Week Seven: Chapters 38-43

As we come to the close of this book, I hope all of you have been affected by reading it. I trust that you have learned from the experiences Elisabeth shares with us not only the value of surrendering your love life to Christ but also some practical ways of doing so. In my own life, I find myself asking how Elisabeth would handle certain situations--not out of worship for her, but out of a great respect for the example she has set for believers in Christ. This book continues to challenge me, inspire me, encourage me, and make me want to be a better woman of faith... for my "Jim" but ultimately for my Lord Jesus Christ.  

Here are (albeit late) some final thoughts to think from the book's last chapters.

Discussion Questions:

1. Elisabeth says, "I suppose one of the reasons I have kept journals and diaries is the desire to gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. I wrote things there that I could not say to people or write in letters to Jim" (164). Do you keep a journal? What are the values of keeping one? 

2. I loved this quote from Samuel Rutherford: "It is impossible to be submissive and religiously patient if ye stay your thoughts down among the confused rollings and wheels of second causes, as O the place! O the time! O if this had been, this had not followed! O the linking of this accident with this time and place! Look up to the master motion and the first wheel." Not sure about you, but I find myself often putting so much pressure on myself to perform perfectly in all situations and then I find myself evaluating where I went wrong if I perceive a problem. Is this not detrimental to experiencing the freedom for which Christ set us free? What are some verses you use to remind you of your position in Christ and keep focused on Him?

3. What do you all think of Jim's bluntness after engagement in expressing his desires to take Elisabeth to bed?

Week Six: Chapters 32-37

Hello ladies! I can’t believe this study is already coming close to an end. I do love this book and I hope you all have enjoyed it as well! This is my second time reading this book and I am learning even more this second time around.

My name is Megan Hildabrand. I was born and raised in Louisville, which is how I met Hannah and got involved with this online book club, but I go to a small school called Georgetown College in a small town called Georgetown, Ky. I am 21 years old and in my senior year. I am currently studying abroad in Florence, Italy for the semester and I am experiencing all kinds of new, wonderful things! I am a math major and art history minor. I will admit that I love math and I hope to teach high school math someday to help others love it too.

I grew up in church my whole life, but didn’t really surrender my life to God until I was a junior in high school. It took me 9 years after I prayed the prayer of salvation when I was 7 to really understand what the gospel was and how it should affect my life. Now I am just trying to grow in my faith and do everything for the glory of God by reminding myself of the gospel every day.

Discussion Questions:1. In Chapter 32, Elisabeth Elliot writes about an internal conflict: “the good I want to do fighting the evil I don’t want to do and the desire that seems to be so good in itself verses the deeper desire to love my master above all others.” Do you struggle with this conflict at all? Elisabeth goes on to write that the only way to deal with this struggle is to ask God for help. She uses these lines from a hymn, “Ask the Savior to help you, comfort, strengthen, and keep you; He is willing to aid you – He will carry you through.” I know sometimes I like to fix and deal with things on my own and do not turn to God first to help me through, but like Elisabeth says, you have to want to be helped by God for it to happen. Is there anything holding you back from letting God “carry you through”? If not, what helps you to fully rely on him to “carry you through”?
2. Chapter 35 is about impatience, hence the title. I think, most of the time, the reason behind my moments of impatience when it comes to the things of life is a result of not trusting in the sovereignty of God. God has His own timing. We are often not ready to surrender ourselves over to “God’s hands, ‘in the sublime keeping of the general and unspecific belief that God is answering our prayers in His own time and way.’”(p. 154) Do you ever find yourself getting impatient with God? If so, what are some truths from the Bible that we can reflect on to help us get rid of our impatience and trust in Him? What are some things that you may have become impatient about that you need to trust in God’s timing for?
3. I love this quote from one of Jim’s letters to Elisabeth in Chapter 37: “What is, is actual – what might be simply is not, and I must not therefore query God as though he robbed me – of things that are not. Further, the things that are belong to us, and they are good, God given, and enriched. Let not our longing slay the appetite of our living.”(p.160) I think it pretty much speaks for itself. Do you have any bitterness towards God because of things you think “might be” but have not come yet or might not ever come? Would you be content in Christ if some things you desire to happen do not actually happen? Are you able to focus on the blessings God has given you over these things that “might be”?

Week Five: Chapters 26-31

Discussion Questions:
1.) In the first page of this week's reading, Elisabeth mentions a line of a hymn which Jim underlined in a hymnal he had given her. The hymn itself poses a big question for us: "Have I an object, Lord, below, which would divide my heart with Thee?" How do we best understand when our hearts are divided? Marriage itself was designed by God. Is it possible to truly love an earthly man while maintaining an undivided, steadfast love for the Father? What "objects," other than young men, do we allow to divide our hearts?

