This study guide includes:
• Individual access to 6 streaming video sessions
• Discussion and reflection questions with video notes
• Personal study for between sessions
• Leader's Guide
Jesus instructed his followers, "Abide in Me.. as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me" (John 14:4 NKJV). We were created to abide with God. Our heavenly Father, through his very nature, is relational. He has designed us to walk with him in an intimate relationship.
Followers of Christ abide with him the way a branch dwells on a vine-in a life-sustaining connection. We consume his Word through Scripture engagement and, as we do so, learn God's love and his designs for us. But often the difficulty is where to start and how to form this unique connection with our heavenly Father. After all, interacting with God is different than interacting with other humans on earth. Furthermore, one style of experiencing this type of relationship with God does not fit all. We each have unique ways that appeal to us of meeting with God.
The Abide Bible Course is designed to expose participants to different methods of interacting with God that Christ-followers have pursued throughout the ages. Each of these practices is firmly grounded in encountering God through Scripture. This is because the Bible is the authoritative "word" of God-the story that He provided so we can meet, know, love, and obey Him. Scripture gives us access to the very heart and mind of God. Keeping this in mind, participants in the course will explore the following methods of engaging with Scripture:
• Contemplate: Participants learn a practice in the church known as lectio divina, which involves reading, meditating on, and praying through a passage. This practice allows them to reflect more deeply on specific passages, take time to experience God's presence, and pray according to what they discover.
• Journal: Participants are guided on how to record their thoughts and feelings in response to a passage from the Bible. This practice allows them to open themselves to God's voice as they ponder the text.
• Identify: Participants follow a method recommended by Ignatius in which they place themselves within a biblical narrative or text. This practice allows them to imagine the sights, sounds, and smells of the event.
• Pray: Participants are encouraged to follow another long-standing tradition in the church by praying back a particular passage of Scripture to God. This practice allows them to personalize the text for their own unique situation and gain language for the thoughts and emotions they want to express to the Lord.
• Picture: Participants examine a particular work of famous art-paintings, drawings, sculptures-that are based on a text or theme in the Bible and record their responses. This practice enables them to see the events of the biblical text in a different way than they might have previously considered it.
In the opening session, participants will be provided with an overview to these various methods, the format of the study, and the special "guest speakers" that will be featured in each session. In this manner, they will come to discover which of these particular techniques work the best for them... and which do not. They will be encouraged to make these preferred methods a part of their daily practicing in engaging with God and abiding in his Word. As they do, they will discover-in the words of one psalmist, "How blessed is the one who... finds pleasure in obeying the Lord's commands, he meditates on his commands day and night" (Psalm 1:1—2 NET).
