Disciple Bible Study

What Disciple Bible Study Meant to Me

Most people really don't know much about the Bible even if they've been around it all their life. They've never committed the time or resources necessary to acquire a good understanding of what the Bible actually says.

Completing a Disciple course clarifies what the Bible says personally to each participant. Read the following expressions of those new understandings.

A New Beginning!

By Roy Smith

Our Disciple class has had a profound influence on my life. Joanie and I made the decision to study the Bible together; neither of us having ever devoted sufficient time nor energy to that worthy endeavor. In retrospect, I see that this class is really the beginning of our journey of faith.

I now understand more completely the teachings of the Scripture; particularly as they apply to everyday life. Joanie and I also have experienced an enrichment of our marriage as a result of spending this time together, sharing the wonder of a spiritual awakening.

The group discussions interpreting our weekly assignments were revealing and stimulating intellectually. Beyond that, I derived much comfort from our small community of faith. Though we come from varied backgrounds, our questions, fears, hopes, and weaknesses are the same. Put into cultural and historical context, the Bible is a study of humanity and our evolving relationship with God. We are all searching for spiritual oneness with God.

Through Jesus Christ's perfect blood sacrifice, our sins have been forgiven. Our guidelines for Christian conduct were conveyed by Christ through His Sermon on the Mount. We are called to do good works as acts of faith. As a new Disciple, I draw strength from John 14:12 - "Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do, and in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father."

We must always remember, God has made us competent to be "salty" ministers of the new covenant, for His spirit is written on the tablets of our hearts.

You'll Never Regret It

By Heather Lourcey

It is difficult to put into words what I have personally gained from taking Disciple Bible Study. I will, however, endeavor to try so that I might convince you to also take this class.

Prior to this year, I had reached a place in my Christian walk in which I desired to know more about the Bible. As many others, I'm sure, I had attempted on my own to read the Bible from "cover to cover," but of course had failed in both getting through the material and in gaining insight into what God was trying to say to me through the written word. So, a structured class was appealing to me and I signed up.

I must say that the most daunting part was committing to 34 weeks; it seemed like a lifetime. Now, after a year, it feels like it was no time at all. I have, in fact, a feeling of sadness that my time in Disciple is complete. I have no regrets. Disciple was one of the best things I have every done.

What I gained was not just a deeper understanding of the Bible, it was a greater understanding of myself and my relationship with God and other people. This class cut through the distorted stories of my youth and went straight to the heart of my faith. I gained two insights that have changed how I live my life. The first is that sin does not rule my life, Jesus does. In other words, despite the fact that I am sinful by nature, God has given me freedom from that sin. Everyday I can leave sin behind and try to walk Christ's walk. The second, and the thing I feel has had the greatest impact on me, is that Christianity and my own faith is not about what I am going to get when I die, but how I live the life I have now everyday! I can take the love God has given me and spread it around to everyone I meet. And that is exactly what I plan to do.

My prayer is that you will take the opportunity and experience Disciple Bible Study for yourself. You will never regret it!

Opportunity Fulfilled

By Carolyn Foster

The degree of benefit from your Bible study will more than equal the time you put into it. You are rewarded in different ways as you reach out to interact with other members of your Disciple group. The discipline involved in Bible study and being present for your weekly meetings bring you to confront the question of what is truly important to you. I found my faith growing as I sought to understand my daily Bible reading. The leaders of our Disciple-I group, Charlie Allison and Dan Morgan, were examples to all of us in the dedication to Christian fellowship in spite of family and job obligations. Jesus said in Matthew 7:7 "Ask and it will be given you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you." Disciple-I gave me this opportunity.

Blessed

By Joanie Smith

I feel so blessed! Disciple class was a wonderful experience on many different levels.

First, I completed reading the Bible and I feel so proud and accomplished. Of course, the weeks of study illustrated how much more reading is yet to come in regard to this great and wondrous mystery.

Secondly, I find it much easier to talk to God. He is indeed right beside me always and for the first time I am confident in the covenant and its meaning. I don't think I found God, sin, and our Savior easily approachable until I committed myself to this year of study and introspection.

Thirdly, I have renewed my spirit in serving and in seeing how our classmates are prepared to serve. We learned much about each other - how we are different and alike - saints and sinners, all of us.

But finally, it has enabled me to feel a new closeness to my husband since we studied together. Now we have a more spiritual marriage - a wonderful bond for our children to emulate.

