What Makes You Happy Bible Study-1

May 20, 2016 by Leave a Comment

Hola Divas and welcome to our newest Bible Study, What Makes You Happy by Andy Stanley.

Over the course of the next few weeks, we will explore the pathway to REAL happiness.  We will meet live May 14, May 28, and June 11, at the Parks and Recreation Center in Kernersville at 8:30am.  At each live session, we watch a DVD teaching from the “What Makes You Happy” series by Andy Stanley, read God’s Word and discuss what we have learned.  Can’t get up that early? Don’t live close to us? Don’t worry…follow this study right here! A link to the full message from Andy will be provided at the end of each post.

Let’s Go!

We all want to be happy. As Americans, happiness seems to be part of who we are. What we think will make us happy today, creates a new problem tomorrow we did not consider. The very thing we dreamed about and couldn’t wait to get two years ago is most likely sitting in a box waiting to be donated to charity.

Andy called the happiness “guaranteed” by magazine articles, tv commercials, and facebook ads,…caffeine-happy because happiness from stuff wears off and then we need another “fix”.

In session one, titled “Nothing,” Andy drove home a couple of ideas:

  1. Happiness is always associated with a WHO not a what.
  2. What makes you happy?  NO THING
  3. Happy people are at peace with God, themselves and others.
  4. Peace with God paves the way to peace with ourselves and equips us to make peace with others.

Matthew 22:37-40

Jesus replied “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind . This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it. “And love your neighbor as yourself”.

In session two, titled “Plan for It,” Andy reminded us of Jesus’ instructions on how to be happy by teaching on the beatitudes.

Matthew 5:1-10 (NIV)

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

In the original Greek text, the word makarios is used instead of the word “blessed”. Makarios means happy, blessed, to be envied.

At first glance, the Beatitudes don’t seem to have ANYTHING to do with happiness.  But during our time together IRL (in real life), we learned they have EVERYTHING to do with happiness.  Two verses that really stuck out during our discussion were Matthew 5:3 and Matthew 5:5.

Two verses that really stuck out during our discussion were Matthew 5:3 and Matthew 5:5.

Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. (Matthew 5:3 NIV)

“Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever]. (AMP)

“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule. (MSG)

Andy illustrated Matthew 5:3 with a few statements:

  • People who are “poor in spirit”embrace their daily dependence on God regardless of what they have.
  • People who are poor in spirit recognize that everything is NOT up to them.
  • Happy people are dependent on Him and have a personal relationship with Him

Matthew 5:5

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. (NIV)

“Blessed [inwardly peaceful, spiritually secure, worthy of respect] are the gentle[the kind-hearted, the sweet-spirited, the self-controlled], for they will inherit the earth. (AMP)

Andy provided a new way of viewing meekness and how it relates to happiness:

  • Meekness is a proper estimation or valuation of oneself within the broader context of God’s creation and love.
  • Meekness provides acceptance of  the place where God has placed me
  • Meekness helps me stop striving to go further than where God has called me to go. (WOW!!!)

Watch the full messages and get discussion questions here:

Session 1: NOTHING

Session 2: PLAN FOR IT

Filed Under: Devotions, Happy Bible Study

Crash the Chatterbox Session 3-Discouragement

October 26, 2015 by Leave a Comment

Crash the ChatterboxHola Divas!  Welcome back to our Crash the Chatterbox Bible Study!  If you are just joining us…GREAT!

Here are the deets:

1.  We are in the middle of an awesome Bible Study by Pastor Steven Furtick called Crash the Chatterbox.

2.  The chatterbox is the voice in our heads that utters lies. Lies unfortunately we believe. The chatterbox can be non-stop, intimidating, insinuating, irritating and tiring.

3.  The thoughts we think become actions and emotions.

During each session of this study, we review a tactic the chatterbox uses against us and a strategy to CRASH the chatterbox. Last week, we focused on condemnation.

The chatterbox tells us how bad we are. He or she diminishes the seriousness of sin when they are tempting us and magnifies it after we have fallen. This is a successful tactic because when condemnation is at play, there is usually some truth mixed in with guilt.

What the chatterbox is essentially trying to get us to believe is that we are disqualified by our actions.

In our quest to overpower Condemnation…Pastor Furtick challenged us to know the difference between condemnation and conviction because condemnation is counterfeit conviction.

Here are just a few examples:

Condemnation leads us to believe that we’ll never change and that we aren’t worthy of God’s love. Conviction gives us hope that, even though we sinned, God is still at work in us.

