Job 4

Job chapter 4

S - It stopped but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice. Job 4:16

O - It seems that Satan isn't done tormenting Job. He uses a weakness in Job's friend and visits him at night to feed Eliphas' self-righteousness and judgement of Job. Eliphas has a very legalistic mindset when it comes to how God works. A + B = C.. Job is getting punished.. therefore he must have sinned. The problem (other than the fact that he's totally wrong) is in the fact that he's accusing Job as though he has never sinned himself, AND he has no concept of God's great plan.

A - Ahh!! This one speaks so close to home. I grew up in a VERY conservative and legalistic church and I ended up thinking that our view was the authority on scripture. We believed so much of A+B = C.. I was sooooo judgemental of others.. Eliphas is basically just saying to Job's face the stuff that I would have thought in my mind, all the while ignoring the GIANT plank in my own eye.

K - Lord forgive my self-righteousness. Teach me how to come beside my brothers and sisters to encourage in a way that helps them see you're great plan, rather than try to do your job and post out their sins.

Job 2

Job 2

S - Skin for skin! Satan replied. "A man will give all he has for his own life. Job 2:4

O - I feel like Satan is showing his cards here. In both chapters his purpose was to make Job curse God. When I was at bible college, a man came to speak to us from a country where Christian persecution was very strong. He's had to face "Deny Christ or die" more than once. He didn't come to Canada to run away, or for safety, he came to witness to us. He said that the reason we don't see persecution as much here is because our lives don't look any different than those around us. Satan has us so distracted by the things of this world that he has rendered us ineffective for the gospel. We don't have to deny Christ with our mouth, we do it with the way we live our lives.

A - Does the way I spend my time, live my life, speak to others, etc., show that my life is centered around Christ? Are there areas of my life that I am choosing to be a friend of this world?

K - Lord show me the areas of my life that I am not letting you rule.

Online Bible Study!!

Ok so I'm trying to get back into the Word. One of my biggest hurdles is that I need accountability. I've tried meeting with local ladies but it's really hard to find a time that works or a place to do it when we live so far out of the city, and I find that our rhythm at camp is so different than "normal". So I've done a little digging.. or "surfing" online and found an on-line bible study...with real ladies.. real accountability. Its through a ministry called Good Morning Girls. You can sign up for a group through Facebook which is made up women from all over the continent. Right now we're reading the book of Job, one chapter a day, and they use a reading method called S-O-A-K.

The SOAK Bible Study Method

S – The S stands for Scripture

O – The O stands for Observation

A – The A stands for Application

K – The K stands for Kneeling in Prayer

It's all on the site. I've tried it and really like it. For S, you pick a verse that stood out and write it down (helps to remember later). O - is what you observed or why it stood out. A - is anything that you feel God tugging on your heart about or just how you would apply what you read to your every day life. and K is just jotting down a small prayer based on your reading or insight from that day.
It's quick but meaningful and totally do-able for this mama.

Anyways.. I thought that when I post on my Facebook group page about what I read that day, I'd post on here too.. and maybe it would be an encouragement to read, or at least an insight into what is going on here.

So here's what I got out of my study today.

Job 1

How much is my faith tied to my circumstances? 
S - v 11 "But stretch out your hand and strike everything and he will surely curse you to your  face. O - I feel like Satan was implying that having everything you need on this earth (like Job did), creates a potential for a shallow faith. When you don't physically "need" God for anything, do you really know how to rely on him? A - super convicting. We've had our struggles, but nothing in comparison to some people in this world. How quickly do small mishaps or unknowns stress me out and cause me to look to my own solutions over turning to God in worship as Job did. K - Lord, I pray for deep roots. Ones that aren't uprooted when the circumstances of my life change. Help me to have a faith that truly relies on you.

Have a good one !! 

Sarah <><