The Bible NETWork ~ Impacting the World for Christ one post at a time!

Ahhhh... I feel calm already... well, that may be an exaggeration, but the Word is speaking to my heart. I have had a rough week... quick overview... friends father died suddenly, she found him...friends son very, very sick in hospital doctors do not know what is wrong (he is now recovering, but they still have no clue what was wrong with him), our son was in a really bad accident on a bus with his Cross Country team...a 20 y/o boy stole a car and ran from the police and he crashed his car into their bus at 70 mph (our son is getting batter, but it has been rough)... Two other kids at home needing to be tended to....a husband...housework....and I am working again. All adjustments... all in the Lords hands... BUT all are very taxing... and oh yeah...I hurt my back and have a fever!

So.... GENTLENESS...
Q1: Let not your adornement be MERELY... meaning only, or specified and nothing more, altogether entirely alone... By virtue of this word merely it clearly does not mean we are not to wear things like this, we can wear it, but IT cannot be all.

Q2...hidden person of the heart, imperishable quality of a gentle spirit ... not insistant on ones own rights. Gentle= kindly, amiable, NOT rough, severe, or violent...

Q3... I like these verses about gentleness, but I have to say that my MOST favorite is found in Colossians. I absolutely adore Col3 The whole chapter. It speaks to my heart every time I read it..I get new insights and it is fresh and enlivening. In vs 12 it says " and so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, GENTLENESS, and patience...
It is so amazing and wonderfully put that my spirit sings at the reading of these words

Q4...For me to have a more gentle spirit I need to be in the word. I need to live life not reactionally.
My husband sent me some notes he took while studying stress and it said that stress is the gap between demands placed on us and............... our ability to satify those demands. The more space between them and the more stress you have. Many times I stress over things that are OUT OF MY HANDS!! Or I stress over things that I have put on myself and they are not the things that God would have me to do. I cannot do the thing that needs to be done, only God can. If I am stressed I quite often do not have a gentle spirit. Shortening this gap and quieting myself before the Lord go hand in hand.....
Being gentle requires I know who I am in Christ... know that He is in control... and rest in His loving arms. It requires me to know what He wants before I react, respond, or move forward before satisfying the demands on my life.

Jesus gave a gentle answer... even when He rebuked He did it in a firm, loving, for your own good, loving way.

I desire to be more like Jesus every day. I desire others to be able to see this in me and wonder, and when they ask, I desire to have the courage to speak the words of truth and love so others can have this beautiful gift of salvation...

Jane... May you be blessed today. May you walk with the Lord anew and fresh...
Pam

My spirit is much quieter today... praise the Lord. He has given me a wonderful husband who has taken care of me, the house, and the kids... God has done the rest... My back still hurts, I am still sick, and the trials of life still surround me, but Gods word has spoken to me.

Q6... for a while my husband had been out of the word, as Peter describes. It was a trying time for me, hard to watch him go through it. I prayed a lot that God would draw him close. He did too... but by the time He did, I was ready to quit...and so submission became hard for me. I was mad because it had taken so long. I did not want to pray with my husband...I had spent so long praying for him that the change was difficult.

Q7 Peter tells wives to have chaste, respectful behavior... on the outside I may have exhibited this, but on the inside I was not...and God knew. Boy did He get a hold of my heart. We are to have a gentle quiet spirit which is precious in the sight of God...I can fool my hubby...I cannot fool God.... there in lies the difference.

Q8 The principle of being gentle applies with every relationship because people often have dissagreements... different points of view... differences of opinion. When we do have these things between us, gentleness will keep things from getting out of hand and allow Gods purpose to shine through. We are to love one another the way that God loves us... even when we do not agree with them. The dissagreement may still be there, but the hate and discontent will not if we are chaste and respectful... agree to disagree kind of thing....

Q9 Body language and faces tell a whole lot more than words... a tear in the eye of a concerned friend...a sneer on the lips of an uneasy conversation... a glow in the eye of a loved one...

Q10 I am sure that I could be doing a better job at being a gentle quiet spirit. I know I have a tendancy to be quick to speak and judge... I can become disgruntled easily... I am so very glad to have the word of God in my life... available in me... this is my hope.... this is my nourishment.

I thank the Lord for His lovingkindness. For His examples of a gentle spirit. For His drawing me nearer to Him... continue to mold me and make me what you would... Be on my heart and in my mind as I go about life... be with my sister in Christ Jane...her willingness to come along side me and study your word... bless her...

