Embracing our weakness

by | Last Updated: | Devotional | 5 min read

Embracing Our Weakness

BY BENNETT ROLAN | BSF Blog Editor

Lying in a hospital bed, weighing just 89 pounds, Susan Smith was “a total wreck.”

“I fell apart. Our marriage fell apart,” Susan said. “I was truly at the end of myself.”

For four years, Susan and her husband, Lindley, had cared for their daughter, Elizabeth, who was born severely brain damaged.

“We began an intensive therapy program in our home 16 hours a day, seven days a week, with 200 volunteers from our community helping us around the clock. After four years of this strenuous lifestyle, my marriage failed, Elizabeth’s progress was minimal, and I found myself completely broken,” she said.

As a competent and successful occupational therapist, Susan thought she was prepared for the challenge of meeting the special needs of her daughter after she was born. But being a health-care professional, whose job is to make everyone better, “It just made it worse,” she said. “Without me realizing it, [Elizabeth] had become my god at the expense of everyone and everything.”

In that season of despair, Susan’s entire identity as a wife, mother, friend and professional fell to pieces. Yet while she struggled under the weight of her supposed failure, Susan had no idea the God of grace and mercy was about to change her forever.

A New Beginning

“I finally truly surrendered everything to the Lord,” Susan said. “He gently convicted me of my sin of putting my child before my husband and putting everything above Him.

“I began a slow climb upward with Him leading instead of me. I worked on my relationship with God first, my husband second and discovered a new acceptance of Elizabeth’s condition. It was a two-year process of getting healthy.

“During all of this, a friend invited me to BSF. BSF was the foundation I needed to keep all these relationships healthy and in the correct priority.”

Susan poured into her BSF study. As God transformed her heart, He also transformed her marriage.

Thirty years later, after serving in several BSF leadership roles, including as teaching leader, Susan retired from BSF. Her four children were grown, and as Elizabeth’s needs intensified, Susan took a step back from the ministry she loved.

BSF was the foundation I needed to keep all these relationships healthy and prioritized correctly.

“When Elizabeth started failing health-wise, I didn’t want her to die. I didn’t want to let go of her,” Susan said. “I surrendered to the Lord and re-surrendered. I finally gave her over to God. I had watched her suffer so terribly for years. I finally said, ‘Lord, you’ve got to take her.’ ”

But God still had plans for Elizabeth’s life, and after Susan’s moment of surrender, Elizabeth started to recover.

With a renewed commitment to live each day for God’s glory, Susan and Elizabeth prayed for direction.

“I just tell her, ‘You have to be the one who teaches us to be the hands and feet of Jesus. You are the one we get to serve, and you teach the rest of us how to serve,’ ” Susan said.

A Given Purpose

Since then, Susan and Elizabeth have started several ministries for people with special needs. They have hosted a prom at church, started a line of bath and body products produced by disabled adults and hosted Friday night Bible studies on the family’s farm.

More recently, the two have become involved with a local ministry for women who are recovering from addiction.

“A year and a half ago, a friend brought some of the women to the farm once or twice a week. Elizabeth is a big part of this,” Susan said. “The women learn how to cook, care for goats and chickens, how to work and how to serve. At the time, God was speaking to me more and more about biblical hospitality in Romans 12 and 13, how to open my home and life to others.”

“Elizabeth has the joy of the Lord in her, and they can see that as they work,” Susan said. “We always talk about Matthew 25:40, ‘What you’ve done for the least of these you’ve done for me also.’ ”

An Abundant Life

Through all of this, Susan has discovered what she calls “an abundant life.” Elizabeth’s diagnosis has not changed, and her challenges are just as difficult. But since Elizabeth’s early days in the hospital, Susan’s life has not been her own.

She surrendered her identity as a wife, mother, friend and professional long ago, when it could not rescue her child or sustain her in dark moments. And through the loss of her worldly identity, Susan is complete in Christ.

“I was a strong and resourceful person, but I learned how to submit. I truly came to the end of myself,” she said. “I think that if you’re not in the Word every day, transforming your mind, you have no power. If you aren’t in the Word, you aren’t empowered by the Holy Spirit.”

