OTD’s BSSM Weekly: Loving the Word
My update on week four of second semester in the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry
Hello friend,
I am going to start this with tuition fees testimony. I had recorded a video for this but deleted the source file in error and it snagged out the edit as well. So my first Substack video will have to wait.
This past week, I received enough funds to pay up my first-semester tuition! Can you believe that?!!
That’s $2157 completed! Amazing God! I am so elated and confident about the remaining $2723. God has already completed it.
After I started this fundraising, I also started praying for potential donors. I asked God to give them back in ten folds what they were giving to me. I heard the first testimony two weeks ago. A lady said she’d gotten back over ten times her donation barely one week after she made the payment! I was so thrilled!
I got two more testimonies from my donors this week, including one that was so full of the goodness of God that I knew He was only just getting started with the blessings. I am so grateful.
(Meanwhile, the dollar/naira exchange rate is just crazy. N416 as CBN’s official rate, N470 if you are paying with a Naira Bank card with a $100 limit (few exceptions), and N575 on the black market.)
Going off this testimony, I also shared about a conversation I had with God in October last year. I was honestly asking Him if it wasn’t time to head back into the corporate world and start making money again. I wanted to be able to take care of myself without feeling like I’m at someone’s mercy.
My Father replied, “You’re right. You are at someone’s mercy. Mine”
I had an instant mind reset. I wasn’t going to be the prodigal son who grabbed all his inheritance and went off to do his own thing. I am in this for life with God and I will follow Him every step. Wherever He leads, I will follow.
He doesn’t define success the way we do. He is not the one going to change His view of success and wellbeing, we are to lift our eyes to see what He sees. He is a good Father and has shown Himself to be a constant with me, day after day.
If you are going through a period of being weaned off something that has been your fall back apart from God, I encourage you to stick with God’s plan and let Him teach you to trust Him. The end is gold.
This week, I’ll zero in on a class that was absolutely my vibe - Loving the Word.
I love the scripture! It wasn’t always like that. But these past few years have brought me into a beautiful experience with studying the Word and getting to know Him.
The class was taken by Jared Neusch, who I quickly bumped into my Bible nerds category alongside Tim Mackie. Here are my highlights:
How to fall in love with the Scripture
Let go of guilt and shame associated with your study habit. Some of the most common statements you hear as regards the Bible are:
I don’t read my Bible enough
I don’t know enough
I don’t retain scripture enough and so on.
You can get so riddled with shame and guilt that the Bible becomes a reminder to your mind about the things you don’t feel good enough to do well. As much as you’d want to, you’ll always find yourself falling short. Many people believe the lie that they are not smart enough to enjoy or understand the scripture. The truth is that only the Holy Spirit gives light and revelation when we open up the word. Explore why you don’t want to read and speak to the Holy Spirit about it.
There are also no special gifts or callings that people are given that allows them to understand the word. The Holy Spirit is the intelligence that we need and He is available when you ask for His help.
Don’t let performance slip into your study habit. You won’t be any less loved for studying or not studying the scriptures. There is no price for the person who has the best reading schedule or can pick out the most applicable instructions to share.
Reading the Scripture is about a relationship with God. Once it moves outside the relationship, it becomes the law. The study of the Bible should first and foremost be about connecting with God. It is a doorway that you can enter through to know the God who we are told about through the stories and prayers. It is like a menu that leads to something bigger.
Many people go into scripture looking for where they (or society and friends) don’t measure up. Condemnation is not the purpose of the word, conviction and redemption are. If you read the Bible with the consciousness of how horrible you may have been as a person, you won’t benefit much from it and will not do it as often as you’d like to.
There is no one way that the scriptures must be read. We often allow comparison and societal standards to dictate how we approach the study of the word. There is no dictation that mornings are best for studying or that evenings are. You can ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in choosing a regular time that works well for you. You can also bring your interests into the study of the word. For example, if you enjoy tea, make a cup of tea your new study partner. If you enjoy journaling, include that. If you love speaking, record notes about what you are reading. You can draw, use your imagination, recite verses while you exercise, and lots more.
Humans learn in different ways. We should understand how best we assimilate what we read and incorporate that into the study of the word. For example, some people are auditory learners and some prefer visuals to learn. Some enjoy solitary learning and others prefer to learn in groups. While all of these come in handy in the study of the word, it is good to know which serves you well.
The Bible should be read in a community. This doesn’t mean that you only read the Bible when others are there. It just means that you share with members of your community and aren’t contained in your own interpretation or confusion about the Word.
The Bible was given to us as a key tool in this transformation journey. When we read it for information purposes, we are unable to get life from it. This makes it difficult to stick through and commit to studying. When we read the word, we are to do something with it. The first of these is to believe. The Word of God is sharp, it is a sword, and it is a life-giver. We have to use it and not leave it rusty.
See your desire to study more as a lifestyle goal against a lofty spiritual goal that you want to hit and be proud of. The same way you wake up and brush your teeth or check your phone, or get lunch ready should be the same way you approach your Bible - habitually, necessarily and intentionally.
Finally, pray actively for God to increase your awareness of His love for you even as you begin building your study habit. Also, it takes time to build a new habit or to change your appetite. Give yourself grace even as you pursue getting better with your study time. If your excuse is that you don’t retain a lot of what you read, also note that you may not recall what you ate last Thursday, but it nourished you. (Bill Johnson)
The food you eat will ultimately affect your health in the long run. That is the same way the content you take will affect your mind too.
This class was taught by Jared Neusch and I am including his Instagram address here - https://www.instagram.com/jaredneusch/
If you’d like more tips on studying the Bible, check out this post from September -
Have a wonderful week!
Love and love,
OTDamilola,
For King and Kingdom