Hebrews 9 & 10

This week, like last week, was kinda different.  I (Jael) had written out a handout, and so, instead of doing one big group study, the girls were divided into 4 groups of 2 or 3 to fill out the sheets together.  It actually worked pretty well.  :-)

The worksheet was called Jesus, the Fulfillment of the Old Covenant, and looking similar to the following:

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[I handed out slips of paper with one of the Old Testament offerings on it, like guilt, sin, grain, fellowship, etc., along with the references where the descriptions of the offerings could be found.]

Look at the slip of paper it gave you.  What type of offering do you have?  ____  

Which references?  ____

How did Jesus fulfill that offering?  ______

In the Holy Place, there was the consecrated shew bread and the lamps.  What are two names of Jesus that show that He was the fulfillment of these?  _____  

[bread of life and light of the world]

In the Old Testament, when Moses was sealing the law God had given him on Sinai, what did he mix together and sprinkle on the people?  _____

[As found in Hebrews 9: water, scarlet wool, hyssop and blood]

How were those represented on Good Friday?  _____

[water=water pouring out of his side; scarlet wool=red robe the soldiers gave him; hyssop=wine vinegar on the sponge on the hyssop stick; blood=all the blood Jesus shed for us]

What do they repent to us, now, as Christians?  _____

[Now, these are open for picking, and no one answer is more correct than another, but I had: water=baptism or the Holy Spirit; scarlet wool=the white robes washed in Jesus's blood {yes, I know they are white, but they were washed in blood :-P}; hyssop=Jesus cross; blood=Jesus blood shed for us or communion.]

Thorns were the sign of the curse.  What did Jesus wear on his head on Calvary?  :-)

*****

Unfortunately, due to time restraints, we weren't able to do much more, but let me summarize what  we WOULD have gone over, as well as what we did.  :-)  (Sections in quotes are what I was unable to say during the lesson.)

At the beginning of the lesson, we used a program to look at an artist's 3D renditions of the tabernacle and its articles.  We learned about the candlestick and accessories, the alter of incense, the table of consecrated bread, the High Priest's outfit, and the Ark of the Covenant.  We learned that a lot of blood was involved.  :-P

A few girls pointed out the lack of items in the Ark, so we discussed the three things found there:

1)  The bowl of manna (Exodus 16:33-35)

2)  Aaron's staff that had budded (Numbers 17:10)

3)  The stone tablets (Exodus 25:21, 40:20)

"Hebrews 9:7 says that even sins committed in ignorance are punishable.  For example, imagine that I made a law that you couldn't cross your legs, and anyone who crossed their legs would be punished.  If Abi crossed her legs, even without knowing about my law, she would be punishable, because she is disobeying the law.  Same way with God.  Ignorance doesn't equal innocent."

"In the Old Testament, the priest had to spatter the alter and the Ark with blood in order to atone for sin.  The earthly High Priest used the blood of a goat or a bull.  Jesus used His own."

"I kept reading about how God cleared our conscience, and how that was an important part of atonement.  For a while, I was rather confused, but I think that clearing the conscience is necessary for a pure life.  If you're always regretting what you've done or not forgetting, you are burdened down by the past.  So God clears your conscience and gives you a fresh start.  :-)"

"If I were to write a will, but not die, what would happen to the will?  Not much, right?  I have to die in order for the will to be a real will.  In the same way, God left us a will, but His Son had to die in order for us to be able to claim it."

"Jesus did away with sin.  Do you actually believe that?"

"Hebrews 10:5.  God needed a perfect sacrifice, so He gave Jesus a body so that He (Jesus) could be sacrificed.  And Jesus took that body upon Himself willingly.  Oh, the power in that thought!"

When you're finished with something, do you keep standing?  Like, if you just finished a race, do you stay on your feet?  NO!  You sit down!  In the same way, Jesus is SITTING at the Father's right hand.  His work is done."  

"Sometimes, it's tiring to see all the evil in the world, and to see sin still at work within your members.  But think of Jesus' salvatation as a good disease.  Not all the symptoms appear at once, even though you may have the disease."

"Jesus came to put the law in our hearts.  The old covenant was that of words.  The new is that of spirit.  See last week.  :-P"

"God has buried all our sins in the deepest part of the ocean, and has posted a sign that says "NO FISHING!!!""

A few of the girls did three skits.  In the first one, two of the girls called the other names.  In the second, one girl rejected a gift that the other gave her.  In the third, girl 1 fell down.  Girl 2 helped her up.  Girl 1 then proceeded to yell at and kick girl 2 for helping her.  In the same way, some abuse Jesus.  (Hebrews 10:29)  Don't let yourself do that.

"Some will shrink back in times of trouble.  But you aren't that type!  You will stand firm!"

More notes that we didn't get to... 

When you look at all of the different requirements for sacrifices, it is amazing how many of those Jesus fulfilled with His own sacrifice! All these laws were, for the most part, symbols of what Jesus was going to do hundreds of years later.

The Old Testament confuses a lot of people… myself definitely included. We wonder, “What was the purpose of allllll those rules and regulations? And why would God want all those animals slaughtered?  Well, one main reason was that sin requires death, and there is no way around that. However, it says in chapter ten verse four, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” So why require it if the death of an animal won’t take away sins? Well, it’s because that blood could cover over sins… not take them away, but cover them over until Jesus came to make the final sacrifice that would take those sins away. Verse 13: “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,” (So they sanctify the flesh; in other words, they can sanctify the person while they’re on earth) “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” (So Christ sanctified our souls, basically.) And another reason for the animal sacrifices – as it says in chapter ten verse three – was an annual reminder of sins.

10:10, 12 and 14 – Unlike the animal sacrifices, Jesus’ sacrifice atoned for ALL sins… every single sin committed by every single person.

10:18 – and so we don’t have to constantly offer animal sacrifices for our sins, because we have forgiveness!

10:20 – the ‘curtain’ referred to is the curtain that separated all the people from the Holy of Holies… basically, the separation between the people and God. When Jesus died, this curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom… Jesus’ death took away that barrier between us and God and gave us the means to reach God directly, and to receive forgiveness directly.

10:24-25 – And that is the purpose of groups like Bright Lights!

10:26-29 – It’s a temptation, when we have God’s free forgiveness, to think we can do anything we want, because, after all, if we just repent afterward, then we’ll be forgiven and everything will be fine. But it doesn’t work that way… we have to truly love Jesus and try to serve Him. If we mess up, and we will, we’ll be forgiven, but if we keep on sinning without even trying to change or to do better, we will not be forgiven. And it makes sense… if Christ died for us, does it really make sense for Him to forgive us as long as we’ve “prayed the prayer” and asked for forgiveness, if our hearts aren’t truly in it? If the only reason we’re doing it is so we can get out of hell, not because we love Him in the least? If we’re constantly “trampling underfoot the Son of God” and treating His laws as if they don’t matter, have we really accepted Him into our hearts and accepted His forgiveness? No, we’re just looking on it as a free ticket to heaven that we don’t have to work for. It is that in one sense… we can never earn it… but at the same time, we have to try.

Eleni, Abi, and Callie filling out their sheets

Maddy, Sophi, and Haylee looking up their Bible verses

Next time, each girl will research a character mentioned in Hebrews 11.  So...homework for next time: research your character, read Hebrews 11, and memorize at least one verse.

Hebrews 7 & 8

This week, instead of listing all our notes, we decided to take the cream of the crop, and post those.  Also, since we had two activities this week that were rather time consuming, we posted an explanation (and pictures, too) and let it go with that.  That being said, I present to you "Romans 7 and 8...Jael style!"

