A Call to the Body...

Hello Fellow Sojourners -
I just wanted to blog a challenge to all of you guys based on a verse that God showed me this afternoon. Many of you have probably seen these verses before or even committed them to memory, but as God so often does, He really made this passage stand out to me today.

Ephesians 4:11-13 ~ "It was he who gave some to be...pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (emphasis mine)

Here is what God really spoke to me today. First of all, I realize how very thankful we all should be to be a part of a church where both our pastor and our small group teacher are preparing us for works of service!!! Second, I want to challenge you all to pray these verses for our pastor and for Beth as we fit into the body of Christ as Westwood. Pray that God will equip them to prepare us for works of service so that we ALL may be built up until we ALL reach UNITY in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. What an awesome responsibility they have each week, and thus our responsibility is just as great to lift them up before our Heavenly Father. God bless you all this week! I'm praying for you!

Love,

Kim

It's That Time Again...

Hello Fellow Scripture Learners! It is that time again, and I hope all of you are doing well in your pursuit of learning God's word and committing it to memory. I am so excited just seeing what God is doing on this Journey that we are on together. Keep posting and learning - God will reward you.

So, here is my passage for March 15th:

Hebrews 10:35-36

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

Love you all so much! Continue in the faith...

Kim Bryan

" Study to show yourself approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

Hi guys,

I just wanted to send this story along for encouragement to you guys this week. A friend of mine sent it to me, and I thought just how amazing it is - Our God is so awesome. Hope you all are having a wonderful week. God has His eye on you! I also want to thank Andrea for giving me a good, swift kick in the hiney about learning my verses (she didn't do it harshly!). I appreciate her holding me accountable by just asking, "So, have you learned those verses?" That's what it's all about sisters!!! Iron truly does sharpen iron! Love you girls!

Malachi 3:3 says: 'He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.' This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.' She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?' He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it.' If today you are feeling the heat of the fire , remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Time for March verses...

Hello Ladies!

This is the Day that the Lord has made, let us REJOICE and be glad in it!!! Hope you guys are all doing well after such a blessed Lord's day in so many ways! So encouraging to see all of the awesome posts to our BLOG. Our Blog...that sounds great, doesn't it??? Well, I hope you all are settling in to whatever the Lord has for you this week, and I wanted to go ahead and encourage everyone to post their first verse for March as soon as you have the chance. This is just a way for us to stay accountable to each other in this endeavor to put His word in our hearts. I love you all so much and am praying for you that you will be encouraged in Him this week.

Much Love,

Kim

March verse for Kim Bryan

Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Challenge to all ladies on a JOURNEY...

"Study to show yourself approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

Hi guys,
As you all remember from this morning (I hope), we set out a challenge to everyone in the class to memorize 24 verses in the year 2009 - if anyone would like to come up with something besides "24 for 2009" be my guest...I'm just borrowing the name from what Beth Moore is using on their blog spot. I wanted to be the first to let you know the verses that I'm working on for this month and the month that we missed. Please post your verses as soon as you can so that we all can hold each other accountable and maybe you will have a verse that speaks to one of our other sojourners that hasn't chosen hers yet. I love you guys so much and am glad to be a part of this journey with such an amazing group of women.

Here goes:
January :
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 ~ These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

February:
Deuteronomy 6:8-9 ~ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

As of March 1st, we will post our first verse for the month on the 1st (I will send out a reminder) and then on the 15th, we will post our second verse.



Love you guys!

Kim Bryan

The Journey Begins...

Hi Ladies!
Just wanted to let you all know that I love you all and am praying for you this week. I wanted to create a blog that would be available to us all to post encouragement, humor, and just keep us connected throughout our busy weeks until we meet up again in the Lord's house. I can't wait to see what God has in store for each of us...
Let the JOURNEY begin!
Love you all,
Kim