A Soul That Longs For More - Chapter 1

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Verse of the Week

I will give honor and thanks to the Lord, Who has told me what to do. Yes, even at night my mind teaches me. I have placed the Lord always in front of me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be moved. And so my heart is glad. My soul is full of joy. My body also will rest without fear.

Psalm 16:7-9 (New Life Version)

Phrase of the Week

Palms Up

#PalmsUp

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I was reminded of a message I heard a few years ago entitled, "Living Life Palms Up". The speaker said every morning he physically opens his hands palms up to God & prays something like this:

God, everything I have you have given me. Today if you choose to take something from my hand, I willingly give it to you.

The preacher was telling God, You can have full control of my life! You make the decisions, I will follow.

This challenging message spoke volumes to my life just as Chapter 1 of our book did. I see a similarity in the two, a humble action called Surrender.

We easily sing about it, but it's more than a good worship theme and it's certainly more than walking an isle in a moment of tearful emotion. More accurately, it is the daily, moment by moment, hearing the Spirit speak & responding back an affirmative Yes!

God I Surrender.

God I (Sigh)... I'll be honest, more than once my decision to surrender has been followed by a sigh. It's a resolve to put down my flesh, my desires, my agenda & take the NEXT STEP which is Obedience. Ouch.

That word makes surrender sound so much better. "Can't we just camp out on surrender's steps for a while?" HaHa!

God is all about stretching us, growing us, challenging & changing us. It's like a good parent who leads their child to do what's right. So we must let God know we love Him by willingly obeying.

What is the result?
Freedom, Joy, Satisfaction, Peace.
Do you agree?

I have experienced all of these and just the opposite of feelings when I did NOT obey!
We will not always understand what God asks of us, but that takes is back to daily living life palms up!

We each have a choice. Yes to yourself or yes to God?

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Week 2 Discussion  

Go to the Facebook group to join the group discussion.

1. What is one of the 3 things you DON'T need when you say yes to God? (Page 13 of the paperback book).
   
   
2. Tell some things that happen to a woman who says yes to God. (Page 14 of the paperback book).
   
   
3. How did the author describe the difference in Biblical & Radical obedience? (Page 18 of the paperback book).

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Author - Angelia Carpenter
Angelia has been married for 23 years to her best friend Thomas. They have two beautiful and unique daughters, Jenel (21) and Lexa (18).

Angelia has been blessed to serve Jesus in a variety of ministries most all of her life. She has enjoyed the honor of being the Arkansas District Women's Ministries Director for the past 7 years.

Three of her favorite things are: Chocolate, Chips and Salsa, and Peach Sweet Tea!

Introduction

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If you haven't already, please be sure to read the following posts!!

• Are You Ready to Say Yes?
• How Does Online Bible Study Work?
• Welcome!!

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Verse of the Week

The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?

Proverbs 20:24 (NLT)

Phrase of the Week

I am Ready!! 

#IAmReady

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Welcome to Week 1 of What Happens When Women Say Yes to God!! I am beyond excited that this day is finally here and I am even more excited that each of you ladies are here with us!!

Many things come to mind as I skim through this book, but there is one word that stands out to me... trust!

For a while now, one of my favorite verses of scripture has been Proverbs 3:5-6.

"Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In ALL your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight."

What a hopeful message these verses bring... along with a tough task.

TRUST!!! That sure is a big word!! 100% trusting God, no holding back, no doubting... I gotta be honest. That is sometimes tough for me. Not because God is untrustworthy. He isn't!! He is completely trustworthy and has proven His power, love, and care for me countless times! I can trust Him for everything!!

What makes it hard for me at times to trust God, is ME!! There is a little thing (OK, sometimes it's a really big thing) called my flesh that gets in my way. Whether I trust God in a given situation or not has nothing to do with God, because He is always trustworthy and He never changes. It has everything to do with me making the choice to lay down my flesh. Yikes!!

