Isaiah 55:10–11 (NIV) As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
- How is the Bible like rain?
- Think about the way the rain waters the earth vss. the way the snow waters the earth. How are they different? What does this teach us about the way the Word sometimes influences our lives?
- What does budding and flourishing represent?
- “Accomplish what I desire.” What does God desire?
- “Achieve the purpose.” What is the purpose? Is that talking about the same thing or something different?
- How much time between the sowing and the reaping?
- In what ways do you regularly expose yourself to the Word?
- Donald Whitney says, “No Spiritual Discipline is more important than the intake of God’s Word. Nothing can substitute for it. There simply is no healthy Christian life apart from a diet of the milk and meat of Scripture.”[1] Do you agree?
- What keeps you from regular exposure to God’s Word?
- Dawson Trotman was the founder of the disciple-making group, The Navigators. He taught five ways to really grasp the word using the Hand Illustration. Hear, read, study, memorize, and meditate. Why are each of these means important?
- Life is often about constant course correction. They say an average airplane is off course 95% of the time. It only gets where it needs to go through constant course correction. Is there any course correction you would like to see in terms of your exposure to the word?
- How can we pray for each other?
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[1] Whitney, Donald S. 1991. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.