7:1-10  There once was a man named Melchizedek who no one had ever heard of... Just kidding.  Melchizedek is a minor Bible character who plays a disproportionately large role in the book of Hebrews.  Who was he, and how does he come to bear in this chapter and the last?  

In Genesis 14, Abraham is returning from rescuing his nephew Lot from some people who had captured him.  As he travels, Melchizedek "the King of Salem" appears and gives him bread and wine.  This Melchizedek is described as "priest of God most high" (which is very surprising, considering that Abraham is, like, the only "Yaweh-fearer" in the land up until this point), and he blesses Abraham.  Then, Abraham gives Melchizedek 1/10 of the plunder he has recovered.  And that's that end of the story.  Kinda small, until you read Hebrews 7.

Hebrews 7 starts out by describing Melchizedek and his interaction with Abraham.  But then it describes his name as "King of Righteousness" coming from Salem (which means "peace").  So the king of righteousness is coming from peace.  Then we're told that Melchizedek has no genealogy, and no beginning or end.  If you think about it, that is true.  Most people in the Old Testament have a full genealogy written out for them.  Abraham did.  Lot did.  But Melchizedek doesn't.  Hmm.  

Then it goes on to say that Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder.  If you know your Old Testament history, you know that it was every Israelites bound duty to give a tenth of all their crop to the Levites once a year.  But Abraham was the grandfather of Levi, and yet he gave a tenth to Melchizedek, which says that Melchizedek was a higher order of priest than even Levi.  

Furthermore, Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and it's generally understood that the greater person blesses the lesser.  (Aka, your dad blesses you, not you blessing your dad)  So Melchizedek was above Abraham who was the grandfather of Levi, which means that Melchizedek blessed Levi.  

Basically, this whole section is there to explain logically why Melchizedek's priesthood is about Levi's.  Okay.  End of my big, long explanation.  :-)

7:23  Levidic priests died, so there were many of them.  (Does that mean that the Levidic priesthood will die?)

7:24  Jesus lives forever, so his priesthood will never go away.

7:26  We need a high priest who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens, innocent, harmless, and undefiled.  The Bible describes exactly what we need!  Now, I want you to look a this big beautiful bag of marshmallows.  I'm leaving them in the bag so they don't touch me.  You see, these big white innocent-looking...fluffs...are deadly!  They clog your arteries, slow your heart, and ultimately give death!  *mock shudder*  So these represent sin.  Now Cecily here is obsessed with marshmallows.  I mean, everything she does or things about is connected with marshmallows.  Everyone that knows her KNOWS that marshmallows are her life.  Now Maddie also adores marshmallows, except she hides her obsession.  All her marshmallows are hidden in her closet, and if someone were to mention marshmallows to her, she'd be like, "Oh, marshmallows are terrible things!  They clog your arteries!"  Then she goes home and stuffs herself with them.  Now I want to shift to the difference between purity and innocence.  I know there's all this hoopla about purity, and so I wanted to explain it in a simple way.  Callie is innocent of marshmallows.  She has never heard or seen of a marshmallow.  Her parents have carefully checked to make sure all movies she watches are "marshmallow free."  So she doesn't want a marshmallow.  But she isn't really pure of marshmallows.  She is INNOCENT of them.  But let's take Sophi now.  She has heard of marshmallows, and seen them.  She's also heard how DELICIOUS they are!  Yet she doesn't eat them.  Is she innocent of marshmallows?  No.  But she is PURE of them.  In the same way, Jesus was pure of sin.  He was in the world.  He was tempted by them.  Yet no marshmallows were found in him!  I mean, the devil even offered him, "Turn these stones into marshmallows!"  :-P  Yet even though Jesus was surrounded by a marshmallow-prone world, he didn't give in.  He was pure of marshmallows.  And we are called to be like him.  

7:27  Jesus is different from the Levidic priests.  He doesn't have to offer sacrifices day after day.  The Levidic priest had to offer sacrifices for themselves and for the people every day.  Jesus didn't have to atone for his signs, so he, as priest, offered himself once to atone for the people forever.

7:28  The Levidic law appoints as priests imperfect men, because that's the only type available.  Jesus, however, is perfect.

8:1  All of chapter 7 was describing the perfect priest lived out in the person of Jesus.  The good news is, we get Jesus as our high priest!  :-D

8:2 Jesus serves in the tabernacle set up by God.

8:3  To be a good high priest, you have to have gifts and sacrifices to offer.  So, Jesus had to have them too.  What did he offer?  :-P

8:4  If Jesus have been from this world, he could not have been a priest, given his ancestry.  

8:5  The Levidic priestly order reflects the heavenly order.  That's why they were instructed to obey the law given to Moses on Sinai SO carefully!  Let me illustrate.  Here are 6 pieces of paper with six idioms: "Bring down the house", "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink", "You look like something the cat dragged in", "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade", "Put the right foot forward", and "Kill two birds with one stone".  Take them and act them out.  :-)

8:6  Jesus has the spirit of the law, so his law is much better.  :-P

8:6  Jesus's ministry is reconciliation, so that ministry has better promises.  (We live by faith)

8:7-12  Now, nothing was "unrighteous", per say, in the Levidic law.  But it wasn't perfectly "God's law", if you know what I mean.  Think about the skits earlier.  It was the letter of the law, instead of the spirit of the law.  But Christ's law is the spirit of the law.  (1 Corinthians 9:20 & 21)

8:13  Explain about abrogation.

8:13  Jesus lives forever!  

Random thought to consider: 

Do we have to obey the 10 commandments in order to be saved?

Hebrews 5 & 6

This week, we sent out an email, asking the girls to go over three questions with their parents, in order to encourage more discussion.  It worked.  :-)  The three questions were 

1. What is God like, according to Scripture?
2. What does the Christian experience once becoming a Christian?  (Hebrews 6:1-3)
3. Scripturally, can a Christian be saved after falling away?   Why or why not?  (Hebrews 6:4-6)

At the beginning of the lesson, I started out by showing a cross stitch project I was working on.  I showed them the underside 

 and the "normal" side.

 I attempted to explain that, even though many denominations are represented in the room, we were going to try to attack all the "sticky" issues from the Bible viewpoint, putting aside any "previous convictions" in an attempt to study the Bible fairly.  We encouraged the girls to talk over stuff with their parents, too, so that the parents can raise the daughters as they see fit.  We just want to dig in the word.  :-) 

Jael's Thoughts 

5:1 All high priests are selected by men. All are men. (Can you think of any civilization where that wasn't the case?) Ours was selected by God. Ours is God.

5:1 It's common sense to have a high priest represent you. That's how it's always been done. O can you think of any culture that DIDN'T have a high priest?

5:2 He is able to represent the people because He IS a person. If you want to represent someone, you have to understand what they're going through.

5:2 The human high priest isn't sinless.

5:3 All worldly high priests have to offer sacrifices for themselves, too.

5:4 No one can truly crown himself high priest. He must be called.

5:5 Jesus was called.

5:5 The high priest represent the people. He is closest to God. So, Jesus represents us by being closest to God. Logic: Jesus died and rose up to the right hand of God. We are in Christ. Therefore, we are at the right hand of God, through Jesus.

5:5 Our high priest was called to be high priest by his father.

5:7 There's a difference between prayers and petitions. What is it?

5:7 How did Jesus pray? "Loud cries and tears"

5:7 He prayed to the one who could save him from death. We do the same thing.

