Bible Study

A little over a week ago, I attended a Skype Bible study call with a couple of my friends. I have attended a few other Bible studies on Skype over the past few months and also at my church throughout the years, but I was amazed at how helpful this call was to me and how it affected my entire week.
The week prior to the call was a hard one. Though I tried not to be, I was still a little afraid of upcoming activities, like my Sociology test, and then dealing with some disappointing interruptions that made my schoolwork schedule pay. And a few other things that made for a very discouraging week.
I almost wanted to skip the Bible study call, but I'm so glad that even though it was a bit unexpected, we still did one.
We were going through topics that we could talk about and the one topic that really stood out was: "Fear and Discouragement". Collin, a CollegePlus! student, explained the verses as Kaleigh and I took turns reading them. It was inspiring to see how many verses spoke the same thing: "Be strong and of good courage". God was giving that comforting reminder over and over again: to put our trust in Him and to not be afraid of things that are going wrong in our lives. I truly felt that God's hand was in that study. :)
As Collin had pointed out, "Be strong and of good courage" is not an "option", it is a "commandment". I had never really thought of it in that light before, but it really made sense. God didn't want me to just put my faith in Him when I felt like it. It was something that I had to do.
It reminded me a little of my junior high and high school years, when I really didn't want to get up in the morning and study. I could have found a lot of "better" ways to spend my time. But as I analyze it, I see a comparison between doing my schoolwork and trusting in God. True, schoolwork may not always be fun or easy; just like trusting in God through "thick and thin" is not always fun and easy. However, getting an education is important in our lives on earth; just as trusting God constantly is important in our daily lives and spiritual walk.
Worrying about the problems and disappointments is sometimes the easiest thing that I can do, but doing so will not draw me closer to God.
Since that Bible study on "Fear" and "Discouragement", I've found myself thinking about situations where I could have been trusting God more and what situations in the future that I might face and how I can handle them differently. It may not be easy, but with God's help, I can learn to trust Him in whatever situation I'm in. :)

God bless,
Anna

1 Chronicles 28:20