Condemnation paralyzes faith for change, keeping us in bondage. Conviction bears the fruit of faith for change, freeing us to fully grow in the love of God.

Condemnation causes us to wallow in despair and self-pity. Conviction leads to God-centered hope.

To further drive his point home, Pastor Furtick used the “3 P’s” to describe condemnation.

Condemnation makes us think our sin is:

Permanent-there is NO HOPE for any change

Personal-tainting our very identity

Pervasive-extending to every part of our lives

Condemnation does NOT come from God.  God will convict us but he does not condemn us.

We read a Biblical Example of this in John 8:1-11 when Jesus was asked what should be done to a woman “caught in the act of adultery”.  The Pharisees reminded Jesus of the “stoning to death penalty” rule for “those type of women”.  Completely calm, Jesus made the following statement:  “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Surprisingly..cough cough..no one said a word.  In fact, they all left the scene and Jesus told the woman:  “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

Since condemnation does not come from God, we can refuse to accept it just like we do an unwanted package.  Without even opening and engaging, we can simply write ” RETURN TO SENDER”.

Return-to-Sender

At the end of our study time, each of us wrote down some of the things the Chatterbox had been screaming at us on a sheet of paper.  We folded the papers and put them in envelopes and wrote RETURN TO SENDER on the outside of them.  Then each woman put her envelope full of the Chatterbox’s condemnation INTO THE SHREDDER!

Chatterbox-Condemnation

Read Chapters 11-13 to be ready for our next session!

Watch the Week 3 Session Recap with Pastor Steven on Condemnation.  (This excerpt is different from what we saw in class an excellent reminder!)

Filed Under: Crash the Chattterbox Bible Study, Devotions Tagged With: ,

Crash The Chatterbox Session 2

October 12, 2015 by 1 Comment

Crash the ChatterboxHola Divas!  Welcome back to our Crash the Chatterbox Bible Study!  If you are just joining us…GREAT! Here are the deets:

1.  We are in the middle of an awesome Bible Study by Pastor Steven Furtick called Crash the Chatterbox.

2.  The chatterbox is the voice in our heads that utters lies. Lies unfortunately we believe. The chatterbox can be non-stop, intimidating, insinuating, irritating and tiring.

3.  The thoughts we think become actions and emotions.

During each session of this study, we review a tactic the chatterbox uses against us and a strategy to CRASH the chatterbox. Last week, we focused on fear.

In case you haven’t noticed, Chatterbox says things that  evoke a sense of fear in us….fear of things within our control and those outside of our control.

The chatterbox uses fear to bully us into cowering and giving up or becoming irrational and making drastic decisions.

What the chatterbox is essentially trying to get us to believe is the future is full of danger and sorrow.

To overpower our fear, …to CRASH the chatterbox…we must learn to say OUTLOUD what God WILL do.

God WILL:

Be the cornerstone of our lives. (Ephesians 2:19-22)

Protect us. ( 2 Thessalonians 3:3)

Restore our joy. ( John 10:10)

Give us peace that surpasses understanding. (Philippians 4:6-7)

Put us back together. (1 Peter 5:10)

Open our eyes to new opportunities. (Psalm 119:18)

We can never tune out ALL the chatter—the lies in our minds—but we can learn to tune IN to God’s voice.

The chatterbox says the future is dim, lonely, horrible, but God WILL preserve and protect us.

Pastor Furtick reminded us: “We will never hear God’s voice above all the others if we are tuned into the frequencies of fear”.

Watch the week 3 recap and learn to “fix your focus” to hear God’s voice above all others!

Read chapters 8-10 of the Crash the Chatterbox book to be ready for our next session.

Filed Under: Crash the Chattterbox Bible Study

Crash the Chatterbox Session 1

September 27, 2015 by 2 Comments

Crash the ChatterboxHola Divas! We had the great pleasure of starting our newest Bible Study….Crash the Chatterbox! If you missed it….you MISSED it!  Don’t worry, we will recap the Bible Study right here on the blog! So here goes….

Inside your head is a chatterbox.

The “Chatterbox” is the voice in our heads that utters lies. Lies unfortunately we believe. The chatterbox can be non stop, intimidating, insinuating, irritating and tiring.

The voice we hear quickly manifests into thoughts.

Thoughts that turn into emotions and reactions. (We reviewed a worksheet that listed how we react when we believe a thought. The worksheet is part of a process called “The Work” by Byron Katie. See the worksheet HERE.)

In Crash the Chatterbox: Hearing God’s Voice Above All Others, Pastor Steven Furtick focuses on four key areas in which negative thoughts are most debilitating: insecurity, fear, condemnation and discouragement.

He also teaches four confessions to CRASH THE CHATTERBOX.

  1. God says I am-to overpower insecurity
  2. God says He will-to overpower fear
  3. God says I can –to overpower discouragement
  4. God says He has-to overpower condemnation

During session one, we focused on insecurity.

The chatterbox tries to make us feel insecure by attacking our identity:

-You’re not pretty or smart.

-You are not talented enough.

-You will NEVER get over ________.

-You are stuck and never going anywhere.

-You will be alone FOREVER.

To CRASH the chatterbox when it tries to make us insecure about who we are, we have to say OUT LOUD who God says we are.

God says I am fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:4)

God says I am the head and not the tail…above and not beneath. (Deuteronomy 28:13)

God says I am his workmanship. (Ephesians 2:10)

God says I am redeemed. (Romans 3:25)

It would be easy to repeat these confessions if the chatterbox is always forthcoming. But the chatterbox is a master of deception. It tells a little of the truth but distorts things.

Pastor Furtick gave us an example of this in Chapter 1:

Forthcoming:

Perhaps you should take steps toward spending more focused time reading your Bible, because God has so many promises and truths He wants to reveal to you today.

Distortion:

If you really loved God, you’d spend more time reading your Bible, like people do who have their priorities in order.

Both statements contain of seed of truth. The difference is the first statement has an undertone of AFFIRMATION. The second statement has an undertone of CONDEMNATION.

We can never tune out ALL the chatter—the lies in our minds—but we can learn to tune IN to God’s voice. The chatterbox says we are worthless and rejected, but God says we are His beloved children through Christ.

Watch the highlights of Pastor Furtick’s message “I know I am”.  (Be sure to watch even if you attended Session 1…this video is different from what we watched in our actual study.)

To be prepared for our next study, please read chapters 1-7 in the Crash the Chatterbox book.

Join us in person!  RSVP on our meetup page.

Filed Under: Crash the Chattterbox Bible Study, Devotions

Five Minute Friday-Yes

September 4, 2015 by 5 Comments

Hola Divas! Happy Friday. One of the most requested things from our blog have been the Five Minute Friday posts. Sooooo, they are back! Each week, Kate Motaung posts a one-word prompt on her blog and women from all over the world write from their hearts for five minutes then share their words.

If you have never read our Five-Minute Friday posts in the past, you really need to check them out! Today’s word is YES.

Five years ago, I said YES to teaching an eight week session of ZUMBA at the Kernersville Parks and Recreation Center.  Nothing major, just 8 weeks.  I remember thinking “if I can get fifteen people to consistently come to class”…. When over fifty people came to the kick-off class and we had forty-five people stuffed in the small upper room of the gym on our first official class, I couldn’t believe so many people said YES.

To God be the Glory!!!!

My yes was and is bigger than me.

The women who said YES were not my family or close friends.  My family and friends had said YES to so many of my adventures (Amway, Mary Kay, etc)….so God filled our classes.

He ALWAYS chooses us.

From the very moment I stepped on the platform to teach, I knew this dance thing would be part of my ministry.  Yet, I wasn’ t planning anything because, I only said YES to an eight week session.

Half-way through our first session, ladies began to ask: “when is the next session?”.  So I said YES again and again and again until it has been FIVE years of leading the most awesome group of ladies on the planet.

Leading?  I said YES to an eight week session of ZUMBA……that’s it.

But God had other plans.

Plans for our class to serve as a safe haven for women weary from everyday life.

DFD-Belong

Plans for our class to include a Christian Fitness Program (Devoted Fitness). {Oh, and even though some other instructors told me I would probably lose some people when I started playing Christian Music….more people said YES than ever!}

Devoted Fitness

Plans for our class to study God’s Word together. {Can you imagine several crazy women come at 8:30 prior to our Saturday class for Bible Study?…They just keep saying YES!}

Plans for our class to travel together.

Dance Fit Divas Beach

Plans for new friends to be made.

Laura, Becky, Alexis

But for me personally, God had plans for me to pour out my “seriously-don’t-have-it-all-together-life” into other women.

Dance Fit Divas Free-80s

Really????...because I only said YES to an eight week session of ZUMBA.

Honeybee Festival

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Filed Under: Five Minute Friday, Uncategorized

Five Minute Friday-Here

August 7, 2015 by Leave a Comment

Hola Divas! Happy Friday.   One of the most requested things from our blog has been the Five Minute Friday posts. Sooooo, they are back! Each week, Kate Motaung posts a one-word prompt on her blog and women from all over the world write from their hearts for five minutes then share their words.

