Bible Study Network

A growing network of women are studying the Bible together. You’ll find Bible resources, study aids, devotionals, prompts, service ideas and everyday applications as well as ideas for starting your own online or onsite group.

March 2, 2020 by Karen Wingate Leave a Comment

Moses and Me: Finding the Faith to Do What I Don’t Do Well

Moses and I have a lot in common. We’re good at throwing our weaknesses in God’s face.

Moses learned his lesson once (I think). Me? I’m a slow learner.

Recently, a University student ministry group asked me to speak at their spring semester Women’s retreat. The group wanted to hold the event at my church facility and asked if other ladies could help organize the craft table. One thing led to another, and somehow, I was in charge of choosing, organizing, and teaching the craft as well as speaking.

One problem. I don’t do crafts.

[Read more…]

January 14, 2020 by Karen Wingate Leave a Comment

BIBLE QUESTIONS: IS IT OK TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BIBLE?

I’m learning to love the Discovery approach to Bible reading.

My small group and online Bible study are taking a different tact this year. Starting with the book of Genesis, we’re reading one chapter a day. We’re reading with intentionality and expectation. Part of that process is asking key questions before and during our reading.

Here’s a general list of questions you can use as you read the Bible:

What does this passage tell you about God? Man? Living to please God?
What captured your attention?
What did you like?
Did anything bother you? Why?
In order to obey God, what changes must you make in your life?
What did you not understand?
What questions came to mind?

Wait a minute

Should I question the Bible? Is God OK with me asking about the parts I don’t understand?

Oh yes! God does not disapprove of questions. Many times, within the pages of the Bible, God’s people and prophets questioned, deliberated, and even debated the Divine edicts. Most of the time, God was patient and gave them answers that they could accept.

Asking questions of any text is a beneficial study method. It helps our mind engage with the material and motivates us to interact with the Author. It admits a humility to God that we really don’t understand everything and helps us go deeper than a surface level comprehension.

As I read through Genesis 1-9, I found myself asking these questions:

Why does the Bible begin with the creation account?
Why was light God’s first creation?
How could God make light when he didn’t create the sun until two days later?
In Genesis 1:30, God said He gave every green plant for food to man and all animals. But today, many plants are toxic. Did God’s curse on the land as part of Adam’s punishment and the change in the earth after the Flood cause some plants to become toxic?
How was the serpent able to speak?
What change happened to mankind and the earth after Adam and Eve’s disobedience? Was the change gradual or instant?
How was Noah able to stay righteous among such widespread wickedness? Could I stay that faithful in a hostile environment?
How did the violence before the Flood compare to what the world is like today?

If it’s wrong to ask questions, from the looks of my list, I’m in big trouble!

Let’s go back to my questions about light.

As I mentioned, the biblical record shows that God didn’t mind when His people asked questions. He promises to give wisdom to anyone who asked. Here’s how God gave me a thimble full of insight when I asked.

I posed my light questions to my Bible study group. No one had an answer. The next day, I did research for another writing project on the science of color. Because I have a simple mind, I went to the children’s section of my local library to read children’s books about color. I quickly discovered that the science of color and light are intricately connected. If I wanted to understand how our eyes see color, I had to understand the concepts behind the creation of light.

As I read further, I learned about the electromagnetic spectrum. Visible light, the light our eyes detect, is only a narrow band within the entire electromagnetic spectrum. The rest of the spectrum include x-rays, gamma rays, infrared, radio waves, and other kinds of energy.

Did God create only visible light or the entire electromagnetic spectrum that first day?

Could we go so far as to say God created all of energy? Energy that became the foundation and building blocks for the rest of Creation? Is it possible that God used this powerful energy to create the cosmos and establish the earth in subsequent days? That the Big Bang theory of evolution did have a divine source – that the very first thing God created was galactic size energy forces?

Then why didn’t God say so?

Why didn’t he specify in Genesis 1:3 what kind of light? Why didn’t He say electromagnetic spectrum or fusion energy if that’s what it was?

