Homiletics is Killing Me!

Recently God called me to join an incredible group of ladies as a group leader in a Bible study.  Each week the leaders gather on Tuesday mornings to go over the lesson that our “small group” will discuss the following day.  Part of the preparation as group leader is to complete the homiletics for the week’s lesson. This has been the living out of…what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!
In frustration today I asked Steve if there was historical evidence that doing Homiletics had ever killed anyone in the church.  His response was, “No.” Helpful, even encouraging but not the words I was anticipating.
This week’s lesson is Genesis 12:1-13:4. It is at this point, that you stop reading this post and go get your Bible to read. If not, you will have no idea what I’m talking about…that is more frustrating that doing Homiletics!!!
Okay, now that you are up to speed, you understand this lesson involves the call of Abram by God, Abram’s response to the call, a test of faith and Abram returning to Bethel from Egypt. 
The method of the way our group leader does her Homiletics involves the following steps: (1) Content.  This is actually kind of the fun part. You imagine you are an “on-the-scene” reporter. It is your job you report just the facts as concisely as you can.  (2) Divisions. This is where you take the content and put into paragraph form [no more than 4]. (3) Subject sentence is putting into sentence form the main thought of the divisions. (4) Aim. The Aim is important because it is what principle of the lesson. (5) Application. The Application is what it says, applying what is in the lesson to real life…whether in the office, home, grocery store and even church!
For brevity of time and space I am going to skip the Contents and Division and share my Subject Sentence, Aim and Application. Why? Because it is what is killing me that is making me stronger.

Subject Sentence: Answering a call from God requires faith and obedience.

Aim: God requires faith and obedience when you respond to His calling.

Seeking the ONE THING that God wanted to show me (thanks to my fearless leader, Nicole) came in the Application part.  Here is the applications questions that came to mind as I typed.

Are my listening ears “on” or “off” when God speaks to me?  Why?

Is there a limit to my faith or my obedience? Why?

Do I trust God when the famine hits? Where do I flee…to Egypt or to Him?

And the last one was the ONE THING that God wanted to show me. I wrote…
Where is my Bethel and how often do I return to it?  Why?

As you read the passage of Abram, a man called by God, where are you in the story?  Are you Abram and being called to something unknown? Are you Sarai who is along on the journey but the journey is getting really personal? What about Lot?  Where are you in the story?  What is the ONE THING God is trying to show you?  Will you listen?  Will you obey?  Are you will to answer His call with faith?

Would love you hear your thoughts and where you are on your journey. There is ONE THING I’ve learned, that when I have faith no matter the test, it does make me stronger!