March 2019 Theme: The Promises of God Me? Forgive? Suggestions and Helps

Transcription

1 March 2019 Theme: The Promises of God Me? Forgive? Summary: We all struggle with forgiveness. We ve been wronged, or think we have. We see inequities in life and wonder why or when it will end. Scripture reminds us we ve been forgiven and therefore, we need to forgive. This study will review four situations in Jesus ministry that will help us be more like Him. Scripture: John 8:2-11; Luke 7:36-50; Luke 5:17-26; Matthew 18:21-35 Song: Forgiveness by Matthew West (YouTube); Amazing Grace REJOICE p.230; Who Am I by Casting Crowns (YouTube); At the Cross (Love Ran Red) by Chris Tomlin (YouTube); Jesus Paid It All REJOICE p. 241; He Giveth More Grace REJOICE p Suggestions and Helps Resources: Poster is available from Helps. Invitations: Hand out Hershey bars with a piece of paper wrapped around the middle on which you ve printed Forgive... then forgive s more and the date and time of your meeting. Print Chews to forgive on colored 4x6 heavy card stock. Add the date and time of the meeting, and attach two or three wrapped starburst candies with double stick tape. Ice Breakers: Give each woman a piece of paper with the first half of these quotes listed on the left side and the second half of the quotes listed (in a mixed up order) on the right side of the page. Ask each one to match the quotes. Depending on the number attending, you might give each woman one half of a quote and ask them to find the person who completes her quote. Then, read the quotes to introduce the lesson topic. Quotes: (all are anonymous) If you can t forgive and forget, / pick one. The best way to get even / is to forgive. To forgive is to set the prisoner free / and then discover the prisoner was you. A grudge is / a heavy thing to carry. Not forgiving is like drinking rat poison / and expecting the rat to die. Give each woman a balloon, have her write one word on it that represents some way she has been wronged in the past. Have the women blow up the balloon, but do not tie it. While holding their balloons, use the time to make announcements, introduce the night s program, etc. After a while, ask the women if it s getting hard to hold onto their hurt. Point out that it s difficult, annoying, distracting, etc. to hold onto that grudge and perhaps they would be better off to just let it go. After the women have released their balloons, begin your program. Study: The following are good resources for an extra study on forgiveness. How to Forgive When You Don t Feel Like It June Hunt What s So Amazing About Grace Philip Yancy Forgiveness June Hunt (Hope for the Heart Series) Forgiven Terri Roberts

2 Prayer: Offer a prayer station for women to visit alone. Use a large sheet pan and cover the bottom with sand or sugar. Each woman can write the name of a person they need to forgive, or a word representing hurt they have suffered in the sand with their finger. After prayer, they can erase the word until it s unrecognizable representing forgiveness. Missions Prayer Have each woman choose a missionary wife to pray for over the next month. Concentrate your prayers on her relationships: with her family, her teammates, and the friends she makes on her field of service. Service 1. Gather and donate toiletries, makeup, and new underwear for a local women s shelter. 2. Adopt a local elementary school classroom. Ask the teacher what supplies the children run low on and help keep them supplied. Refreshments Make S Mores. For each one, you ll need 2 squares of a graham cracker, Hershey bar broken to fit the graham, and one large marshmallow. Microwave on high until the marshmallow melts, top with another graham cracker. Extras *Give each woman a recipe card to write out this recipe for forgiveness, or have the card prepared ahead of time to give out as a reminder of the lesson. Recipe for Forgiveness (adapted from go.tonyevans.org) Ingredients: 1 cup kindness 4 tsp courage 3 cups compassion 1 tbsp understanding 1 forgetful heart Pinch of hope Directions: 1. Remember God has forgiven you. 2. Mix all ingredients and keep in mind that love keeps no record of wrongs. 3. Pray for the person who has wronged you. Serves one hurt heart. Double the ingredients if necessary. *Cut several different patterns of scrapbook paper to 4 x 4, and the same number of coordinating solid colors at 3 ½ x 3 ½. Print the reminder: I will... Remember what Jesus did for me. Forgive others. Forgive myself. Choose the action, trusting that my heart will follow.

