Wednesday, 04 April 2007

Beautiful is...?

Despite it being late and knowing I have an 8:00 class, I just can't bring myself to go to bed yet. I need to write about this.

I rarely, and I mean RARELY, expect Bible Studs to not be awesome, but there was something especially potent about Monday night. We departed from the model we've used throughout the year after finishing Romans and Malachi (quite a pair, aren't they). I liked Brandon and Nate's idea of each of us taking the final three weeks and exploring a topic of interest to us. Since they've been working their brains out for the past month leading the study, I finally took the reins and led the study, which was refreshing.

I thought and thought on what would be a good topic to examine as we approach the end of the semester, and I kept coming back to prayer. The end of the semester for the Bible Studs means the extended sharing and prayer circles, so I naturally thought that looking at prayer would be perfect as we look toward that. I put together the lesson, but I couldn't have possibly prepared for how it would actually go.

The first thing that surprised me was a returning Stud. I had absolutely no clue he'd be here Monday evening, so I nearly fell over when Ben knocked on my door shortly before I was ready to leave for Phelps. I was glad to see him, and so was everyone else, judging by the bear hugs that were exchanged. Yes, we love Ben Manting. Stu Cozzens appeared out of nowhere and joined us too; I didn't know him terribly well, but listening to the insight he brought revealed to me that he's a man of God.

And that's the kind of stuff that made this past Monday night special. The guys took the material and they RAN with it. As I was working on it, I sat at my desk wondering if they'd be able to learn something of it, and if it would add something to their walk with Christ. What would this do to help the Bible Studs as they cultivate their relationship with God? By the end, I knew I didn't have to worry. I saw some of the most active discussion during Bible Studs that I've seen all year, and it excited me. All these factors came together through what I would call God's divine timing. Ben came back on this particular week and had a lot of great things to bring to the discussion as a Brother who's had a little more time and experience in His walk. And I can't say it was an accident that Stu was there on Monday based on what he added to the discussion.

The time spent in prayer spoke volumes. As Nate pointed out afterwards, the prayers from the Studs as we close each Monday have changed. Their prayers have become more reflective of what we've been studying, more of them are praying during the time for open prayer, and they're praying for one another based on the requests & praises that we mention. It's not general, open-ended stuff; we've finally gotten specific. As Christians, "little Christs" in the most literal sense, we're called to be like Him. God's essence is love, and I'm seeing REAL brotherly love between the Bible Studs. They mean business in their relationship with Jesus, and they're showing real concern and interest in each other's lives.

That's what I'd call "beautiful."