Diving into Philippians- Week 2 Philippians 1:3-11 Thanksgiving and Prayer

{{Im so excited that you are here! Please join us- even if youve missed week 1. You just need a Bible, a journal and pen, and a heart to know Gods Word. (No excuses if you dont have a Bible- as you can read for free online at eBible , BibleGateway.com, or BibleStudyTools.com ) I recommend first carefully reading through all of Philippians at least once, noting important background information- as this will aid tremendously in your study. And then- dive right in! }}

Day 1 Becoming Familiar

Pray Lord, thank You for Your precious Word. Help me focus and to read carefully today. Now that weve read all of Philippians, and have found out critical background information, we know some of the context and purpose in Pauls writing this letter to the church at Philippi. This information will color the rest of our study, as we dive into each passage in Philippians. First, if you have a Study Bible- I want you to cover the commentary notes at the bottom. You will have the opportunity to look at those later, but for now its important that we try our best to first train our minds to learn and read and discover the original, intended message by looking at the actual words BEFORE looking at what someone else thinks about those words. What you learn and discover yourself will mean more to you and will be remembered better than simply hearing or reading it from someone else. Just like so many things in life- such as doing the laundry. Growing up, my mom would explain how to do the laundry. I would even watch her (complaining that I just couldnt do it). Yet, it wasnt until I was in college and was forced to do laundry on my own that I truly learned the best way to do laundry, and now its not something I forget. Same with math. Given a difficult math problem, I would be happy if somebody would simply give me the answer. I wouldnt know for sure that it was the right answer, but I could happily write it on my paper. However, if I figure the math problem out all on my ownthere is a much better chance that Ill not forget what Ive learned and will be able to do it again. {There are certainly times when we NEED to consult experts, but lets not rob ourselves of the joy of discovering on our own FIRST.} Read Philippians 1:3-11. o Focus and read carefully these nine verses. Dont simply skim over the words to get it done. Take your time. For now, dont stop to interpret every word. Our goal today is to become thoroughly familiar with the passage. Carefully read Philippians 1:3-11 at least one more time (in a different translation if possible). o In your journal, take note of any quick observations that you have while reading. When finished, write down any questions that you have. Choose a verse(s) from Philippians 1:3-11 to memorize this week underline/highlight it in your Bible and write it on a notecard. (I chose Phil. 1:9-11)
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Diving into Philippians- Week 2 Philippians 1:3-11 thanksgiving and prayer

Day 2 Words, Words, Words

Pray God, help me to understand Your words, as I study them today. Carefully read Philippians 1:3-11- jotting down (or underlining) any unknown words, as well as important words/phrases (often repeated), and words that you want to understand more. Now were going to try to discover the original meaning of these words. o First, use a dictionary to look up the meanings of any words you are uncertain of. o Then, study each of the words you wrote down in its context (the verse/sentence). Think of a trunk- without knowing the context some of you thought I was mentioning a large suitcase like box, others immediately thought of an elephants nose. Thats why its important to look at the context of the word. Read the word in the sentence and passage. What clues do you find as to the meaning of the word? o Next, look up the original Greek definition. Sound tricky!? Its actually quite fun! I like to go to eBible- highlight a verse and click explain- thats it! Or, go to BlueLetterBible.org, where they clearly explain how to look up words using a Greek lexicon. o If you have any time left after getting enthralled with Greek- look up any words you are interested in- in a concordance. A concordance is usually found at the back of your Bible, and contains references to other verses that contain that same word. I really like going to eBible for this too. Follow the same steps you did to look up the Greek meaning highlight a verse, click explain, and this time click on the word you are interested in you will find a list of all the other verses in the Bible that contain that word simply click on the reference to take you to that particular verse. {Now, your familys going to be wondering why youre spending so much time on the computer.} o (Its always a good idea to write down what you are learning.) Take out your notecard, and read your Bible memory verse(s) out loud three times.

Day 3 Finding Purpose

Pray God, Open my eyes to Pauls purpose in writing these words! Read Philippians 1:3-11. o At the end of each sentence, pause to state the content (What is Paul saying?) and to answer these questions What is the point of this sentence? (It may help to dissect the sentence Who/what is the subject? Verb? etc.) (Ask Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?) What was his original intent? Why do you think Paul is saying this? How does it contribute to the passage, letter and/or Bible as a whole? In your journal, write out Philippians 1:3-11. o As you are writing, ask God to open your heart to His words. Make your memory verse(s) into a song (Ex.- sing to the tune of Jesus Loves Me), adding motions if it helps. If possible- teach it to a child.

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Day 4 Diving in Scripture

Diving into Philippians- Week 2

Philippians 1:3-11 thanksgiving and prayer Pray Lord, guide and bless my time in Your Word today. Read Philippians 1:3-11 out loud. The best way to understand Scripture is by using other Scripture. So- were going to do some diving around in our Bibles. o Take a look at and follow the cross references written in your Bible. Most Bibles have extra little letters written by a group of words or a passage find the matching letter on one of the margins in your Bible. It will list Bible references to other verses/passages with similar wording/thoughts. (Some Bibles have the Scripture references written right by the passage.) If your Bible does not contain cross references, or you prefer to do study online, eBible is once again a great place to go. Simply click on the little grayish letters slightly above the text- it will show the cross-reference verse(s), and if you would like, you can click on the cross-reference verse to learn even more. You can swim around in your Bible for a long time following these trails. Review your Bible memory verse(s) by writing it in a prominent place (a giant whiteboard in your kitchen, a big paper hung in the living room, a mirror in your bathroom- using dry-erase board markers). Say/sing the verse(s) as you write it, seeing how much you can remember without looking.

Day 5 Application
Pray God, Thank You for shining truth into my life! Help me to obey Your Word. Listen to Philippians chapter 1- you can find {free} options at BibleSudyTools.com, BibleGateway.com, and FaithComesByHearing.com - or, have someone read it to you. Ponder these questions o What truths, promises, and/or commands have you recognized? o What have you learned about God? Christ? His world? His Word? The gospel? o How does this apply to your life? Now you may consult a good commentary ( BibleStudyTools.com has some good options) to confirm what you have learned. (You could spend many hours in commentaries just dont let them replace your Bible.) In your journal or in the margins of your Bible write Philippians 1:3-11 in your own words. Pray the incredible prayer Paul wrote in verses 9-11 for yourself and for your family! Share what you are learning as well as your Bible memory verse(s) with someone else. (Wed love to hear your thoughts at OurFamilyForHisGlory.blogspot.com.)

Extra
Find which other epistles of Paul (Romans, 1&2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians, 1&2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon) have prayers of thanksgiving. Compare them with Phil. 1:3-11. Begin color-coding/marking key words in Philippians. (Ex: Christ- make a brown cross, gospelmake a gray box, joy- make a smiley face) Continue/finish any study you did not get to throughout the week. Listen to a sermon on Philippians 1:3-11 DesiringGod.org is a one place to start. Join us at Our Family for His Glory with your family, as we dive into Philippians during Family {Bible} Time!!
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