Maineville Lighthouse Church

From the Parsonage… 

         

            I know that I mention our Ladies Bible

Study and Coffee Fellowship fairly frequently,

but it’s interesting to me how often something

we study sheds light on things going on in the

world today.  When I started this group, I just

wanted it to be an opportunity for the women

of the church to get together in a more intimate

setting where we could grow in friendship and

knowledge of the Bible.  I envisioned a safe place

where we could share concerns and experiences in a way that can’t occur in the short time we are together on Sunday mornings, and I also hoped we would grow in understanding of the Bible at the same time. 

            After our very first study, I became convinced that God was leading me to focus on the Women of the Bible and have followed that direction ever since.  It only made sense to me to do this chronologically so there was a clear path through the scripture.  The original plan was to look at the individual women and the way they lived in comparison to women today, but once we started, I realized we needed to have a fuller picture of what was going on around them in order to really understand them.  It wasn’t enough to pull snippets from the Bible that mentioned their names, and we have ended up going much more in depth than we anticipated.

            Interestingly, as we go through the Old Testament, we see more and more that “the play is the same, just the actors are different.”  It started in the Garden when Satan appeared to Eve.  You would think that someone who actually spoke with God would be above temptation, but no!  When the choice was made, she opted for what felt good instead of God’s Word!  And that was the beginning…

            Throughout the years, God’s children have gone in cycles of following Him and in choosing the world.  As we look at these cycles, it reminds us of Christianity and the world today.  The men in the lives of the women we study are sometimes good, sometimes bad, and often times both.  What stands out is that these women aren’t always the unimportant figures that we’ve been led to believe.  Over and over, the Bible shows that they are very instrumental in the actions, both good and bad, of their husbands, their children, and even their communities.  At times, they are a driving force in the history of the Bible, even to the point of taking on some form of leadership themselves. 

            That fact is very evident in the study we start on October 7 when we begin the “Challenge of Esther.”  As our world seems to be adding another cycle of disbelief and disobedience, what is our role?  Are we using our influence, gifts, and talents in ways that glorify God?  Are we willin to stand against the culture to protect our homes and families?  How important to God’s work have we been as women?  Maybe a better question is…how important can we be?

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Blessings,

Dona

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“…And who knows whether you have not come to the

kingdom for such a time as this?”

Esther 4:14