5:7 He was heard because of his reverent submission. What IS reverent submission? Well, what's submission? What's reverence? Reverent submission is what one does who submits reverently. :-P But I looked it up in the Greek. Eulabeia NIG. Eulabeia means "reverence and reverent submission." The word translated "submission" isn't in the Greek. I it was added so that it would make sense in English. Some translations call it "piety".

5:8 Sons are not exempts from learning from trials.

5:8 "Although he was a son..." Sometimes, kids think they can get away with stuff, or they rebel against discipline. Jesus did it the right way!

5:9 Perfect. What would you call perfect? Before Jesus came to earth, wasn't he perfect already? How could God become more perfect? The word translated "perfect" is "teleioō." It means "to perfect, complete, finish, to reach a goal, be fulfilled, completed, made perfect." But how can God be made perfect!?

5:9 Our salvation is eternal if we follow Jesus.

5:10 ...and we're back to the beginning of the chapter. God made Jesus high priest.

5:11 Learning is important. I could tell you a lot about a stove, but if you persist in sticking your finger on the burner, we can't get very far.

5:12 How many churches do you know that are beyond "the basics"? How many churches are focusing on stuff that WASN'T being argued over 2,000 years ago?

5:12 Think celery versus milk. One requires teeth. The other doesn't. :-)

5:13 What is righteousness? The Greek word is "Dikainosynē." It means "righteousness, what is right, Justice, the act of being in agreement with God's standards, the state of being in proper relationship with God." Thoughts God wants to know us. He wants us to know him. Anyone can quibble about rules. But only a very few can worship him in spirit and in truth. Those who quibble about laws and rules haven't grown up yet. They are still in the milk phase. They need rules and regulations to keep them in line.

5:14 That mature can tell good from evil. They are so familiar with what is good that they can see the evil right away. Take, for example, these two glasses of milk that each of you have. One is cows. The other goats. Can you tell them apart by taste? Why? Because you are more familiar with cows milk! If we are familiar with what is good, then we can easily spot the bad.

6:1 God is calling us to maturity. He doesn't want us stuck in the same rut as before.

6:1-2 we have to build on a firm foundation. The very basics of Christianity are "repentance of acts that lead to death, faith in God, baptism(s!?), laying on of hands, resurrection, and eternal judgment." But you aren't supposed to stay on the basic teachings! You're supposed to move past them!

6:3 God is the one who matures. "I have never been so wise as in my 13th year!" :-P

6:4-5 Even though this passage is describing those who fall away, it is a good description of the Christian. We have been enlightened. We have tasted the heavenly gift. We've shared in the Holy Spirit. We have tasted the goodness of the word of God (:-P "Taste and see that The Lord is good.") and the powers of God. How can we see those fruits? A fig tree has to bear fruit in order to be a fig tree. Otherwise, it's just a tree with big leaves. So, a Christian that doesn't live like the Bible says isn't a Christian, because they aren't bearing Christian fruit.

6:6 Does that mean that Christians who fall away can't come back?

6:6 Someone who walks away from the faith stabs Jesus in the back. Imagine your best friend leaving you and going over to your worst enemy, and telling her all of your confidences. :-/ Would you like that? Why not?

6:7 Land has a job. It is supposed to bear fruit. God gives it rain so it can do its job. Good land will bear fruit, and God will bless it.

6:8 Land that is given good stuff but produces weeds and thorns will be cursed and burned.

6:7-8 How does this apply to us?

6:9 Paul was warning about falling away in the previous passage. Falling away isn't a certainty.

6:9 Salvation has fruit.

6:10 God remembers everything you've done for the kingdom. For example, this past week, I was going over the score sheet of a team I lead. I was able to see everything that everyone on my team has ever done for the team, and commend them for that. God is the same way.

6:10 God wants you in heaven, so he will fight for your soul!

6:11 You know when your Dad tells you, "Keep up the good work!"? It' sane encouragement to do the good thing you are currently doing.

6:12 Life is a battle. A soldier in the middle of a battle doesn't take a nap! He keeps on fighting until the battle is over.

6:12 Follow those who have done well. Can you think of anyone YOU want to follow?

6:13 Have you ever seen movies where the characters swear an oath? ("I swear by the sun and the moon to remain true to my friend, Diana Berry...") Those oaths always call on someone bigger than them to witness their oath. But the biggest guy in the universe has to call on himself!

6:15 Abraham had to wait. Is there anything you're waiting for?

6:15 What's the difference between waiting and waiting patiently? I'm gonna have you guys split into two groups and one will do a skit on "waiting", and the other will do a skit on "waiting patiently." [This was done with very amusing results. :-)]

6:16 An oath is a binding contract. If you swear you'll do something, you're giving your word, just as if you were signing a legal document. You can't challenge a signed legal document. Think deed or marriage license.

6:17 God swore an oath. When he gives his word, it's gonna happen. It won't change. He keeps his promises.

6:18 Which two unchangeable things?

6:18 God swears only on really special and important things.

6:18 If it is impossible for God to lie, then anything he says he will do, will happen.

6:18 If we know that God has sworn something, we can have confidence in that.

6:19 This hope is out anchor. Imagine that God COULD lie. What would happen to your faith?

6:19 In the Greek, "secure" means "un-tottered."

6:19 What is "it" referring to?

6:19 That hope is our way to the father. Faith!

6:20 Jesus went before us. He went behind the curtain. He is the anchor!!!

Memory verse: 5:8-10  Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered, and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizadek.

Sylvia's Thoughts
5:1: In ancient Israel, the people couldn’t give their offerings directly to God; they had to have a “go-between”; a high priest who would offer sacrifices for them. Jesus is the one who, once and for all, bridged the gap between God and us so that we can speak to God the Father directly. Jesus acted on our behalf when He offered Himself as the final sacrifice.

5:2: Like we talked about before, Jesus understand the difficulties we go through because He Himself went through the same things. He became weak so that we could be made strong.

5:3: An earthly high priest has sins of his own that need to be atoned for, which is why earthly high priests could never take away sins; they could only cover them over.

5:4: High priests must be called by God, or they have no authority or power.

5:5: ^Jesus got his authority directly from God.

5:6: Who was Melchizedek?

5:7: Discussion about prayer.

5:8: How did Jesus learn obedience? Wasn’t he already obedient? Or was this more of a testing of His obedience than a new lesson; a way to prove how obedient he was?

5:9: I think that by “being made perfect,” it means that he was made perfect in our eyes… he was always perfect, but his time on earth proved it. He was tested by fire and found to be pure.

5:11: What does it mean by “dull of hearing?” (Stubborn; maybe not willing to think about important/difficult topics or try to understand them)

5:12: Those who have been Christians for a long time are not progressing in their faith… and since they’re not progressing, they’re slipping backwards. You can never be stationary in your walk with God! Either you go forward or you fall back, but you don’t just stay the same. If you think you’re staying the same, you’re probably falling back!

5:13: Leify (my baby brother) has started to eat solid food... and if we attacked spiritual food with the gusto that he attacks his solid food, it would be a VERY good thing! He has a fervor for the solid food that we need to have for our spiritual “solid food.”

5:14: We have to be firmly grounded in the basic principles of the faith before it’s beneficial for us to argue the more difficult doctrinal issues. (Jael’s “milk” object lesson)


6:1: A firm foundation is important, but if you stay with the foundation and don’t build the walls, you’re not going to have a very good house! We need to go on to “maturity” and keep progressing in our faith.

6:6: (Discussion about 4-6; Jael’s notes)

6:7: We have received many blessings from God, so our purpose is to produce a crop that pleases Him.