The Hebrew language is a simple language. And the Genesis account is a simplified version, a child’s version, of the creation process. It leaves lots of room for man to explore, learn, and discover. And even with all our searching, we will still never understand all of it. Happy is the person who is humbly able to admit as much! Before you hit the response button and find all kinds of loopholes in my thinking, remember, I’m exploring and asking questions. I’m the first to admit I have a galaxy sized hole in my understanding of the universe.

What do I do with this tiny step toward understanding?

For my part, I now have a new appreciation of what God needed to do in order to make our universe the expansive, functioning, and vastly detailed entity that it is. With one word, He spoke the cosmos into being. One word was infinitesimally more powerful than the largest of nuclear bombs. If He has that kind of power to speak the world into being, He can control all that happens to it and commandeer the energy at His disposal to destroy all or parts of the earth in His final judgement. And He has the authority and wisdom to take my surrendered life and do mighty things with me according to His good pleasure.

All this from one question about the creation of light! It makes me want to fall on my knees, no, on my face, in worship of a God so powerful – a God with the power to create power from nothing.

So, as you read the Bible, allow yourself to question.

Ponder. Wonder why. Ask, How could that be? You might find the answer embedded within the passage. God might bring other Scriptures to your mind that explain the passage you are reading at that moment. He could bring forth other information or people to guide you toward the answers you seek. Or, you may never get your full answer this side of eternity.

Regardless of the level of answers you get, you are basically asking God for wisdom to understand His Word. He’s made it plain that He is happy to oblige. He wants you to know who He is and He’ll work with you to make those discoveries.

God’s imparted wisdom will lead you to worship Him.

Go ahead. Ask the questions. Let God excite you with the answers.

November 12, 2019 by Karen Wingate 1 Comment

Understanding The Bible: Discovering God’s Heart

You CAN understand what the Bible says.

Are you still nervous about reading the Bible on your own? Do you feel insecure, fearful you’ll come to a false interpretation? Worried you need someone to explain it to you?

Fear no more. While understanding the Bible is a life-long process, the Bible can be meaningful and understandable right now.

Hugh Elmer Brown, of the Chicago Sunday Tribune, attributes this quote to Mark Twain:

[Read more…]

November 5, 2019 by Karen Wingate Leave a Comment

Daily Bible Reading: 8 Ways To Make Bible Reading Work For You

Read God's Word. "My word will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." - Isaiah 55:11, NIV

How are you doing on your daily Bible reading this year?

Hear me through. Don’t click out on me yet. Because I’m not doing so well myself.

Maybe you don’t want to talk about it because, the truth is, you are woefully behind. You’re following one of those “Read through the Bible in a year” programs, you’re supposed to midway through the New Testament, and you’re still stuck somewhere in Jeremiah. Or Leviticus.

Maybe, like me, your gut fills with guilt every time you read the Bible. Guilt that you aren’t getting anything out of your reading. Ashamed because you know your mindset. You’re reading just to get through the prescribed chapters for the day and that’s all you are doing – reading.

Let me ease your anxiety and mine. Maybe the problem is not you, but the method you are using. It may not be the right approach for you at this time.

Find the Daily Bible Reading Plan that works best for you.

Let’s look at eight approaches to daily Bible reading and the pros and cons to each method.

Read Through The Bible in a Year

Pros: Gives the big picture of the Bible message.
Cons: Too big of a daily chunk to absorb, understand, and apply.
Easy to lose interest and not remember what you’ve read.
Solution: Try a Read the Bible Through In A Year program that has you reading from several sections of the Bible at a time. Read the Old Testament section and a Psalm in the morning, then a portion of the New Testament in the evening.
Don’t feel you have to do this plan every year. Choose to do another type of daily Bible reading every other year. Keep reading for some suggestions.

Random Reading

Open the Bible at random and let the Holy Spirit guide you.