1 Corinthians 1:25 tells us: “For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

In Susan’s desperation, God’s wisdom was revealed. And in Elizabeth’s condition, His strength is evident.

“I think that if you’re not in the Word every day, transforming your mind, you have no power. If you aren’t in the Word you aren’t empowered by the Holy Spirit.”

Elizabeth’s life and Susan’s work are remarkable, but when asked about her ministry, Susan just says:

“It really isn’t us. I hold on to the fact that God can use the least of these for anything. My flesh struggles, but I know my time is not my own. Abundant life in Him is obeying every step of the way, giving away everything that’s in your fiber, that’s when you know the fulfillment of joy.”

The ‘Why’ Behind the BSF Discussion Group

by | Last Updated: | Christian Living | 4 min read

The ‘Why’ Behind the BSF Discussion Group

By Susie Rowan – Former BSF Executive Director

In the Acts and Letters of the Apostles study, we learn from 1 Corinthians 12:27, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” This chapter teaches us that the Body has many parts, and we desperately need one another. In fact, we grow and are built up in love as people in the body of Christ come together. To be built up in love is the antidote to loneliness and withdrawal.

“From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:6).

We Grow Together

Christian growth accelerates in community, not in isolation. That’s why we are part of a body – the body of Christ, His Church. It requires immersion. We must embrace small-group attendance in our churches and in BSF groups, whether online or face-to-face.

As C.S. Lewis wrote, “He (God) works on us in all sorts of ways. But above all, He works on us through each other. Men are mirrors or carriers of Christ to other men. Usually it is those who know Him that bring Him to others. That is why the church, the whole body of Christians showing Him to one another is so important.”

God uses Christian community to get us off the wrong path and onto a path of righteousness and peace

God also uses Christian community to heal our deep hurts. In community we are forgiven, we are loved, we experience grace. As my pastor said in a recent sermon, “It is through life-giving relationships that God heals the wounds of our hearts.”

The ‘how’ behind a thriving group

At BSF Headquarters, we begin each day in Bible study, sharing and prayer. We gather at tables of six to seven and share what’s going on in our lives – at home, in our families and at work.

In this safe place, I’ve shared my joys, my brokenness, my victories, my defeats. And my colleagues, whom I love more and more each day, share theirs. And we pray for one another. It is a precious time that has allowed each of us to draw closer to God and to one another.

My hope is that deep, transparent, honest and open sharing would happen in every BSF group across the globe. Together, we can find a deeper relationship with God, who heals the wounds of our hearts and compels us to “increase and abound in love for one another and for all …” (1 Thessalonians 3:12).

I pray we would find friends who speak truth to one another in a way that builds us up rather than tears us down. We need to be loved, and we need to be challenged.

So, what is the cure for loneliness and isolation? Christian community! It’s essential for spiritual growth and maturity. When we focus on Christ’s righteousness in place of our shortcomings, we can build caring, encouraging and loving friendships.

What must we do? We must refuse the temptation to withdraw. Yes, questions, notes and other BSF materials are available without regularly coming to class. But what do we lose? We lose one another. My challenge to you is to show up and open up.

Together, let us experience God through one another for His majesty and our maturity!

Susie Rowan

BSF Former Executive Director

Under Susie’s leadership as executive director, BSF membership has grown to serve more than 385,000 adults and 66,000 children worldwide, and the ministry has introduced BSF Online and WordGo Bible study platforms, and four new studies – Isaiah, Revelation, and People of the Promised Land I and II (Part II coming in 2022). Susie and her husband, Roger, have been married for 45 years and have two children, Jerry and Sally, and four grandchildren.

Conquering fear with faith

by | Last Updated: | Devotional | 5 min read

Conquering Fear with Faith

By Bennett Rolan – BSF Editorial Manager

Lying facedown, Joy Machunga was prepared to die. Her leg throbbed after being brutally kicked, but she did not date to move. Shots sounded overhead, and Joy prayed in silence.

