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Loving our Children
Lesson 2

Isaiah 55:3 - "Incline your ear and come to Me; so that your soul may live."

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Isaiah 55:6 - "Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near."

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​Isaiah 55:8 - "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, "declares the Lord. "For                         as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My

                       thoughts than your thoughts."

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1 Cor. 1:27 - "But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise.  God chose the weak things of                        the world to shame the strong."

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Isaiah 29:14 - "These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips but their hearts

                         are far from Me.  Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men."

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Rom. 12:2 - "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then

                     you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God."

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I recently asked several young adults who had a strong christian faith to rank the top two things that they believe contributed to that faith in their lives.  Although not identical, the answers had a similar theme.  First and foremost was the example set in their childhood.  They sited that being taught a Biblical World View was instrumental in their faith building.  But, not just being taught.  The second thing was seeing authentic christians living out their faith in front of them.  The individuals surveyed stated the importance of witnessing the christian life in action and being guided in discerning what is God honoring.  Two said that after being taught, they then began to see the wisdom of the christian life as they saw God working in their choices.  This just confirmed for them that the Gospel is indeed truth.

Just before Jesus made His way to the garden  on the night of His arrest He prayed for His disciples.

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"But now I am coming to You; and I am saying these things while I am in the world, so that they may have My joy fulfilled within them.  I have given them Your word and the world has hated them.  For they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  I am not asking that You take them  out of the world, but that You keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the wold, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth."

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It is clear that scripture teaches us to live our lives here IN the world by rejecting the wisdom of the world.  We then are to walk by faith in the word of God.  I like to call it  LIVING COUNTER-CULTURALLY

Daring to be different can be difficult.

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It was said of the early believers that they "turned the world upside-down" (Acts 17:6). The messages of Christ were radical and it can be argued that they still are today.  Western culture is very selfish focusing around how you look.  Our society is all about branding, slick advertiding, and social image.  People seek power and prestige.

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In such a culture it is easy to loose sight of the fact that God delights in displaying His power through our weakness.  God chooses what is foolish to shame the wise.

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Alex Kocman in the article entitled, "5 Foolish, Simple Things God uses" said,

 

" We put together Westerners ought to slow down as we read this chapter (1Cor. 1) so as not to trip over these words.  There's an ironic beauty to how God uses lowly, weak things to demonstrate His power, but if we focus on only what is hip, new, appealing, and comfortable, we will miss God Himself."

I tried hard to teach my children that the flashy things of the world can be deceptive.  We learned to live without many of the things that the world said you needed.  One day I took my son out to get a pair of sneakers.  He was quite content to buy a Walmart brand and had no issues with it at all.  All of a sudden I started to feel scared inside.  What if the other kids make fun of him for having sneakers from Walmart?  I found myself asking him, "Wouldn't you rather have a name brand sneaker?"  He said, "NO!"  Why was I letting the pressure of the world play out in that moment?  Something so little could have undermined all the teaching he had embraced.  A small example but it shows how easily the worldly ways can just creep in when you least expect it.

So, how do we live IN this world and not be a part OF the world?

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1)   SANCTIFY YOURSELF IN THE TRUTH

 

      Jesus tells us the remedy to worldly living in the prayer mentioned above.  He said, " Sanctify them by the truth, Your 

      word is truth." 

      We have to choose what we are going to do with the word of God.  Is it the unwavering guide for our lives?  Are we                convicted in the truth of the Bible?

      I believe that choice is initially made upon our conversion but daily we have to also choose to accept the word as we

      encounter our live experiences.  Will I choose to obey the word when it seems nonsensical, when it is hard, when it is 

      uncomfortable?  Will we trust that God's promises are all true?

 

2)  COMMIT TO DEVELOPING HABITS THAT SUPPORT A LIFE OF OBEDIENCE

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     Bible reading and study

     Fellowship with believers

     Worship of the One True God

     Prayer

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     The early church devoted themselves to the Apostles doctrine, fellowship, breaking of bread, and to prayer. (Acts 2:42)

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3)  FILL YOUR LIFE WITH GOOD AND GODLY THINGS

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     Be mindful of what you are feeding yourself.  And I am not talking about physical food.  Check the things you are

     putting into your heart and mind.  Only take in that which is holy and points you to Jesus.