Welcome back and it's good to know you are trusting in Christ to get you through these hardships. You were really hit hard! But God is able to see you through whatever comes your way. AND.....you grow as a result!

Q1. Based on 1 Pet. 3:1-7, should women not wear gold rings, etc? I agree with you Pam that this cannot be all we show. The important thing is to show the ‘evidence' of Christ dwelling in us through His Holy Spirit...that, being OUR gentle and quiet spirit, and not obscuring Him. The more we sparkle (flashy, seductive clothing, baubles and bangles) and draw attention to ourselves, the less we show our inner beauty which is Christ. Christ is what the world needs to see. I'm smiling right now because when I first became a Christian, I continued to dress like I was in the world; sometimes power suits, or sensual dress, or just flashy. My dress was an extension of who I (thought I) was. You should see me now...hehe...jeans, t-shirts or nice long blouses to hide my ‘few' pounds I've gained over the years. Now I just hope to God people see Jesus rather than me.

Just some thoughts ..I believe every Christian is given a gentle and quiet spirit at regeneration, we just don't always act like it. Like letting our emotions control us at times doesn't seem like we have a gentle spirit, but that's our emotions taking the forefront.

Q3.Thoughts and insights about gentleness on the following verses:

Matthew 5:5
5 "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

A gentle spirit is what sets us apart from the unbeliever.

I don't believe a Christian can NOT have a gentle spirit..that's not to say we can't be emotionally out of whack at times, but our spirit, or new nature, does not change based on our emotions.

Matthew 11:29
29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.

Again, Jesus is the One with the gentle spirit and we are in Him and He is in us. When Jesus came upon the money changers in the temple, He expressed righteous anger at them and overturned their tables, driving them out with a whip. That wouldn't have appeared peaceful or gentle, but yet Jesus is gentle and humble.

Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

The fruit of the Spirit is something the Holy Spirit produces in us, not something we produce on our own. Every time I look at our apricot tree in the back yard and see these little apricots hanging from the branch, I imagine them grunting real hard, trying to grow bigger and riper. No, it's the tree that produces the life and nourishment in the little apricots that makes them grow. All they have to do is hang from the branch. That's us.

Q4. Is a gentle spirit something we can develop? I don't think so. Our gentle spirit opposed to the unbeliever's rebellious spirit. I believe our gentle spirit is inherent now. Our emotions, on the other hand, may not reflect gentleness or tranquility at times, but those can be developed or changed.

Diamonds. Philippians 4:5 says, "Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near." I don't think this is referring only to kind acts or mild temper, but rather let the evidence of your spirit (Christ) be seen. What about speaking truth in love? That's not always taken as a gentle response, yet it comes from a gentle spirit.

Q5. It seems that when we express emotions like extreme joy, righteous anger at things, being desperately sad over circumstances, we're not showing a gentle and tranquil spirit. Do we need help to correct these things? Jesus expressed these very things in His humanity. We already have a gentle spirit, it's the emotions that come to the forefront that may appear fierce or gentle. Those are the things that can be developed.

In summary, when we don't appear to have a gentle spirit, isn't it the emotions that we're dealing with?

Hi there... yes the Lord has seen me through and taught me along the way....but He does that all the time, even when I am not stessed by trials! The trials just seem to show me how much more I can grow and in what areas.

From lesson 1 you posed this question... "When we don't appear to have a gentle spirit, isn't it the emotions that we are dealing with?"

Emotions ~ vs ~ Spirit This is a tough one to pinpoint exactly the difference between the two.
The spirit is defined as the animating force within...a fundamental emotional and activating principle which determines a persons character. The emotional state changes due to outside circumstances such as pleasure or dejection. The Latin word for spirit is breath.
To look up the definition of Emotion is more complicated... there is no clear way to describe it. It is what makes each persons response different to the same situation... Aristotle was the first to try to explain emotion and he said " it is an experienceing and evaluating stimuli that weighs experiences, taking into account the potential for gain or pleasure."

I think you question is valid and I am enjoying looking into it... though I have no real answer to it. Somehow the two are interlinked, but I do not want to get too sidetracked by it.

DAY 3

Q11 I am a helpmate...NO, I do not stand by and let him make all the decisions.. I am a helpmate, a helpful partner. Each of us participate in the relationship...if we come to a stalemate on a decision, my husband has the final say...but not until we have discussed it and I have had my opinion heard.

Q12...We are on...with each other and with God. He has bound me to Himself and He has bound Himself to my husband, and now He is binding us all together... making all this beautiful in His time.

