Whereas Elijah was rough and ministered in the wilderness apart from society, Elisha went into the cities, spoke to the kings in their courts, and lived with a school of prophets. What is the difference between the ministries of Elisha and Elijah? Young Elisha took the mantle and carried on his work. His prophetic mantle-symbol of office-was dropped as Elijah was carried into heaven. Apparently he did not die, but was translated into the presence of God. Second Kings tells the story of Elijah going up to heaven in a whirlwind. He ministered primarily during the time of King Ahab (1 Kings 16:29–22:40). Elijah was a preaching prophet, not a writing prophet, and his message was primarily to the ten tribes of Israel. He was rugged, abrupt, and dressed in skins with a leather girdle and a long “mantle.” The mantle was the symbol of his office. (22:07)He was a prophet from Gilead, considered one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament. In this final session, Melissa explores the gospel message of salvation through Jeremiah’s references to Christ as the righteous branch and the illustration of the tree planted by the river bank, illustrating how our greatest struggle often becomes God’s greatest triumph. Using Jeremiah 6:16 as her roadmap, she shows us how to stop the blame game, take responsibility for our lives, and follow God’s plan that leads to rest. In this session Melissa discusses the importance of taking personal responsibility rather than making excuses or blaming others. In this session Melissa reviews five things that should not be in our heart wardrobe and explores how we can do a spiritual “heart check” so that God can change our hearts. Jeremiah cautions us in prophetic words that to be daring with hope, we need to be careful about what we wear on our hearts. In addition to sharing three practical questions she asks as she approaches God’s Word, Melissa uses a fun and memorable object lesson to encourage us to cling to God like underwear. This week Melissa explores our struggle to listen and offers two strategies from the example of Jeremiah that can help us to turn our ears away from the wrong voices and back to our God. Suggesting that we are spiritually thirsting and “leaky” like cracked cisterns, she explores how God’s fountain of living water is the only thing that can quench our spiritual thirst. In this session Melissa explains that the only antidote for our idolatry is to take our eyes off the fakes and counterfeits of this world and focus our hearts on our God. Other components for the Bible study, available separately, include a Participant Workbook, Leader Guide, and boxed Leader Kit. The full DVD contains six video segments featuring Melissa's dynamic teaching (approximately 20-28 minutes each) for use during the group sessions, and offers closed captioning. Topics include making God our safe place, our hope, and our confidence. In this first session, Melissa explains why the weeping prophet, Jeremiah, had to be daring with hope and suggests what we can learn from him for our own desperate situations. The accompanying materials not only help you explore the meaning of Jeremiah’s message, they provide practical life applications you can use to start experiencing intentional living now! His words are just as relevant to us as they were to the wayward people of his time. This six-week Bible study, designed specifically to address the challenges and circumstances of today’s woman, features a 22- to 28-minute DVD segment for each week’s class. Jeremiah also lived in an unstable time when he was called to share God’s message of mercy and love. Unsettled times in our world-our neighborhoods-certainly don’t help matters. Women are experts when it comes to worry, fear, and doubt.
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