2.) On page 133, she quotes William Wilberforce who said, "Measure your progress by your experience of the love of God and its exercise before men." What we must ask ourselves, and perhaps rhetorically, is this: Do our earthly relationships help us to experience more of God and aid us in exercising His love before others, or are they hindrances which divide our hearts with Him?

3.) Elisabeth understood real love to mean being willing to step away from Jim if it would better help him to fulfill the will of God for his life. Are we willing to completely step away, or even step back, to allow God to be glorified even if it means we lose someone? 

4.) Page 137: "Jim Elliot was a man. Men are sinners. That was the simple truth." Do we expect perfection from the men in our lives? How can the concept of preaching the gospel to ourselves be extended to preaching the gospel to our relationships, romantic or not? How would our actions look different if we remembered that we are all incapable of good aside from the grace of God?

Week Four: Chapters 20-25

Well, girls, we're already halfway through with the book. Thanks to those of you who have been posting comments. I am loving this! I hope you are all gaining something from the study. 

So, my name is Hannah and I am 22 years old. After graduating in May from Samford University with a degree in International Relations and Spanish, I moved to Louisville to begin a Spanish MA program at the University of Louisville this fall and to work as a graduate teaching assistant. It seems as if people are incessantly asking me what I plan to do with my degree after graduation, and that is a question to which I do not yet have the answer. I know only that I want to grow in faithfulness to use the gifts the Lord has given me to advance the Gospel here on earth.

God saved me on Christmas night when I was seven years old. Night after night on my bed in our farmhouse in Bonnertown, Tennessee, I told the Lord "No, I am too young to make a decision like this. I have plenty of time to take care of it, and I'll do it when I'm 14." (Not sure why I thought 14 was the appropriate age, but such was my understanding.) Eventually, I guess you could say I reluctantly gave in to the Spirit's work in my life and confessed faith in Christ for the redemption of my sins and new life He was offering. I cried when I stood before the church on the following Sunday--nervous, terrified, or both. At seven, I knew only the basics: that I was a sinner and in need of Christ to have a relationship with God. I believed Christ lived a perfect, sinless life on Earth, died on the cross, and rose from the dead. That I knew, on top of the general familiarity I had with Bible stories from growing up as the daughter of a Baptist Sunday School teacher in a Christian home.

Since then, however, the Lord has constantly been opening my eyes to what happened on that night in 1995. I am continually amazed at my own wretchedness and the love of my great Savior to take it all upon Himself. Charles Spurgeon, my favorite theologian, once said, "The touch of His grace has awakened my soul. Oh, the long-suffering of my Beloved! He waited for me when He found Himself shut out and me asleep because of my own laziness. Oh, the greatness of His patience, to knock and knock again and to call out, asking me to open to Him! How could I have refused Him!" I am thankful the Spirit of God did not bend to my rejections but continued to plead for my life and give me the courage to accept what God has done for me. I have so very much to be thankful for.

I am an avid reader and pretty much always have been. Aside from the inspired Word of God, Passion and Purity is hands-down, take-the-cake, cross-my-heart the best book I have ever read. Before beginning this study, I had read it twice since Christmas. Each time I open it, something new speaks to me, and with every reading I find different parts applying to my life situation. I read it first as a single freshman in college, second after being dumped by my first boyfriend of a year and a half, and twice since then. I can't tell you how stinkin' giddy I've been to have so many of you reading along too and hearing your perspectives! Praise God for Elisabeth, an incredible role model in my life. With that said, let's get going on Week 4.

Discussion Questions:
1. I love this paragraph: "Let's be candid with ourselves before God. Call a spade a spade or even a muddy shovel. If your passions are aroused, say so--to yourself and to God, not to the object of your passion. Then turn the reins over to God. Bring your will to Him. Will to obey Him, ask for His help. He will not do the obeying for you, but He will help you" (97). Have you ever enjoyed the experience of confessing openly before God what is in your heart? I'm talking super-candidly, as open as if they were only your own thoughts. How powerful to communicate before the Lord your most intimate thoughts! Does He not already know it all anyway?

2. Elisabeth also says, "Don't expect anything until the declaration is clear and forth-right." Does anyone else have a hard time with this?! What about all those "signals" guys send? How can we see each "he smiled at me" or "we share a favorite restaurant" as something to offer to the Lord? Although it's a struggle, I've learned there is freedom in combining this with #1 and being open before God about everything and asking for His Spirit to help aid in understanding and responding appropriately.

