{Verse of the Day} Week 2 ~ Wednesday ~ Rest with Your Friend

Read & Soap: John 15:12-17

John 15:12-17New International Version (NIV)

12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

Background to the Book of John (Click Below)  

Memory Verse: John 15:13

Greater love has no one than this, 
that someone lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:13

After my husband had moved out, I didn’t know who I could trust.

I wanted to tell my friends but I felt that if I had any hope of reconciling with my husband, I needed to keep our matters private. So I only told my family. But after over a month of silence, the weight loss and my disposition were giving away my secret. I had to confide in my close circle of friends because I needed them. It was scary to speak my shocking truth. No one expected it – I had always spoken highly of my husband and all of my friends knew that I adored him.

While it was scary to say out loud what was happening in my life, the tidal wave of love and support I received was exactly what I needed. Every morning I woke to a living nightmare but as I stumbled into my kitchen for coffee, there sat multiple bouquets of flowers from my friends.

I felt loved.

God used those flowers to comfort me and help me feel His presence.

In Matthew 6, Jesus tells us to not worry and then he uses the example of how God cares for the lilies of the field. If He takes good care of the lilies of the field…then certainly He will take good care of you.

In John 15:15, Jesus says:

No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

Jesus calls you his friend!

He loves you and you love him.

He knows your heart and you know his.

He cares about what matters to you and you care about what matters to him.

Jesus does not just love you as His creation and as His sheep, but Jesus loves you as a friend.

He is there for you when you wake and when you are lying in bed asleep.

He never leaves you nor forsakes you.

He is completely faithful.

You are not alone and because He is with you – you never have to live in fear.

Rest in your friendship with Jesus today.  Enjoy your time with Him.  He’s the best friend a girl can have!!!

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 

Reflection Question:

How does knowing that you always have a friend with you, bring you rest?

{Verse of the Day} Week 2 ~ Tuesday ~ Rest in your Shepherd's Arms

Read and Soap: John 10:11-18

John 10:11-18New International Version (NIV)

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

Background to the Book of John (Click Below)

Memory Verse: John 10:11

Do you have a pet? Up until the ages of 38, I have never had a pet - not even a fish or a frog? 

But in the summer of 2014, a little white ball of fluff, rocked our world when we got our first puppy named Snowball. At first, Snowball was a lot of work as she piddled in the house, needed to be let out and in - 10 times a day, barked a lot and dug in the mud.  The period of adjustment was not easy for me as she added one more responsibility to my plate. But as time went on, I fell in love. 

Snowball was meant to be my daughter's dog but early on she took a strong liking to me. Everywhere I went in the house she was under my fee - at my desk, on the couch in the kitchen, under the dinner table, and even on my bed. 

And then there's the way she greets me when I have been away. She runs to me with her tail wagging swiftly and smothers me with kisses and love and then she does a victory lap, running around the house celebrating that I am home. Oh how I love Snowball!

Friends, John 10 tells us that God is our shepherd and we are his sheep. 

We are Snowball.

We are deeply loved! Just like I love and care for Snowball, God loves and cards for you. And just like Snowball follows me around everywhere I go - we are to follow God everywhere we go and rejoice in God's presence. Let's rest in our Shepherd's good care and trust in His love for us. 

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 
 

Reflection Question

How does knowing that you always have a loving guide in your life bring you rest? 

{Verse of the Day} Week 2 ~ Monday ~ Rest in the Potters Hand

Read & Soap: Psalm 139:13- 18

Psalm 139:13-18New Living Translation (NLT)

13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
    and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
    Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
    as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You saw me before I was born.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
    before a single day had passed.

17 How precious are your thoughts about me,[a] O God.
    They cannot be numbered!
18 I can’t even count them;
    they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
    you are still with me!

Background to the Book of Psalms (Click Below)  

Memory Verse: Psalms 139:14

Have you ever knit a sweater or blanket before? Perhaps like me - you have not, but I am sure you have made something with your hands that you loved.

Back in my twenties, I took cake decorating classes.  It was such a joy to learn how to make beautiful cakes. i remember making my grandmother a birthday cake from scratch. That cake took me hours to make. When it was finished, I put it on a glass pedestal dish and then wrapped tulle and light around the bottom to light it up and make it extra special. It was such a joy to create! 

Then in my thirties, I was really into scrapbooking. I would go on scrapbooking retreats to scarpbooking parties and drive long distances to buy scrapbooking supplies. I had so much fun archiving our memories and those albums are my treasures. 

What is something you have created? Maybe it's a painting, jewelry, a special recipe you like to cook or a garden you tend to daily. Whatever it is - because you created it - you probably love it. 

Friends, you are God's creation. He made you. Isaiah 64:8 tells us that God is the potter and we are the clay. We are the work of His hands. 

