If you’d like to join in the book club, we would love to have you! This is the first week that we are talking about the book Journeys of Faithfulness by Sarah Clarkson, a great book for moms and girls to read together. You can find the reading schedule for the 12 week book club at the end of this post, along with additional printables for each week.
I really cannot wait to hear your thoughts on this initial chapter of Journeys of Faithfulness. When I first heard about the book this summer, I wasn’t sure what to expect ~ and truthfully, it wasn’t at all what I had envisioned in my mind. BUT I absolutely love how Sarah has taken stories that we all know from the Bible and breathed a fresh perspective into them. Not in a way that goes against it in any way, but giving us a different way to think about the back story behind the characters – a peek into the lives of women we’re familiar with.
Learning to See
This week we caught a glimpse into the lives of Mary and Martha, two sisters whose story we know well. Mary was the sister who loved deeply and chose to sit at the feet of Jesus, soaking in all that she could. Martha was the busy sister who was so caught up in the business of doing that she missed the ‘being’.
In my life, I admit that I most relate to Martha – checking off my ‘to do’ lists and always feeling that I must prove myself to others {and God}. What I love most about this passage though is how Jesus responds to Martha’s clamor for attention and her need to be right.
“He didn’t denigrate work or dishonor Martha for the good work she did. His concern was to make Martha understand where she truly belongs. The rightful place of any heart in this world is to sit in rapt adoration at the feet of God.”
~ Journeys of Faithfulness, p. 23
What is it that holds us back from confidently pushing all aside to just sit and ‘be’ with our God? To dwell in His presence? For me, I know that fear is something that keeps me from fully letting go and holding onto all that God has. Fear of failure. Fear of losing control. Both of which are completely ironic because I know how fully and deeply my God cares for me and loves me.
Undeniably. I am HIS and He has shown me that time and time again. The fear is irrational {I know}. This chapter really spoke to my heart and one of the verse passages for Bible study is one that makes me cry {and smile} each time I read it.
“So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith – that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:14-19
My goal this week is to sit. Rest. And bask in the fact that God who loves me beyond our greatest understanding.
Can I encourage you to do the same?
A Few Book Club Links
Be sure to download a copy of the journal pages to go along with the book. For those of you reading on a Kindle or reading with your daughters, these will come in handy! Each week, I’ll be sharing the printables for the next week, so check back weekly for updates.
~ Journeys of Faithfulness book club Facebook page – come share your thoughts during the week!
~ Download a few printables here: Binder Cover, book club reading schedule, Week 1 Journal Pages, and Week 2 Journal Pages.
Link Up Your Posts!
If you are a participating in the book club and are blogging your thoughts, please link up your posts below! We’d love to stop by and see what God is revealing to you through each chapter.
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