“I just said, ‘Lord, take control.’ ”

After several days in Abuja, Nigeria, visiting a BSF class as an area advisor, Joy was on her way home to the city of Jos.

Between Abuja and Jos, bus drivers choose between two routes. One, though longer, is highly populated and typically safe. The other is infamous for gang activity and carjackings. That day, Joy’s driver chose the latter.

“I just assumed without asking that he would take the safer road,” Joy said. “When I realized he was going the other way, I said, ‘Nobody goes that way. It’s shorter by how many minutes? Maybe 30? Is it not better to be safe than arrive somewhere early?’ ”

With mounting concern, Joy texted the BSF teaching leader in Abuja to pray as they continued down the deserted road.

“Five minutes ahead of us, I saw another bus parked on the side of the road, all of their luggage was on the ground,” Joy said. “I thought they probably had a flat tire or engine trouble. Then I saw the man dressed in black with a gun.”

When fear grows

When the bus stopped, one of six gunmen ordered the driver and passengers to lie facedown on the road.

“I pretended I didn’t understand the instruction,” Joy said. “If you are lying on the road, and a car comes at a high speed, that’s very dangerous. So I walked to the side of the road and brought a mother with an 8-month-old baby next to me. We were lying on the ground when they started asking for money.”

When Joy replied that her money was still on the bus, the man kicked her in the leg before retrieving her bag. Minutes later, another car pulled into view, but before the gunmen could target the driver, the car turned and sped in the opposite direction.

“This guy started shooting, and it became very clear to me that these people could shoot or kill anyone here,” Joy said. “I prayed for that car to get away.”

When the car was out of the gunmen’s range, they turned their anger on Joy and her fellow passengers.

“They came back, stood over our heads and started shooting again,” Joy said. “They shot into the air to frighten us.”

Then, without warning, the men ordered the hostages to return to the bus and leave.

Faith can prevail

“Everyone stumbled into the bus,” Joy said. “People were crying, so I said to them, ‘Please don’t cry,’ because I wanted the driver to concentrate. Then I started to think, ‘Let’s give thanks to God because nobody was hurt or shot.’ There were eight people on that bus. Eight families could have been mourning that day. So, I started singing.”

In a confident voice, Joy sang a familiar Nigerian hymn. Two men joined the song, and within minutes their weeping turned to worship.

“We had prayed for safety and protection,” Joy said. “Other people had not been that lucky.”

That night, after thanking God with her husband, Joy slept soundly, and “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding” guarded Joy’s heart and mind in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7). Today, when Joy remembers her experience on the road from Abuja, she prays for a fellow passenger, a young muslim man.

“When we got off the bus, he just said, ‘Thank you, madame, thank you.’ I pray that what happened on that bus and our reaction to what happened would speak to his heart.”

Building a Hebrews 11 faith

Joy’s ability to look beyond her circumstances and trust the Lord is the very definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1:

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

Whether she lived or died, Joy’s confidence was in Jesus. Her assurance was in the one true God, who would never leave her. And her response was to worship and point others to Christ.

Hebrews 11 then lists men and women of remarkable faith throughout Scripture. In a modern version of the chapter, we could easily add someone such as Joy: “By faith, Joy prayed and trusted God, even though her very life was threatened. By faith, she worshipped on the bus as a testimony to God’s goodness and glory. For Joy was looking forward to eternity with Christ and counted her life as nothing compared with Jesus.”

Though her faith is extraordinary, Joy is an ordinary person. Like the men and women of Hebrews 11, she is tempted with worry and fear.

As part of her job for a Christian ministry, she helps fellow Nigerians who have been violently persecuted for their Christian allegiance. During her first visit to a devastated village, Joy felt despair. Months earlier, she questioned God’s plan and purpose during the trying death of her mother.

Through these difficult situations, Joy took time to pray, seek God’s wisdom and ask for increased faith. In all these circumstances, Joy’s “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” was confirmed.

Practicing her faith in tough moments prepared her for that day on the bus. Just as God strengthened Abraham and Moses, He is faithful to build our faith today. For Joy, much of that assurance has come from knowing God intimately through His Word.