3. In Chapter 25, Elisabeth is talking about the misery of loneliness and the temptation to self pity. Haven't we all been there? Aren't many of us there now? I love how she brings in 2 Corin. 12:9 (But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.) On page 118: "For my loneliness, Lord--Your strength. For my temptation to self-pity, Lord--Your strength. For my uncontrollable longings for this man, Lord--Your strength."  What other weaknesses should we candidly give to the Lord in exchange for His power? Do you girls think the way we as believers handle the season of singleness can be an evangelistic tool for lost girls who share our natural desires?

Week Three: Chapters 13-19

Hello ladies! I hope that all of you are enjoying this book and learning from it as much as I am. I was so excited that Hannah decided to do this. This is my third time to read this book, but I seem to learn many new truths each time I read it. It's amazing how certain things will jump out as I read, that never would have seemed important to me last time I read it.

Now, to introduce myself. My name is Allyson Basden and I graduated this past May from Mississippi State University with a degree in Psychology. The theme of my life this past year has certainly been 2 Corinthians 5:7: "For we walk by faith, not by sight." The Lord has been changing my plans a lot recently, but I believe he has been doing that to teach me to surrender to Him completely. This past summer I worked at Camp Ridgecrest and had a blast doing that. I am currently living at home in Birmingham, AL and working at a local coffee shop. While I really miss all of my school friends, it has been a good transition and I am learning to be content with where I am for now.

I feel led to attend Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in North Carolina and I am planning on starting school there in August. As I said earlier though, I am truly realizing that God can change my plans at any time. I am hoping to get a degree in Biblical Counseling. I love people and I am trusting that God will continue to show me exactly where He wants me in life so that I can best glorify Him.

So that you understand where I am coming from with these questions, a guy I was dating recently broke things off with me. We had no been dating very long, but he had seemed to pursue me the right way and was a strong believer. I realize now that I probably gave my heart over to him too quickly. After things ended, I was first upset and confused, but God was quick to show me that He is sovereign over everything. He allowed this relationship to begin and end and I am trusting that He has something else for me now and someone else for me now...so needless to say, this study could not have come at a better time. Okay, enough about me...Here are your questions :)

Discussion Questions:
1). On page 76-77, Elizabeth Elliot speaks of a woman who was in a relationship with a man she really cared for, but suddenly he decided to end things with her and go back to someone he had been dating previously. This girl says, The Lord has brought about growth in me through knowing him, something I cannot regret, though there have been times when I wished I'd never met him. I have to give Him to the Lord regularly...But he has brought me this far and already my joy is unspeakable." Can you relate to this woman? What advice do you have in dealing with bitterness from past relationships?

2). One of my favorite Jim Elliot quotes is on page 80:"Wherever you are, be all there, live to the hit every situation you believe to be the will of God." How can you apply this to your life right now and truly practice contentment?

3). On page 89, Elizabeth Elliot says, "A little quiet reflection will remind me that yes to God always leads in the end to joy." I know this true but I struggle sometimes with fully believing this statement and acting upon it. Can you relate? Also, what scripture can you find that support this statement?

Week Two: Chapters 7-12

Welcome back to week 2 ladies! If you were unable to join us for week one, it’s not too late to join in. This interactive blog study on Passion and Purity is a great opportunity to get to know some great women and grow in your relationship with the Lord, please join us!

To introduce myself as Catherine did, my name is Sarah. I am a graduate student at the University of Louisville studying Social Work. I grew up in the very small community of Mayfield in Western KY. I have a wonderful family who adopted me at birth from California. I am an only child, but I have a very large extended family that all live close by. I moved to Louisville 4 ½ years ago for college, where I now consider my home.

I became a Christian when I was 13 after much doubting of a prior decision to be baptized at age 7. I feared for many years that I was not truly a Christian because I relied so heavily on good works for salvation. After hearing John 3:16 preached at a youth service, God touched my heart with His LOVE and GRACE that I had never understood before. Since then, I began really growing in my walk with the Lord when I came to college. Following Christ led me to serve as a summer missionary in KY for 2 summers and TN for 1 summer. In July I went to Zimbabwe, which changed my life forever. I am a sinner in need of His grace everyday. My goal in reading this book is to fall more in love with Christ.

Discussion Questions:

1) On page 47 Elizabeth writes about her wishes. Do your wishes match God’s wishes? How do you know when your desires match God’s desires? Do you trust that God will “give you the desires of your heart?”

