I'm a mom of two darling girls, and they are the reason Sweet For Your Soul exists in the first place: because when your tween and teen daughters tell you they want to study the Bible, you do something about it already! I was 34 years old before I seriously fell in love with God’s Word and with its Author as I got to know Him through it. I do not want my precious daughters to wait that long. Like them, I grew up in church. I went to Sunday School and church camp and VBS and even Christian college. And all along, God was pulling me to Himself. But it was not until He led me to my first full-on women’s Bible study (a group called Proverbs 32 I am blessed to facilitate to this day) that my relationship with God moved up to the next level. The first 33 years of my life were not wasted because God is always at work. But I don’t want my girls to go through as much of their lives as I did before discovering the beauty and power of studying, learning, memorizing, being taught about, discussing, and sharing God’s Ultimate Love Story.
My daughters tell me there are plenty of girls' devotional books out there but not many Bible studies. Both are good, but what's the difference? A devotional usually gives you its author's thoughts and ideas on a particular passage of Scripture or a general Biblical idea. A Bible study is usually more interactive--an exchange of information (what the Bible says) and application (what to do about what the Bible stays) between the student (you) and the Author of THE Book--God. It's about digging into, investigating, wrestling with, studying, exploring, pondering, memorizing, and understanding the Bible.
The Bible studies in this blog are meant to be bite-sized pieces of God’s Word.
The source material will jump around, depending on what God brings to my mind
and puts on my heart. Whether you are a girl or a "girl at heart," my hope is that in each mini study, God will show something true about His Word. I also hope these studies will give you a starting point for putting the Bible into action in your
real, busy, crazy, everyday life.
As for the dessert recipes, inspiring words. and other treats? I’m throwing them in as bonus material! God’s Word, sweet treats, motivating quotes, and thought-provoking words delight my soul—and I hope they’ll be sweet for yours, too.
As for the dessert recipes, inspiring words. and other treats? I’m throwing them in as bonus material! God’s Word, sweet treats, motivating quotes, and thought-provoking words delight my soul—and I hope they’ll be sweet for yours, too.
This is good stuff! I might even do it myself!
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth!
ReplyDeleteSo nice to "meet" you, I'm your neighbor today on Mom's Morning Coffee link 5 "about me"! What a sweet place you have here!
And you're right - there are all kinds of good books out there, but not many good Bible studies. When I homeschooled my girls, I taught them Bible from a Precepts teen course, and that really helped them dig in. Eventually, they attended Precept Bible Studies with me, and wow, did that do wonders for their thirst for the Word! We always remember those precious times of study.
They've not been out of high school for long (the youngest is 19), and I so enjoyed their tween years!
I love what you are doing here.
Blessings to you today!
Thank you so much, Ruthie! Your kind comments have made my day! What sweet memories of study time with your precious ones...I love the Precepts approach. And I loved when my teenager asked me to buy her various colors of highlighters so she could mark up her Bible. Oh, the mom joy! I am praying my girls get hooked on digging into God's Word-- may they never recover! :) Thank you for blessing me...may God return that favor to you today!
DeleteWhat a delightful reason to start a blog! One of the best, actually. :-) It's lovely to "meet" you and I look forward to spending some time exploring your blog, maybe even inviting my teen daughter to visit with me.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Kym! As a mom of a teen daughter yourself, I know you understand that having my girls tell they want to study the Bible was pretty much one of my Top 5 Mom Moments! ;) As you can see, I'm really just getting started here, but I'd be honored and delighted to have you return for another visit. And by all means, if your daughter comes with you, please let her know I'd love to have her brutally honest comments/feedback (and yours, too!). I do have my daughter as my "focus group," but she's my pleaser-child/cheerleader combo who probably wouldn't tell me anything that might hurt my feelings! :) Thanks again so much for taking time to stop by and to comment!
DeleteGlad to connect! I'm a mom of two daughters too and I long to have a place like yours where they can read inspiration from their mother's heart. Keep up the good work! blessings.
ReplyDeleteAw, thank you so much, Angie! I can't tell you how much your encouragement means, and it is lovely to meet a fellow mom of daughters. I promise to give this little blog of mine some attention soon. Bless you, fellow mama!
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