Day One:
Read this blog post by C.J. Mahaney on Self-sufficiency.
"But the very act of pausing in a busy day to pray is an act of weakening pride in my life, acknowledging that I am a dependent creature. I am not self-sufficient." ~C.J. Mahaney
How is growing in the frequency of prayer an act of humility?
How have you shown self-sufficiency today? This week? Over your lifetime?
What does it mean that God's Word is sufficient for us?
Day two:
Read this passage in 1 Peter. Reread it twice. This passage of Scripture starts out as an exhortation to elders of the church. It is very instructive to us for our own spiritual growth. Underline every reference to humility you find here.
Ask yourself questions about this passage. Make observations by writing your own questions to the author:
Who? What? When, Where, How and Why?
Post three of your questions and answers in the comment section of this blog.
Day Three:
Verse five of 1Peter 5 is directly addressing young Christians. Is there a command given? Is there a challenge? Is there a reward? Is there a warning? Memorize this verse. Put into practice the humble act of persistent prayer today, for God to reveal areas of your life that you need to honor more fully from verse more.
Day Four:
Read this passage from Eph. 4. Reread it twice. We serve one God and we are to be united under that God. What part does humility play in our unity? How does maintaining a practice of constant prayer help with unity? Pray for someone in the body of Christ that you find it very difficult to be around. Pray for your own humility in relation to them.
Day Five:
Pray for one hour today. You may follow the guideline below if it helps to keep you focused and directed. The model says to start at 6 a.m. but you can start and end at any time that works for you.
Pray for an hour:
6:00-6:05:
Praise the Lord for His attributes (list them)
praise Him for his good works in your life (list them)
praise Him for answered prayers (list them)
6:05-6:10:
Thank Him for gifts, physical and spiritual (be specific)
Thank Him for people in your life (specific people by name)
Thank Him for your church family (as a whole, by the ministries you are involved in, then by name)
6:10-6:15:
Confess sin, be specific, repent of it, denounce it. Promise to not do it again, ask for help and conviction ahead of time.
6:15-6:20:
Ask the Lord to help you put on new habits of obedience
be specific
6:20-6:25:
Ask for Him to develop your character in specific areas
be specific ie: humility, patience, flexibility w/ others, teachability, diligence, love, kindness, gentleness etc.
6:25-6:35: (ten minutes)
Pray for other believers: specific requests (prayer sheet or make your own list for every day)
Pray for spiritual growth for your friends (by name and area of growth)
pray for repentance for your enemies ask God to give you love for them
(if you have no enemies, pray for those in your life who are hard to love)
6:35-6:40: Pray through a psalm or two (discover God's ways)
6:40-6:45: Pray through a chapter in proverbs or two: ask for wisdom to see where you need to grow.
6:45-6:50:
Pray for the church to have unity around the world. (unity through obedience to His word and love)
pray for RBC to continue to grow in grace and truth and numbers of new believers
Pray for women to love their roles and men to love their roles, children to honor their parents: elderly to stay strong in the spiritual battle. Pray for new ways to give of your time and money.
6:50-6:55:
Pray for the lost in Racine
pray for specific missionaries
6:55-7:00:
Praise the Lord for who He is,
how He will answer your prayers
and ask Him to help you pray without ceasing today.
Thanks for writing these lessons Amy D, and Amy P! I am really excited about this one.
ReplyDeletehugs.
We're thankful that you are so faithful to do them.
ReplyDeleteQuestion #1: Why do we need to be humble?
ReplyDelete- First off, God commands it of us, if we chose to be prideful and self-sufficent then we are rejecting God and all that He promised us. It says in verse 5 that God gives grace to those who are humble. Yet, He opposes the proud. If you reject God, He will reject you.
Being humble shows that you are dependent on Him and acknowledging that fact that you can do nothing apart from His grace. God says in verse 7 to cast your cares upon Him because He cares for you. He loves you and wants to take on your burden, the same way Christ bore our burden of sin on the cross for us. He wants us to have a Spirit of joy and peace. The only way we can do that is by giving Him all of our concerns, struggles,and sins.
Question #2: When are we supposed to be alert? (vs. 8)
- All the time!! You don't know when Satan is going to attack you. He lies in wait like a lion hungry for his prey and the second you let your gaurd down he will jump on you. We need to constantly have a clear mind and continually speaking truth to ourselves so that we are ready to resist Satan and his lies. This means memorizing scripture and getting into your bible daily.
Question #3:When will we be glorified? (vs. 10)
- "After you have suffered awhile."
James 1:2-4 talks about finding joy in our sufferings knowing that through them we will be sanctified, our faith will grow stronger and patience produced in us.
1st Peter 1:6-7 tell of how the genuineness of our faith is tested by fire, our daily struggles and trails, and by it we "may be found to praise, honor, and glory and the revelatoin of Jesus Christ,"
When Christ has finished His work in us here on earth then He will establish and settle us with Him in glory.
Thank you so much Amy D and Amy P for putting these together for us! this one has been really convicting so far and God has shown me through this lesson just how self-sufficent I am and how much more I need to be dependent on Him.
anyways, hope this was what you are looking for.
~Hannah
Btw, this is carly, NOT spencer.
ReplyDeleteWho is commanded to humble themselves before God?
Both elders and younger believers. Young believers, however, have a specific command to clothe themselves with humility toward one another.
How can we clothe ourselves with humility?
Respecting elders/pastors, sitting with and talking with girls who are younger or you don't know very well (not just people you naturally get along with ), second guessing yourself and seriously praying before rebuking someone, not gossiping about other believers because we are quicker to see our own faults than others'.
Why should we humble ourselves before the mighty hand of God?
He will exalt us in due time. And He cares for us, so when we finally admit we don't have it all together, He is right there to take the burden from us.
you chicks rock, just like I said.
ReplyDeleteWho is called to be humble?? - In the passage Peter gives a specail command to young believers espeically, to clothe themselves with humility towards one another. But if you look back in the passage, before Peter gives the direct command, Peter calls the Elders to lead by example, so they are to be humble also.
ReplyDeleteWhy are we supposed to be humble?? - We are to be humble because God gives grace to those who are humble before him, He cares for us, and He also says that he will exalt us in due time.
How can we be clothed with humility?? - We can demonstrate humility by casting our cares Christ, being completely and totally dependent on Him in all things. Humility can also be shown in how we interact with those who are in a position of authority over us, elders, leaders, parents, etc. Humility should be a huge part in every area of the believer. We humble ourselves at the point of salvation when we realize our utter depravity and repent of our sin. When we humble ourselves before God first, it will be much easier to have a humble heart before other believers.
Hannah,
ReplyDeleteI was so encouraged by your understanding of Scripture here and your clear Gospel presentation as a reminder to me that I should be always dependent on the Spirit of God. You wrote, "The only way we can do that is by giving Him all of our concerns, struggles,and sins."
Thanks for this sis.
Spencer, I mean Carly:
ReplyDeleteThis encouraged and challenged me. Thanks.
"How can we clothe ourselves with humility?
Respecting elders/pastors, sitting with and talking with girls who are younger or you don't know very well (not just people you naturally get along with"
Katelyn,
ReplyDeleteThis kicked my rear. I need to grow in this. Thanks for bringing up.
"command to young believers especially, to clothe themselves with humility towards one another."