Psalms 139 says that he knit you together in your mother's womb.  He loves you a million times more than you love the things you have created. This affection he feels for you is so much greater than our human emotion can fully grasp, but perhaps by considering some of he things you have made with our hands, for a moments you can imagine the deep affection God has for you. You can rest in the potters's hands. He deeply love you.

 

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 
 

Reflection Question:

What is something you have created that you love? How does understanding your affection for what you have created help you understand God’s affection for you and bring you rest?

Week 2 ~ Rest and Release ~ Daily Reading, Memory Verse & Applications

WELCOME TO WEEK 2  ~ REST AND RELEASE ~ RECEIVE GOD'S LOVE

Below you will find our Week 2 Reading Plan, Personal Reflection Questions, and Weekly Challenge! Enjoy! 

Week 2: Receive God’s Love

We all long to connect with others and to be seen and loved.

God is relational like us.

God wants to connect with us and be seen and loved.

God wants to be seen in all his beauty and majesty through his creation. The vast blue sky, the birds that chirp outside our windows, the meadow filled with flowers and the roaring ocean – all speak His name.

1 John 4:19 tells us, “we love because He first loved us.”

God first loved you and He gave His son to die on the cross for your sins so you could have a relationship with Him. He sees you and he longs to connect with you in a deep and intimate way. Let’s take time this week to bask in God’s love for us. It is in knowing and receiving his love, that we are able to rest and release our burdens to him.

Week 2 Challenge

Go pick a bouquet of flowers from your garden or a nearby field or buy yourself a small bouquet. Each time you see the flowers, be reminded of God’s love for you.

{Verse of the Day} Week 1 ~ Friday ~ You Need Time Alone

Read & Soap: Matthew 14:13-23

Matthew 14:13-23New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Water

22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.Later that night, he was there alone, (Take from Biblegateway.com.)

Background to the Book of Matthew (Click Below)  

Memory Verse: Matthew 14:23

During my season of rest, I also found that it was a season of withdrawal. I took a break from blogging and posting regularly on social media, and I also took a break form some of the Bible Studies I was involved in, in real life. I decided to be alone.

Withdrawing (for a social butterfly like me) has been painful at times. For those who are detoxing from something they are addicted to, the withdrawal period is painful. But we all know that those who come through the withdrawal season are always better, stronger and healthier on the other side. 

I am not recommending that you drop our of your church groups, if you don not have other close Christian fellowship.  During this time, I have stayed close to my family and strong Christian friends and I have a godly counselor. I am not alone.  But there were some extras in there that needed to be trimmed away, just for a season, so I could experience something deeper and better for my soul. I was seeking rest and that is exactly what I received from the Lord. 

After John the Baptist died, we see that Jesus withdrew to a desolate place by himself. Then again, after he fed the 5,000 Jesus withdrew alone on the mountain to pray. During emotional times of loss or a season of busyness, we need a hard stop, where we simply get alone with God to be refreshed, It may be painful  to step away but the alone time with the Lord, without other voices speaking into our lives, is exactly what we need. 

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 

Reflection Question:

Are you battle weary and in need of a time of withdrawal so your soul can be restored? How can you make that happen this weekend? 

{Verse of the Day} Week 1 ~ Thursday ~ Sharpen Your Ax

Read & Soap: Leviticus 25:1-7

Ecclesiastes 10:10New International Version (NIV)

10 If the ax is dull
    and its edge unsharpened,
more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.

(Take from Biblegateway.com.)

Background to the Book of Ecclesiastes (Click Below)  

Memory Verse: Leviticus 10:10

Do you feel worn down and worn out? 

Ecclesiastes uses the example of a worn out ax and how foolish it would be to keep using a dull one rather than stopping to sharpen it. You see, the more trees you try to cut down with the same ax, the longer it will take and the more strength it will require. 

A dull ax leads to accidents and requires more strength than a sharp ax. A sharp ax is more efficient, productive, effortless and enjoyable to use. 

Does your ax need sharpened? Have your long and extended hours of working and serving others worn you out? Do you need more skill or wisdom for life? 

Wisdom tell us that when we stop and sharpen the edge of our ax, our future will be better. Sharpening the ax may take more time but it will save energy in the long run. 

Perhaps you need to stop and read a book that will help you grow in an area where you are struggling - maybe in marriage, parenting, finances, home organization, or time management.   Maybe you need to stop and seek wise counseling in an area where you need healing.  Or maybe you  just need to stop and pray and fast for a wile and reconnect with our Savior.  Whatever area it is that you are feeling dull, take time now to consider how you can sharpen your ax so when you hit - you hit harder. 

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 

Reflection Question:

What has worn you down? in what area of life, do you want to sharpen your ax?