“I thank God for the tool of BSF and wisdom to be able to walk through the Word step by step at every level,” Joy said. “I’m so thankful. Knowing about Him and knowing Him for who He is through His Word are different. I’m a living testimony of how practical His Word really is.”

God knows that we cannot develop our faith alone. So in Hebrews 12:1-2, He gives us a simple guidance: In a single sentence, we are told to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

Hebrews 12:3 tells us that, like Joy, when we focus on Christ, we “will not grow weary and lose heart.”

“You have to do what God is calling you to do,” Joy said. “If God is calling you to do it, He’ll take care of it.”

The Surrendered Life

by | Last Updated: | Christian Living | 5 min read

The joy of a surrendered life

By Nate Thoreson – Regional Director, BSF Field Development

Just over a year ago, I was riding a mower across five acres in Idaho, comfortably involved in my BSF class and enjoying a fairly “normal” life.

What a difference a year makes.

In Matthew 4:19, Jesus called the disciples to, “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people.” He asked them to cast down their fishing nets and surrender their jobs, their security and, essentially, their very identities to follow Christ.

When a full-time position with BSF opened, I honestly wasn’t interested. Taking the job would mean moving my family, leaving behind friends and surrendering those things we clung to for security.

But God confirmed through His Word saying, “follow me.”

Since our move to Texas, God has shown me just how full a surrendered life to Him can be, in my own life and in the lives of amazing believers I’ve met along the way.

This past August, I had the opportunity to visit Bangalore, India, where leaders gathered for a simulcast of the first-ever BSF Summit. There, I met living examples of Matthew 4:19 in a community of men and women who consistently cast security aside to follow Christ.

A world apart

Dodging cows and cars, a BSFer named Joseph drove from the airport to the hotel as I took in the contrasts around me: brightly dressed people in front of buildings in need of repair; sprawling skyscrapers next to tiny shacks; beautiful trees and lots of religious temples.

Joseph and I had never met before, yet it was like a family reunion. Joseph and his wife welcomed me into their home and even their son, Abhishek, who is a food blogger, guided me through a true Indian culinary experience.

God’s people in India were a picture of what it looks like to follow Christ …

Ultimately, God’s people in India were a picture of what it looks like to follow Christ, to be changed by Christ and to be on mission with Christ. Once again, God was showing me the joy of a surrendered life.

Against all odds

This year marks 25 years of BSF in India, and despite opposition and persecution, God has opened doors for classes throughout the country. So many of these believers count the cost of following Christ daily and continue to “cast down their nets” to follow Jesus.

Take, for example, the woman who secretly shares the gospel with her children in quiet moments during the day. Despite fear of retribution from her husband, who forbids her from attending church, she faithfully clings to her hope in Christ. Tearful eyes revealed her struggle, but they couldn’t hide her joy through the curve of her smile.

Another couple, Elango and Joan, along with their daughter, Anukripa, and son, Amrit, faced a difficult decision. While walking through the pain of losing Elango’s father, they had to decide if they would participate in the ceremonial burial rites of his extended family’s religion.

At the risk of insults and scorn from an unbelieving village, this family held firmly to their faith. Their love for Jesus was evident as they shared stories of God at work in their own lives and the lives around them. Even in hardship.

Their love for Jesus was evident as they shared stories of God at work in their own lives and the lives around them. Even in hardship.

Embracing the call

For Stephen and Malini in Chennai, India, a painful miscarriage brought about a challenging season of trusting God’s goodness. But, when Malini heard God’s invitation to “make room” for what He wanted to give her and scale back from the busy-ness of that season, she left her work as a school principal and stepped out of her BSF leadership role.

Little did she know that God was making room for a child. Judah, now 8 years old, is a joy-filled reminder of God’s goodness today, even during the most trying seasons of life. Stephen and Malini are still being stretched to surrender to God’s good purposes as Stephen has endured 10 long months of unemployment. But this family’s deep faith shows how God works in every circumstance to bring Himself glory and to change us to reflect His character.

