Advent 2006 - Women's Group
Diane:
The words to the song “Word of God Speak” that Nicole so beautifully sang for us are really quite simple, but the message is profound. That the Great God of all creation would speak to us is really quite amazing when you think about it.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 says that “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.”
And
2 Peter 1:20 says, “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
Through the Scriptures, and by the Holy Spirit, God speaks to us. I became especially interested in that truth when I was a young woman, not much older than Nicole. I had a young daughter and I realized that if I wanted to teach her about spiritual things, I first needed to become a student. So I began to read it—at first, solely by myself, and later I began to study it together with others in a small group. I was hooked and have continued to be a student of it throughout my life. It has taught me, comforted me, blessed me, challenged me, amazed me, scared me, perplexed me…but it has never bored me.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
…It is “living and active” which to me has meant that at various times a Scripture that I’ve maybe read dozens of times will speak to me in a new way because it’s relating to something specific I’m living through at that moment. It might even be as simple as stepping outside in the evening and looking up at the sky and seeing the Scripture, Psalm 19:1 come to life, which says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
There are many important questions we need to ask about the Bible, like how do we know that it’s true…that it really is the Word of God? And if it is true, then what is it that God is saying to us through it? Is it better to study it on our own, or along with others? Is it even possible to live it out—to live up to God’s standards for us?
For about 6 or 7 years I spent time over the lunch hour once a week with some of the women in College Advancement for prayer and Bible study. Several of them are here today and they’ll share with you how they’ve been impacted by the Word of God.
Judy:
We can know the truth only when we believe information from a true source. There is one True Source – God and He has given us a Book, which tells us how to know Him and how to live a life that is pleasing to Him.2 Timothy 3:16 that says “Every scripture is God-breathed”. When it said the Bible was God-breathed, it means that God influenced the human writers so that the words in the original document were God’s words. They were without error because God prepared the men He used to write them so they would not confuse or distort anything God had them write. The Old Testament declares 3,800 times that it expresses words of “God said” or “Thus says the Lord.” For example:
Exodus 17:14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write an account…
Ezekiel 3:4 Then God Said…”say to them whatever I tell you to say.”
Isaiah 6:8 He heard the Lord say
Jeremiah 1:9 The Lord said…I am giving you the words you must speak.
The New Testament writers also claim the messages they wrote came from God.
Paul, the man who wrote many of the New Testament letters, tells us the source of his writings. Galatians 1:11 & 12 says, “It was not of human origin, but Jesus Christ revealed it to him.”
Through the years the Bible has proved to be indestructible. The Old Testament is the oldest book in existence! From the beginning, evil men have tried to destroy it, and yet there are more Bibles in the world today than ever before.
The Bible has also proven to be completely accurate in the prophecies which have been fulfilled. I was surprised when I found out that there are over “2000“ predictive prophecies that have already been fulfilled.
God used 40 men from varied backgrounds to write the text. These men had very little in common. For example: Moses, was a well educated man, as was Paul. Peter, was a fisherman. Joshua was a military general, Nehemiah was a king’s servant. David was a shepherd, poet, and musician. Solomon was a king, Luke was a doctor, and Matthew was a tax collector.
These men wrote God’s words in many different places: in the wilderness, in a palace, on a hillside, in prison. God used their abilities or He overcame their inabilities and spoke His words through them.
From Moses, who wrote the first book, to John, who wrote the last book, the composition of the complete Bible took about sixteen centuries. Think how much confusion there is in the writing of forty writers on any subject covering that period of time? The Bible was written in three different languages on three different continents. All these factors would seem to make harmony in the Bible impossible.
And yet, it is remarkable to me that it is still one book with one central theme and one continuous message, which is presented in perfect harmony.
Julie:
Psalm 119:89 Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
I was raised in the church, attended church every Sunday, but was not introduced to the Bible until I was 22 years old. I had no idea the Bible was made up of 66 books, that it was God’s love letter written to the world, and that from Genesis to Revelation, it told a story. A true story of God’s plan of salvation for us.
From Genesis to Revelation we find the common unifying theme of God’s loving pursuit of humanity, and humanity’s resistance to Him. Already, by the third chapter of Genesis, we find that man disobeyed God and sin entered the world. But God did not turn His back on mankind; He had a plan that He would reveal to us. Revelation actually means that something that has been hidden is now made known.
Some people have a view that God is hidden and unknown. Such a view assumes God doesn’t want to be known because “God” is just a vague impersonal force, like gravity. But God has revealed Himself. He is not hidden! He has spoken to us through His word and if we will read His word, we can not only discover what He is like, but we can come to know Him in a personal way. That happened to me in 1979. I began my personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
John 1:14 says “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” The central purpose of the scriptures is to bring people into a loving relationship with Jesus Christ.
John 17:17 says “Sanctify them by the truth, Your word is truth.” “Truth” in Websters Dictionary is defined as a fact. Yet, many today say there is no such thing as absolute truth. From philosophers to pop musicians, the message goes out that “truth” is only what you want it to be, and what is “true” for you isn’t necessarily “true” for anyone else.
But Jesus Christ claimed to not only know the truth, but to be the truth.” In one of His boldest and most uncompromising statements He affirmed in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”, and John 1:17 states “Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ”. James 1:18 tells us that God “chose to give us birth through the word of truth.” Dozens of times Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth.”
1 Peter 2:2 says “Desire the pure milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby.” Just as our bodies need food, so our souls need spiritual food. Without it we become malnourished and weak, susceptible to every temptation and unable to do the work God calls us to do.