     Also take time to purge sin and hindrances from your daily life.

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4)  PRACTICE CONFESSING JESUS

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     Find ways to share your faith with those you come in contact with.  As the Holy Spirit develops in you the fruit of

     the Spirit, demonstrate them to others.

LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, GOODNESS, KINDNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS,

SELF CONTROL

    Don't keep hidden the joy of His salvation you possess.

    Don't be ashamed to speak the name of Jesus.

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5)  NOTICE DAILY DIVINES

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      Make it a practice to notice the small, simple ways that God works every day.  Take note of how God is assuring 

      you that you are loved and cared for by Him.  Focus on the good of His Kingdom, His people, and His love. 

      As we put away criticism and negative thoughts, we are then free to see the never ending blessings of the creator

      of the universe and we will be able to see the amazing ways God works in the simple daily walk.  His banner over

     us is love and it can cover anything that Satan puts our there.  All praise and honor are His alone.

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6)  DON'T EVER DESPISE OR PUT DOWN THAT WHICH SEEMS FOOLISH TO THE WORLD

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    BE A CHAMPION OF THE RADICAL MESSAGE OF JESUS

LOVE OVER HATE

FORGIVENESS OVER REVENGE

LOOSING LIFE TO FIND IT

THE LAST OVER THE FIRST

SUBMISSION TO FIND FREEDOM

A CHILD'S HEART OVER POWER

JESUS, THE ONLY WAY, TRUTH AND LIFE

THE LEAST BEING THE GREATEST

ADD YOUR OWN                            ____________________________________________

                                                             ____________________________________________

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How do we then INSTILL the same desire in our children?

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Follow the 6 steps above and live it out in front of your children!

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There are no guarantees that our children will choose a strong Christian faith.  The world is enticing and Satan is crafty and great at what he does.  However, the promise of God is that "He that is in us is greater than he that is in the world."  The word of  the Lord will not fail us.  The faithful life in Christ brings abundant joy and is a beacon of hope.  Even if our children choose another way they will always see the light of our lives there beckoning them to return to Jesus.

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The reason why God chooses to use the simple, meek things of the world to bring about His purposes is because then no-one can claim the glory.   It is obvious then that it was God and God alone who deserves the credit and praise.  In our weakness, He is strong.

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1 Cor. 1 ends like this:

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"Brothers, consider the time of your calling: not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were powerful; not many were of noble birth.  But God chose foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak to shame the strong.  He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence.  It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.  Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord."

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STUDY QUESTIONS​

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1)  Are you tempted by worldly wisdom?

2)  How do you combat that temptation?

3)  What are practical ways you teach your children to follow Godly wisdom?

4)  What are some family habits you have established to train your children in the Lord?

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WOMEN’S ROLES

Lesson 1

“ROLES, NOT IDENTITY”

 

As we look at the creation story in Genesis, we see that God was satisfied with each day of His handiwork.  We see the phrase “And God saw that it was good” over and over.  On the sixth day God said:

 

“Let us make man in Our image, after Our likeness”  “So God created man in His own image.”

 

God ordained man to rule over creation.  The Bible says that male and female, He created them.  And God said it was not only good but “VERY good”

 

In Genesis 2:18 God indicates the first thing that He said was not good during the seven days of creation.  And that was, it was not good for man to be alone.  In all of creation, the birds of the air and the fish of the sea and the beasts fo the land, there was not found a suitable helper for man.

 

“So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and while he slept she took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the area with flesh.  And from that rib that the Lord God had taken from the man, He made a woman and brought her to him.” Gen. 2: 21 and 22

 

Woman was created to be a “suitable helper”.  The King James Bible uses the term “Help Meet”  What does that mean?

 

As we look at scriptures that talk about the role of women, we can be thrust into so many emotions.  These scriptures can be hard to swallow.  But I ask the question, Are the scriptures difficult or is it my heart that is not soft enough to meditate on these verses? Do I have preconceived ideas, negative past experiences, or selfish, self preserving defenses that go up immediately as I look upon such ideas?