For me, being a worrier and a planner, this is a specifically challenging area. If I don't know the who, what, when, why, where, and how of a given situation, I get anxious and nervous. That nagging in my flesh to know all the details, that great desire to be in control of every little thing in my life, on occasion, can hinder my ability to fully trust God.

Then I found Proverbs 20:24...

"The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?" 

Really, God? I don't NEED to know everything along the way? It sure does make me feel better when I do (in the flesh)!! Yes, I'm pretty sure that verse was written specifically for ME!!

So, here is my prayer as we start this journey together!!

God, I'm learning to trust You in every part of life... I'm ready to say YES!! I am ready to say YES to You even if I don't know exactly what I'm saying Yes to. Today, I am saying YES and TRUSTING YOU!!

As we take this journey together, God, I pray that you will make yourself real in a new way to each and every woman who is participating in this Online Bible Study.  Father, take their willingness to say YES to You, and use it to do things far beyond anything we could ever imagine!!

Thank you for being a God who is so reliable, so trustworthy, and so faithful, that we CAN say YES to you without fear!! I am thanking you now for the amazing things that these ladies are going to see happen in their lives over the next few weeks!! We love you and we thank you today for every work you are doing in our lives!! In your Holy name I pray... Amen!

Learning to say Yes is a journey and I'm ready to take it!! Are you??

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Let’s Get Started!!

Week 1 Discussion  (Head on over to the Facebook group to join in).

1. Introduce yourself to the group!! Share something about yourself!! Be sure to welcome others as they introduce themselves too!!
   
   
2. Before we get into our study… Right now, in this moment, what do you think saying Yes to God looks like? What does that phrase, “Say Yes to God” mean to you?

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Author - Brenda Duggins
Brenda has been married to her husband John for 11 years and is a full time working mom of a pre-teen boy (yes, you may begin praying for her now)!!

Her and her husband are currently serving as Children's Pastors at River of Life Assembly of God in Mabelvale. She also is currently helping the Women's Department with their social media sites and Online Bible Studies.

She recently re-discovered how much she enjoys crafting and DIY projects and her friend tells her that she is a kid magnet!!

Welcome!!!

Angelia Carpenter
District Women's Director

Friends,

I have never been more excited about an Online Bible Study before! I'm feeling like this has the potential to be a life changer IF we will let it....! So let's dive in! Go deep!

Post LOTS of comments in our Facebook group!! Let's get interactive & really make this one count!

#AnticipatingTheJourneyWithYou
#ReadyForAChange

I Love You All!!
Angelia

How Does Online Bible Study Work?

What a great adventure we have ahead of us as we discover what it takes to be a woman who says YES to God. Embracing simple obedience can set us on a journey to experiencing extraordinary things in life! Our saying YES to God will not only change our lives, but the lives of those around us.

So here are the basics of how we will make this online journey together an adventure to remember!!

First of all, if you were added to the Facebook group or have just found us online but haven’t registered, please go do that now! You can do that at tinyurl.com/Yes2God  .

What do I need?

1. A copy of What Happens When Women SayYes to God, by Lysa Terkeurst. (You can find it anywhere Christian books are sold)
2. A Bible (whatever version you wish to use)
3. You may want to have a journal or notebook to write down what God speaks to you during this study as well as have a place to answer the questions at the end of each chapter.
4. A heart that is ready and willing to say YES!!

When do we “meet”?
For a schedule of when we will cover each chapter, please check out the Schedule link at the top of the page.

This is an Online Bible Study, meant to be something that each lady can do as it fits her schedule. There are no set times to be online each week. Read when you can. Post in our Facebook Group when you can. Reply to others when you can.

How does it all work?
Each week a new post will be added to our Bible Study Blog on the date listed in the schedule above. Once that post is available, it will be shared in our Facebook group and on our social media sites. (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest).

Each post will include information at the bottom about who wrote the post so that you will know who is leading the study for that week!

