Hi friends! I had to skip a week due to life getting in the way but I’m back this week sharing about what God is teaching me through our online bible study. This week was another awesome week. The study is about looking closer at Jesus’s “I Am” statements. This week we studied his statements, “I am the gate for the sheep” and “I am the good shepherd”.

The first part of the study was about looking closer at sheep and shepherds. Sheep are notoriously prone to wandering, follow each other without thinking, and very stubborn. It’s no wonder we are always compared to sheep in the bible.

Good shepherds during the bible’s time were very dedicated to their jobs. They would care for their sheep very well. They would risk their lives if it came down to it to protect their sheep. This really puts it into perspective when it comes to God calling himself our Good Shepherd. He literally laid down his life for us (his sheep).

There is so much good content in this study and it’s so hard to wrap it all up into one blog post. I want to share my favorite part of this study with you guys though.

“I am challenged to recognize how important it is to bring my offering to the Lord first and in faith. But also, I want to give God my first thoughts in faith every day. I want to turn to Him first in faith as I’m thinking about the cry of my heart as well. He wants to be first and He wants me to come to Him in faith with all of my desires and daily struggles. He wants my heart. And He wants my heart to want Him.”

Woah. This really struck me you guys. God goes so far as to lay his life down and care for his sheep well because he wants our devotion. He loves us and wants our hearts to love him back. How easily I forget this.

If I am being honest my prayer and bible reading life have been slacking so much. There is a huge life change on our little families horizon and it has completely thrown me off. (I promise to tell you more as soon as I can.) I was reminded this week how important my time with Jesus is though. If I am not being filled up with his love my heart will drift and I will start desiring things of this world.

I have decided to recommit to spending my time in the word daily because I desperately need the time with Jesus. I am not even capable of loving and putting him first without his help.

\\Do you struggle with this? What are some tips you might have to keep me consistently in the word in a time of transition?

Hi friends! I’m so excited to share with you what I am learning through the Finding I Am: How Jesus Fully Satisfies The Cry Of Your Heart study! I already love this study so much. It’s so down to earth and really gets at the heart of some serious sin in my life. I thought I’d share with you some things I learned this week.

1 | Fixing problems in our lives won’t satisfy our soul.

Do you ever have that one thing that you wish would just change in your life? Maybe if only you could get married? Find a good job? Get along with your parents? I think we all do. The first day of the study explains how these are just lies from Satan. He twists one of our desires into a need and we believe that life won’t be perfect unless we get that thing. But have you ever noticed once you got that thing, you just moved onto the next thing? It’s a never-ending cycle and it’s exhausting.

I’ve heard this before but it was definitely a huge reminder to me that seeking after that one thing that my heart so desperately wants won’t make me happier. Seeking after Jesus and making him the desire of my heart will fulfill me. Jesus is the bread of life. He alone satisfies that ache.

2 | Thankfulness opens the door for God to bless us.

I loved how the second day was all about thankfulness. The study explains how thankfulness opened the door of the blessing of the feeding of the 5000. It explains how Jesus thanked God the Father for the food and that is what opened the blessing to be able to feed so many.

This was also a great reminder to me. It shows me that when we want something so badly that we are upset when we don’t get it, we are just being ungrateful for the things we do have. God wants all of us to live thankfully for the things we do have because he doesn’t withhold any good thing from us. He wants us to trust in his timing and he also does want to bless us. He can’t bless us if we aren’t thankful for the things we do have though. I love this reminder.

3 | God is always our provider.

For day three, the study talked about when God provided for the Israelites in the wilderness. It explained how God had manna rain down from the heavens (instead of from the ground) to shift their perspective up towards God as their provider. He did this to remind the Israelites that even before when they were laboring for their food, he still was their provider. He made it even more known to them by taking their work out of it. He provided for them in spite of them.

I loved this reminder as well. It’s so easy to get caught up in thinking that it’s our works that are producing good fruit. And while we play a role in it, we often forget to turn back around and thank God because he is ultimately our provider. I love the literal example of the manna being rained down from heaven. I wonder how we would react to that today.

4 | Jesus is the answer to the storms in our life.

On day four the study looked at the story of when the disciples were in the boat and it started storming and Jesus came walking out to them on the water. It explains how as soon as Jesus was with them, their troubles ceased.

This is the best example to me of how Jesus is the answer to the storms of our life. They were scared and worried that their little boat wouldn’t make it to shore and as soon as Jesus showed up they did. It’s a clear picture of how Jesus calms the storms in our lives.

I am learning so much from this study and can’t wait to continue on with it. I’m a little bummed about not having the videos but it’s turning out to be a great study even without them! What are you learning so far? Link up with us below!