His Witness

Acts 1:8 declares that we will be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. As Christians, we are witnesses of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Today, despite great opposition, men and women of faith are witnessing in India. I’ve seen it. God is using His people in Europe, the United Kingdom, the Gulf and Middle East, Australia and New Zealand, across Asia, and throughout Africa and North America to spread His Word.

Jesus’ mission to “fish for people” is as relevant today as it was for the early church in Acts. But before we can “fish,” we have to follow. What is He calling us to cast aside? How is He asking us to trust Him?

Matthew 28 declares that “All authority in heaven and on earth” has been given to Him. Wherever He sends us, He is in sovereign control. Jesus also promises He will be with us. What great encouragement! Whether we’re in Idaho or India, there is true joy in surrendering to a Savior who loves us deeply.

Introducing Word Go

by | Last Updated: | Articles | 7 min read

WordGo: A New Generation of Bible Study

BY BENNETT ROLAN

BSF BLOG EDITOR

I n 2018, a cross-country move left me feeling lost and alone. I desperately missed fellowship in God’s Word and longed for the BSF group I had left behind.

As the wife of a college football coach, moving to different teams in different states is part of our family rhythm. Whether we move to a small town in the Southeast or a major city in the Midwest, I can depend on a new BSF class to provide friendships grounded in God’s Word wherever my husband’s career takes us.

But BSF is more than just Bible study and fellowship. God uses each study to magnify Himself and mature His people.

Personally, God used the Matthew study to transform a difficult family relationship. He used Revelation to renew my longing for Christ’s return. And in Romans, He affirmed the promise that nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39b).

In the middle of that Romans study, a job change took us to southern Utah, where the closest BSF class was hours away.

Even as I prayed, “Lord, why did you move us here?,” God was planting a seed that would change hearts and impact a community.

Bennett and her family

Introducing WordGo

Just weeks after we moved, I was asked to test a new BSF model called WordGo.

Tapping in to BSF study material and four-fold approach, WordGo is designed to reach primarily young adults, those of us who were raised in a culture that claims, “The Church is outdated,” “The Bible is irrelevant” and “Religion is right if it feels good to you.”

To be honest, I was skeptical. Could the app possibly be as effective as an actual BSF class?

But I prayed, said “yes” and looked for opportunities to invite women to join me in studying God’s Word. Without knowing anyone in our new area, I relied on God to provide participants.

He did. Abundantly.

WordGo brought in-depth Bible study to the Utah desert. It introduced the gospel to several women who were not willing to walk into a church. It brought safe harbor to fellow believers who thirsted deeply for Christian community in a barren land.

Share WordGo

God is on the move

Just eight months after we arrived in Utah, another coaching change moved our family to southern Illinois. Once again, we landed in a town without BSF. But God used a second WordGo test phase to draw several women to Himself.

Our group included two former BSFers, a new believer, a skeptic and an atheist. We explored God’s promises, His power and His commitment to establish His people in the book of Joshua. By the end of our study, one woman tearfully shared how the experience transformed her entire family, and another is planning to be baptized this month!

In Isaiah 55:11, God promises, “(My Word) will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

During the initial tests, WordGo sprang up in unexpected places. Groups gathered in corporate offices, including Facebook’s headquarters, in homes, in coffee shops, college dorms and local churches.

Though the setting, technology and length of studies might look different from a traditional BSF class, the impact of God’s Word is unchanging. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit is not limited to a church sanctuary. I experienced that truth in Utah and Illinois, and I can’t wait to hear how God uses WordGo to reach people with His Word.

“For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joint and marrow …” – Hebrews 4:12

What is WordGo?

WordGo offers the questions, notes, lectures and training materials we love in a mobile app so people can launch a study with their friends anytime, anywhere. At the outset, WordGo offers Joshua, Ruth and Acts 1-5 in a library of studies that will steadily grow.

How is it different from a BSF class?

WordGo is designed to meet unique needs, targeting those who aren’t able or willing to attend a traditional BSF class. The app meets many of the needs BSFers have been voicing for years, especially for the rising generation of believers.

With the app, people can start study groups. As Group Guides, they can:

· Start anytime, without a waiting list.

· Invite friends easily through the app.

