Video Transcript: How to Use the Christian Leaders Planner in a Bible Study

So this has been interesting, and especially looking at the different ways to do a  Bible study. And now we're going to talk about a Bible study that we develop,  actually, you develop the concept of the planner way back when we were with  the Bible League, 20 some years ago. And so, we published, we both did, and  we, we got our little Apple computers, and we spent forever figuring it out. We  found a printer that would like we could cut the vibe book in half and put it out it  was, it was the last era before the onslaught of the Internet has changed over  the next 15 years, but we still have a paper version we'll keep developing work,  we're actually keep developing we have 2021 version that we're talking about  now. But a new one that's coming out in 22, the years 23 24, whenever you see  this video, know that we love the kind, of a planner. So that what the planner  does is it helps you put God at the center of your planning, your time, your  family, your marriage, your work your business. And we have little reading tracks in the planner so that you can have your devotional life all wrapped up in your  planner, right. So we have several different tracks. We reading tracks, there is  the New Testament in the year. So we have every day, there's what you would  read to get through the whole New Testament in a year, then we have the one  chapter a day that sort of goes through the whole Bible this year other years  might be different. The whole Bible in a year, so you know what you're going to  have to read every day to get through the whole Bible any year. And finally the  verse of the day, which has a thought and a question. So we have all these  different tracks, and we'll develop new tracks for the future. But you can use  these tracks that you're personally doing, you can use these tracks in a Bible  study with your spouse or your family or with a group of friends. And we're going to show you how to do that. Alright, the Christian leaders, planner questions.  Number one, what got your attention since the last meeting? So if you meet  once a week, you'd have seven days worth in the planner, let's say you're  reading through the whole New Testament in a year, or the whole Bible or  whatever track you're on. Doesn't matter what track you're on, you can just  simply ask these questions. So number one, what got your attention since the  last meeting? So maybe you're reading and you're in the book of Romans and  you read Romans 1-5 this past week? Well, as, as you're, as you're going  through that you just underline what got your attention? And what got your  attention and what got my attention might be two different things. Right. So the  last thing Apply now to a week block, right? So then why do you think it got your  attention? That same question that we asked last time, so then you just go  around the room. So if you have 10 people, you'd have 10, things that have  been underlined, and now you have 10 people explaining why they underline  what they had to underline, right? And then number three, what do you think  God is telling you, you'd have 10 people applying the Word of God in a group  setting? And then that leads to all kinds of other discussions. What I think are  the benefits of something like this is a you really get to know your groups. Now, 

their real life is in the Bible study. Because they're involved in deciding what  we're going to talk about. Yeah. And why do you pick those kinds of things?  Because it's particular to you. I think another benefit is, it really gives a little  accountability did you actually ultimately read, Right, because you have nothing  

to share? Now the downside of that is sometimes people won't attend if they  haven't done anything. And I think that's a question ministers, like grapple with?  Do you want to know the truth of how your parishioners are those you are  leading are? Or do you want to live in illusion? In this case, we can do this  together. You know, if someone doesn't show up or something, it's a little  uncomfortable, but you can be a gracious leader by saying I just come anyway  or and then help them get back on the track. Right. So what are some of the  other benefits of doing something? Well, I think, just to underline what you just  said. The problem sometimes with on the shelf Bible studies is the person didn't  do anything. All right, and you didn't. You didn't read his Bible. And then he  shows up and answers the questions and no one's the wiser, right? This style  Bible study really is dependent on people actually walking with God every day.  Right? It works best when that happens. And hopefully, it's fun to because  people are involved in writing the Bible study. And I often find over the years of  working with this is to really make sure when you do this to set the expectation  right away that we all will fail, Yeah, I mean, there's no question you fail, at  actually reading every, I mean, because it seems like when it comes away and  that's a week left. And back, when we grew up, we talked about this, previously,  there was a really clear you ate at this time, you open the word at this time in  your family. Now that where today, we're trying to figure out how to how the  ruckus of the internet and the ruckus of the noise and the busy, schedule and  with the planet, at least give you a shot, to be self aware about the truth of your  walk with God, and the truth of everybody else. But so you want to start with  grace on that to say, you know, this might take a whole year of challenge to  figure out how to accomplish this. But, you know, circle back to this is one of the  things we emphasize here at Christian leaders, this idea of owning your own  walk, right? A lot of what the church has done in the past, you know, great  sermons on Sunday, Bible studies led by a great Bible Study leader, people can  almost let those things be their surrogate walk, right, but they don't actually have a personal walk in their marriage walk. They're not really interacting, and they're  not doing with their families, right. So the way we see it is that small group  meeting is really a chance to reinforce and encourage and challenge and, and  help people with their walk the other 70 of them through them, even struggle to  help people get over that struggle. Okay, now we're going to look at the verse of  the day, the verse of the day is sort of a special, you know, Pat, in the planner,  because it has a verse, it's real easy to do, everyone can do it. You just talked  about how people fail. Maybe shoot low, then start with one versus one verse,  age or leave it like only 30 seconds. Right. But then there's a application 

