E&R- Eze. 1-2 (Announcements)

Welcome

alright..we are gonna try something different.

its time for the 10 second countdown…do this with me.

10…9…8…7…6…5….4…3..2..1..

THANK YOU for coming in quietly so everyone can here.

Welcome back- we are glad you have made it back for week 2 of our exile and return study.

If we haven’t met my name is Megan Hutchinson, and I am the teaching leader of our class.

To kick us off this morning, I want to invite Anna Mullady, who is a part of our teaching team- to share a quick announcement with you.

Seminar (Anna)

Discussion Group safety

Last week we talked about ruins.

And I think it’s safe to say that everyone in this room has felt the heaviness of sins ruins- either personally or in our world- this past week.

When the ruins hit and feel especially heavy- what we need most is what God gave Ezekiel in the midst of his own ruins..himself.

Ezekiel had been taken into exile..the ruins were all around him.…and yet there was God..

With him and revealing himself to him to encourage and strengthen him.

Ladies- what each of us in this room need most in the midst of the ruins around us is God…

and so our desire at BSF is that each week you could come to a safe place to encounter God through his word.

We have around 500 women in this class and over 150 different churches represented.

We have diversity of thought.race.age…women from different places and spaces…its a beautiful picture of God’s kingdom..

in a world that is so divided..we have an opportunity to show that God’s people can be united together.

But we need to work together to keep our groups safe and focused on God and his word..that is what brought all of us here today..

here is how you can help:

and to help us remember, I’m going to use a little alliteration.

We ask that you would refrain from referencing people…pastors…podcasts…publications…and politics while at BSF.

Lets talk about these briefly…first…

People- as you share, please protect peoples privacy and respect those you are speaking about by not using names.

pastors..what I really mean here- is no church denominations

Remember that you are sitting with a group of women that may have had a different experience than you within a certain denomination. You can still share your experience without naming the specific name of a church, pastor, or denomination.

Podcasts and Publications- again-there are great podcasts and books and articles- but we want to know what God taught you- not what God taught someone else.

Politics ….Please know we recognize it’s been a heavy week in our country. We are not asking you to pretend like their aren’t hard things happening that are affecting you-and we know that we are not always going to agree on everything- but our goal here is to see how God and his word speaks into our current situation.

We avoid the 5 P’s in our discussion group because they often distract us from hearing what God is saying in His word. Thank you for helping make our groups a safe place for every woman..and thank you for thinking about others as you speak.

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Lecture

Bible Study Fellowship is an interdenominational ministry that is currently in 188 countries with approximately 500,000 members and 68,000 kids and students.

That means that right now- all across the world- women-men-kids and students opened up the book of Ezekiel together and will continue to do so through our Exile and Return study over the next 30 weeks.

One of the benefits of being a part of a LOCAL class is that you receive teaching from a local teaching team of trained Bible Teachers.

The teaching team for our class here at Kenwood is made up of myself, Anna Mullady and Lea McQuinn.

Through prayer and deep, intentional study-our heart is to faithfully teach God’s word to you each and every week.

That being said, we want you to know that we are not up here reading someone else’s words.

You will see that Anna, Lea and I have very different personalities and styles of teaching- and that is intentional…but know that every lecture is prepared with each of you in mind.

We are learners right alongside you- so you will see us pop into your groups b/c we want to hear what God taught you.

Each of us has received training on teaching through our BSF HQ in Dallas, TX..

And this week we actually have a special treat for you.

Today- you are going to get to hear from our executive director, Hollie Roberts. I have had the privilege of meeting Hollie and being trained by her over the last several years. I can tell you that she has a deep love for God, His word, and for the ministry of BSF.

So while normally you will hear from us each week- I hope that you enjoy this amazing gift of getting to hear from Hollie.