His wisdom, all His counsel, all His encouragement, all available to us, all the time. The question is, will we yield to His leadership in our lives? What would that look like you ask? Listening to Him is an exercise in hearing from within, not being directed by external stimuli that diverts your attention away from His direction. (P. Shirer)
So how are you doing with this chapter ladies? Let's talk..
IN Him,
Shana
Friday, June 22, 2012
Chapter 2: Inside Information
So..we have gotten week 1 accomplished..how are you all doing out there?? It was a tough one for me. I talk...ALOT..Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 is now seared in my brain. On page 18 Priscilla said, "Hadn't I been approaching Him the same way? Talking, talking,talking, talking-praying..but mostly just talking, repeating myself, analyzing, rationalizing." That was me...point blank. However, with every realization that I had..that tearing down feeling..God built me back up through His Word and prayer. I know that each of you would agree with that as well. He has such a way of showing us our downfalls and building us back up with His grace. I love that..How about you? What did you learn this week? What did He say to you?
Now we begin today on week 2..It is titled,"Inside Information" and from what I read today, it is all about the "INSIDE" and I am already captivated by what He is doing in me with just one reading. This study has already changed my heart, I pray it has yours as well. More to come..let's get started on week 2 ladies..ready??
In Him,
Shana
Now we begin today on week 2..It is titled,"Inside Information" and from what I read today, it is all about the "INSIDE" and I am already captivated by what He is doing in me with just one reading. This study has already changed my heart, I pray it has yours as well. More to come..let's get started on week 2 ladies..ready??
In Him,
Shana
Sunday, June 17, 2012
"If You're Listening?" Huh? Were you talking to me?
If You're Listening
As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut...
After all, God is in heaven, and you are here on earth. So let your words be few. Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 NLT
Wow!! We just got slammed huh? I am a talker now..when I read this I felt just like Priscilla did with Jada. I can't tell you the times that I have been in prayer..gettin' my talkin' on, beggin' God to answer my prayers all the while tellin' Him how to do it..anybody else out there doing the same?
Miss Priscilla tells us that we need to create time, space and opportunity to hear God and receive His detailed guidance and to discern His leading. She states that before we can begin to explore further instruction on how God speaks or even why He speaks we first must ask ourselves whether or not we want to hear Him enough to stop doing all the talking so that we might listen. Geez, she had my number..is she spying on me?? I'm gonna have to stop here and let this sink in.. How about you? What did this say to you?
In Him,
Shana
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Week One!! Ready, Set, GO!!!
Today we set off on a 14-week journey together! Amen! I am super excited to be a part of this with you all! We will be reading one chapter per week and getting on the blog to talk about our readings and what the Lord is saying to us. Please feel free to write as often as you want. I am hoping to get ALOT of feedback from each of you! Our first chapter for this week is, "If You're Listening" and I know by the end of this chapter you will be listening. GLORY!! Now, I will be posting occasionally some things that the Lord is speaking to me about and can't wait to hear your comments and comment on your posts as well. So, get ready, set and GO!! Talk to you soon! Blessings upon Blessings!!
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Welcome!
Welcome to the "Women of Grace Book Club"!!! I am so excited to go on this journey with you gals! My name is Shana (pronounced Shawna..smile) and I live in West Liberty, Ky. I was saved in November of 2000 and have been a member of Grace Baptist Church since then. My hubby is a Preacher Man and we have 6 of the craziest most loveable children ranging in ages 3 to 19, we are wanna be farmers, a homeschooling family and enjoy reaching others with God's Holy Word! I am the Director of Women's Ministry in our church and love, love, love digging into the Scriptures with other ladies so that we can learn more about our Lord and Savior and also together learn how we can apply those Scriptural truths to our lives for the glory of God! So, with that being said, I will get to the details of our first book in our book club. It's very simple!
1. You simply get online or go to your local book store and purchase a copy of Priscilla Shirer's "Discerning the Voice of God" Book, I have a pic of the book posted just in case.
2. We will read a chapter on our own once per week then on Thursdays I will post some questions on the blog for discussion and also occasionally add a vimeo for added discussions. In addition to our book club together I will also be taking a group of women in our church through the D.T.V.O.G book as well and am anticipating we will get to participate in a vimeo interview with our study group so that you gals can get some insights from their studies in the book.
3. Check in every Thursday on the blog by leaving a comment or some insights to what God is saying/revealing to you through your readings. This will also let me know that you girlies are still with me! Please feel free to leave prayer requests as well. We are not only here to study together but to also pray together!
My prayer is that the Lord will use this book club as a tool to unite women together with the goal to be strengthened by taking scriptures and applying them to our lives in such a way that we begin to hear, see and act on what God is doing around us! So, are you ready?? Let's do this girls!!
Starting date is June 14th, 2012. If you have any questions feel free to email me at sahensley@liberty.edu .
Blessings to you!
Shana
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
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