3 on either white, beige, or transparent vellum paper and cut to 2 x 2. Let the women choose their favorite colors and assemble, using double stick tape to layer the papers. Women can keep these in their Bibles or on their fridge as a reminder to forgive. FORGIVE OTHERS Example

4 April 2019 Theme: The Promises of God Redeeming Love Summary: This minor prophet book uses the story of Hosea and Gomer s marriage as a metaphor to illustrate the relationship between God and the Israelites. Their story shows God s endless love for His chosen people and their continual choices to commit spiritual adultery. This study will cover specifically the promise found in God s redeeming love. It will also challenge you to look at your life and see if you, like Gomer and the Israelites, are falling away from God. Scripture: Hosea 11:3-4; 8-9 Songs: The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power REJOICE p. 179; Jesus Paid It All REJOICE p.241; Great Is Thy Faithfulness REJOICE p. 8; Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing REJOICE p. 11; I am Redeemed by Big Daddy Weave (YouTube); Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher (YouTube); Reckless Love by Cory Asbury (YouTube); Worn by Tenth Avenue North (YouTube); This Is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham (YouTube); Forever Reign by Hillsong (YouTube). Suggestions and Helps Promotional Helps Resources: Poster & invitation are available from helps. Redemption is one of the most beautiful gifts God offers humanity. Cover your bulletin board with a variety of sins and transgressions. Then in large red writing cover the sins with one simple word REDEEMED. If you are aware of a woman within your church or community who has a powerful testimony, invite her to share with your group. Sometimes hearing a real-life story, or similar story allows women the chance to connect to Scripture more. Presentation Ideas Ice Breaker: Open the meeting with a game of Would You Rather. If possible, keep your questions to activities and time spent. For example: Would you rather read a book or watch a movie? Would you rather go shopping or see a play? This can not only be a fun way to get to know the women in your group, but it can also help you segue into one of the main themes in today s lessons; the Israelites constantly choosing other things over God. Missions This will require some work ahead of time. Reach out to one or two missionaries and ask if they have real life examples of God s Redeeming Love in the lives of people they are serving. This again will allow for a connection to Scripture but also to the work of missionaries supported. This is collection month for WMO. Don t forget to use your Pre-Easter week of prayer information to learn more about ways to pray for international missionaries. Go to for upcoming dates, videos, and downloads. Service A lot of cities and townships probably have some sort of women s shelter you could reach out to. Often women in these shelters are there because of poor decisions they ve made similar to Gomer. Reach out to

5 them and see if your group can make donations or maybe they could use some physical help serving the women s needs. Consider supporting an organization fighting against human trafficking. Study This month do an in-depth study on the book of Hosea. Bible study books and commentaries are available online or in bookstores. Prayer Take this month to pray for the young girls in your life and family. These girls are facing temptations we couldn t even begin to imagine. Pray they develop a strong love for God with an un-quenching desire to grow closer to Him. Refreshments With spring upon us, consider making sugar cookies in the shapes of flowers. Bring in a variety of icing colors and sprinkles for decorating. Extras Christian author Francine Rivers wrote an incredible book entitled Redeeming Love, which retells the biblical love story of Gomer and Hosea.

6 May 2019 Theme: The Promises of God Higher Thoughts Summary: Our thoughts are not His thoughts and our ways are not His ways. Why? Because, in every circumstance, His thoughts and ways are much more. Scripture: Isaiah 55:8 & 9 Song: God Will Take Care of You REJOICE p.82; All Your Anxiety REJOICE p. 556; Just When I Need Him Most REJOICE p. 563; Leave It There REJOICE p. 594; Something Beautiful REJOICE p. 326; Since Jesus Came In REJOICE p. 211; Cast My Cares by Tim Timmons (YouTube). Suggestions and Helps Resources: Poster and invitation are available from (under Treasure/Program Helps). Promotion: Your church s bulletin and/or announcement time could include a Casting Call. The director of a new TV show Higher Thoughts is putting out a casting call for all women who want to cast their cares on Jesus to find day-to-day help from the WAC program. Include the date, location, and time of the meeting. Ice breaker: Arrange for women from your group to relate blessings from a time when they were involved in the WNAC essay and declamation contests for the youth or enjoyed the WNAC and FWB League sponsored teen banquet and youth rally at the National Convention. If no one participated in these, ask young people from your church to speak regarding CTS Music and Arts Festivals, contests, banquets and rallies in more recent times. These and the current Vertical Three Conference, and Bible and art expos frequently help lead young people in following God s voice and making and enjoying lasting memories and friends. Presentation: Consider presenting this program as a travel through the Milky Way Galaxy. As the women enter, have the room lit only by a projection of the Milky Way Galaxy on the ceiling/walls. Or, make enlarged copies from science books and line the walls or at least one wall with God s special creation: our earth s home. Just the perspective of the Creator of the Milky Way Galaxy being interested in our individual thoughts should awe us as we approach His throne and let Him search our hearts. The program includes thought provoking questions for personal contemplation and group reaction. Encourage participation by the women present. Be prepared to answer briefly if there is no response from the group. Intersperse the suggested songs spontaneously through the lesson where the topic is appropriate. Have the presentation flow. Close with a time of reflection. Testimony: Obsessive rumination. We all have issues with that from time to time, don t we? Have a few women share the things that cause them to keep mulling over an idea, thought, or worry. Some will be humorous. Some may be very serious. Be careful to lead the group to respond appropriately. A gentle prayer for our ruminations will be a good way to close testimony time. Breakout Groups: After the presentation, take time in small groups to think about our responsibilities as recipients of God s thoughts. Use the poem This Heart (see below) as a meditation to close the breakout

