Living With Dependence on God {Delight in the Lord: Week 4}
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
Welcome back to the 4th and final week of the Making Your Home a Haven Bible Study!ย So far we have looked at Delighting in the Lord, Drawing Near to the Lord and our Desires vs. Our Desires for the Lord.ย This weekโs spiritual focus is Dependence.
Join me for Week 4โs video as we discuss Living With Dependence on God โthen pull out your journals and begin!
{If you are reading this in an email or feed โclick here to view the video}
Week 4 โ Dependence
To depend on God is to rely solely on him. When we trust in God, we release our worries and fears to him and in return we experience a deep peace, that is beyond understanding.
We are not saved by works. We are not saved through our prayer life and we are not saved by reading the Bible. We are saved by trusting in Jesusโ work on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. At the core of our faith, is a deep trust and dependence on God. But it seems that after salvation, we have a tendency to get busy serving and striving. Instead of depending on God, we live as if everything depends on us and slowly, we end up drawn away from God.
In Psalm 1:1-3, we are told that a man who is blessed is โlike a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.โ
Where have you planted yourself?
Are you depending on God or are you trying to dig your own wells for water?
Going your own way for a while feels good, but the temporal things of this world will always leave your soul unsatisfied and desiring more. God is our living water and when we plant ourselves by his living water, our inner roots will run deep and we will be strong.
Our relationship with God is more than a devotionalโitโs living with devotion and total dependence on him. We can only experience his peace, when we are trusting that he loves us and is taking care of us.
It takes faith to rest. It takes faith to trust and it takes faith to depend on God. So, letโs be intentional this week and stop striving and start resting in God. Draw near to him, delight in him and let him exchange your desires in your heart, for the desires that he has for you.
Keep walking with the King!
Week 4 โ Challenge
Seek out a place of solitude to get alone with God. Stop your work, turn off your phone, the television, music and computer. Be still. Go outside or find a place in your home, where you can be alone and simply rest and be at peace. Practice the presence of God.
Rest is a needโnot a want. Rest is not optional or something we wait to do when we are retired. Rest is a blessing from the Lord, and it requires humility to admit we need it. Iโll be running a bubble bath and probably taking a much-needed nap this week. Soul care is self- care. So, enjoy it!
{Share your pictures of your favorite place to rest on Instagram by using the hashtags: #MakingYourHomeAHaven and #WomenLivingWell}
ย Here is this weekโs Bible Reading Plan
This Weekโs Verses of the Day:
(Leaders:ย You can use these images in your groups by using right click and โsave asโ or screen shot them.)
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Click HERE to print the Verses of the Day for Week 4.
Hereโs the Daily Bible Reading Plan
Printable Bible Bookmark
Printableย Bible Coloring Bookmark
Signature GMG SOAK Bible Study Method
Video explaining the Bible Coloring and SOAK Methods of Study
Here are the highlighters, pens and pencils I mentioned in the video:
Highlighters โย Acid Free โ Bible Hi-Glider
Fine Line Non-bleeding Pens โย Micron Archival Inkย andย Multi-Colored Gel Pens
Colored Pencils โย Crayola Twistablesย and Crayola Colored Pencils
I use theย ESV Inductive Study Bibleย as my personal study Bible.
Donโt Miss the Daily Check-Ins on Facebook and Instagram!
Join usย EVERY weekday morning ANYTIMEย afterย 7:00amEST on Facebook
to discuss the dayโs reading assignment.
Share pictures of your candles, flowers, playlists and favorite places to rest onย Instagramย by using the hashtags:ย #MakingYourHomeAHaven #DelightintheLord and #WomenLivingWell.
***Unlike my other Bible Studies, this series will only have Monday blog posts.ย For daily encouragement during this challenge follow me out on โ>ย Instagramย andย facebookย .ย Iโll be there every day cheering you on!
Itโs time to slow down and catch up with God.ย Light your candle, give thanks to the Lord, then open Godโs Word and drink deeply from the living well.
Enjoy your walk with the King,
Courtneyย 
If you missed lasts weekโs video โ here it is:
I know this time of the year can be very busy for women,
so I created a 31 Day Christmas Prayer Journal for you!