Reawakening

I have grown up in the church, and I thought I knew what the Bible was all about. But through the course of this comprehensive and intense Bible study, I came to such a personal reawakening and recharging of my Christian life! My leaders were wise and gentle and my group was full of caring, compassionate souls that I came to view as my extended family. I was allowed into their lives for 9 months and I am so blessed for the experience.

I learned to step out of my comfort zone in my walk with Christ, and to reach out to the least, the lost, the last, and the lonely. I also learned to true meaning of love and tolerance and acceptance, and I learned how to interpret scripture for relevance in my life. I have been reminded again and again of the overwhelming love and power that is ours through Christ and the need for a daily relationship and prayer life with Christ.

This was an extremely busy year with my school, family, and volunteer activities. Disciple helped to keep me grounded, a time of calmness and peace through the storm!

My New Life

By Tracie Davis

I had always considered myself to be a Christian. After all, I attended church on a regular basis. Doesn't that act of attending church qualify me to carry that title?

Those were my thoughts three years ago before my participation in Disciple Bible Studies. But now ... oh, how beautiful my life is, how different my thoughts are.

Each one of us has been given different gifts by God, empowered through His Holy Spirit. It is our responsibility to find that gift or gifts. There are many who devote numerous hours to further God's kingdom. There are others who devote less time, but it is no less of a gift. And there are those whose gifts are given on those Sundays once every week.

My mistake in my once a week church attendance was that I freely received without giving of myself in some way. I just didn't have anymore time to give. My excuses were plentiful ranging from my health, my lack of time, energy spent on my job, my spouse, my children. It wasn't until after Disciple Bible Study that I realized how much time I unselfishly gave to my spouse, children, education...but not to God. Why...I had spent years educating myself in order to provide a good and honest living for me and my family. But how much time had I devoted to educating myself about God's love for me, about Jesus' unselfish sacrifice for me, about how God provides His Holy Spirit to enable us to live His way?

When I finally realized what had been lacking in my life, and I put those gifts to work, I was enabled to give even more to my spouse and children. I was enabled to give to them what really mattered.

With the studying of God's word, I have obtained a faith that is imperishable. This required a lot of time and patience to allow God to control my every thought, every decision making process; but the peace graciously given to me is the "Peace that surpasses all understanding."

"For it is by grace you have been saved, though faith-and this is not through yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no on can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:8-10

Have you committed yourself to fulfilling God's promise?

Closer To G0d

By Rick Davis

At the beginning of our class, I had many questions about the Bible, God and the teachings of Christ. Though there is so much more to learn, I know I have been blessed with a much greater understanding than I thought possible. I would like to thank each and every one of you for helping me in my quest to understand our Christian religion and all its great beauty.

Of all the questions I had, the most perplexing was, the who, what and where is, the Holy Spirit. I had no idea the answer to one question could make such a difference in my life.

When I heard the Holy Spirit explained as the "Breath of God or the Touch of God" it was as if the Lord thumped me in the head and asked, "Get It?" And then Dick suggested that when Jesus said, "The kingdom of Heaven is at hand," our Lord was saying it is here, it is now, it is today; if we do God's will and open up our hearts to Him. Well, I got thump number two.

The next morning, while enjoying my morning prayers during my drive to work, and yes I do pray and drive with my eyes open, I felt the touch of God, and it was wonderful!! It was also much too fleeting as my old thoughts and habits took back over, and the work day continued.

Since then, it has been a daily journey for me as I work to open myself to my Father, to His will, and to His beloved Son. Though set-backs are many, each day, each week, I gain a little ground. A few more walls come down, a little more peace enters my spirit, and I grow a little closer to my Father.

Thankful

By Randi Carter

Have nine months really passed so quickly? Our group's fellowship, built around studying, discussion, prayer and trust in the Holy Spirit's lead, makes new friends seem as if we had known each other much longer.

How reassuring it is to know that through our differences, the uniting link is our belief in Christ Our Lord and our desire to know His word. As we seek to define our various gifts, may the unity focused on by our leaders be enhanced by the diversity of our talents--all to the glory of God.

I am thankful that FUMCR makes Disciple available. It is a rich blessing and, like God's abundant grace, is there for the taking.

Special thanks to Don Jenkins and Donna Patterson for their leadership and preparedness.

A Broader Vision

By Charles F. Shaffer

I am now about to complete the Disciple-II study and I must express my utmost thanks to the Disciple program coordinator, LaRuth Morrow, and my instructors, Jeanne Brewer and Joanna Tebrinke, for helping enrich my spiritual needs. I am grateful to the women and men of Disciple-II, who shared their thoughts and prayers throughout the past year. Many times I felt the power of the Holy Spirit's presence in our weekly fellowship classes. This power enabled us to share our opinions and experiences. The sharing of difficult Bible passages among us was very comforting.