{Verse of the Day} Week 1 ~ Wednesday ~ A Greater Harvest

Read & Soap: Leviticus 25:1-7

Leviticus 25:1-7New International Version (NIV)

The Sabbath Year

25 The Lord said to Moses at Mount Sinai, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. 3 For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. 4 But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. 5 Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. 6 Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, 7 as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten. (Take from Biblegateway.com.)

Background to the Book of Leviticus (Click Below)  

Memory Verse: Leviticus 25:4

Genesis tells us, God created the heavens and earth in six days and on the seventh day, He rested.

God stopped.

We are made in God’s image and we too need to stop.

Each day we stop for about 7 hours of sleep at night.

Each week we stop after six days of working to rest and worship.

In the book of Leviticus, we see another hard stop – this time for the land.

In Leviticus 25, God commanded that his people work the land for six years, but in the seventh year they were to give the land a solemn rest. This rest required God’s people to trust that God would provide for their needs, while the land rested.

Not only was this good for God’s people to rest and trust in God, but it also was very good for the soil.

Resting the soil helped to restore the nutrients that were depleted throughout the years. Nowadays, farmers rotate their crops but in Bible times, the people may not have understood how necessary it was to rest the land so that they would have a greater harvest in coming years.

Is something depleting you?

Is there something you need to take a long rest from?

After my difficult year in 2016, I decided that the year of 2017 would be my year of saying “no.” Every ounce of the people pleaser in me felt guilty saying no to new commitments or stepping away from areas where I had consistently been dependable and a “go to girl.” But I simply needed to stop.

God created his creation to require rest and require dependence on him.

Are you resting?

Are you depending on him?

Resting is good and can lead to a greater harvest in the future.

Let’s take God at His word and rest.

(This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.) 

Reflection Question:

Is there something that is depleting you that you need to take a long rest from?
Share it with us in the comment section.

{Verse of the Day} - Week 1 ~ Tuesday ~ What Shoes Are You Wearing?

Read & Soap: Ephesians 6:10-20
Memory Verse: Ephesians 6:12

A few years ago, my son began experiencing extreme foot pain when he was playing football.  After every practice or game, he would come home and put his feet into ice buckets.  Often, when he work in the morning, he would not be able to walk without a noticeable limp. So we took him to the doctor and after a year of trying different techniques to alleviate the pain, he underwent surgery to insert a pin and bone graft on each foot.

Foot pain is serious problem for a football player. Without stable footing, you are easily knocked down. 

Friends, do you know how you feel like you cannot find rest? Because you are at war.  Your enemy, Satan, does not want you to have peace.  He want you to run around too busy, to be with Jesus.  He want you to walk down all the wrong paths. He wants to knock you down.  

Football players wear cleats so they don't slip and fall.  Ephesians 6:15 tells us that part of the spiritual armor we should be wearing includes shoes fitted with the gospel of peace. The gospel is our stability. Jesus death on the cross completely tramples over the power of Satan. We must not limp around anymore - it's time to take a stand against the enemy. What shoes you wearing? 

The shoes God has given us through the gospel offers peace, and in that peace is protection for the hard road ahead. Put on His gospel of peace today and walk in it. Those shoes look great on you! (This post is an excerpt by Courtney,Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.

Reflection Question

In what area do you feel like Satan keeps knocking you down? How can you take a stand against the enemy's schemes this week.  

{Verse of the Day} - Week 1 ~ Monday ~ Are You Distracted?

Read & Soap: Luke 10:38-42
Memory Verse: Luke 10:39

Distracted. Like 10:40 says that Martha was distracted and her distraction was called, "much serving". 

Does that sound like someone else you might know? Perhaps you see yourself in Martha. Martha was a good girl. She was a hard worker, she love Jesus and she loved people. But in the process of serving, she grew anxious and troubled. 

 It is no mistake that the passage leading up to today's reading is of Jesus telling the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus emphasized the love of our neighbors but then, in the very next passage with this story of Mary and Martha, he emphasized what is even greater than loving your neighbor...loving Jesus.
In Matthew 22, Jesus says the greatest commandment is that you love the Lord your God with all your hear, mind and soul and then he says the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor. 
Have you reversed these two commandments? Have you grown distracted by serving others and missed out on following the greatest commandment, of loving God first. 

Friend, what you are doing is not what is best for you. Jesus is giving you permission to stop..Rest. Sit at his feet and just listen to Him. You may not be able to change your circumstances and commitments today, but determine today to begin the process of simplifying your life. Don let another year pass of distracted living. Light your candle today, stop and pray. Jesus loves you. This post is an excerpt by Courtney, Women Living Well, from the Rest and Release Bible Study Guide.

Reflection Question: 

What is distracting you? Is there something that is making you feel anxious or troubled? Identify it and ask the Lord for wisdom on how to release it so you can love Him more. 

Listen to this instrumental worship as you sit at his feet this week: