Sunday, September 18, 2011

Week 1 – Intro to I John 1:1-4

Posted in I John Book Club

Welcome to Week 1 in the book of I John!!!  We are so delighted that you are here!  This week’s reading assignment is I John 1:1-4 (click here if you have not downloaded the e-Study Guide yet).  We’ll be taking baby steps this week as you focus on 3 things:

1.  Rising early in the morning!  This means you might need to go to bed 30 minutes earlier:)!

2.  Getting the method of SOAP down 

3.  Connecting with your Good Morning Girls group

Here is what my Bible looked like before marking the key words I saw in I John 1:1-4.

Here’s what it looked like after marking the key words in I John 1:1-4.  Notice I like to use a yellow triangle for all references to the Godhead (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit – 3 in 1).  You may want to mark more or less key words.  There’s no right or wrong answer to these.

If you have quickly completed the SOAP assignment for the day and still have time left – we recommend that you do commentary work.  Commentaries are books, sermons or devotionals that study each verse in its context.  Look at how much depth these men of God found in these few short verses!!!  Their grasp on scripture simply astounds me.  I long to know and live out these truths like these men of God.  

Here are 3 on-line commentaries I recommend for the week to go along with this weeks reading:

1. John McArthur ~ Certainties of the Word of Life, Part 1

2. John Piper ~ Eternal Life Has Appeared in Christ

3. Charles Spurgeon ~ I John 1:3,4 

The above reading and key word marking is optional!  If all you can get done is the SOAP study – then “high 5″ to you for getting into God’s word today! Do not feel pressured to do more! 

 This is a place of grace – college students, nursing moms, working moms, homeschooling moms, room moms, grandma’s caring for their grandchildren or ailing parents, and women from all walks of life are here!  We women are busy and doers!  We need this time – but this needs to be a time of peace – NO pressure - do what time allows. 

Even when you miss a day of your quiet time, it’s important that you stay connected to your group.  It is very easy to lose fellowship if you do not remain committed to your accountability group.  Be honest.  Say you are struggling – I KNOW they will lift you up in prayer!  And Girls – we ALL need more prayer – don’t we? 

I’m lifting you all up in prayer this week!  I’ll be back here on Wednesday and Friday – so stop back!  Now dig in and enjoy!

Walk with the King!

Courtney, WomenLivingWell

**This Wednesday we will have a link-up for bloggers.  If you have a blog, we invite you to write about what you are learning in your quiet time or about your GMG group.  You DO NOT have to write about the I John study – we are interested in hearing from everyone about all the studies you are all doing.  So please join our link-up party.  If you are not a blogger, we invite you to visit other GMG’s blogs and to share here in our comment section what God is teaching you during your morning quiet time.

Posted in I John Book Club

39 comments

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Amanda Barkey - September 18, 2011 - 11:49 pm

Thank you SO much for doing this… what a BLESSING.

Amanda Barkey - September 18, 2011 - 11:50 pm

Thank%20you%20SO%20much%20for%20doing%20this…%20what%20a%20BLESSING.%20

Alice Rutter - September 19, 2011 - 1:57 am

Excited to start this study. Praying for God to bless and enrich my desire to grow in intimacy with Him!

Alice Rutter - September 19, 2011 - 1:58 am

Excited%20to%20start%20this%20study.%20Praying%20for%20God%20to%20bless%20and%20enrich%20my%20desire%20to%20grow%20in%20intimacy%20with%20Him!%20%20

Rebecca - September 19, 2011 - 4:59 am

So excited to start this study. Thank you for putting it together…this is my first Good Morning Girls….I am not in a group, but will be working through it alone…. Again,thank you!

Ivete (Evy) Miller - September 19, 2011 - 6:11 am

I am a little late for the morning, but will have time to catch up to today’s first chapter. I am glad I found out about this study starting right now. Thanks for the resources and tools to guide us.

Cheryl - September 19, 2011 - 6:21 am

Was so excited to pop out of bed at 6:30AM and begin my study with my girls! Two things I noted on 1John 1:1 were that science seems to tell us we can only believe what we have observed, but John seems to be saying just that: That which was from the beginning, I HAVE seen, and heard, and touched – and by the way, HE’S GOD! Reading some commentary I was encouraged that John was having to write to a 2nd generation of Christians who hadn’t seen Jesus personally. They were scattered and discouraged after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70A.D. 15-20 years earlier. God wants to encourage us too! I am applying the way John is sharing his testimony not just theology – though his account is crouched in his beliefs – In the beginning/the Word of life. I need to share my testimony concerning my personal relationship with God and it needs to line up and reflect biblical theology as well.

This is awesome! Thanks for sponsoring it!

~Lynn - September 19, 2011 - 7:05 am

It is 7:03 a.m. mountain time here. Am loving this already…. especially like the SOAP method. Have a new journal and notebook and am already gleaning.

Thanks and God Bless You!

Cindy - September 19, 2011 - 7:17 am

I love the application question! Am I proclaiming what I have seen, heard and touched of Christ? Are you?!?

Patty - September 19, 2011 - 7:31 am

Thank you for the online commentaries that you suggested, I love all of those! This is such a blessing! Thanks so much for all you do!

Tracy - September 19, 2011 - 7:32 am

Many Blessings to you Courtney as you are blessing us with all of THIS.. Awesome beginning!
These verses reminds me that all we see with our eyes, touch with our hand, hear in the Word is Jesus! The Word is Jesus, we are called to know him and have fellowship and bear witness to that! Now off to read some recommended commentary ~ John MacArthur is to the point.. love it

donnalee - September 19, 2011 - 8:08 am

woohoo, this will be a wonderful study, count me in! i found your site thru sheart and i am thrilled! blest be :)

TN Lizzie - September 19, 2011 - 8:21 am

I have a funny story… I accidentally started this last Monday with my 2 oldest girls. #2 has a NKJV Bible, so here’s what she wrote:

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—”

I don’t allow her to write incomplete sentences, and she was so frustrated because her version does not finish the thought in verse 1.

So we will switch to the 1984 NIV and start over again today. She will be so happy now! Y’all enjoy digging into God’s Words, and don’t fear changing translations as needed! LOL

Betty-Jo - September 19, 2011 - 8:34 am

Thank you for showing us your markings and the great resources :-) Have a great day!

Jill - September 19, 2011 - 8:44 am

I want to be more intimately acquainted with Christ! This scripture encourages me. I CAN have a see, hear, touch relationship with Him. I am so excited to go deeper! Thank you.

Jen Siek - September 19, 2011 - 9:39 am

Good Morning Girls!

Well, it wasn’t an early time with God, boots were on the ground at our house, but I did it, and shared a part of the Scripture verse with the children around the kitchen table this morning. We wrote the verse down as writing practice, too. Going to try to take the young ones along for the ride :D Have a blessed day from your Saint Joe gmg!

Loretta - September 19, 2011 - 11:05 am

WOW..day one and God has already spoke to me and convicted me within this one simple verse. How AWESOME is it that in America, we can have the Word of God with us at all times!!!!I can physically hold a piece of God with me always :) But am I in the scripture like I should be? Am I honoring that privilege like He would have me to be? Unfortunately, until now, I have to say no :( I need to be in His Word daily in order to even begin applying it to my life. My prayer is that God will use this study to help keep me accountable for being in HIS word daily so that I can grow in my Christian walk.

Paula - September 19, 2011 - 11:21 am

Looking forward to studying 1John with you. Love how the SOAP method works. I learn from writing things down. Thanks so much for this.