Q13 It is God who causes things to grow, ripen, and nourish. Only He can create such beauty... it was nothing that Adam or Eve did... it was God.

Q14... there are clearly plenty of reasons NOT to submit to certain atrocities..of which I do not think I need to tell of... I thank the Lord that I have not had to deal with them personally.

<> in the Word... the midwives feared God and did not do as the king asked. It took a lot of courage...but when God impresses on your heart like that.... it is made easier to do the right thing.

Q15... My attitude towards my husband is mostly good... I am human and we have differences of opinions about "how" to do things. Of course, we do not always see eye to eye on the money, or the kids... but we are individuals in Christ, working out together what He would have us to do...and I would say we are doing a pretty good job after 20 years of marriage.
You can pray for our budget... this is one area that we need to fix real quick... I did not work this summer and gas prices and groceries went way up... and my husbands raise was 3% ( inflation is 4%) so we are behind the 8 ball and need to get things into shape. This can be a major area of discontent and we have to find a way to sit down and figure some stuff out... not fun, but nessessary. You could pray for that all that to go smoothly .

Much love in Him...Pam

Day 2

Q6-8. I wasn't sure if the husbands in 3:1 were unbelievers or maybe they were believers, but not living too righteously? At any rate, I got out of it that it's good for the wives to be submissive, not quarreling or annoying, in other words don't give the husband any excuse to sin on our account. We don't want to bring shame to the name of Christ.

Your comment about differing opinions yet maintaining a gentle quality will keep things from getting out of hand. So true! A soft answer turns away wrath. Also, speak the truth in love.

I think when we conduct our lives in a Christ-honoring manner, whether we are wives, moms or single, we can influence and encourage other women in a very positive way.

10. Sharing Question. How are you doing in this area? Are you spending more time adorning your spirit or your body?

OK, this question screams legalism! If she expects us to determine acceptable amounts of time adorning our spirit or body, then she must have an answer key somewhere that defines it all. How many hours/minutes constitutes too much time on the body, and how many hours/minutes indicate not enough time on the spirit? (This is a rhetorical question).

Hey Pam, I am praying about your finances. A couple of years ago I bought a paperback called "Living well on One Income in a Two Income World" by Cynthia Yates. It's a great book. She's a Christian and gives great advice for spending less without being 'cheap'. Also tips and strategies for buying food and other products, very creative ways of recycling old stuff, etc...It might be in your library.

Day 3

Q11-12. God made woman as a helper but that does not mean silently standing by while he makes decisions. I think wives need to give their input but the husband must take responsibility for the final decision. We have never had any problem when it comes to decisions as Mark is very responsible. An example about a year ago..Mark has a 1991 Mazda pickup truck he drives (4 cyl., gutless, no radio, and no air conditioning). We briefly discussed buying a newer p/u truck with a little more power, and air cond., but after he thought about it, he decided to keep the Mazda (all paid for) and wants to run it until it dies. That really impressed me. I see too many guys going into debt to get their big trucks and boats when they can't afford them!


Q14-15. An example of when a wife should not submit to her husband ---if he wanted to use the rent money to gamble with. Just over the past couple of years I've seen a lot of casinos pop up, and it doesn't matter what time of the day it is, the parking lots are always full! It's sad to think that some or many(?) might be gambling money that's needed elsewhere.

Dear Lord, I know you have everything under your sovereign control. You know our needs even before we know them. Thank you for providing for Pam's family whether it be food, clothing, money to pay bills...because you know what her needs are. Everything we receive comes from your hand and you are our help in time of need.

Abbigail was a woman of good understanding and a beautiful countenance.... I could possibly be jealous of her!! I know that the Lord used her in a mighty way and His plan for her life was perfect. Her story was important enough for the Bible....

Q16God used Abbigail to save her husbands life at the hands of a vengeful David. Nabal was to die anyway, but not at the hands of David, and the Lord kknew that and used Abbigail for His glorious purpose. She also saved the lives of all the men of Nabals servants ( I wonder if they ever knew that??)

Q17 Abbigail did not submit to Nabal in the sense that she gave away food and met with David without him knowing about it. She did however tell him of it after the fact. How she had avetred Davids plan of killing him and all his male servants. She also told Nabal that she sought to save his name, stature , and life by giving the supplies to David in the Lords name...Thus making David see the error of his ways in acting out of selfish vengence. Nabal was stunned at his own foolishness, and at the good judgement of his wife.

