Weekend Reading!

The way this new curriculum works, it doesn't work through the entire book of 1 Samuel chapter by chapter. But, I don't want you to miss out on any of the wonderful verses! So, on the weekends, I will give you some reading on your own to prepare for the coming week.

This reading will not be applicable to Sunday's lesson...it is in preparation for Monday and the week following. It will just be like getting ahead! Monday - Friday's devotions are to prepare you for discussion on Sunday...the weekend reading is just if you want to read through all the material!

Read 1 Samuel 2.

Enjoy...

Thrive!
Frances

Frances is in Prague

Hello dear friends. Frances has safely arrived in Prague at 5:30 (11:30 AM Eastern Time). All is going as planned....so far, so good. Please keep her team in your prayers. I will post any updates as I receive them.

1 Samuel 1:20-28

Good morning girls! Start your time with prayer. Concentrate today on your family in prayer. Take special time to take the needs of each member before the Lord. Share all your hopes, desires, concerns, and worries with God this morning.

Read 1 Samuel 1:20-28.

List a few things that really speak to you today in these verse.


What do these things say to you...how will your life be different because of what you read today?

What is God saying to you about your own family?


There is so much in this passage! It would take us a week to look at all the wonderful things in these verses. But today, we are going to focus on how Hannah literally gave over her only son to God's service. She gave him to full time service at the temple with Eli.

Can you imagine that? Can you imagine leaving your only child...the one you had desired and prayed for so deeply? Can you even begin to think about how Hannah felt as she walked away from the temple leaving her little boy there...for good?

What an example to us! Even if you don't have children, we all can glean from this passage. God has to be the one who completely fills us...not our families, husbands, children, co-workers, or friends. We must be willing to leave those people in the Lord's hands and trust Him with their care. He loves them far greater than we could imagine. His love is perfect for them. His love satisfies them completely.

The greatest way we can truly love those around us, is to trust them to a perfect God. Hannah leaving long prayed for son at the temple, is an example of how we should leave those we love the most in the hands of God. We can trust Him to do the very best. Though, many times it doesn't LOOK best to us! Each day, I'm sure Hannah didn't FEEL like leaving her beloved son was best. But, she knew that he was where God wanted Him.

Are there people in your life that you are holding back from God in your heart?

Do you trust Him with those precious people?

Take time right now to release your lack of faith right now. Believe what God tells us in His Word...that He loves us all so much that He sent His only Son to die for our sin! What an example of love and pain. Thank Him for those relationships, but allow God to be your only source of satisfaction today!

1 Samuel 1:20-28

Good morning girls! Start your time with prayer. Concentrate today on your family in prayer. Take special time to take the needs of each member before the Lord. Share all your hopes, desires, concerns, and worries with God this morning.

Read 1 Samuel 1:20-28.

List a few things that really speak to you today in these verse.


What do these things say to you...how will your life be different because of what you read today?

What is God saying to you about your own family?


There is so much in this passage! It would take us a week to look at all the wonderful things in these verses. But today, we are going to focus on how Hannah literally gave over her only son to God's service. She gave him to full time service at the temple with Eli.

Can you imagine that? Can you imagine leaving your only child...the one you had desired and prayed for so deeply? Can you even begin to think about how Hannah felt as she walked away from the temple leaving her little boy there...for good?

What an example to us! Even if you don't have children, we all can glean from this passage. God has to be the one who completely fills us...not our families, husbands, children, co-workers, or friends. We must be willing to leave those people in the Lord's hands and trust Him with their care. He loves them far greater than we could imagine. His love is perfect for them. His love satisfies them completely.

The greatest way we can truly love those around us, is to trust them to a perfect God. Hannah leaving long prayed for son at the temple, is an example of how we should leave those we love the most in the hands of God. We can trust Him to do the very best. Though, many times it doesn't LOOK best to us! Each day, I'm sure Hannah didn't FEEL like leaving her beloved son was best. But, she knew that he was where God wanted Him.

Are there people in your life that you are holding back from God in your heart?

Do you trust Him with those precious people?

Take time right now to release your lack of faith right now. Believe what God tells us in His Word...that He loves us all so much that He sent His only Son to die for our sin! What an example of love and pain. Thank Him for those relationships, but allow God to be your only source of satisfaction today!