6:8: If you have a garden that you tend and water, and it bears nothing but weeds, are you going to be very pleased with your garden? Or will you just burn (or mow) the weeds down and start over?

6:10: Even though we’re not near perfect… even though we don’t do nearly enough or nearly as much as we should… even though we constantly fail… God still sees our efforts and praises them, unworthy as they may be to Him. He appreciates every little act of service and will reward it abundantly.

Memory verse: 6:10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.

Group picture!

Silly group picture...

And "epic" group picture. ;)

Thank you all so much for coming tonight!  We look forward to seeing you back in two weeks.  Remember to read Hebrews 7-8, write down some thoughts for discussion, and choose at least one verse to memorize! 

Have a great week! :) 

Hebrews 3 & 4

Along the same lines as last lesson, what you'll read here are just our notes.  However, we did this study with the desire to do more object lessons and tell more stories, so we expanded our notes to include the illustrations and object lessons.  Hopefully it'll be an easier read, and make a little more sense.  :-)

Jael's thoughts on Hebrews 3 - 4

At the beginning of the lesson, we removed a log from a fire we had going outside. We told the girls that that would come into play later.  :-)  The log was still flaming when we left.

We have the same calling Paul did! (3:1)

There are so many possible distractions in the world.  We have to focus on the true thing. Now, I want everyone in the room to NOT think of a polar bear starting NOW.  You know, don't think about the white one.  The one that lives in the arctic.   With black claws and pads.  The one that can kill people.  Don't think about a white polar bear.  Okay, stop.  How many people were able to keep from thinking about a white polar bear?  Most of you, right?  How?  By thinking of someone else?  You fixed your thoughts on someone else!  By fixing your thoughts on Jesus, you'll be able to avoid all the other distractions in the world. (3:1)

Apostle means "messenger".  Jesus was the word come to us.  He brought the message to us by coming and living among us.  He WAS the message.  (3:1)

Jesus never betrayed that which God gave him or told him to do.  He was faithful.  (3:2)

The Bible compares Jesus to Moses.  Somehow, I never equated Moeses I with being the most faithful servant in God's kingdom before Jesus.  (3:2)

Jesus was even more faithful than Moses.  Jesus never disobeyed God.  Moses received God's word.  Jesus WAS God's word.  (3:2)

Jesus was God.  He built the house.  Moses was human.  He was part of the house.  Jesus, being God, could do everything perfectly.  Moses, being man, couldn't.  (3:4)

Houses don't come together by random chance.  Now, I randomly put a room together.

 What do you think?  Not very pretty, huh?  The tub is by the bed, and the fridges is by the bed, and there's a tree by the tub.  When a room or a house doesn't have a designer, it's not good.  Things don't turn out well.  That's why we needed a designer.  God.  (3:4)  

God made everything.  (3:4)

Moses was as faithful to God as a servant can be.  But JESUS was as faithful as a son could be.  And we are sons of God!  We can live in Christ's victory.  (3:6)

We are his house, as long as we represent him.  (3:6)

We boast about our hope in eternal life.  Sylvia: I just passed a test today with this AMAZING score!  I'm so smart, 'cause I can remember all that stuff!  Don't you think I'm genius!?  I mean, I passed it in WAY the time given me.  And now I have 20 credits!  I'm so happy!  Jael:  That's really cool!  I'm glad you passed!  But I have Jesus.  You're happy now, because things went well.  I'm happy, because I know my future.  Before each test you take, you don't know how it will turn out.  But I know that I will pass God's inspection, because I am pure because of Jesus Christ!  I have the confidence and ability to stand before God pure and spotless, so I can be happy all the time!  I know the end of the road!  (3:6) 

The Holy Spirit issues the "today, if you hear his voice..." speech.  (3:7)

When the Holy Spirit calls, DON'T say no!  Just do it!  (3:7&8)  (see Ephesians 4:30)

TODAY, if you hear his voice.  Not tomorrow.  (3:7)

The period in the desert was a time of testing, as well as a time of punishment.  Everyone has times of testing "in the desert."  Yes, it may start as a punishment, but God can turn it into a time of testing.  So always stay tuned to God's voice!  (3:8)

Or...was the time in the desert a time when they tested God?  (3:9)

When God is tested, he always proves himself.  And the people who test him see what he does. (3:9)

Those who test God, even after he shows his wonders, do not know God and his ways.  Their hearts aren't fixed on Jesus. (3:10)

God gets angry at persistent unbelief.  At those who just don't get it out of stubbornness of heart.  God hasn't changed since the OT.  (3:10)

When God is angry, he can be harsh.  Those who forsake God can never be at peace.  (3:11)

God's peace must be something else!  Not being in it is a terrible punishment!  Or, is his rest heaven?  (3:11)

Guard yourself from a heart that goes astray.  Note that it doesn't say "from sin" or "from unbelief."  It says to guard from a "sinful, unbeliving heart."  This could mean one of two things.  1)  What our heart is like is how we'll behave 2)  God sees the heart: you may stumble, but God can see that your heart is focused on him.  Now, we have two eggs here.  Daisy and Kaity, could you please spin them?  See how Kaity's egg spins all over the place, while Daisy's stays right where it started?  That's because I boiled Kaity's egg.  It has a hard heart, and so it wanders. That why we need to guard from a hard heart.  (3:12)

Encourage each other!  A log by itself gets cold!  Let's go outside and check on that log.  See?  There are no more flames coming out of it.  Why not?  The other logs are still burning just fine. What's the difference?  The log by itself is more likely to succumb to wind and cold.  The  other logs keep each other burning.  That's why we need to keep encouraging each other.  We have to help each other stay lit for Jesus.  (3:13)

God gave us today.  I read a story once in a book called Christian Mother Goose about the Tomorrow Catchers.  These were a group of "monks" who had been trying to thousands of years to catch tomorrow.  They had these huge "butterfly nets" with which to catch tomorrow.  They had clocks that could predict the time up to the millisecond.  When Christian Mother Goose went to visit them, she stayed up with them to see if they could catch tomorrow.  At the stroke of twelve, they all swooped their nets, and lo and behold!  One of them caught something!  It was an owl.  :-P  Then Christian Mother Goose got to explain to them why they couldn't catch tomorrow.  After all, at the stroke of twelve, tomorrow becomes today!  You can never live in tomorrow.  Besides, in the Bible, it talks about God giving us today.  (3:13)  

We are part of Christ if we are confident in him.  Imagine that you're on a zipline. You may start out at the top holding confidently to the zipline handle, but if you let the speed and all the stuff around you to frighten you, you start loosening your grip on the handle, and, ultimately, you'll fall.  (3:14)

God is always offering second chances.  "So long as it is called TODAY."  "TODAY, if you hear his voice..."  Yes, you may have messed up badly in the past.  But you have a fresh start TODAY.  Not tomorrow.  Not next week.  TODAY!  (3:15)

The punishment was given to those who disobeyed.  Even if you are descended from them, you have a clean slate before God.  "I won't punish the children for the sins of their fathers."  (3:16-18)

They couldn't do any of the good stuff God promised because of unbelief.  (3:19)

Even though we can enter his rest, we MUST NEVER grow complacent.  We must keep searching until we get there.  That's not a law thing.  Imagine that you finally earn $10, and you want to get something at the store that costs $10.  You've wanted that item for forever, but you never had them only until now.  On your trip to the store, you keep looking in your pocket or your hand or wherever you have the money.  Why?  Do you HAVE to look at it?  No!  Why do you do it?  Because you want to make sure it's still there!  You don't want to arrive at the store without it.  That's how we should be with our faith walk. (4:1) 