7 groups. Study: Encourage individual Bible studies on the life of Joseph from Genesis chapters Include the concluding chapter in Joseph s heritage in Exodus 13. Missions E-Team and Truth and Peace participants need prayer and financial support. When summer is ended, encourage your church to invite a young person to give a blessing report on what the Lord did during their mission time for Him. In all the excitement of sending youth, don t forget your commitments and new giving to career missionaries who serve 365 days a year. Keep their prayer and financial needs before your congregation by subscribing via to the free weekly IM Hotline prayer requests ( Keep track of missionaries needs through the IM, Inc website. Click on the tab Pray for various ways to get prayer requests. Click on the Go tab for E-Team and college mission programs. Also, go to FWBNAM ( to check North American Ministries programs and ways to give and pray. Service Who has plenty of time to think and think and think? Someone in extended care. Encourage extended care residents to turn part of their thinking time into prayer time. Leave a copy of your church prayer list (remembering privacy concerns) when you go visit extended care residents. Concern for others can help alleviate depressed spirits. Leave missionary cards as a colorful reminder to pray for these servants of the Lord. Make seasonal cards with a prayer promise verse and a prayer request. Harvest the power of senior minds to reach God s throne in prayer. Prayer After we have prayed and directed our thoughts and heartbeat to Christ, sometimes we need to turn to someone in human clothes for encouragement. Think of those who don t have access to that special someone of their own like a mom, dad, sibling, Christian friend, or wise counselor. Pray for those who need a trustworthy confidant. Missionaries, pastors wives, denominational leaders, widowed, single, quiet women all will benefit from prayer asking God to be the friend and counselor they need. Can you be the answer to someone s prayer? Refreshments: Milky Way and Mars bars are a must for refreshments after this program. Try this daring recipe. Ingredients: MAGIC THROUGH THE MILKYWAY 1 German chocolate cake mix 2/3 cup evaporated milk 2 Milky Way bars 14 oz. package caramels ¾ cup melted margarine ¼ cup evaporated milk Chop Milky Way bars into small pieces. You may want to freeze the bars slightly to make this an easy task. Mix cake mix, chopped bars, margarine, and 2/3 cup evaporated milk. Spread half of this mixture in a well-greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes. Meanwhile unwrap caramels. Mix with ¼ cup evaporated milk in microwave safe container. Microwave 2 minutes on high. Stir mixture. Microwave one additional minute. Caramels should be melted and smooth. Pour caramel mixture over baked cake. Evenly drop rest of cake

8 batter on top of caramel mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 more minutes. Cool and then refrigerate 3 hours prior to cutting into bar shapes. Extra: Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23 THIS HEART This heart pulsates the love of Christ with every beat kept pure it can be the softest place on earth a place where one feels secure This heart abides a stronger faith and its burdens turn to blessings from the merciful goodness of God His boundless ways of expressing This heart that is thankful on the most difficult days of brokenness and trials it cries out in joyful praise This heart is divinely kindled warmed by the transcendent Light illuminating rays of His glory even in the darkest of night This heart mourns in grief He hears you in your silence your cries echo in His chambers take comfort in His presence

9 This heart diligently kept held in the hands of His protection safeguarded by his mercy bound by His undying affection This heart pulsates the love of Christ with every beat kept pure it can be the softest place on earth a place where one feels secure Mary Altgilbers