Niki - September 19, 2011 - 1:12 pm

Ok… I am marking key words in my Bible, and when I came to check mine out, I noticed that you are using different colors than what is noted in our book… Am I missing something?
Thanks,
Niki

Courtney (WomenLivingWell) - September 19, 2011 - 1:47 pm

Niki!

You caught me lol!!! I made the key word chart in the E-book after I had already written in my Bible with the WRONG colors lol! Sorry about that…
Courtney

Becky W. - September 19, 2011 - 2:50 pm

I actually didn’t mind getting up early to do this study. In fact, I was looking forward to it and very excited about it! I really enjoyed the SOAP method and I’m very anxious to get some good colored pencils to mark up my bible! I read an article that a really good writing instrument to use in bibles is Micron Pigment ink pens. Have you ever tried those? I have some of them for scrapbooking so I think I’ll give them a try. They don’t bleed through, are water-resistant and dry very quickly.

Thank you so much for putting the links to additional resources on our passages! I feel like such an infant when it comes to the bible (even though I was raised in the church and I’m married to a minister!!) that I want to just soak up all the information I can so I can see the bible in a much bigger picture. Do you know if you will you be posting these additional resources every week?

Thank you again for this wonderful study!!!

Blessings,
Becky

Celine - September 19, 2011 - 3:06 pm

Glad to know your highlighting of keywords is a bit different then the e-book, was wondering how it fit the e-book and if I was losing my mind (very well could be). Could you clarify the colors you used in the image as I know a few in our group might wonder… I am afraid that color coding and keywords and such concepts are not one of my strong points. I always have a hard time knowing what fits under what color. I think I need the preschool version with everything spelled out for me.

I can’t wait till the kids go to bed so I can settle in and SOAP.

Tara McCoy - September 19, 2011 - 4:27 pm

I am so NOT a morning person and as soon as my feet hit the floor, it seems I am on the go, but after dinner is cleaned up, and my kids are quiet doing their homework in the various parts of the house, that is when I get to have quiet time.
So, needless to say, I am a little late today (and probably will be every day :/ ) .

But I just got done with it and I gotta say how much I was blessed.
I have read through books of the Bible, I have done topical studies, but to just take one verse at a time ~ and to let it speak to you is totally awesome!

The thing I got was that so often anymore, GOD is spoken about as an abstract “thing”. John is telling us from experience that God/Jesus was and is REAL and vibrant and living. I want to have the kind of relationship with God that is more than just words or an idea. I want a relationship that is so real and personal and abiding, that is almost as if I have seen, heard and touched.

~Lynn - September 19, 2011 - 5:34 pm

I have a question. Courtney, do you wight out your verse for the day in your notebook only or do you use the print out sheets you supplied? I wrote it our in a notebook but then I saw the Bible Study guide and wrote it out there too. But I know that will be harder to write it twice as time goes on. So I am thinking a notebook only? What do you do?

By the way… I love this! Thanks so much. There is a sense of good satisfaction after I wrote out the prayer at the end. : )

Sharon - September 19, 2011 - 8:41 pm

I’ve never really known how to read and study and you guys seem to already be on your way. I’m asking for prayer that I can keep up with all of you. Thanks so much, I appreciate it.

Lina - September 19, 2011 - 11:05 pm

Thank you so much for this. I don’t even know how I stumbled across your blog but I am glad I did. I have struggled with my alone time with God and have really wanted to stay focused and committed to it. I think this might help me. I don’t have a group wish I did I could really use some accountability. But I am doing the study alone and I did my SOAP this evening not in the morning but I did it. thanks again

Meg - September 20, 2011 - 4:28 am

So far, so good! Thanks for the early morning motivation! Feels good to get out bed and make my bible time a priority!

(((((HUGS))))) sandi - September 20, 2011 - 5:17 am

Saying a prayer for you this very minute, Sharon!

Alice Rutter - September 20, 2011 - 5:21 am

Jesus became man so we could see God. He came and lived among us as an example for us so we could see the eternal life he has planned for us. That made me think of those who have been that example to us in faith in our lives! Thanking God for them too and for the lives they lived. And especially those that are tasting that eternal life reward now. Gives us strength to stand strong.