· Benefit from online training resources and continued support to keep the group on track, all from within the app.

· Keep members updated with any location, date or time changes by sending notifications.

Group members can:

· Customize daily study content to a specific number of minutes per day.

· Receive study reminders and notifications to stay focused and on track.

· Store notes, thoughts and study answers to be used during group discussion.

· Study on the go by listening to custom Bible teaching, audio notes and a built-in audio Bible.

Pray for WordGo

Who can start a WordGo group?

Unlike planting a BSF class, which can take years, WordGo accelerates that process by allowing anyone interested in leading a group to access the app. WordGo Group Guides are simply focused on inviting members and hosting the group.

We believe God will faithfully call, equip and convict the men and women who are committed to facilitate these studies. The material remains true to God’s Word, regardless of cultural context. The four-fold approach ensures that those studying with WordGo do not depart from the text.

Will you partner with us?

There are three things we would like to ask you, the leaders and members of BSF classes, to prayerfully consider:

Share WordGo

Right now, as you read this, can you think of someone with whom you could share WordGo? A friend? A family member? Someone from church? Or work? Who are the people in your life that are hungry for God’s Word and would enjoy the opportunity to gather a few friends for a study?

Share

Pray for WordGo

Would you commit to pray for the ministry and impact of WordGo? Join the WordGo prayer list for regular info and prayer requests.

Pray

Give to WordGo

Would you like to support this new ministry of BSF as we move to reach and resource believers around the world with in-depth Bible study? Your support of this new ministry will help BSF reach and equip new believers around the world with in-depth Bible study.

Give

Find out more

“It happened in BSF…”

by | Last Updated: | Devotional | 3 min read

“It happened in BSF … “

By Casey Santos – Teaching Leader, Florida

Sometimes God gives us glimpses into His personal work in someone else’s heart … and we realize from a different perspective just how magnificent He is.

“He is always proving to me that He doesn’t need my help executing His perfect plan… although I often assume that He does. Motherhood humbles me daily and sets before me a constant choice: trust the Holy Spirit’s power to capture and transform my children’s hearts–or try and do it myself. All too often I choose the latter.

“This past fall, our Day Women’s Class launched a School Program. I was so excited because my son was entering sixth grade, and I planned on homeschooling him for the very first time. Every Tuesday morning he would be up early, dressed and ready for BSF before I was! We would have such funny conversations about all he was learning.

“Then in Leader’s Meeting, I got to hear the prayers of his children’s leaders while, at home, I watched God answer them IN my son!

“A few weeks after the People of the Promised Land 1 study year had ended, Joshua began talking more and more about getting baptized. He practically ran up when our pastor gave an invitation one Sunday. When prompted to give a date for surrendering his life to Christ, he looked at me questioningly, ‘But what if I don’t know the exact date?’ So I asked him, ‘When did Jesus become real to you, Joshua? Like when did you understand why and how much you need Him to be in charge of your heart?’

“And this is what he said: ‘To be honest, Mom, it happened in BSF.’

“So he wrote down September 2018 on his little card and walked up to the water. It was honestly somewhat surreal. For the first time … maybe ever … I truly felt like this boy in front of me wasn’t mine at all. He wasn’t concerned about anything other than proclaiming whose he was … and the joy on his face as he came up out of that water proved to me there is NO ONE LIKE OUR GOD!!

“BSF didn’t save my son … but it was the place where he felt safe to ask questions and to discover the truth about his own sinful heart.

It challenged him in ways that made him see God in a different light. It taught him why his faith needed to be his own – not the faith of his parents or anybody else.”

There truly is no one like our God!

BSF and its impact on lives such as Joshua’s are only possible because of God’s faithful provision through the generosity of people such as you – class members, volunteers and supporters.
We operate by faith on the generosity of members and friends. Every contribution helps our ministry continue to share God’s unchanging Word year after year. The end of the year provides giving opportunities to take advantage of tax-favored methods, such as gifts of stock or gifts from IRAs.

For more information, visit bsfinternational.org.
Thank you for your continued prayers and generosity as we seek to magnify God and mature His people together.