If you have never read our Five-Minute Friday posts in the past, you really need to check them out! Today’s word is HERE.

Sometimes, getting to your destination is a reason to celebrate.  As you get settled, you take a breath and happily announce..”I’m HERE!!!”.

At other times, HERE is an emotion.  Someone asks you how you are and you simply respond…”I’m HERE“.

HERE can be a destination, an emotion, a way of specifying your location, or a simple answer to let your teacher know you are in class.

Most of all….HERE is the only place we can be right now.

Although I know this, I spend a lot of time rehashing feelings and happenings from old destinations and worrying about those I have not yet experienced.

All my thinking can get pretty noisy.

Perhaps that is why I like the music in our classes so loud.

It makes it kinda hard to do anything but shake, smile and sweat with a great beat and beautiful faces surrounding you.

80’s Class July 9, 2015

But what seems so simple…a dance fitness class, is actually part  of our preparation for our next assignment.

As we take care of ourselves, we are better equipped to take care of others.

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” Isaiah 6:8

 

Zumba girls

80’s Party July 9, 2015

 

Filed Under: Devotions, Five Minute Friday Tagged With:

Five Minute Friday on Saturday-FREE

July 18, 2015 by 3 Comments

Hola Divas and happy weekend!  One of the most requested things from our blog has been the Five Minute Friday posts.  Sooooo, it’s back…a day late but back nonetheless!  Each week, Kate Motaung posts a one-word prompt on  her blog and women from all over the world write from their hearts for five minutes then share their words.

If you have never read our Five-Minute Friday posts in the past, you really need to check them out! Today’s word is FREE.

Earlier this month, we had an 80’s party during class.  To say it was a blast is a complete understatement.  The Divas went all in with costumes, make-up and a boat load of sassy-ness.

IMG_0869

 

Look at the smiles…these ladies were FREE……for one silly moment.

With every thing going on in our country, FREEdom has seemed hard…polarizing even.

But there is something liberating about shaking your hips, sweating, hooping and hollering with a room full of other women…and it all starts with a prayer.  Yep, that’s the way the Divas get down.

God’s word is true….”For where two or three are gathered together……there am I in the midst of them”. (Matthew 18:20)

I caught a glimpse of what being FREE really means standing on stage, watching beautiful women of all sizes, shapes, colors and life circumstances dance to a rendition of Gloria Estefan’s 80’s hit “Conga”.

FREE was that exact moment.

Divas Dancing

FREE was not thinking about anything else but being fully immersed in what was happening and being so thankful for it.

Dance Fit Divas Free-80s

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Devotions, Five Minute Friday Tagged With:

How to decide what is best…Your Move Bible Study

April 18, 2015 by 2 Comments

Has life EVER provided you with a circumstance that you NEVER thought you would be in and there was a decision that had to be made quickly?

Unless you live under a rock and never leave your rock palace, it is impossible to evade trying times and the split-second decisions that come with them.

So what do you?  How do you decide what is best?

Options-Decisions-Choices

In our newest Bible Study, Your Move by Andy Stanley, we have been learning how to make sound decisions when the time frame is short, options are limited yet a Diva still has to put on her big girl panties and make a decision.

Throughout the Bible study,  we are challenged to ask ourselves four questions to make sound decisions with God’s help.

Session one, Andy inspired us to get gut honest with ourselves and ask….

Why am I am I doing this….REALLY? Stated another way….Am I being completely honest with myself? Or …what is the real reason I am making this choice?

Determining our true motives for leaning towards one decision over another is very important because as Andy reminded us, we spend tremendous amounts of time and energy deceiving ourselves.

There is a Biblical answer for why we can rationalize and convince ourselves to do things that are not the best for us:

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9 (NIV) 

I don’t know about you, but I have sweet talked myself into a plethora of bad decisions:  unwise and unnecessary purchases, dietary indiscertions, over booking my schedule, procrastinating, surfing the net or flipping through Facebook (just to name a few).

Taking a few moments to ask ourselves (“Why am I doing this…REALLY?”) enables us to get gut honest.  For example:

I am surfing the net because I don’t want to clean up, prepare for the next day, or finish the report.

I feel lonely and shopping makes me feel better.

I am afraid.

When we ask ourselves why….it allows the Holy Spirit to guide us towards the best decision.

After we determine WHY we are doing something, session two suggested we ask ourselves:  “What story do I want to tell?”.

Image source: http://threadling.com/

Image source: http://threadling.com/

In every decision-making environment, transition period, or drama producing activity, we are writing the script for our future story.