We have the same good news they did!  The only difference is that we combined it with belief!  Callie, see this 1 million dollar bill?  It is for you.  Will it do you any good if you just sit on the couch?  No!  You have to come and take it!  You're coming and taking it is a sign of your belief that I will give it to you.  (4:2) 

Belief is very important.  (4:3)

Even though we may not see what God is doing, or though it seems like he keeps changing his mind, He knows the end result.  (4:3) 

God rests.  It is a God-like thing to rest.  Those who disobey God cannot rest.  (4:4-5)

God picked a day and called it today.  He decided that whenever "today" occurs, you should listen to  him.  (4:7)

The Promised Land was only a symbol of what is to come: heaven!  Joshua couldn't give them rest.  Jesus can!  (4:8)

People who love and obey God will do what he does.  He created a sabbath-rest.  The earthly sabbath is merely a symbol of God's sabbath in heaven.  (4:9-10)

Those who enter into God rest from their own work.  We don't have good works.  We rest from them.  We do God's work.  (4:10)

We don't want to copy those who went before us by disobeying. (4:11)

God's word is always new.  When I began studying these two chapters, I was afraid I wouldn't be able to come up with much.  I ended up with six pages of notes.  Why?  Because God's word is alive.  It constantly speaks.  There is always something new in it that you never saw before.  (4:12)  

God's word can separate anything.  I read the story about a convicted criminal who was put in prison.  While there, the Chaplin went to him, and started telling him about Jesus.  The criminal said, "Ha.  God.  Who's God?  There is no God!  His so-called 'word' is just a bunch of junk."  The Chaplin said, "Okay.  Here.  Open it up and read."  So the criminal opened it up to a passage that says, "The fool says in his heart, 'there is no God.'"  That was the end of the criminal's protests.  (4:12) 

God's word judges.  Now, I know we've been taught that judging is bad.  But look at this yardstick.  I'm putting it against the back of the chair, and it is judging the chair to be 38 inches tall.  Is that judging back?  No!  The yardstick is just telling the truth!  That's how God's word judges us.  It just shows us where we are in comparison with where we should be.  (4:12) 

God can see everything.  Our thoughts, words, motives, and dreams.  Everything.  And we must give an account before him.  Scary thought, huh?  (4:13)

However, Jesus went up before us!  He covers our sins!  We profess that!  If we hold to that faith, our sins will be covered!  (4:14)

Jesus understands everything.  Don't you think that God knows what we go through as humans?  Sure!  But Jesus became a man so WE'D know that God knows.  He went through temptation, just like we did.  Yet, he never gave in.  If we are Christians, we are IN CHRIST.  If we are in Christ, must we give in temptation? No!  Will we?  Possibly.  But that's why Jesus is our great high priest.  (4:15)

If you have murdered someone, would you be able to approach a judge with confidences?  No.  But what if someone had pleaded guiltless to the murder instead of you.  Would you still be guilty in the court's eyes?  No.  Now, in heaven, we have been cleansed of the guilt of murder.  We can approach the judgment throne with confidence, because we have a high priest who covers our sins, and can help us when we need it.  (4:16)

Memory verse: Therefore, God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time late He spoke through David, as was said earlier, "Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your voice as you did in the rebellion."  (Hebrews 4:7)

Sylvia's Thoughts on Hebrews 3 - 4

3:1-3 – We are to look to Jesus as the one who was totally faithful and completely worthy of glory.

3:2 – Wow, Moses is here being compared to Jesus for faithfulness!

3:3 – Moses is being compared to a house and Jesus the builder: He allowed God to shape and “build” him however He willed.

3:5-6 – Then, in verses 5 and 6, there’s a different “house” analogy… Moses is being compared to a servant, while Jesus is a son. But both are part of the same household, as are we “if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.”

3:6 – What exactly does “boasting in our hope” mean? Skit: Sylvia talks to Jael, acting really excited and proud about her "amazing" CLEP score that she attained because of her "brilliance" and boasting about it. Then, Jael counters that by "boasting" about Jesus and how amazing He is and how He will give her perfect knowledge in heaven someday. 

3:8 – Ask girls what “hardening hearts” means 

3:10 – The people of Israel saw God’s works in truly awesome ways, yet they kept on “putting God to the test” and rebelling against Him.

3:13 – “Exhort one another every day”… what does this look like?
Pray for each other; comfort each other; tell each other when we notice sin in another’s life.

3:16-19 – Again, the people of Israel saw amazing things that God had done… wonderful miracles and mighty works. Yet they sinned against Him anyway and refused to believe in Him.

4:4 – Again, “somewhere spoken.” Glad to know I'm not the only one who has trouble remembering references!

4:12 – The Bible isn’t just a book of religious instruction; it has power in itself. It pierces to the division of soul and spirit… it convicts people of sin and draws them to repentance… it speaks to everyone, of all times, places, and circumstances… it discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart, providing wisdom for every situation and conviction for every sin.

4:15 – As we read last week, Jesus can sympathize with us in our weakness and pain because He was tempted exactly as we are, though He never sinned. He experienced unimaginable heartache.

4:16 – If we ever need a comforter, we can run to God. If we need understanding, He is there. If we need mercy and forgiveness, He is the only one who can supply it. If we need help, He is the one to ask. He is enough to fulfill every need we will ever have, and we can approach Him “with confidence” because of Christ’s sacrifice.

Memory verse: Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Homework for next time: Read Hebrews 5 & 6.  Come up with at least one comment or one question to share.  (If not...you may have to make one up on the spot!)  Also, chose a verse from Hebrews 5 or 6, and memorize it.  

Hebrews 1 & 2

Since we started this new format, it's a lot harder to post a lesson, since it's more like a Bible study.  Therefore...we will start posting OUR notes on the chapters.  We know they are rather unpolished.  We just put what I saw, and then transfered it here.  Feel free to comment on anything, or add something YOU saw in Hebrews 1 & 2.  :-)

Jael's thoughts on Hebrews 1 - 2

I wonder.  Maybe we don't have as many prophets nowadays because we have Jesus.  (1:1-2)

Jesus sustains the world.  :-D (1:3)

We are purified from our sins!  :-D  It's like a disinfecting wipe.  It takes all the sin away while leaving us.  (1:3)

Jesus inherited a name.  (1:4)  Which names?  Man?  Jesus?  An unknown name?  Son?  I'm wondering if it isn't "Son."  (1:5)

Ooh!  We are Jesus' inheritance!  (1:2)

God made the universe THROUGH Jesus.  (1:2)

God wants His children to love righteousness and have wickedness.  (1:9)  Doing so will bring us joy.

Jesus is supreme.  He has everything under Him.  Angels are his messengers.  (1:14)  Angels serve those who will be saved.

If you don't stay in the word and hear what it says, you will drift away.  (2:1)

God has just finished describing how much greater Jesus is that the angels.  Then, he says, "If what angels say is amazing and binding, then what do you think about what JESUS says!?" [long Bible study on what angels said.  Yup, everyone one who didn't do what was said got their just desserts.  :-P] 

God gave us the gifts He wants us to have.  The gifts He gave you are just as amazing as all the miracles He has performed.  (2:4)

Even though angels are amazing and powerful, they are not our masters.  (2:5)

Jesus is in control of everything.  (2:8)  Not everything is subjected to Him visibly (yet), but He is still master.

