James: Mercy Triumphs

Since moving to New York, I wouldn't say that I've been the best about pursuing opportunities to dig deeper into the Bible...Mostly because there are not a lot of opportunities offered here. When you live in the Bible Belt, you become very accustomed to having an abundance (sometimes, overabundance) of resources to help you along in your personal walk with God. In the past, I've participated in Beth Moore studies, Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), home groups associated with a church and accountability groups with close girlfriends. I remember at one point feeling over-extended in my "extra-curricular" Christian activities while living in Dallas! But they were all amazing, and pivotal instruments in strengthening my knowledge and my personal faith. I am thankful for them and have really missed having those opportunities available to me in my local area here.

It's hard to explain in words, but I never noticed how uplifting it was to be surrounded by other believers until I wasn't. A void became apparent and I realized how much I valued the time spent simply sitting with another believer and talking about Jesus. I think about the times in my life when I did this daily with other believers and I look forward to a time in the future when I will do it again. There is just so much joy to be found in Christ, and it's so uplifting to see that in someone else's life, as well as to speak about it in your own!

So, needless to say, with no local women's bible studies and a very small local Christian community, I haven't successfully been a part of a good, deep study of the Word in the past two years. It's so much easier to simply sign up and attend a study then to create one for yourself. Excuses, be gone. A few weeks ago, when my mom came in town for a visit, she mentioned that she had just finished the Beth Moore study of James. She suggested that I go through the study myself, since I've really missed having the opportunity to do group study's while living here in New York.

My initial thought was that I wouldn't get the benefit of the entire study because I wouldn't be watching videos and meeting with a group for discussion. I basically didn't know if it would seem choppy because I'd be missing parts. But I decided to give it a shot and do the weekly lessons without the videos or group discussion. Oh, what a blessing it has been so far.

I not only feel my knowledge of the Bible increasing already, but I feel like I'm being obedient to God's desire for us to continually seek Him. I hope this post doesn't sound like I'm being prideful in my study of James. If anything, it's a reminder that it's very easy to fall out of daily seeking the Lord when you aren't surrounded by it. And mostly, it's an encouragement that if you live somewhere that Christianity is not mainstream and you feel drained by the lack of resources...there are options. Technology and Amazon are beautiful things. I would encourage this study for any of you in a similar situation. I may not be getting the "full effect" of the study, and I may not be able to see and comment on Beth Moore's outfits during her videos but I'm learning so much and feel such a quenching of thirst.