SIP Bible Study: When We don't Understand

{Please let me know if the lines to fill in the blanks are too small. It's hard to tell! To print Bible Studies, scroll down to the print the SIP Bible Studies section, you can click on the Bible study you wish to print. this makes the Bible study stand alone so you don't have to print the whole blog! :) Why? It doesn't make sense! I don't understand! How many times do we say those words? Things just happen in life that we can't understand. People we love hurt and offend us, people die, while others live. Why? I have come to the conclusion that I can't understand everything, especially everything that God does because His thoughts are not my thoughts and His ways are not my ways. God's ways are perfect. Psalms 145:17 says:"The Lord is righteous in all His ways and holy in all His works." It's hard to have faith an believe that God's ways are perfect when life is rough, and I don't understand. But, I have to have faith an believe that there is a reason for this, even though I may never know the reason! In this Bible study, I want to study some people and what they did in the times they didn't understand. In the Study we will be reading from: ::Luke 1 ::Genesis 39 ::Esther 2 ::Mary:: Read: Luke 1:26-55 I get goosebumps when I read this passage! It's so amazing, so miraculous and so wonderful! Read verse 38 again. Mary said to the angel: "Behold the ______________of the Lord; be it ___________ _____ according ____ _____________ ____________." Isn't it amazing the acceptance she had? No wonder God chose her to be the mother of His son! Can you imagine being Mary? she was a young woman not much older than you or I, and an angel came and told her she was to have a baby, God's son, before she was married! Sometimes I wonder why God didn't wait until Mary and Joseph were married, can you imagine what Mary probably went through in her society because she was with child? Can you imagine the feeling she had? How hard it must have been for her; and she probably knew it would be hard when the angel told her the news, but she still accepted with faith and trust, the job God gave her of carrying His son. The reason God didn't wait until they were married was because He wanted to preform a miracle of sending Jesus to be born of a virgin, without man's blood, it was pure and a miracle that only God could do! Another thing that is so amazing about Mary's attitude in a time she didn't understand, is that she PRAISED! She was so rejoicing and full that she had to go tell someone about what the angel said! {v. 39-40} Read verses 46- 55 {V. 46.} "My soul doth__________________ the Lord, {V.47} And my spirit hath_________________ in ______________ my ________________." if you want to, you can get a separate piece of paper and write out Mary's whole praise prayer. It does something wonderful for your heart! I hope someday I'll be able to praise God with such beautiful words! Isn't that amazing? I don't praise as much as I should when I am in a time when things are hard. I am praying that God will help me praise Him more in those times, I need to focus on Him, not my trial, or the thing I'm not understanding. Instead of mulling the problem over in my head saying, "I don't understand, what do I do? why in the world did that have to happen?" I want my head to be filled with praising God, and that's what will give me strength to move on and God will help me see what to do if I keep my focus on Him. Another thing about Mary is that she BELIEVED! It's so hard to believe what God says sometimes. She believed what the Angel said, and she didn't doubt it! Its hard to really believe. Yea, I know God could do it, but do I really believe He'll do what He says? Read Verse 45 "..."Blessed is she that _________________: for there ____________ ______ a ______________________of those things which were told her _______ ______ ___________." When we believe, that's when the Lord really works! One last verse on Mary: Read Verse 37 "For____________ God _______________ shall be ___________________." ::Joseph:: Joseph was his fathers favorite son, and that of course, made his brothers jealous! So, one day, they threw him into a pit, and decided to sell him to the Ishmeelites, who were merchants taking their goods to Egypt. Then, while Joseph was on His way to Egypt, his brothers took his coat, dipped it in blood, and told their father he had been eaten by a wild animal. {Genesis 37: 23-34} Read Genesis 39:1-6 Joseph probably didn't know what was going to happen to him, as he was on his way to Egypt. He probably didn't understand why, and he wondered if he would ever see his family again. Read verse 1 When Joseph got to Egypt, He was bought by _________________. Read verse 2 "And the Lord was _____________ ________________, and he was a_________________ man"........... I see in these verses that Joseph SERVED God, where God had placed him. God had placed him in Egypt, an very tough place to be, and now he was a servant and an overseer in Potiphar's house far away from his family. Did Joseph sit around and mope? No, he got to work serving God, and God blessed all that he did, and it prospered! Read Verse 20- 23 Even in prison He found a way to serve God, and because of that He even prospered in prison! {V 23} "The keeper of the prison looked not to _____________________ that was under his hand; because_______ ____________ was ___________ ___________, and that which he did, the __________ made it _____ __________________." Sometimes, we feel like we're in "prison". Things are unjust, we don't understand, or we're tired and down. But I know that I need to keep my focus on God, and do my best to serve him where I am, even during a "prison" time. It sometimes is during a "prison time" that I'll be amazed at how much strength I had from God, so I could serve him! I look back and I can't believe what He did for me! I wonder if Joseph felt the same way? Joseph didn't stay in prison, he once again was able to serve in Pharaoh's house. Joesph grew and learned in prison, and because of this, he was made a stronger man, and