Q18..I must say I have no answer to this question...Abbigail was a smart woman who was used of God. Perhaps we are just to glean that she was an instument of God, just as we are? I wonder if she was keenly aware of who God was and was acting out of humility, or if she was just trying to avert a dissaster... which she knew was eminent because of what the servant had told her.... instinct or inspiration?? She did come clean with Nabal about her actions though...which must have been tough.

Q19...Peter emphasized Sarahs beauty in that she was a submissive wife and respected him by calling Abraham master.

<> The diamond.... was Sarah right??? she must have been...it made it into the Bible to teach us that God uses all things together for good to them that love the Lord... lots of things happen to us that are weird and just don't seem "right", but God is bigger than ALL of it and if we are trusting in Him and relying on His word, than He will have His way with whatever weird circumstance comes into our lives. Let's not forget that this is old testament stuff and they did not have a bible to go by for their lives... things worked differently then.

Lord God what a beautiful description of a woman... good understanding and beautiful countenance... I would love to be described that way. Make me into your image more and more each day. Help me to be the woman of God you desire me to be. I thank you that I am fearfully and wonderfully made in your likeness, give me a heart of compassion let me be slow to speak and quick to listen. Make my answers gentle. Thank you for speaking to my heart today... continue to walk and talk with me...
amen

SIDE NOTE....I don't think that question 10 in Day 2 was really about legalism...I think she was refering to how much time is spent worrying about outward appearances as opposed to the time spent with the Lord. I know many women who spend and hour in the morning in front of the mirror and then just read a quick "Daily Bread" as their nourishment from the Lord for the day. Again...not neccessarily a time thing....but a heart thing...
just my opinion

Thank you for the prayers over our finances. We are sure of Gods care in this area. We have not been the best stewards these last few months and have gotten off track, but I am certain that all will be just fine... we have been here before.... and God saw us through. I guess we have not mastered what I foolishly thought we had. I need to learn to be submissive so that my husband can be the rescuer, but I keep wanting to "help"... which doesn't really help... it only causes more confusion. I need to step back and let him work it out the way he thinks is right and keep my sticky messy hands out of it. So I guess you could pray for me that I would be able to do that....
Thanks....
Pam

I have to say that studying submission has not always helped me to have a quiet spirit... but I am beginning to see the connection between the two. Mostly in my submission to the Lord... which brings about submission in all other relationships in my life.

<> After reading different verses about submission, being submissive, and submitting to I began to see that if I am wholeheartedly in submission to the Lord...reading the Word, praying, and seeking Him out... that He will cause me to be in a right relationship with others. If I try to do it out of my own strength I will fail... and God will not recieve His glory. I am to be submissive because it is the will of God... He asks me to. Free will messes me up quite often and I have to be reminded, rebuked, and brought back around to the Lords ways (thank God He loves me that much that He does discipline me). As far as helping other women... I hope if anyone reads this they can relate to it somehow, but God is not currently putting in any situation...that I know of anyway...to do that.

Q20 what area is hardest for me? It differs, but right now the Lord is working on me in the area of being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. If I were to listen better, I could respond better. I tend to think ahead of people when they speak, rushing forward and making my response ready... not really listening to what they are saying. I think I got it, when I really don't. I am a Martha type and have to be reminded to slow down, sit with the Lord ( and others ) and LISTEN... then I will hear. Then I will be able to be taught and used of God.

Q21 Specific verses tht have been helping me?

Phil. 2:14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing....

Eph.4:32 Be kind and compassionate to each other, forgiving each other, just as the Lord God forgave you.

James1:19 Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger...

Col. 3:17 Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it ALL in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Q22...Specific action this week....I have put these verses on a piece of bright orange construction paper ( I did this for Sunday school, but liked it so much for myself that I kept it) and I hung it up in my locker at work. Now when I am tempted to say something I shouldn't, or if someone is annoying me and I have the wrong attitude towards them, or if I am just stressed... I go to my locker and re-read the scripture and refocus myself. This takes me away from the temptation and gives me Gods perspective... which allows me to be in a right relationship with Him, but also a right relationship with others. I also have copied them for at home and will hang them in the kitchen for me, and my family.

Lord God... thank you for your Word and for the Holy Spirit speaking to my heart. May I become more like you every day. Word in me and through me as You would see fit....Be with my friend Jane as she does this study. Speak to her heart. Walk with her and talk with her. Amen.

I am running behind as I've embarked on a new womens bible study as well as a 10 week class at a Baptist seminary. An opportunity arose so I had to act.

Will get my posting in sometime during the next few days.....

love to you Pam and thank you for your prayers.

