This podcast covers the Introduction to Everyday Women, Ever-Faithful God Bible Study and The Walk from Fear to Faith Bible Study by Melanie Newton.
Old Testament Women Walk from Fear to Faith
Many Christians today have very little knowledge of the Old Testament. That might your experience. Do you look at the front half of your Bible and think, “What’s written in it happened so long ago? What do those women have in common with me? They are just names on a page. They didn’t live in my world.” Is that how you feel?
- Studying Old Testament women is like reading biographies or doing genealogy work on your family tree. It makes that person come alive for you. It helps you to feel a connection to that great-great grandmother when you learn a little bit about her life.
- For some of the Old Testament women we’ll be studying together, their names will be familiar to you—such as Sarah, Miriam, and Rahab. Others are strangers to you.
Old Testament women were everyday women with fears like ours.
- These Old Testament women were everyday women, just like you and I are, with many of the same experiences and challenges that we have. They cooked meals, did laundry, and raised children. They had responsibilities inside and outside of their homes. Some even had home businesses. They experienced hormone fluctuations and menopause. They laughed with their kids, differed with their mates, and cried when a loved one died. They wrote songs and played musical instruments. They all found ways to use their 20,000 words per day!
- At one time, they were 20-somethings, then 40-somethings, then 60-somethings and more. They wore beads, earrings, and bracelets. Their hair needed to be combed and fixed, and it turned grey as they aged. No doubt, some of them, if not all, had something on their bodies that sagged.
- These Old Testament women also experienced fear at various times in their lives just like we do. They had to face invading enemies, sick husbands and children, and empty pantries. They faced creditors and surprise houseguests. They even had “bad” days when things didn’t go right, sometimes due to their own choices.
- Their stories are just snippets of their biographies and have been preserved for us to get to know them. And through their stories, we get to know their God who is also our God.
The Old Testament God is the same ever-faithful God.
- As we study their lives, we’ll see an EVER-FAITHFUL GOD in action. He’s our faithful God whose character never changes.
- He’s as faithful now in our everyday circumstances of life as He was years ago to those women. We can feel confidence in His presence and active involvement, even when we can’t see it. And, knowing this, we can trust in Him whenever we are afraid.
We can trust God with our fears.
- Fear is an ever-present emotion with us. Real fears and imagined fears. Is it realistic to think we can live without fear? I don’t think so.
- Fear is a normal human emotion designed by God to alert us to danger so that we will take action against it. Yet, sudden fear can cause us to be terrified. God knows this about us.
- The psalmist says in Psalm 56:3-4,
“When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid.”
- When we are afraid, God wants us to trust Him and not give way to fear. Learning to do so is our walk from fear to faith.
Sharing your story of walking with your ever-faithful God from fear to faith.
- Each of those Old Testament women had a story, and that story has been shared over and over and over to millions of eager listeners. You might be surprised how many times the scriptures refer to them actually telling their story in one form or another. You’re going to get to know it as you get to know them. It’s a connection with real women, everyday women.
- Each one of you has a story. There will be opportunity throughout the study for you to recall parts of your story, write about it, and share it with others. That will give you more reason to praise your ever-faithful God as you see and hear how He has been faithful to each of you through the years.
It’s going to be a great journey. And, I’m so glad to be walking beside you!
Buy Everyday Women, Ever-Faithful God Bible Study and The Walk from Fear to Faith Bible Study at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.