it helped him face the days ahead: Joseph had to store up plenty of food for the famine that was coming! God used him to save people, including his brothers, from starvation. Remember, the prison you may be in now, if you let it, it will strengthen you for what God has in store for you later! Esther In chapter 1 of Esther, King Ahasuarus had a feast, and his queen Vashti also had a feast with the women. As the king feasted on luscious food, and drank cups of wine, he soon got drunk. The Bible says when his heart was merry with wine, he asked that Vashti be brought before everyone with the crown on her head. Vashti was beautiful and Ahasuarus wanted to show her off. When the servants went and told Vashti that the king wanted her to come before everyone, she refused. Because Vashti defied the king, the crown was taken from her and she was sent away. Soon, the king asked that there be a search for beautiful women, and that they bring them into the palace to be purified, and brought before the king. Read Esther 2: 5-6 Esther was a ____________. Read Esther 2:7 Esther's Jewish name was:____________________. Esther's cousin___________________ brought her up because _____________________________________ ____________________________________. Esther was ________________ and ___________________. Read verse 8 Esther had to go with the rest of the women, she had no choice. Can you imagine being taken away from your family? To go live at the palace, not knowing whether you would ever see your family again. How awful. I wonder how Esther felt when she went to the palace. I'm sure she didn't understand. Why? She didn't want her life to end up like this! what would happen to her? Read Verse 9 "And the maiden ___________________him; and she obtained the ________________ of him......." Read the last sentence of verse 15 ......."And Esther obtained the _________________of ________ them that looked upon her." One thing I noticed about Esther is that she was still kind and pleasant, even at the time she didn't understand, and when she didn't know what was going to happen to her. She didn't let circumstances ruin her character and attitude. People loved her and she found favour with everyone. Read verse 12. Esther spent a year at the palace getting prettied up and pampered to go and see the king. She had to wait that long! Sometimes when we don't understand, and when we don't know what to do, we need to wait. Wait and pray, and God will show us what to do. All that time of waiting and getting ready to meet the king was probably a strengthening experience for Esther. I'm sure she learned alot about trusting God, and what to do when your in a situation you don't understand! This probably strengthened her for what she would have to do later to save her people! Read verse 17 She even obtained the _____________ and ______________ of the king! He loved her over all the other women and chose her to be queen! Later, God used Esther to save her people from a decree that would have wiped out every Jew in the land. We see that God allowed Esther to be queen because she saved her people! If she hadn't of been queen, her family and people would have died. We don't always see why, and there are some things we will never find answers to like Esther did. Like these people we studied here, during a time we don't understand we need to:______________, ______________, ____________, _______________. Is there anything else you saw from these people that we need to do when we don't understand? _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ God's ways are higher then our ways, and He has a plan and reason for everything that happens. God has given us His word to understand Him better, but His ways are past finding out for us as humans! As much as we learn of Him, we'll never really find out why He allows things to happen. There are so many things in my life I don't understand right now, but I am just learning what to do as I go on. I know that all these things Will not matter some day when I see Jesus! Eerything will be behind me and I won't care about figuring out why,I'll just be so glad to be there! Some last verses to read: Proverbs 20:24 Phillipians 1:12 Psalm 130:5 Mathew 9:28 ::Time to review! :: When the angel came to Mary and told her she was to carry God's son, how did she react? ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ In part of Mary's praise she said: Underline the correct answer(s) "My soul doth (Praise, hope, magnify, see) the Lord, and my spirit hath (believed, loved, joyed, rejoiced) in God my Savior." When we _______________ that's when the Lord really works! In the time Mary didn't understand, what did she do? _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ Underline the correct answer(s): Joseph (loved, pleased, cared, served, obeyed,) God where God had placed him, even during a time when he didn't understand. God _____________ all that Joseph did. A "prison time" may be a time when: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ The "prison" you may be in now, if you ___________ ________, it will ______________________you for what God has for you ______________________! What do we need to do when we are in a "prison time"? ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ Esther was still _______________ and ________________, even at a time when she didn't understand or know what would happen to her. Esther obtained the favour of ________ that looked upon her. Esther ddin't let her______________________ ruin her___________________ and _____________________. Esther had to wait a ____________. Esther obtained the ____________ and _______________ of who? Underline the correct answer(s) : Haman, the king, Mordacai Sometimes when we don't understand and we don't know what to do we need to: Underline the correct answer(s): Rest, pray,cough, laugh, wait. God has a ___________ and a ________________ for everything that happens. His ways are ____________ ______________ ____________. As much as we learn of Him we will never find out really _____________________ ___________________________________.