Please Pray!

I am leaving for Prague and Poland tomorrow at 6pm! I am very excited to meet my team members and look forward to putting faces with voices I have shared conference calls with for the past 2 months.

I will be posting my prayer guide that will be sent to us today! This will guide you to pray for me and the team as we encourage women leaders in Central and Eastern Europe. Thank you for joining me on this journey!

I am now trying to operate 3 blogs! I forgot that I didn't post the devotions in 1 Samuel here this week! I am so very sorry! I will be posting them back to back so that you can read what I have posted on my Life group blog this week.

I will not have Internet access this coming week, so I can't answer emails. I will miss the contact with everyone, but look forward to hear what God is up to in your lives when I return!

So, enjoy several back posts from 1 Samuel today...take them day by day! Enjoy God this week!

THRIVE!
Frances

1 Samuel 1:1-2

Take a few moments today to quiet your heart in prayer. Find a quiet spot that you can steal away and focus on God and what He wants to say to you today. Open up to God as you would a loved one sitting with you over a steaming cup of hot tea. Rest in these moments knowing that God loves you and desires you.

Read 1 Samuel 1:1-2.

What sticks out to you in these verses?Look at the words..."And Hannah had none."

How do you think Hannah felt?

What are your thoughts on this situation?

Hannah didn't have children while her husbands other wife did. We know that in Biblical times barren women were ridiculed and seen as less important than those who could give their husbands children. But, even today as women it would be difficult to not have children if we desired that in our lives. Can you feel the weight of those words now..."and Hannah had none"?

You may have children today, but there is something in all of our lives that we desire. Perhaps we desire love from a parent that we have "had none" growing up. Maybe we desire a godly marriage that doesn't exist right now. We might desire a thriving spiritual life.What do you deeply desire that you do not feel that you have right now in your life?

We must take that opportunity in that desire and need to fellowship with God in prayer over that. We will see the passionate prayer that came from a desperate desire in Hannah's life. We will see that Hannah took that desire to God with a groaning so deep that others thought she was either insane or drunk.Take time today to those deep desires to God. He will answer you. He will change you. He will give you the desires of your heart...either through a "yes" or by filling your heart with Himself so that your desire is met.

Journal a few moments on your own personal thoughts. What is God saying to you right now? What desires do you need to share with Him? Allow Him to fill your cup today!Share your thoughts with us! We want to hear from you today. Encourage us with what God is saying to you!I love you all and will miss you terribly! Thank you for being in this class and for sharing your life with me. I am so glad God has brought us together for this journey in thriving everyday!

THRIVE!
Frances

Blog craziness!

I am so sorry that I have been so long in posting! Girls, I have started a new ladies only Life group called Thrive! This is the first ladies only Life group and we are having a great time. We started with 9 ladies the first Sunday and added 5 more the next and last week we added 3 more! We are going to have to move rooms in our first month of meeting together!

We are about to start our new curriculum called Explore The Bible. We will be studying 1 & 2 Samuel and I can't wait! Right now we are in Exodus 16 really getting passionate about being in God's Word every single day of our lives. We are reminding ourselves that our cup must be filled every morning with God...or else we will try to shove something or someone else into that place. They don't ever fit! Our ladies got their very own "cup" last week to put beside their beds or next to their sinks...or on top of their alarm clocks to remind them to start their mornings filling their cups with God!

We all know it's not going to be easy. But, after 6 1/2 years of feasting on the "manna" of God's Word and my precious time with Jesus every day...I will never be the same!

What does all this have to do with my not posting here? Well, I began a blog for my class to walk the journey of gather manna together! I am now taking our Sunday lessons and doing a daily devotion for the ladies to study each day. We don't want to just show up on Sundays dry as a bone! We want to be THRIVING every single day! Our blog is:

www.thriving365.blogspot.com.

So, this blog will mirror our class blog. You are welcomed here...and there! But, I must warn you that you will see the same material in each place. Starting Sunday, we will all be journeying together through 1 & 2 Samuel. I can't wait!

I must warn you that I will be in Europe for 10 days...and then in Disney. My plan is to prepost (automatic posting) for the times I will be out of internet access. I pray that it works like I plan! So, let's get going together!