You have my prayers... may the Lord be your source of strength as you embark on this new course... tell me about what you are doing if you feel led to.
Much love in Him...
Pam

Hey, on the 'legalism' thing, I'm just throwing out some thoughts about some of the questions the author has asked re: measuring our behavior and comparing ourselves to others. You may or may not agree.

When you're asked to measure your behavior it can lead to devastating results. I have had that happen in some churches I've attended. where is the focus supposed to be? On your sin, your failures. If you're to measure how you're doing, what's the benchmark? Absolute perfection? We all fall short. How do we know if what we are doing is too much or not enough?

If our focus is on sin, it either leads to self righteousness or despair. For example, if you haven't committed as many or as gross sins as the next guy it could lead to boasting. Or, comparing yourself with the Pastor's wife who teaches Sunday school plus 3 Bible studies a week, sings in the choir, volunteers at the food bank, etc. That might make you feel despair, self condemnation, or like a worthless worm.

It will also put you on a performance treadmill trying to ‘do' for the Lord, that might result in neglecting your family, friends, yourself, and you end up exhausted and in the slough of despond. How many minutes or hours should I spend reading my Bible and praying? Should I attend the Sunday morning and Sunday evening services? How about Wednesday service? How many programs should I join? You get the idea.

How many people burn out because of this? Is this what God wants from us?

It's not that any of these is wrong in themselves, but they can be done out of wrong motives (quantity rather than quality). It can become ‘duty' and ‘mechanical', and how pleasing is that to God?.

We don't want to miss our intimate relationship with Jesus. How can we enjoy Him when we are so focused on our sin?!!


God has separated us from our sin as far as the East is from the West, and He doesn't hold it against us or remember it any more. He has already dealt with our sin. He will never use it against us. He would rather have us focus on how much He loves us (and we can't even imagine how much!) in Ephesians 3:17ff. He is already pleased with us because we are His!

If I were to rephrase the question, instead of asking "are you spending more time adorning your spirit than your body?", I would ask, "Are you living out your life in thankfulness and admiration for Jesus Christ who bought you with a price? Are you focusing on Him who chose you from eternity because He loved you, and not because of anything you did? That way it's not forcing you to measure (against what??) but putting the focus on Jesus Christ where it belongs. The 'doing' will be a natural by-product of your focus on Christ rather than your sin. Trying to live our life for Christ then becomes trusting Christ to live His life through us.

Day 4

Q1617. Benefits from Abigails actions: Nabal was initially spared from harm. The men were fed. David acknowledged Abigail was sent by the Lord to meet him. Abigail kept David from bloodshed; she was also spared from harm. David married Abigail.

Abigail didn't cause a big fuss with Nabal but went about her business doing what she felt was right, and then told Nabal.

Q19. I think Peter is saying that we should always do what is right without fearing retribution. There should be no fear in making decisions that would honor God and our husbands.

I agree with the author that it's better to share our ideas/input in a respectful manner with our husbands rather than laying down the law so to speak. No one wins then.

Day 5

Q21. Well, this question is just a little confusing, as I see my spirit (and I may not be defining it right) as simply the means by which I communicate with God. Not something that can be developed or that goes from gentle and quiet to loud and boisterous, angry or sad. It's my new nature alive to God, and separate from my emotions. Anyway, when I am tempted to react 'in the flesh', I try to pray first that Jesus would give me my words or actions. It is so easy to have that knee jerk reaction! Practice patience, and after a few moments, I am able to gain composure and think in a more ‘biblical' or God-honoring manner. I wish it were easy to do and just came naturally.

Q22. One of the things I would like to be able to do is to trust Jesus in all of my circumstances, and not worry or fret. Get in the habit of casting all my anxiety on Him instead of ‘taking them back' from time to time to worry over.

Hi Pam! It's so nice to be able to 'slide' a bit! My schedule is getting busy but it's only temporary. I started a new women's Bible study on Judges/Ruth; and the class I'm taking just came up as a result of going to my new church. The elder there is teaching it at the local seminary and I only had to pay half price, being from his church! I just couldn't let that one go. It's a Biblical Counseling course. It will involve a lot of work but I think it will be good and I've always had an interest in encouraging women/girls in the Lord. I appreciate your prayers for endurance, completed assignments, wisdom. I am praying for you as well and hope things have calmed down a bit for you!!

So, if I am a little 'tardy' on my postings, you will know why!!

Lord, thank you for Pam as she is such a delight and whose spirit is truly Beautiful!