comment in there. And then there's a question. And I remember one time, one  product that you developed with the Bible League, which may be developing  here, a one minute Bible study, one minute connection, wondering connection.  Yeah, there's nothing, especially in great evangelism is what if you had 365, one or two verses, and somebody's just starting to get put their toe in the water  would walk with God? And you give them something that they can  overwhelmingly release and see that? Yes, that habit is the most important. But  then the Word of God doesn't return void. So it's good to have that coming. So  anyway, you are talking about the verse of the day, we're going to look at that.  Okay, so here we go. This is how you use the verse of the day, have each  participant pick out their favorite verse of the day since the last time you met.  Here's the planner. It has seven days, days. And here's the verse is the thought  and here's the question is different. So this is this week. So Henry, what what  verse would you pick if you were doing well? I like Psalm 8:33. For Monday,  which is Monday, When I look at the night sky and see the work of Your fingers,  the moon and the stars you have set in place. What are mortals that you should  think of us mere humans that you should care for us? And then the thought that  goes with it? As you worry about the things you plan today and don't use your  take yourself too seriously. What can others what can you give over to God to so and I, I liked Fridays. II Corinthians 12:9, But he said to me, and this is Paul  talking. My grace is sufficient for you. So God is speaking to Paul, for my power  is made perfect in weakness. Now Paul says Therefore I will boast all the more  gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me. Now the  thought could it be that what could it be that you? Could it be that what you think is holding you back? Is the very thing God will use to make great things  happen? Can you think of any examples of this from your own life? So everyone picks out a verse. And then number two, that will explain why they pick that  verse. So for me, for for whatever reason, September's getting cool in Michigan  in a few weeks, we're going to head back to Florida. I've been having fires  outside, and little campfire, campfire, a little campfire, because there's a  headquarters here where we live in a parsonage, where there's actually like a  little fire thing. So I've been thinking a lot about the stars, you look up and have  a think about how, you know, the squirrel and somehow make it out into a  woods, I wouldn't make it out in that woods. You know, so I mean, it made me  realize that everything is bigger than me. And God is in all those little details that you're not even aware you're directing, maintain and sustain. What's interesting  is, Henry picks that out, and as he's describing, it, generates thoughts in me,  right? And so, so that's kind of how it works. People pick different things for their  own particular reason. But as they explain why they picked what they picked,  other people started seeing stuff in that verse that they didn't see before, right?  And that's really the point of the Bible study. So let's go to the second question.  As I'm explain why they pick the verse, that's what you just did. Have them read 