To illustrate this point, Andy used the story of Joseph (Genesis 37-50).   Joseph faced family betrayal, slavery, and imprisonment.  Often, he was forced to choose between no win options.  Yet despite difficult situations, Joseph made choices with God-centered integrity and faithfulness and he was later rewarded.

When Joseph was finally able to reconcile with his family he said these words:

You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. Genesis 50:20

WOW.

This morning, we discover the third question Andy suggests we asks ourselves….”Is there a tension that needs my attention“.

Join us in person for Bible Study in Kernersville, NC get the details on our Meetup Page.

Or if you are too far away or you have schedule conflicts…get the handouts HERE.  You can also watch the actual video messages from Andy Stanley  You Tube. Click HERE for the session one message.

Filed Under: Uncategorized, Your Move Bible Study

Word Theme, Playlist and Schedule Changes

February 3, 2015 by 8 Comments

Last weekend, we had our normal “Soulful Saturday” class featuring Devoted Fitness  and Zumba toning but we added a twist.  Each diva was asked to bring a white t-shirt to class so she could write her “word theme” for 2015.

DSCN2213

Sometimes a single word can change everything.

At the beginning of January, many people make resolutions for how they want the year to be.  By January 31, resolutions have been abandoned for one reason or another and the feelings on inadequacy, “what’s the point”, and why try rear their ugly heads.

We ended the first month of 2015 by declaring a word theme for the year to help keep us focused but be flexible to allow life to happen.

We started the first day of February with dance, praise and POWERFUL WORDS!

One glimpse at these smiles and you know God is GOOD!

Several people have asked me for Saturday’s playlist…find it HERE.

WE DO NOT HAVE CLASS THIS SATURDAY (February 7, 2015 or March 7, 2015) DUE TO A SCHEDULING CONFLICTS… check our calendar HERE.

DSCN2221 DSCN2234 DSCN2229 DSCN2216 DSCN2223DSCN2237DSCN2239

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

The Best Yes Process

September 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment

TheBestYes_1024x1024Hola Divas!  Welcome back to our “online discussion” of our newest Bible Study….The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst.  If you missed our first discussion read it HERE.

Earlier this week, we talked about how we get to our “BEST YES”.

Our best yes is us playing our part at work, church, home…wherever we are.

We learn/discern /decide/determine our best yes from asking God.  When we do, He will answer us:

Isaiah 30:22 (NIV)

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

Asking and then getting our answer sounds sooooo easy, almost too easy.  Is that why we don’t ask more often?

Worrying, filling up our schedules, doing it ’cause we have a free moment, or because we don’t want to let someone down seem to be our methods of operation.

Our methods seem logical at the time but they are INEFFECTIVE.

Lysa said it amazingly on page 3 of The Best Yes book:  “I’m tired. I’m distracted. I’m disappointed in myself.  I feel slightly used and more than slightly used up.  I’m a little overwhelmed and a lot worn down.”

Do you ever feel like this?

Overwhelmed Schedule

Lysa used a Biblical example that shows just how futile our methods are yet provides a process to achieve our Best Yes!

Isaiah 30:15 NIV–This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:  “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”

So the first step towards finding our “Best Yes” is to: ____________DOWN…rest, be quiet, trust. {SLOW}

But what do we often do?

Isaiah 30:16 AMP—And you said, No! We will speed (on our own course) on horses….

Yep we Speed up…we fill up our schedules and our children’s schedules.  We become so busy that we cannot hear God or even if we hear Him, we are too busy to do what He asks:(

What is the Lord’s demeanor while we hurry and scurry about?

Isaiah 30:18 MSG-But God is not finished.  He’s waiting around to be gracious to you….. 

Isaiah 30:18 NLT-So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God….

WOW, The Lord is gracious and shows us compassion even when we jack up our schedules and get on the plane to Crazy Town.  All we have to do is turn our daily decisions over to Him.

When we turn our decisions over to Him…we are blessed and arrive at our BEST YES!

Isaiah 30:18b NLT….Blessed are those who wait for his help.

Dear Lord, forgive me for jumping into my day and committing myself to things before asking YOU.  You know exactly what is my “best yes” for every moment.  Help me remember to pause and seek your counsel so that I can play the part you specifically designed for me….. wherever I am.

—-Amen

Read through chapter 6 to be ready for our next discussion:

Live–Saturday September 20, 2014 8:30am Kernersville Parks and Recreation Center

Online:  Tuesday September 23, 2014 (right here on the blog!)

Filed Under: The Best Yes Bible Study
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