Debbie - September 20, 2011 - 9:35 am

I just wanted to say thankyou also for leading this. You are such a blessing to so many. God Bless!!

Niki - September 20, 2011 - 11:56 am

Courtney,
Can you elaborate which words you choose to color and which color you choose? Once I get started, I will be more able to do this on my own, however I have never done this before and feel like I need my hand held to start this out.
Thanks!
Niki

Loretta - September 20, 2011 - 12:35 pm

I agree with you Niki :) I was trying to figure it out from the guide in the book and from the pic of Courtney’s Bible and I’m lost…I’m sure once I do it a few times, I will be fine…but I wouldn’t mind a little guidance too :) Thanks for putting this wonderful study together. I have always wanted to dig into Bible but didn’t know where to start and what to do…And I always lost my motivation :( Having a group to discuss it with and to keep me accountable is great!!THANKS

Loretta - September 20, 2011 - 12:36 pm

I agree with you Niki :) I was trying to figure it out from the guide in the book and from the pic of Courtney’s Bible and I’m lost…I’m sure once I do it a few times, I will be fine…but I wouldn’t mind a little guidance too :) Thanks for putting this wonderful study together. I have always wanted to dig into Bible but didn’t know where to start and what to do…And I always lost my motivation :( Having a group to discuss it with and to keep me accountable is great!! THANKS

Courtney (WomenLivingWell) - September 20, 2011 - 2:24 pm

Loretta and Niki – to be honest…there’s no rhyme or reason to the key words I choose. I know that is NOT helpful at all!!! I just look for words that are repeated over and over in a passage. That is why my picture and the e-book did not match. My picture was not planned to be shared…I just colored it as I saw fit…then I made the e-book and I used the key words for the entire book of I John.

For example: Fellowship is a key word in the book of I John – you’ll see it over and over – but in those first 4 verses it’s only used twice and other words are used more frequently. So you might find – book key words and chapter key words.

There’s NO right or wrong on this. Just read the passage for the week and see – what words are repeated over and over and give them a color and mark them. Have fun doing it – don’t put any pressure on yourself – if you only find one key word that’s fine or if you want to mark up the whole passage that’s fine too.

Hope this helps and frees you to mark as you please.

I will be sharing my key words for verses 5-10 next Monday along with Resources once again. So I’ll continue to hold your hand :) !!! (and I’ll make sure to color the words the right colors according to the ebook :) ! Sorry about that!

Lots of Love,
Courtney

Hope - September 20, 2011 - 3:37 pm

Hoping I can give this study the attention it deserves and not hurry through it.

henriette - September 21, 2011 - 12:48 am

Greetings from Germany!
John seems to have the same feelings than me. Reading the scripture, pondering upon the word, meeting Jesus – and not telling about that – impossible! I like the idea that we are all in a fellowship, all around the world, all christians. Not alone all around the world, but through the times. I am in fellowship with John. He tells me now, today, what he experienced with Jesus, he encourages me to tell about my life with Jesus.
(hope my English isn’t too bad)

Tiffany - September 24, 2011 - 4:50 pm

I have a question for you. When you did the key words in your text did you just do the ones that were listed in the ebook or did you do more than that? I did the ones in the ebook and it doesn’t look anything like yours. :)

Today I Am Choosing to Linger… - September 18, 2011 - 6:42 pm

[...] so today we begin our 12 week study in the Book of I John over on GoodMorningGirls.org. I’d be remiss if I did not invite you over to check out our launch day! If you do not have [...]

Toddler Bites - September 22, 2011 - 5:59 am

[...] http://www.goodmorninggirls.org/2011/09/week-1-intro-to-i-john-11-4/  (Week 1 blog from Women Living Well Ministries) [...]

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