2) On page 56 Jim is honest with Elizabeth about his feelings for her. Did Jim’s confession of his feelings for Elizabeth surprise you? How so?

3) In discussing singleness Elizabeth says, “No Christian ought to put himself outside the possibility that this is his assignment.” (pg 59) Have you ever considered this is what God has for you? How would you react if God told you to be single forever? Would He be enough?

4) “But the things that we feel most deeply we ought to learn to be silent about, at least until we have talked them over thoroughly with God.” (pg 62) Is it difficult to keep quiet when we are bursting with excitement or frustrated about a situation? Can you think of a time that you did keep your thoughts to yourself even when it was difficult because you wanted to pray about it? How about a time when you spoke too soon? How can we become quiet-spirited women?

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Please post your comments and watch the blog for others' thoughts as well. 

Week One: Preface, Intro, Chapters 1-6

Hey everyone! I am incredibly excited about kicking off this Book Study! I think Hannah did a wonderful job in expressing what she hopes this study will do for our pursuits of purity. But, before I post some discussion questions, let me introduce myself to you...

I am a native to Lexington, Kentucky (not born, but raised). If you have never been there before, let me start by saying it is the "Biggest-small-town" that I have ever known. Most everybody knows everyone through some mutual friend or distant acquaintance. It's a wee bit hard to stay out of the "rumor mill" here. But, nonetheless it is my hometown and the place where I spent the best 2 years of my life. Which leads me to my next point...

I attended the University of Kentucky (Go Cats!) and met the Lord for the first time during my sophomore year. I can fill you in on the details later - but for a brief overview I spent the first 20.5 years of my life as an Atheist, not believing in this whole "Christianity thing" and in fact making fun of and speaking out against the reliability of the Bible - during a Pro-Homosexuality speech I gave my Senior Year. Praise God he did not give up on me then! Through a series of events over the summer leading into my junior year of college I gave my life to Christ and it has been forever changed. I attribute nothing of my salvation to my foolish mind, but to the precious blood of Christ.

Currently, I am training to be a Human Resource Manager for Target and absolutely love it! The job has led me to Louisville, KY where through another crazy chain of events, the Lord blessed me with the awesomest roomate - Hannah Joiner. (Let me preface the next part by saying - I tried everything to not make this sound like a dating site ad, but I think I failed miserably) With that being said, in my spare time, I enjoy reading, running, trying out coffee shops, and eating anything ice-cream related (though I have tried to cut back.) I feel most satisfied in life when the windows are down, the music is up, and the horizon shows nothing but farmlands and a setting sun. My dream in life has always been to one day retire to a lake house and spend the remainder of my life lost in a book on the water. As corny as that all sounds, it is the truth.

Now to the best part…I wrote out 4 discussion points, but feel free to pick and choose which ones to answer. Some are just to evaluate the condition of your own heart.

Discussion Questions:

1) It didn’t take me but two paragraphs to find something that sparked a question. On page 7, Elisabeth discusses the tendency as women to have a “downward gaze” on relationships. It made me think, where do I stand? Do I have the tendency to have a “downward gaze” dismissing every guy that comes along because he isn’t the perfect person I dreamed of? Or do I have the tendency to have an “eye-level gaze” where I look at every man as a possible potential to be my husband? I think this is an attitude of the heart that we all can check ourselves on and be aware of throughout our pursuit of purity. My question to you ladies is where you stand? How do you think we can all turn our hearts to an “upward gaze?”

2) On page 21, Elisabeth discusses her fear of being alone for the rest of her life. Where do you think this fear is rooted? Is this something that you personally struggle with? If so, what scriptures have given you peace in this area?

3) Throughout pages 22-23, Elisabeth makes a great point about the condition of society’s view on purity, in that “times have changed.” What do you have to say about society’s impact on purity? Do we really have “freedom” to be liberated from our inhibitions? Or “by trying to grab fulfillment everywhere, we find it nowhere?” If the standard set by God has not changed, what is our role in protecting purity in an age where purity does not exist?

4) On page 24, Stephen Olford makes the point that women shouldn’t be agitated by the choice of a mate, but should be “asleep.” What does that look like in your life? Have you ever been “asleep?” In what ways? Does being asleep mean never laying eyes on a man? Is it a continual state of being, or are there points of struggle? (Basically feel free to elaborate on this point)

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Alright, ladies, let the discussion begin! Please post your comments and watch the blog for others' thoughts as well.