At every place we have lived I have made sure I was a part of as some type of ladies' Bible study. There's just something special about a group of ladies getting together and studying the Word that thrills me. Here, our church host one on Thursday mornings. But to be honest, I haven't been that happy with it.
Over the years, I have gotten to the point of knowing what works for me. And this set up does not work for me. The class is too big - over 30 ladies, and the majority of the time is spent watching a video.
Don't get me wrong - the teacher on the video is very good - she preaches the Word. But I don't care for her style - too much drama for my taste. But it's just too long - an hour and ten to twenty minutes! There's no time to share, time to visit, time to get to know one another. I will say I'm at a disadvantage as the newcomer - they already know each other's stories. I don't. I was hoping this time would be to build relationships.
About a month ago, I was invited to attend a study at another church. This group is actually an international organization - Bible Study Fellowship. This year they are going through the book of Isaiah. I have attended for about three weeks now and am really enjoying it.
Today I attended my first fellowship - it was nice and relaxing to sit without a lesson to go over and listen to the other ladies talk of their lives and what God is doing in those lives right now.
But I do feel a call to our local church. I'm hoping that in January our church will offer a different study - something that's more to my liking, a smaller group....time to build those relationship that helps grow roots in a community.
That word sums up what I love about ladies Bible study: Community. A place of welcoming hearts, listening hearts - a place to build those relationships that sustain us.
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