the question that goes with their verse. So what was the question? So the  question was, as you worry about the things you plan to do today, don't take  yourself too seriously. What can you get over to God today? Right. So now that  is the question for not only Henry, because he brought this up. So what do you  need to give God over to you talked about earlier, things that you had been  worried about some people in your life and so on, right? In the realize that each  person is part just like a squirrel is part of God's plan and design. People that I'm praying for that I'm concerned about are part of that plan too, and in some  serendipity, I don't have to be responsible for everything. Just prayerfully pray  for them, and also give them to God. Yes. So my question Friday is, can you  think of any examples of this from your own life, and the thought was going to be that what you think is holding you back is the very thing God uses to make great things happen? So can I think of any examples from my own life? Where God  took something that seemed like a negative and turned it into a positive? Well, I  think I think, you know, we're both a little bit on the dyslexic side. Right? Yeah.  As you could probably tell, we're trying to read as we get stumbling over these  words, because I'm mixing the order of the words or, you know, bad eyesight or  whatever. But God, how is God used that if I was in the Bible, to explain, you  know, I was a slow starter in school. But then God brought it all together and  made me you know, greatly all these Bible studies, I've written language and  reading was always a problem for me, right? But now, because I can see what  God can do with somebody who doesn't isn't any good at these things, right?  But God can take that and turn you into something that you're like standing back going, how did this even happen. So if that can happen in my life, it can happen  in your life, too. Now, if I was sharing this story with 10 other people, they're  going to be people thinking about, yeah, well, maybe God getting you know, and sharing the things that they struggle with. And they wonder why God made them that way. Because they haven't seen any fruit whatsoever. And all of a sudden,  these deep things get put on the table. And I like to set earlier that when you're  talking about how you think about this, when I think about like we know, I'm  thinking right now. I think it's amazing what God does, in the lives of students  and alumni at Christian Leaders Institute. College, and Alliance was amazing.  You know, our dyslexia was holding us back. Some of you have been held back  by your past by your family, by your abuse, you went to school, didn't get good  grades. So now, all of a sudden, you've come back, and you're either you're  doing great, you're doing well on the quizzes, and that was never what you were right. And some of you there's no way and the human thinking that you could be  going into ministry with what you have gone through. And yet God takes the  broken things real world and makes them into a vehicle of proclaiming the  gospel. Well, Christian leaders started out with six students. Yeah, yeah, we  have to meet in Chicago for a time you had to do the course. And then you  either meet before we knew how to do all these. Yeah, I know. So but there were

only six. Right? Well, how do you? How do you make something out of that,  right? And the concept of free, it's gonna be free. You know, if it's like, really  God, can do stuff like that through vision partners, but you wouldn't not easily  understood. Exactly. Okay, so then number, there's one more question. That  question then becomes the question for the whole group. You had a, you had a  verse that you picked that can you explain why it got your attention? And what  said to you, but now the question of that verse gets asked of all of us, right,  because in a Bible study, if you had an off the shelf Bible study, it would have 10 questions. And then we ask the first question, and we go around the room,  everyone answers that question. The planner, just the way we just described it is everyone gets a chance to write one of the questions for our Bible study and  gets to explain why they chose this one. But now that becomes the question for  all like, really? We did? Yes, we did it. So I answered yours, you answered mine. And we had 10 people, can you see, in a way how to easily kill the time? While  we've done? This is really cool. Yeah. Because, you know, a lot of times people  have this fear, you know, off the shelf, they feel like, Oh, I saw there, you know,  we'll have something to do for an hour, because it's all there, and these people  know what they're doing. But the minute you start doing your own thing, if you're the leader, you're like, This is gonna be like a 10 minute discussion, this, this  Bible study isn't gonna go, it's gonna go. If you have 10 questions, and you go  around with the 10 people, and everyone has to talk about this, you will fill the  time like nobody's business. The only difference is, the group is participating in  writing the Bible study, rather than someone that doesn't know us. The Bible  study is founded in the very lives of the people living in the Bible, right? So it  does two things. It makes it more personal, because everyone's writing it, but  also is more personal, because it's part of their daily walk. Which means, then,  that personal stories can come into well, I say this, because I read it that  morning, and then I went to work. And then this is what happened. Really, in  some ways. The planner is a tool, but you can do it without the planner, you get  everybody read the Bible. And then when they come together, everybody talks  about these questions. So if you have no resources to get the planner, don't  worry about it. Everybody reads the Bible, or whatever structure or whatever.  You know, I think it's really good to have people if you're in a Bible study, that  people let you know what they're doing in their personal lives, right. So if people  are doing something in their personal devotions, and if you do that, together, if  you pick something that you could all do together, then this would work with  whatever doesn't matter what plan you're following. Right, exactly. So that's very good. And I thank you again, for all your work over the years to keep the planner project going. When something like this is not stressed, personal daily, walking,  the habit of relationship is not stressing Christendom, right now, overall, right?  What stresses show up at church was stressed is download a YouTube video of  a preacher. But what's not stressed is living every day. And that's something you

have been a campaigner for in my life in the life of students at Christian leaders  Institute for years now. Let's keep it up. All right.