First, I am very honored and humbled by your attention. I thank you all very much for the encouraging words and also for your words of caution.
I started this blog because I want to have a place to share my discussions within my Bible Study group. It started out very small, and for a long time (in fact, up until last month), I believe I was the only reader.
I have been a Christian for almost two years now, so I am a baby, and I am still learning. I hope to get the Word out in the most positive way, and I am a firm believer that there is absolutely logic and Truth in Christianity, and that true faith is not the same as mere religion.
I started doing BSF studies with my mom a few months ago. She is still trying to learn the way, and many of the questions developed by BSF are often daunting for "neonates." Since we live thousands of miles apart, we cannot attend the same Bible Study group, and I cannot be there to study with her. And many times, she has expressed her wanting to quit, and so I thought I would share my answers with her. Hence, I started posting my answers on my blog.
I had no idea it would garner this much attention, and I am glad that all of you have been tremendously encouraging. I will be careful about impinging upon copyrights in my future posts, as I hold high respect for intellectual property. If my previous posts are problematic, I will discard them--so please let me know.
I am encouraged by your comments to continue to share my thoughts. It is very important to note that I do not have the "answers." My responses reflect my current understanding of the Bible, and I am certainly far from being a Biblical scholar. My understanding can definitely be wrong, and I would certainly appreciate it if anyone would jump in to offer his/her own perspective.
At the end of the day, I hope this blog will be a place where we encourage discussion. I agree with thekennedy4 in that we should still gather with fellow Christians and study the Bible. And so, this blog is by no means a replacement for that. Rather, I hope this to be a tool to those discussions. And ultimately, I hope that we all can grow together as Christians and help get the Word out to those around us.
Thank you again for your attention, and I look forward to our future discussions!!
PS--Isaiah is very hard to read, and I cannot say I understand all of it :)
16 comments:
What a wonderful, humble, gracious response...Thank you!
And I sincerely thank you, too, for your insight and kind attention!
Thanks for your honesty. I will continue to read your blog. I get stumped on my questions too.
Thank you, Larisa. I'm happy to have your company!
I love "finding" other BSF-ers and look forward to encouraging one another!
What I don't get is how you were ahead of me. I though we all learned the same thing each week...
Hi Jennifer, our group makes available all the questions for the particular study at the beginning, which is why I am able to work on it early. But yes, every BSF group studies the same lesson on the same week.
Thanks so much for sharing your BSF answers with everyone! This is my second year at BSF and I am finding Isaiah much more difficult to understand than the Gospel of John. I read the Bible verses and answer the questions to the best of my ability, then I go to your blog for a deeper understanding...
I stumbled across your blog a couple of weeks ago when I was at my wits end with my weekly Isaiah lesson. I was sitting at my kitchen table ready to give up and quit BSF!
I decided to stop and pray. I asked God to help me! It's amazing what you can hear God say when you stop and listen. I heard God say, "Look further." That's it... just two little words... "look further." I took that literally and dragged my laptop out!
When I found your blog... I cried! I really feel that God led me to your blog.
At first... I felt like I was "cheating". But I wasn't copying your answers. I was using your answers to break down the questions so that I could understand them! I was REALLY learning something! I read your answers and then read the question again. The questions began to make sense! I read the scriptures and they started to make sense!
I walked away from that lesson feeling SO excited because I really felt like I learned something! I used your blog in the same way last week, as well.
I see that you have changed things up due to the copyright concerns. I hope that you will continue to post your answers... your perspective. It has been a tremendous help to me!
I love BSF and it has been an amazing study for me. I hope that your mom will continue with it. Keep your blog going... you can never have too many BSF friends! :)
WOW!!!! I am impressed with what God is showing me in this study but I, too,like your Mom wanted to quit BSF. This is my second year and Isaiah was beating me up. Thank you so much for sharing with the world what God is showing you. I also read your answers but come to my own conclusions.Keep up the Good Work for the Lord.
Blessings, Karen
krafterkaren@sbcglobal.net
Would anyone like to start up a group that we can communicate together and help each other? Contact me.
As Debbie said before me, I was ready to quit BSF. I also asked God to help me a few weeks ago when I was really feeling bad about myself since I felt I am just not smart enough to figure out the meanings. I was sitting at work and decided to take a break and look up things on the internet and your blog came up. I too do my lesson to my best and then wait until Monday to look at what you have written. I just need to know that someone else out there is struggling. I get the feeling from the other ladies in my group that I am the only one who can not quote Bible verses and does not understand all the meanings. You have helped my feel much more secure and I believe God sent me to your blog for that reassurance.
So, THANK YOU.
I write this with humbled tears... you are so gracious to share your insights on Isaiah. I love what others are writing and adding to this blog... I now look forward to doing my lessons. I'm not alone in my struggles to understand Isaiah.
My Insight: Isaiah 14: 9-11 - "To choose sin is to choose Hell"... this is the existence of people after death who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
I thank you so much for this site. This is my second year with BSF. Since I find Isiah so difficult, your answers give me a direction in which to look for my answer. Thank you and please contine to blog. God bless you.
Hi guys,
Thank you all for your encouraging comments. Without them, I wouldn't have continued my own studies with more rigor. And I do want to thank you all very much for cheering me on.
Anonymous 1:
The gospels are definitely a great start to understand Christianity. Isaiah is tough because it is getting to the root of things and require a deeper understanding of God's Word. As we gain more understanding about God and Christianity, we can return to Isaiah and find deeper meaning.
To Debbie, kkb, Anonymous 2, and Anonymous 3:
I am benefiting so much from your comments. I'm glad my blog is a place that conduces comfort and encouragement, where thoughts can be freely shared. Sometimes, I feel my mom gets too focused on finding the "right" answers, and I'm not sure that's the goal of the Bible Study. I like how we are all each doing our own thinking and then come to the table for a healthy discussion. I think that is what Bible Study is all about. No one has all the answers. And we all have different approaches to understand the Word. And so, through fellowship, we can learn from each other and learn together to become more like Christ. I love what you guys are doing, and I am so honored to be able to be a part of it! PS--Quoting from the Bible is not easy. I certainly wasn't comfortable with it when I started, and I definitely know how discouraging it can be when one sees another person do it so easily. But give it some time. With continuous study, we will all be able to quote the Bible with ease... because we will all be able to find our favorite Bible verses that resonate with each one of us! PPS--Thank you for the Isaiah 14:9-11 quote... That shined a new light on this week's lesson for me!
To Ted and Karen: I have emailed you about starting up the Bible discussion blog/group. Let's make it happen!
Thank you so much. This is my first experience with BSF. I am finding the questions really difficult. I was very discouraged and then I found your blog. God bless you for your help.
I am a 41 year old, that is really only just 4 years old.... you see, I just accepted Christ into my heart in 2006. I wanted to go deeper so have jumped out of the baby pool and into the big kid pool!! This rug rat could NOT be studying Isaiah without YOU allowing yourself to be used by God!!! Thank you so very much for being obedient!!!!!
Anonymous 4: Isaiah is very difficult for me as well! I often have to sit on thoughts for a while before I can gain any insight. I'm glad we can work through it together.
Robin: Thank you (and all readers) for encouraging me to remain obedient! I pray to God for His inspiration every night, to make sure I do not deviate from His message.
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