Peace, Be Stillย is a 31 Day Christmas Prayer Journal
available exclusively onย Amazon.
If youโd like to purchase a printable-digital copy
(so you haveย it right away) at half the price
click the Buy Now button below.
This Journal Contains:
- A weekly Scripture reading about the birth of Jesus
- A daily verse focusing on one of four themes: Jesus as our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.
- A daily thought and observation to help you focus on the verse of the day.
- A daily reflection question, with space to ponder and apply the verse to your life.
- A daily prayer prompt, with space to write out your prayer for the day.
Hereโs a Look Inside:
How is this different from other WLW journals?
1.). This journal is 7 days a week rather than just 5 days a week.
2.) This journal does not use the SOAK method.ย It includes a verse for the day, a thought for the day,ย a reflection question for the day and space to write your daily prayers.
3.) I will not be leading this as a Bible Study on-line.ย But you can do it with friends and use the daily reflection question as a discussion question.
I will be taking a break here on-line during the month of December.ย I am doing some remodeling here on the blog and preparing for some new things coming in the new year!ย So be sure to check back in 2021.ย I canโt wait for you to see!!!
Whatโs next?
Our next study will begin January 11th.ย
More details and resources for this study will be posted soon!
If you are looking to do a Bible Study
during our break hereโs a few I recommend:
Ecclesiastes โ Wisdom for Living Well
A 6-Week In-depth Bible Study with a Free Video Series
With over 150 5-Star Reviews on Amazon โย this is my most popular Bible Study!ย It is aย verse-by-verse in-depth study of the book of Ecclesiastes.ย You can find all of the free resources for this study along with the video series โ->ย HERE.
Ruth โ Godโs Amazing Love for You
A 5-Week In-depth Bible Study with a Free Video Series
This is my second most popular study.ย It is a verse-by verse, in-depth study of the book of Ruth.
You can find all of the free resources for this study along with the video series โ>ย HERE.
Rest and Release
A 4-Week Bible Study with a Free Video Series
You can find all of its resources and the free video seres โโ>ย HERE.
Other books of the Bible
You can find all of the books of the Bible we have already studied together and the free resources to go along with those studies on this page โโ>ย HERE.
I encourage you to pick a book of the Bible and study it on your own and Iโll be back in April to study a new one with you!
Theย 3-Month Habit Trackers are also
available on Amazonย . ย These are a great tool!
Find all the details including interior pics and a blog series to go with them โ->ย HERE.
This post containsย affiliate links.
Hi, thank you for the Study.4 week went by so quickly. ????Now I just gotta figure out which study is next ????Side note, I was reading through the blogpost, and I think there’s a typo above, it says Week 3 Dependence, but Week 3 was Desires. . .
Thank you Courtney. Merry Christmas.
Thank you for this bible study, Courtney! What you teach us rings clear as a bell. I have to tell you, my church has disappointed me lately. There were underlying messages of politics and the feelings of โyou must do this,โ โyou arenโt doing enough,โand โyou should believe thisโ in bible studies and sermons. Not biblical messages at all. Thank you for preaching and teaching the word!
Thankful for u????
Thank you for sharing a much-needed message and pointing us to the Lord daily!
Thank you so much, Courtney, for all you do especially the encouragement to stay close to Jesus! Peace be with you and your family this holiday season. โค๏ธ
Wow! I truly felt the Holy Spirits working through you in Week 4โs video. Thank you for your faithfulness and for obeying God with your life despite the challenges.
God bless you Courtney!
Thank you for putting together this study and the videos. I have really enjoyed doing this. I love the SOAK method! I am even putting together a reading plan of Habakkuk to do with some ladies from church in January and showing them the SOAK method. I am Looking forward to seeing how they enjoy it and we discuss what God shows us. Thank you for all your work!
Courtney, Thank you for your studies. I got a few months behind on this one, but I am going to finish this week! I felt a commonality with you talking about your husband leaving. Mine left too, 6 years ago, and he divorced me about 4 years ago. Thankfully, my 4 children are all grown. I know exactly what you mean about needing to depend on God more fully now. And also how sometimes you do want a man to hug you, to joke with, to help around the house, etc. But God is taking such good care of me and you! Blessings my online friend!!
Laura