God's GRACE allowed Jesus' death to cover all our sins.  (2:9)

Suffering makes perfect.  (2:10)

When we stand before the judgment hall of God, we are just as pure and holy as Jesus.  We belong to the same family.  We are of the same blood, with the same purity and holiness.  (2:11)

Jesus is talking to His Father.  (2:12)

Jesus became man because He knew we couldn't become God.  Yet, He wanted to be brother to us.  So, He became what we are.  He loves us THAT much!  :-D  (2:14)

Satan used to hold the power of human death, but, by dying as a human, Jesus took that power away from him!  (2:14)

We used to be held in slavery by our fear of death, but, since Jesus conquered death, we aren't prisoners any more!  :-)  (2:15)

If Jesus had remained a spirit, He would've saved only the spirits, like angels.  (2:16-17)

Jesus was like us in EVERY WAY!  Just as solidly, full-bloodedly human as me!  (2:17)

Some may say that Jesus didn't suffer as much as we do, because He never sinned.  But Jesus suffered when He was tempted, just like us.  He wasn't immune.  Besides, on the cross, He bore the PUNISHMENT FOR ALL THE SIN IN THE WORLD!!  He suffered, just like we suffer.  So He can help us now!  (2:18)

These passages are talking about man.  No, we don't see everything subject to man.  However, since Jesus is man, and everything is subject to Him, all things are subject to man.  :-)  (2:5-9)

I didn't pick a memory verse, because I'm trying to memorize all of Hebrews.  :-)

Sylvia's thoughts on Hebrews 1 - 2

Hebrews 2:6

“It is testified somewhere…” So I'm not the only one who has trouble remembering where, exactly, in Scripture something is located! XD

Hebrews 2:8

“At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.” Because there’s still evil and suffering and death in the world. In my worldviews course, one of the lessons focused on how many people reject Christianity because of the evil that is in the world… the Bible offers a better explanation and solution to that evil than does any other worldview or religion. The syllogism present was: “An all-powerful, all-loving God would destroy evil from the world. Evil still exists. Therefore, there is no all-powerful, all-loving God.” Basically, people will say that either God is not good, since He allows evil, or He is not all-powerful, since he can’t destroy it. That’s what this verse is talking about: at present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him, but He does have a plan to deal with evil; He won’t let it go on forever.

Hebrews 2:10

            John 1:1.

Hebrews 2:18

Another thing talked about in my worldviews course was how Christianity is the ONLY religion in which God actually understands evil and has suffered under it. In all other religions, God seems to actually be responsible for evil, or else to not really understand or have control over it. But according to the Bible, God knows what pain is better than anyone else. He experienced countless trials and so much pain, so He actually understands exactly what we’re going through. He knows what it is to be discouraged, frustrated, exhausted, in pain… He knows what evil is.

Memory verse:

For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (Hebrews 2:18)

Homework: pick a verse in Hebrews 3 or 4 to memorize, and read Hebrews 3 and 4.  Come up with at least one comment or one question to share.  

First lesson of the year!

To start the meeting, Jael had written some feminine Bible names on pieces of paper.  After explaining the game, we taped a name on each girl's back, without telling them what the name was.  They then had to go around and ask each girl a yes/no question about their name.  Once they figured out their name, they got to sit down.  It worked...with more or less success.  :-P

Emily and Larissa looking at Cecily's name

Abi and Sophia

The first lesson this year was a review of the first set, which we went over last year.  Sylvia did the odd lessons, Jael did the even.

Being Strong For the Lord In Your Youth

For those of you who have been in Bright Lights before, you know what the acronym “BRIGHT” stands for: Being Radiant In Godliness, Holiness, and Testimony. But what exactly does that acronym mean, and how do we apply it?
 

Radiance basically means brightness… if you’re radiant, you’re visible; noticeable. So being radiant in godliness, holiness, and testimony means that you are relying on God so much, being so pure, and having such a great testimony that EVERYONE notices; God’s love and joy fairly shines from you!  It’s as if you painted your face with glow-in-the-dark paint and then walked outside at 9 in the evening… trust me, everyone around you would notice! His joy in us is supposed to be that obvious that no one can help but see.
 

It’s not that we’re trying to gain that attention for ourselves… going along with the “glow-in-the-dark face paint analogy,” people wouldn’t walk up to you and say, “Wow, your skin glows! You are so cool!” No, they’d realize that the glow wasn’t coming from you; it was coming from something else: the paint. In the same way, we’re supposed to reflect Christ so that when others see us, they see Christ. Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” The whole purpose of radiance is to point others to the Lord.
 

All right, so we need to be radiant… that means we need to have Christ’s joy in us… and that means we need to have Christ in us… and that means we need to know Christ. For once, I'm going to ask a question that requires easy, “Sunday-school answers”: How do we get to know Christ?

(Read Bible; pray; church/worship)
 

Very good! Let’s talk about those one by one: firstly, reading the Bible.
 

The Bible is so amazing!  It has wisdom for every situation we’ll ever encounter in life. It’s vital to establish regular Bible-reading habits while we’re still young… starting with 5 minutes a day, then increasing it to 10, then 15… or starting with a chapter a day, and then increasing that to 2, then 3… whatever your goal, it’s important to be intentional about reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating on God’s word. That’s one of the major goals of Bright Lights this year!
 

Prayer, also, is really important. Think about the people you love most in your life: you want to spend time with them and talk to them often, right? Why should God be any different? We are to love Him above anyone else and rely on Him to meet all of our emotional needs. The awesome thing about God is that He’s ALWAYS there and ALWAYS willing to listen to us... He is NEVER too busy for us. He loves it when we pour out our hearts to Him, when we tell him our worries, and when we trust Him to take care of us.
 

Worship is something that most people think of as “Sunday-morning church…” boring; let’s get it over with. But real worship has nothing boring about it! Real worship is being awestruck by how wonderful God is and praising Him with all your heart. This can and should happen just about anywhere… when observing His creation, in church, singing praises to Him, reading His word, talking to Him… all the time! Worship can be expressed in many ways as well- music is a great way.
 

These three areas are ones we’re hoping to emphasize a lot in the group this year as we grow in our relationships with the Lord. To “be strong for the Lord in our youth,” we need to truly know the Lord, love Him deeply, and desire to please Him above all else.
 

GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR PARENTS

What was the first gift you got when you were born?  Your parents, right?  I mean, they were your parents, for better or for worse, the moment you came into this world!  And, believe it or not, they will be your parents until they (or you) die!  So, it becomes rather important to have a good relationship with them.  After all, if you're gonna spend 50-60 years with some people, it'd be a good idea to like them, right?  Besides, good child/parent relationships are a rarity in today's world.  Yet, few things are more greatly commanded in the Bible.  God commands it in Exodus 20:12 - “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."  If you notice, God is speaking to youth, because children are very reward-oriented.  So, God offers a reward.  :-)
 

Now, before I start, let's get one thing straight.  When you are younger, your relationship with your parents is more master to servant than friend to friend.  They tell you to do something, and if you don't, there will be negative consequences.  This is good, and is what God commands.  ("Children, obey your parents in The Lord, for this is right.")  As daughters, you will most likely remain under your parents' authority until you are married.  (Yes, I know that doesn't cover EVERYONE, but, Scripturally, that is what presented.)  But as you get older, your relationship changes.  For example, when I was little, if I didn't do exactly what my parents said, I would probably get a spanking.  They controlled pretty much every aspect of my life.  But, as I got older, they started letting me to more stuff.  Yes, I am still under their authority, but they now let me stay at home by myself, drive places by myself, and pick my own school schedule.
 

