Bible Study Review: Breath By Priscilla Shirer

Bible Study Review: Breath By Priscilla Shirer

Remember last week we talked about the book I read and loved Fervent?  Well this week I want to talk about a bible study and how I came about taking it.

She talked about resting and practicing the Sabbath slightly in the Fervent book.  And it got me wondering if she ever did a study or wrote a book on the sabbath.  So I went to google and started a search.  What I discovered was that yes she did do a study on it.  And even better was that in 3 weeks they were going to be offering the bible study online!  Buy the workbook and get the video’s for free!!!

That is an amazing deal.  And you all know how much I love deals.. and love studies… So I was off to ordering the book and signing up for the study.

Here’s the God moment in this all.  The study was being offered with Proverbs 31 Ministries and they were also mentioning that they offered small groups on a limited first come first serve basis.

Say what????

Small Groups?  Online?  How does that all happen???

So I took the plunge and signed up for a chance to be put in a group.  I mean what’s the worst that could happen?  I could not get in the small group and still participate in the large online group!

I’m seeing a win-win here.

So I took my chances and prayed about it as I hit the request button and let God handle the rest.

And then it happened!!!! I got the email saying I was placed into small group #1!!!!!

Yay!!!! I got into group number 1!!!!!!

STOP…. I have no clue what that actually means.

Like I really don’t.

But it’s me here… and I celebrate everything as if it’s God’s delight that I got in because He wanted me to!  So…..

YAY!!!!! I got into group 1!!!!!

The groups are run on facebook as secret closed groups.  And they blew my socks off.  Basically, it’s exactly like you are sitting around a table… with study books in hand… only you can sit in your home with your slippers on at your comfy table…. With warm coffee and when you have time.. and add in your comments on the ongoing threads..  WHEN YOU HAVE THE TIME!

There’s a moderator that comes on and asks you questions… and keeps everyone on track.. there are video’s from the moderator and live prayer video’s where we all hop on and talk and pray for people….

For people that live in far away area’s and don’t have the resources or place to get together… these online bible studies are amazing.

And my group one peeps are true sisters!

You can find Proverbs 31 Ministries at their website https://proverbs31.org/

And their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Prov31Ministries/ where they release the next studies they are doing.

And if you ever get in to group 1…shoot me a hello!  I love those ladies!

Let talk about Breathe by Priscilla Shirer….

But first… did you know my oven has a setting on it called the SABBATH????

Let me tell you how I know of this setting.

One day while cleaning and getting ready for making dinner… I have a friend that just likes to push all the buttons… There is a reason I don’t push all the buttons… and that reason is.. because I used to… and one day while I am pushing buttons I see a flash on the stove panel and then the words SABBATH freeze on top of the panel.  I continue to push the buttons and frantically push them ALL… It’s not working and the doors won’t open and well…..

This word SABBATH won’t turn off.

At this point the stove word SABBATH and the biblical word Sabbath are not registering to me as one in the same.

Insert:  I am blonder then my husband pays for me to be!

I get the book out and read all about it and BINGO!!!! It all comes together.

The story ends with my husband walking in the door and me declaring that there is no dinner… The stove has decided to take this Wednesday as it’s Sabbath… so eating we don’t get to do.  Here’s a cold sandwich type of deal.  We literally laugh about it still.  My husband loves to tell the story of the day our stove took a sabbath!

Back to us actual people taking a sabbath….

This is a 5 session bible study.

Here is what I learned….. That God still wants us to take time for reflecting on His goodness… That we aren’t supposed to work 24/7 all the time.  We are supposed to rest in His goodness.

I learned that when we actually take the time to create space for rest… that He will literally make sure the work we have to get done.. actually does get done.  That we don’t have to do it all… be in control… that He sees us and knows us and is waiting for us to…. Rest!

She does this in those 5 short weeks by briefly having us take small breaks in our days to focus on Him and His goodness.  She then has us looking at the differences in overcommitting and overdoing and analyzing what we say yes to… to what we really should say yes to.

I am going to right now give you permission to say no to the PTA lady that is making you feel guilty to not saying yes to snack time!!!!

My friend.. she is right!  We fill our days up with so much stuff that we don’t allow time in the day to rest!  To reflect on how Good God really is to us… and how He is trustworthy!

Ironically I was going through the study when I was in the middle of building a table with a huge deadline.  I had one shot to get this table done… and everything was stacked against me.  The wood was to wet.  The stain wasn’t soaking in… my timeline was non-flexible and I had no margin for error or a redo.

I knew 2 things…. I wanted to do this study… and God was going to have to pull it all together for me.  So I locked myself in the freezing garage and started to pray and build and pray and build… And it was going pretty good till I lost my focus and started a full-on freak-out.  My husband was the one that had to get me back in focus….

I finished the table and it dried enough for us to transport 800 miles down across states to our daughters’ house.  Where her and our granddaughter got their first ever dining room table of their very own.

I look back at it now and wow… God knew the whole time it would come together.  Interestingly enough… Had I not been in the middle of a study on the sabbath and creating space and time for God… not sure this moment would have turned out as peaceful as it did.  But He pulled it off.

I say He… because this was all God.  There is nothing in me that could have built this thing in that timeline… the way it was.  So as I was going through the study… He was literally giving me a front row seat to a real life visual of handing it over to Him… to work out.. while I focused on Him and took time to worship and love on Him.

He need not say more.

I have learned what my stove knew all along… SABBATH is a good thing.