I have come to read the Bible as if my life depended on it, because it does! It is my reference manual for life. I meditate on it, memorize it, hide it in my heart and apply it to my life everyday.
Isaiah 40:8 tells us “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Margaret:
While preparing for my portion of today’s Common Prayer, I decided to to some research. I ran across a old copy of Appendix II from the By-Laws of St. Norbert College that had been adopted in 1983. Entitled The Religious Dimension of St. Norbert College, it states that “From it’s origin, the College’s most distinctive priority has been it’s exploration and understanding of the consequences of faith in Jesus Christ”.
I also discovered that I am a Vatican II baby. Born just before the Second Vatican Coucil was called to session, I became a member of the guinna pig generation for how these historic changes would affect my church and my life as a Catholic. Pope John the 23rd was often asked why these changes were needed and he would reportedly open a window and say “I want to throw open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in”. Could John have secretly been a Norbertine?
So how are these two discoveries related? The shared aspect is Community. When I first joined these ladies for a weekly lunch, I noticed that they were able to quickly attribute a particular Scripture to it’s book, chapter and verse. Along with this amazing feat, they were also able to quote great amounts of Bible verses……from memory. How did they do it? At the time I did not even own a Bible.
Well, I was given a Bible by Fr. Dane and I started reading. I found that the time spent studying The Word at our weekly lunches became a highlight of my week. Discussing, sharing and praying together drew me closer to God, my work friends and my St. Norbert family. I also started reading my Bible at home and the Book of Psalms quickly became a favorite. The first verse of Psalm 133 says: How good it is, how pleasant, where the people dwell as one!
Through my exploration and understanding of the consequences of my faith in Jesus Christ, I am a member of not only the St. Norbert College Community, but a member of the Kingdom of God.
Nancy:
One of our studies was on the book of James, written by the brother of Jesus. James challenges us to walk our talk, to live out our faith, and that proof of faith is a changed life. He also acknowledges that this will not be easy. The book of James begins with these words from chapter 1 verses 2-6:
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”
Trials…yes we all face them…some are evident to others and some are personal. How we handle our trials depends on our faith. Because I have placed my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ I am able to face life’s trials with confidence. I am not trying to imply that my trials are easy to endure, many are not. But I do have a choice to make, to include God and seek his wisdom with the assurance of an outcome that is pleasing to God or to stumble through on my own accord. By Gods grace my faith has grown enough to know that no trial is too small or too large for God, and when I include Him I will have the wisdom and peace that only He can provide.
My favorite scripture during such times is, Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you: because he trusts in you.
Just as James tells us if we lack wisdom to ask God who gives generously, Hebrews 4:14 tells us to “approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
When we choose to include God in the face of our trials we will also have the opportunity to share with others God’s faithfulness and to give Him the glory for the outcome that He deems best.
Julie Friedman:
I was raised in the Methodist faith, but growing up in a military family and then serving more than 20 years in the Army myself, I moved around a lot. So I never really belonged to any one congregation for any length of time, and for many years organized religion wasn’t a part of my life at all.
Along the way I married into a Jewish family, which gave me a whole new insight on faith and religious traditions. Fortunately, my husband is part of a wonderful community that welcomes me and answers my questions, without feeling any need to convert me, so I’m cool with them. But it made me realize how much I was missing my own faith community, one based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, so I’m sure it was His will that I ended up working here at St. Norbert College in 1993
In 1998 I moved to College Advancement, where I met this group of women who gathered to share the Word one day every week over the lunch hour - right here in the parlor. With my long-time love of alliteration, I started calling their weekly meeting “Lunch with the Lord.”
Now I meant this in a totally nice way, but I have to admit that I declined the first time they invited me to join them. I thought, “What could I possibly offer to these women? Next to them, I know nothing about scripture or formal Bible studies.” But they graciously left the invitation open, and soon I was drawn to see for myself just how studying and praying together seemed to bring such grace into their lives.
Well needless to say, I became one of the “Lunch with the Lord Ladies” for the next five years. I’m sure this was meant to be part of my spiritual journey, because in 2004 I was deployed to Iraq with my National Guard unit, and I don’t think I would have survived that year without my newly-strengthened faith.
As a senior sergeant, I was trained to be a tactical leader as a soldier and a professional mentor as a photojournalist, but I quickly realized that many young soldiers were also looking for someone to be their spiritual leader. And as we say in the Army, “sometimes you’ve gotta step up.”
In Iraq, my main job was to design and produce a weekly newspaper for our task force. I decided right up front that we should have a “Chaplain’s Corner”, so I went out to introduce myself to all three of the chaplains on our base and convince them to take turns writing this column.
Well, this took a little bit of arm twisting – and more than a few gentle reminders about deadlines in those early weeks – but soon they were writing for us on a regular rotation, and their words of inspiration and comfort became one of the most well-read features of our paper …… right up there with the sports page!
In turn, when they asked for help with the Sunday chapel services, I volunteered for the scripture readings. I did this with joy in my heart, because I know it inspired others. I also know that the Lord only asks us to share as we are able, and He surely knows I can’t sing!
From there, the South African guys on our security force asked me to read at the informal prayer services they held every morning in our living area, so I also did that most days for several months. And in keeping with tradition, I came to call them my “Coffee with the Creator Club.”
But I have to tell you that I never would have had the courage to do any of that, if it weren’t for the knowledge and self-confidence I gained from my years of Bible study and shared prayer with this group of women. So I want to thank them again now, and than you ALL for joining us here today.