But how do you get a good relationship with your parents?  What does a good relationship look like?  [story of girl who told everything to her Mom]  If you have a good relationship with someone, you tell them everything!  You enjoy hanging out with them.  That is what you want!
 

That, of course, presents the question, "how do I get a good relationship with my parents?"  I wish I knew a hard-cut answer, but I'll tell you what I know.  1) Respect them.  This will increase goodwill on both sides.  It doesn't make sense, but it really works.  2)  Pray for them.  Not just once.  Not just for a week.  But pray for them for at least a month.  Every day.  You won't be disappointed by the results.  3)  Talk with them (when they aren't busy).  Most parents love to hear what their kids have  to say!  4)  Help them.  Do whatever your parents ask cheerfully, but also, see if you can't help them in unexpected ways.
 

Jesus is recorded as honoring his parents in Luke 2, when he goes to the Temple with His parents.  Even though He was GOD, He submitted to them, went home with them, and obeyed them.  (Luke 2:51)  And, since we want to be like Jesus, we want to do what He did, right?  :-)   A right relationship with your parents will set you apart from most girls in the world today, and will make you more like Jesus.  :-)
 

More specifically, how will a good relationship help with Bright Lights this year?  Well, this year, we will be focusing more on parent involvement than we did last year.  We've already asked your parents to help you with whatever "homework" (although I hate to use that term) we give.  They want to help you grow into gorgeous young ladies of God, so don't view their help as overbearing or an intrusion, but, rather, view it as an opportunity to ask questions and to grow.  :-)  Moms and Dads have great insights when it comes to the Bible, and they're pretty cool people, too.  

 

Gaining a Clear Conscience

Psalm 51:10-12: Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not cast me from our presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me.

Having a clear conscience is essential to a pure heart. How many of you have ever ignored your conscience when it started telling you that you shouldn’t do something? (Everyone’s hand should go up!) It can be easy to do at first, but often as time goes on, the guilt gets worse and worse.

How many of you have listened to the Adventures in Odyssey episode, The Tangled Web?

For those of you who haven’t heard it, it’s the story of a young boy named Jeremy. Jeremy’s mother gives him some money to go and buy her some flour… he is supposed to go straight there and come right back. However, he goes to Whit’s end to get some ice cream, gets sidetracked by playing… and somewhere along the way, he loses the money. Obviously, he’s pretty worried about this. He gets home, and of course, he’s pretty late. His mother is really worried: “Jeremy, what took you so long? Where’s the flour?” Jeremy mutters, “I lost the money.” His mother is a bit confused; “What do you mean you lost the money?” All of a sudden, Jeremy loses his nerve and blurts, “Someone took it from me.” To get out of trouble, he tells this long, complicated lie about how he was robbed by “some teenager”… he thinks it’ll just get him out of trouble, but then his mom calls his dad… and his dad calls his principal… and the principal calls the police… soon the story is all over town. Eventually, the mayor of the town gives Jeremy an award in front of the entire town for his bravery in fighting off his violent attacker! Jeremy never confesses to his lie, and eventually the whole incident is forgotten. At the end of the episode, Whit says to Connie, to whom he’s telling the story (she’s planning to do something her parents won’t like) that she could listen to her conscience, not do what she’s planning, and talk to her parents, or – in his words – “You can spend the rest of your life like Jeremy did, always wondering if SOMEBODY’s going to find out.”

A guilty conscience is TORTURE! It damages your testimony and will kill your relationship with God if you’re not willing to confess that you’ve done something wrong and need forgiveness.

So, listen to your conscience. Arguing with your conscience is never a good idea. If you’re tempted to go against your conscience, think about the consequences: would you rather refrain from doing whatever it is you want to do now, or have to confess, apologize, humble yourself, and try to clean up the mess you’ll make if you do it? The choice gets a little easier when you look at it in that light…

 

Developing a Disciplined Walk with God

A long time ago, I read a poem that really struck me, and I wanted to read it to illustrate this lesson.  

"One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, the other to the Lord.  When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life, there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.  This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, You said that once I decide to follow You, You'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most You would leave me".  The Lord replied: "My son, My precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you only see one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
 

Now, I know this story is talking more about times of pain and suffering, but I really wanted you to see WHO you are dealing with.  This is a God who loves you beyond all imagining!  He loves you more than your Mom and Dad are ABLE to!  So, technically, walking with Him should be a joy and a pleasure.  However, I do understand that it doesn't work like that.  Some days, you may just not WANT to spend time with God.  I understand that.  :-)  But that's why this lesson is called, "developing a DISCIPLINED walk with God."  Every good thing requires discipline.  And remember, "no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful..."  Now, that doesn't mean that walking with God can't be fun and enjoyable.  It just means that it won't be fun and enjoyable all the time AT FIRST!
 

So, what are a few practical steps for developing a disciplined walk with God?  

1)  Even if you don't feel like it, read your Bible.  Just like Sylvia was saying in the first lesson, set measurable goals.  10 minutes a day.  1 chapter a day. Whatever.  Just make sure you do it!  

2)  Have three people in mind that you want to pray for each day.  Make a list of all their needs, and all the things that you are thankful for about them, and then pray through some of those thing for each person, each day.

3)  Every day, make a list of ten things that you are thankful for.  Be specific.  So, instead of saying, "my house", say "my pillow".  

4)  Sing.  Even if you have a voice that won't cooperate, sing.  If you don't want to sing around others, then sing when you're alone!  Pick a few hymns or praise songs, and sing them every day!  It's amazing what singing can do to an attitude.
 

This year, in Bright Lights, our main goal is to help you know Jesus better.  Like, that is our goal. We want you to love Jesus more than your Mom or Dad or anyone else on planet earth.  We'll be emphasizing the importance of prayer, Bible reading, and singing.  Our prayer is that you will see how much fun a disciplined walk with God can be, and that the word "disciplined" will lose the negative connotation, and have a pleasant one.
 

Understanding the Fear of the Lord

Jael said earlier that stuff God will do is “creepy”, so that must be the fear of the Lord, right? :D

…NO.

One thing about language is that it changes… now, if we say we fear something, we mean that we’re afraid of it. But fear used to actually be something more positive… something more along the lines of respect. You would fear the king of your country because he had the power to punish you if you disobeyed the law. If he was a bad king, maybe you’d be afraid of him because if you offended him even slightly you’d get your head chopped off, but if he was a good king, you would love him for his service to your country while still respecting and fearing him because, if you disobeyed the laws, he could carry out justice on you. Still, you knew that he would do that to others as well, and thus you are kept safe.

It’s that way with God: He is our very gracious king who takes care of us and keeps us safe. We obey Him – yes, because there are consequences if we don’t – but we know that He is just and His laws are good. Shouldn’t be too hard, right? Well, the problem comes when we fear people more than we fear God.

(read story from Bright Lights booklet)

That story illustrates how we often look to people for approval before we look to God. When, like in the story, we’re so influenced by our peers that their view of us is more important than God’s view, it will keep us from fearing Him the way we ought and lead us to compromise our values.

And whose opinion really matters in the long run? Your friends and peers at school will only be in your life for another year, maybe two or three… but then you’ll probably never see them again. God is the one who determines where you’ll spend eternity.
 

Accepting God's Design

Take a look at these two paper dolls.  Which one is better than the other?  [ideally, they are identical in everything except coloring]  Actually, it was a trick question.  :-)  Both are the same.  I just colored them different.  I like them equally, even though I designed them differently.  Make sense?
 

Now, I'm sure you've all heard the pep talks that say that God designed you to be you, and so be content with how you look.  As true as those are (up to a certain point.  It is possible to go TOO far in that area), accepting God's design for you goes much deeper than that.
 