 

In Elyse Fitzpatrick’s book entitled, “Helper by Design”  She says this about handling such scriptures as she started the project of writing her book:

 

“Honestly, there were days I strongly considered forsaking the whole project.  Then, when by God’s mercy, I once again regained forward motion, I felt I was walking in the dark…trying to learn what I just tripped over, picking up a stone, holding it…examining it, experiencing it.  What does the heat of this rock mean?  Is it really blistering hot or is it just that my hands are so cold?  Is it genuinely sharp?  Does it have to cut, or am I hanging on to it too tightly or holding it in the wrong places?”

 

I believe that as we look at what God instructs, it does not have to sting. If we open our heart to God’s instructions we will see something powerful and beautiful.

 

Let’s remember a few things before we begin.

 

  1. We are God’s beloved children.  (Eph. 5:1)

  2. Everything God instructs is for our own good and pleasure. (Jer. 29:11)

  3. God longs to bless us and give us the desires of our hearts. (2 Chron. 16:9)(Psalm 37:4)

  4. We can only control ourselves. (Phil. 2:12-13 )

 

As women we fill many roles.   We are daughters and sisters. We may choose to marry taking on the role of helper and wife.  We may have children taking on the role of mother.  We may choose roles like teacher, health care provider, coach, boss of a company, etc.

We must remember that no matter the roles we fill,  they are not our identity.

Our identity is CHILD OF GOD CREATED IN HIS IMAGE.  This is the main point I want to get across in this lesson.  And I believe that if we put this truth into our hearts it will help us accept the role of helper to our husband. It will help us embrace the role in a different light.

 

As a christian woman, our goal in life is to reflect Christ in all we do.  To be His hands and feet.  We seek to glorify God with the work of our hands and to glorify and imitate God within any role we fill.

 

Elyse Fitzpatrick suggests that we can gain greater understanding of what a helper does if we imitate our Heavenly Father who is our great helper.

 

 

IN WHAT WAYS IS GOD OUR HELPER?

 

God strengthens-

Psalm 54:4 - “Behold, God is my helper:  The Lord is of them that uphold my soul.”

 

Isa. 41:10 - “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.  Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you.  I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”

 

Psalm 46:1 - “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble.”

 

 

God sustains-

 

Isa. 46:4 - “I will be your God throughout your lifetime- Until your hair is white with age.  I made you and I will care for you.  I will cary you along and I will save you.”

 

God comforts-

 

2 Cor 1 : 3-4 “…God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.  He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others….”

 

God protects-

 

2 Thes. 3:3 - “…The Lord is faithful; He will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.”

 

 

We can always count on God to hold to his promises.  So, in that light let’s answer these questions.

 

  1. Can our husband always count on us?

  2. How can we strengthen our husband?

  3. How can we help sustain him?

  4. What is the best way to comfort our husband?

  5. How can we protect our husband?

  6. How do we treat our husband in a time of trouble?

 

We all know that the world is a tough place.  As we go out to work and purchase and live our lives we can be knocked down in many ways.  I want our home and my presence to be a source of strength, comfort and protection to my husband and family.  I want my husband to want to come home because it is the place where he feels safe, secure, respected and a respite from the world.  As wives, we have the power to create an atmosphere that fosters those characteristics.

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Last night Frank came home and to my surprise he said to me, “ My eyes were really opened today.”  He had been out plowing snow for 13 hours. This caught my attention. “ I just want to thank you for being the kind of woman that you are.”  Ok. That was nice. Why was he compelled to say this?  Apparently he had witnessed some conversations where he was shocked at how the man in those conversations was being spoken to.  He heard great disrespect, ungratefulness, and ugliness.  He said he could not imagine being spoken to in the manner he had heard.  I said thank you and asked, “ So my nagging isn’t so bad?”

He laughed and said,”Bring it on!”

I love my husband with all my heart and was so thankful he sees me as a source of strength, comfort and a safe haven from the world.  I am not perfect by any means but I only want my husband to thrive in our lives and family.

 

 

 

 

Being a helper to our husband goes far deeper than just having dinner ready at a certain time.  It is not a lesser role.  It does not devalue us.  If anything it is a beautiful thing when we show the love that God shows. It is tremendously powerful when we “build our house”.  We want good things for the man we love.

 

As parents it is a wonderful gift to give our children; showing them how to love and honor another human being and to strive for what is good in another person’s life.

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