Here’s what you need to do:

Read:

1. The chapter for the week
2. The blog post for the week

Do:

1. Go to the Facebook Group and answer the discussion questions for that week.
2. Share anything related to the chapter that you would like or ask any other questions that you would like about the chapter that week. (Discussion is not limited to only the questions posted!)
3. Encourage each other by responding to others posts!!

Verse of the Week:
Each week will include a verse of the week. Post it somewhere so you will see it each day! Read it every time you see it! Memorize it if you would like!!

Phrase of the week:
Each week we will have a phrase of the week. Something to remind us of the main point of what we are studying for that week. The phrase of the week will also be posted in hashtag form!!

Share what is going on in our Bible study on social media (share the link to the post for the week) and use the hashtag of the week. You can also use our hashtag #araogwow and the book’s hashtag #YesToGod.

If someone asks you about joining in, send them to the blog to get started! Everything will stay on the blog so if someone hears about it late and still wants to join in, they can catch up!!

How much can I expect to get out of this Online Bible Study?
You will get out of this study what you put into it. Don't just read the book and the blog post and call it good! Get into the word! We want you to search out the truth of The Word!

There are questions at the end of each chapter. Some will be asked as discussion questions and some won't. To get the most out of the study, answer all the questions for yourself, in your journal, on your own that aren't asked online.

Be active in our Facebook group!! Ask questions, respond to others. This is how we will make this online study a group study and not just something you do on your own at home!!

Questions:
Along the way if you have any questions about what is going on, feel free to post them in the Facebook group or email araogwow@gmail.com.

So, let's take this journey together!! Who's ready?

Are You Ready to Say Yes?

Hope you all are having a great day! I’m so glad that you have signed up for our Online Bible Study, What Happens When Women Say Yes to God. (If you haven't yet, go do that now! tinyurl.com/Yes2God )

Through the process of organizing this study, God has shown up in the small things! He has orchestrated this study from the start!

I believe that God wants to do great things through this study in each of our lives. I believe that He has a plan and a purpose for each one of us who have chosen to participate in this. Maybe the decision to participate was an exercise in saying Yes already!

What is so awesome about this study is that anyone can participate! It isn’t restricted to a specific day and time and it isn’t bound by location! Women’s Bible Studies are something I have always wanted to actively participate in, but so many have always happened either during work hours where I couldn’t get there or in the evenings when I had to find a babysitter (and so, I sometimes couldn’t get there). Online Bible Study is a great option and I’m so glad you ladies are here!!

That being said, if the enemy can’t stop you from participating by time and location restrictions, he will find something else to distract you with and will do what he can to get you to focus on something besides God’s Word and Saying Yes to God.

So here is the deal! We want to hear from you throughout each week! Not because we want you to complete an assignment or check something off your to do list, but because we want to build community and connect with you! Ladies, we need each other in life and God has strategically placed each of you in this community of women for a purpose!!

I will send out details soon about how it all will work, but for now, let’s just get connected!!

Facebook Group
If you have signed up for the study at tinyurl.com/Yes2God then you have either been added, or invited via an email from Facebook to join our Facebook Group for the study. I am not 100% sure how the invitation emails go out from Facebook, so just in case some of them have landed in spam or junk folders and you haven’t gotten that, here is the link to the group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1492068811029174/
 
Click on the link and request to join the group if you aren’t already a member!!
 
Arkansas District Women’s Social Media Sites
New items for the study will be posted each week in the Facebook group, but will also be posted on our other social media sites! Maybe you spend more time on Instagram, Pinterest or Twitter than Facebook. If so, make sure you follow us there to see when new content is added to the study site!

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ArkansasDistrictWomenOfWorth
Twitter - https://twitter.com/araogwow
Instagram - http://instagram.com/araogwow
Pinterest - http://www.pinterest.com/araogwow/ (Make sure you follow the Yes 2 God board)
 
Share this with other ladies also!! Invite the other women from your church or your friends to join us!

Let’s get connected and get ready for what will happen when we say YES to God!!
 
Blessings!
Brenda