Pros: Um, what can I say? The Holy Spirit can lead you but . . .
Cons: Too easy to take verses out of context.
Too easy to be led by your emotions at the moment instead of the Holy Spirit.
Solution: Yes, the Holy Spirit can use this method, but I wouldn’t depend on it for regular disciplined reading. Find yourself a more structured program where you are reading consecutive passages and searching for deeper understanding.

Life Application Method

Select a book. Read until something hits you and stop.

Pros: Manageable chunks of Scripture.
Encourages you to personally engage with and apply the Scripture to daily life.
Cons: Easy to base application only on what you are currently facing in your life.
Temptation to seek comfort, not conviction.
Some sections of the Bible are for understanding. Not every verse or section has a life application.
Solution: This method is fine as long as you balance it with other kinds of Bible study. If you are getting theological teaching or big picture study through sermons, Sunday School, or your small group, this method might be best for you in your daily private reading. It fuels your tank for the day.

Devotional Guides

There are so many devotional guides out there. How do you choose? Shouldn’t you just be reading the Bible?

Pros: If you are a new Christian, this is a great method to guide your thoughts on a single topic.
Cons: If you are a new Christian, it’s tough to wisely choose which devotional guide is best.
Solution: A good devotional guide should drive you toward the Bible, not away from it. Select a guide that gives you more than just one verse to read, asks questions, and references other passages on the topic within the text of the devotion. A good devotional will lead you to say, “The Bible says . . .” not, “Karen Wingate says . . .”

Bible study guides

Pros: Gets you deeper into the Word of God on a particular topic.
Engages you in Scripture by asking questions.
Cons: Time consuming
The quality depends on the study guide
Solution: I have absolutely no problem using my quiet time to answer two or three questions a day for my small group Bible study. from the study guide. In fact, this is the method that works best for me. I don’t have the time or energy to devote one or two hours during my week to complete my small group preparation. This method gets me to think and apply what I’m reading in Scripture all week long and forces me to apply Scripture to my own life instead of thinking only how I will teach it to others.

Read Repeat

Read the same passage of Scripture every day for a week. Record what you learn each day.

Pros: Great for delving into more difficult passages of Scripture.
Divides study of weightier topics into more manageable chunks.
Avoids the “read it and forget it” temptation.
Cons: Can get stuck without moving forward.
Solution: Vary your study by reading the same passage in different versions of the Bible.
Read commentaries and study notes about the passage you are studying. Use other resources such as a Bible Atlas, Bible Dictionary, Manners and Customs of the Bible resource, or a word search resource such as Vine’s Expository Dictionary of the New Testament.

Topical Study

Choose a topic and read verses in the Bible that pertain to that topic.

Pros: Great for learning about a subject you want to know more about.
Cons: Time consuming. It’s easy to lose track of time.
Solution: Keep a notebook. Using a concordance, spend one or two days writing down all the verses you can find on that topic. Then, during your daily Bible reading time, select two or three passages to read, recording what you learn from each verse. I recently did this method with the topics sight and light. What a wonderful study!.

Question starters

Select a book. Before you start, ask questions you want answered.
Job: Who is the main character of Job? (It’s not what you think!) John: What evidence does John give to show Jesus is the Son of God?

Pros: Makes reading intentional.
Narrow your focus and keeps you from reading haphazardly.
Cons: Can get time consuming and go deep – but what’s wrong with that?
Solution: Again, break your reading into manageable chunks. Read only a section, not an entire chapter. Keep notes brief.

Which method is best?

The one that is best for you at this moment. No Bible reading is bad; we just want to make it better. God promises that His Word will accomplish what He sends it to do. When you read the Bible, you plant the Word of God in your mind and soul which gives the Holy Spirit within you something to work with when you need that insight or verse. The important thing, no matter which method you choose, is that you just do it.

Looking for a digital reading plan? Check out these links:

Bible Gateway:

YouVersion

What method of Bible reading do you currently use? Do you use a method other what we’ve covered here? A combination of several from the above list? Share in the comments below or on my Facebook page.