After, how MUCH of you did God design?  All of it, right?  How much of your LIFE did God design?  All of it.  Hmm...so, not only do you need to accept how you look, but you also need to accept how God planned your life to be.
 

I remember reading of a missionary named Adoniram Judson.  He was the first American missionary, and he went to the country called Burma (which is now called Myanmar, for all you Geography freaks).  He served that country for 37 years.  He was married three times.  His first wife Ann bore him two children before she died, both of whom died before they were 5.  His second wife, Sarah, bore him 8 children (plus another child from her previous marriage) before she died, three of whom died before he did.  His third wife, Emily, bore him two children, and he died before they did.  Now, I know that thus far, this sounds like an incredibly bad sob story, but this all has a point.  Inspire of all these tribulations, Adoniram Judson continued in the faith.  Besides being arrested numerous times, and almost starving to death during several inprisonments, he also managed to translate the Bible into the Burmese language, and write several other tracts and books.  He made a tremendous impression for The Lord in a completely pagan land.
 

But what if, after his second child died, (which was after his first wife and child had died, and after he'd been in prison and almost starved to death, and had very little visible fruit, and had been struggling to translate the Bible for years) he had looked at his life and said, "God!  Why do you have this design for my life?  I want to live in a comfortable home, converting 10 people every day, and have a beautiful, happy family with no death.  If you don't give that to me by next year, I'm gonna go live in the United States again."  What would've happened?  Not only would the Bible not been translated for a lot time, but a lot of Burmese churches wouldn't exist, and the American missionary effort would be substantionally smaller.
 

The point I'm trying to make is this: you not only need to accept the way you look, but you need to accept what your lot in life is.  For example, Cecily.  You are the third child, second daughter, in a family with 9 kids.  Sophi.  You are the oldest in a family of two, and your young brother is scarcely a year younger than you.  Abi, you are second oldest in a family of 4 kids.  Each of you has your own set of trials, right?  Each trial is hard to bear, but God designed it for you.  I once heard that if everyone could put all their troubles on a clothesline, and then pick which troubles they wanted, everyone would pick their own.  Why?  Certainly not because they are appealing, but because you are best equipped to deal with your own problems!  So accept where God has you.  Accept what He wants to do with your life.  NOTHING is worse than not doing what God wants you to do or doing what God doesn't want you to do.


Being Fully Dedicated to God
 

Have you noticed a common theme in a lot of these lessons? Maybe… surrender? We keep talking about how we need to surrender to God and try to please Him. Like Jael said in Developing a Disciplined Walk with God, He needs to be a priority in our lives. But why?

Well, 1 John 4:19 is pretty clear and concise: “We love because He first loved us.”

How many of you have ever sinned in your life? (everyone’s hand goes up)

How many of you think that you can get into heaven on your own, without help from God? No one? Okay, that’s good.

NONE of us is worthy; all of us are condemned to hell for eternity. So we needed Christ to die for us. Think about it.. He was king of the universe, yet he came to earth to spend a LIFETIME suffering for and serving others, ending by dying the most painful death IMAGINABLE. Not only that, but He desires to have a close relationship with Every one of us! He loves us so much that he cares about the littlest things that we care about.

How many of you have ever seen a really gorgeous sunset and been absolutely awed and amazed by its beauty? Have you ever thought about how technically “pointless” a sunset is? I mean, why should all these colors randomly appear in the sky every night when the sun goes down? They don’t have any practical purpose; they don’t make us live longer or make breathing easier. But God is a God who cares about beauty and how much we enjoy His creation. He wants to make the world as beautiful and wonderful as possible and give us every reason to enjoy it.

How could we not love Him? He’s enough for every need. No human can ever meet all of our needs, so we have to rely on Him. That means knowing him!

When you love someone, you want to please them and serve them; you want them to be happy. We need to be so dedicated to God so that we’re longing to serve Him; we’re always thinking about how we can please him.

Bright Lights is starting up again!

Wow, this summer flew by!  Bright Lights will resume meetings on Tuesday, August 27th at 6:30 p.m.  We'll be doing things a little differently this year... below is an email explaining our vision for the next year. 

Dear Bright Light parents,

This email will be rather long, but we'd like to share our vision for the group this year.
After talking about praying over what to do for Bright Lights this year, we have decided to do something a little different. Last year, each of our lessons centered around a particular topic: Standing Strong for The Lord in Your Youth, Joy, etc. However, as we were thinking about it, we weren't really teaching the girls how to study the Word for themselves, and we want to do that. We'd rather the girls get to know Jesus than listen to lessons about how to be like Jesus. Like Romans 13 says: "The commandment, 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not covet,' and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' Love does not harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." (Romans 13:9-10) We want the girls to love Jesus more than anything. "The attributes, 'Joy,' 'Patience,' 'Obedience to parents,' 'Sibling relationships,' and all the others are summed up in this one person, 'Jesus.' Jesus is perfectly holy. Therefore Jesus is everything good." If the girls know Jesus, everything else will flow from that.

Therefore, our goals this year are as follows:
1) We want to teach the girls how to get to know Jesus
2) We want to teach the girls how to STUDY the Bible
3) We want to teach the value of singing as a form of praise and worship
4) We want to teach the battle tactic of intercessory prayer
(Obviously, we can't make anyone love Jesus, but we want to produce an atmosphere conducive to growing in the love of Jesus.)

Our lesson plan this year will be slightly different than that of last year. Instead of having one of us stand up and talk to the girls, we will be doing Bible studies, where we will lead a discussion, encouraging the girls to discover Biblical truths for themselves. We'll spend our time reading and studying the Bible, singing, praying (out loud and privately), and memorizing.
Furthermore, something we really want to encourage in Bright Lights this year is an appreciation of quality worship music. We will be focusing on both contemporary and traditional hymns and worship songs, evaluating each song for musical quality and profound lyrics.

We're asking that each girl bring a notebook or paper, pens and pencils, and her Bible. We will provide a BL notebook to every girl who hasn't participated in BL before.
During the time in between lessons, we would like each girl to read the passage for next lesson, and write down any thoughts or questions about it. We will also expect them to memorize Bible verses, and do any other homework we assign. Parental guidance will be most valuable, since we desire to come alongside you and help encourage your daughters toward godliness.
Each "lesson," we will provide concordances, Bible Dictionaries, Bible maps, and additional background research to aid in the Scripture study, as well as snacks.

Right now, the books that we are planning on looking at are Hebrews, 1 John, Ruth, Esther, and James. We may or may not get to all of them, but we are hoping to cover as much territory as possible. You parents (especially the moms, but dads too) are more than welcome to sit in on our discussion and contribute. That way, you can further help your daughter study the scriptures at home.

To help us in facilitate the group, we would like the know the following about your daughter(s):
1) Name
2) Age
3) Allergies
4) May we post her picture on our Bright Lights blog
5) Reading level
6) Birthday
7) Contact information (phone and email)

The group will be meeting every other Tuesday starting August 27 from 6:30 to 8:30. We'll break for the year on December 3 (we may have a combined Christmas party with His Lighthouse on December 17) , and resume January 14. We are asking a $15 fee to cover snacks, Bright Light notebooks, and whatever other materials we may need.

We know that we're doing something rather different from most Bright Light groups. Therefore, if what we are offering this year isn't what you would like for your daughter this year, there are several other Bright Light groups in the area, led by wonderful Christian girls. Their contact information is attached.

In Jesus,
Jael and Sylvia