Studying The Acts was especially rewarding since it showed in detail how deep the faith was of our founding fathers. Only the faith and love of Christ and the Holy Spirit could have kept Christianity alive through these formative years. We owe our spiritual being to Paul and those courageous, faithful people who first witnessed for Christ to the Gentiles. Where would we be today and what kind of world would we be living in without the love of Jesus Christ? The Disciple classes have made me more aware of how fortunate we are to have had the early Apostolic Christian ministry spread and grow. It is through the present Disciple Study Program that we can continue carrying out the early Christian ministry.

I encourage everyone to make an effort to enroll in this ministry. Do not be afraid. If I could do it, you can do it. I look forward to enrolling in the Disciple-III study this coming fall.

Standing Firm

By Mary Kay Thompson

WOW! What an exciting experience Disciple Bible Study was. In the church, I have shared joys and sorrows, worked, eaten and played together. My relationships through the church will last a lifetime and has made it possible for me to do together what I alone could never do. Disciple Bible Study is like that. We came together as a group, with the insightful input of our capable leaders and eager "students," to share and rethink and develop further understanding of the Bible. I was emotionally and spiritually uplifted by DBS. When I ignore my spiritual needs something is surely missing in my life. I realized, through DBS, that Bible study need not be mysterious and overwhelming. DBS made the reading and studying God's word come to life. First Corinthians has important messages for me. 15:58 "So then, my dear brothers, stand firm and steady. Keep busy always in your work for the Lord, since you know that nothing you do in the Lord's service is ever useless." 16:13 "Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be brave, be strong. Do all your work in love." Staying focused in your faith is the key to being spiritually healthy. This course will not make you a Bible scholar but it surely will whet your Biblical appetite to further study and I am looking forward to the next course in Disciple Bible Study.

A New Journey

By Judi Davis

Before I enrolled in Disciple-I class, I knew very little about the Bible. Like stories of Christmas and Easter, Noah's Ark, and Charlton Heston in the Ten Commandments. If that tells you anything about me, you can see I had a lot to learn. This class gave me the opportunity to do so.

The reading lessons of the Bible were amazing to me. I felt like I was finally getting to know the Bible and the people in it. WOW! Our leaders, Charlie Allison and Dan Morgan, kept our super-duper class going full steam ahead. Every week was an enlightenment to our group.

As our 34 weeks together are coming to an end, I hope that what I've learned is just the beginning of learning and understanding more. Disciple-I has its impact on the big picture of long ago and here we are today. Now what? Hopefully I can use what I've absorbed so far and be a disciple to others in some way, shape, or form. I do know that I want to continue the Disciple classes. It is well worth the time and commitment.

Rewarding Experience

By Gwen Jones

All of my adult life I have wanted to participate in a Bible Study group, and regrettably never pursued doing so until now. Disciple has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Not only have the leaders, Donna Patterson and Don Jenkins, been so fully giving of their time, so dedicated, so knowledgeable and helpful, but the fellowship, love, caring and concern among all participants in the group has been so rewarding. These are friends I will never forget. Thanks for making Disciple available for me at this time in my life.

Sharing God's Love

By Ouida Rippy

My pursuit of Christian studies through the Church was interrupted for ten years due to sickness in my family. Although I studied the Bible during that time, much of it was difficult for me to understand.

After my husband and I were able to return to Church and Sunday School we had the opportunity to sign up for Disciple Bible Study. Completing Disciple-I was very exciting for me because I was studying the Bible with my husband, and much of what I had difficulty in understanding before became clear to me. Both my husband and I got so much out of the class that we looked forward to participating in Disciple-II. I can honestly say that Disciple-II was every bit as important to our growth as Christians as Disciple-I had been.

I believe that the most exciting part of the Bible Study was how the teachers and each student shared God's love with one another. The teachers and the students have touched my heart in a very special way. The response of each one in the class was different, but the common element was always God's love in Christian fellowship and a common desire to learn more about God's plan for each of us.

No matter how low or how high you stand in your Christian knowledge, this Disciple Bible Study is designed to promote your growth as a Christian. I am confident that the learning experience provided by the Disciple classes has enabled me to become a more knowledgeable and effective Disciple of God. I look forward to the start of Disciple-III, and I strongly encourage anyone interested in expanding their Christian knowledge and understanding to take part in the Disciple classes.