About Empowering Women!

 

Empowering Women Hawaii and SistahGurl Read the Bible are ministries founded by Pastor Arlene Sumpter to Equip, Encourage and Empower women of all ages principles taught in the Bible that will help her believe she is called by God and created women to walk in her full destiny.    FIND OUT MORE  ABOUT PASTOR ARLENE AND THE FLOOR CHURCH

 
 
 

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About SistahGurl Read the Bible!

 

SistahGurl Read the Bible, a subsector of Empowering Women Hawaii,  is an online daily Bible reading program founded by Pastor Arlene in community with other teachers designed to encourage women and girls of all ages to draw closer to God by reading one chapter of a selected book of the Bible daily. 

 
 
 
 
 
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Happening NOW! 

 

SistahGurl Read the Bible one year study through the Bible 

 STUDY THROUGH THE BIBLE STARTS JANUARY 16, 2023
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

--- Talk About it with Pastor Arlene

 

WRB- Walk, Rooted and Built in Christ

COLOSSIANS 2: 6-7

SCRIPTURE

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” (NKJV)

“Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in [union with] Him [reflecting His character in the things you do and say—living lives that lead others away from sin], having been deeply rooted [in Him] and now being continually built up in Him and [becoming increasingly more] established in your faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing in it with gratitude.” (AMP)

OBSERVATION

Paul warns the believers in Colossians about the dangers of false teachers and doctrine. Seeing that exposure to worldly based philosophy can threaten their faith, Paul reminds the believers how to continue growing in Christ. He agonizes for them to truly understand that Jesus is superior to false alternatives.

APPLICATION

Working in the construction industry with my family, our roofers always use a special material called felt underpayment to protect our customers’ new roofs from leaks and damages. This material is also known as a WRB – Weather Resistant Barrier.

Paul gives us three ways to live; WRB – Walk, Rooted, and Built in Christ! We must establish our faith and continue to grow. Doing these three things protects us from the distractions and lies we face today while following Jesus. No matter how good or harmless worldly philosophies seem, without Jesus, it will eventually destroy our faith and leave us exposed to elements that causes leaks, damages or even drought in our life.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: Out of the WRB – Walk, Rooted and Built in Christ, which is the hardest one for you to do? How can our Sistahgurl group support you in that area of your faith?

Walking with Christ requires us to follow Him. We have to let Him lead, not us leading the way and Christ is behind following us. We can trust and let Him guide us today. We cannot be built up in Christ, unless we first be rooted in Him. The most important part of the tree is not what you see above, but underground. Our devotional time in the secret place, in prayer and in His word, cultivates the stability we need to withstand the storms of life. Once our foundation is established, we can build our life from the same material found in the Word. We need to know what the Word says so that can continually be strengthened in the faith we were taught.

The result of walking, being rooted and built up in Christ is a heart that is filled and overflowing with thankfulness. We can be thankful that Jesus is more than enough for us. We can be thankful that we are made whole and complete because of His love and sacrifice.

PRAYER

Lord, thank you for reminding us that above everything we have ever learned in life, the single most important thing is that YOU LOVE US. No other teaching or world view will ever change that truth. As your daughters, we let that truly sink into our hearts. Today, we commit to Walk, Rooted and Built in you Jesus!

No more will we allow or justify the lies of the world. We can be confident and stand firm on Your Word as our truth, guide and foundation. We no longer will be influenced by the world, but be influencers of your Word! Holy Spirit, help us to never get too comfortable, that we forget or neglect the basic foundations of our faith in Jesus. Help us to remain firm and steadfast; to be disciplined, unshakable and without wavering in our faith.

Lord, thank you for our renewed mind and for real transformation. Thank you for making us strong, complete, and beautifully redeemed. In Jesus mighty name we pray. Amen!


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Fruit Bearing Branches

Colossians 1:10 (TPT)
S: (v.10) We pray that you would walk in the ways of true righteousness, pleasing God in every good thing you do. Then you’ll become fruit-bearing branches, yielding to His life, and maturing in the rich experience of knowing God in his fullness.”
O: The Apostle Paul develops inspired writings while imprisoned in Colossae. He partners with other believers in the ministry to encourage the Colossians in the hope of knowing God, pleasing God in all that they do so that they may become fruit-bearing.
A: I so love all of the prayers which Paul prayed in Colossians Chapter 1. He prayed that the Colossians would grow, understand their right standing in Christ, and desire to please God in everything that they do. He further explains that they will become fruit-bearing branches. Great imagery! It reminds me of my motherhood where I teach my children core values for life so that they can become productive citizens in the world. We understand who Christ is and who we are through reading scripture. Our union with Him will develop a fruitful character and fruitful conduct evident for the world to see. That is when we become productive and fruitful citizens empowered to make a difference in our world.
P: Heavenly Father, thank you for this study. I pray that I and my sistahgurl friends will learn of your ways daily. We pray to please you in everything we do. We also pray that our connectedness to you will produce fruit in our lives, so that we are enabled to share your sweet fruit with others. Making us fruitful as well as productive believers in this world. Amen.

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Does it Really Matter?

Colossians 2: 21 (Msg)

Don’t’ touch this! Don’t taste that! Don’t go near this! Do you think things that are here today and gone tomorrow are worth that kind of attention?

Without reading the Scripture in context, one would think that Paul is telling the Believers how to live a life pleasing to God. However, Paul is actually condemning the teaching of some who claim that abstinence from particular dietary food and drinks, not touching dead bodies, graves, or unclean people, and adhering to specific Jewish laws such as circumcision would make one more spiritual. Paul is writing this letter to remind the Believers at Colosse and you and I that our holiness/righteousness comes not from what we do or do not do but from God’s grace alone.
 
As a young teenage Christian, I remember being taught that wearing pants, makeup (especially lipstick), listening to anything but Gospel music, or dancing was sinful. Therefore, I reframed from all the above to maintain a holy walk with God. Over time though, instead of me developing a closer walk with God, my heart became judgmental towards those who didn’t practice such spiritual disciplines, thus inhibiting my relational fellowship with God. As I grew more spiritually mature, I realized that our relationship with Him must be a personal walk. What I mean is that what you may feel comfortable doing, I may not; vice versa. God does not call me to judge your heart, nor you mine; judgment is done by God for those who do not believe; you and I have been made free in Christ.

Yet, on the other hand, you and I are responsible for lovingly confronting the explicit sinful behavior of my brothers and sisters in Christ through exhortation and encouragement with the Word. The Bible tells us in Hebrew 3: 12-14a to spiritually watch out for one another. It says, “See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”

Father, I pray for myself and my SistahGurls; please give us loving and discerning hearts. Help us to love those You have placed in our lives and properly discern right from wrong, unnecessary spiritual rituals from necessary spiritual disciplines. Help us to know what really matters to You.

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