Bible Study for Women Directions
This Bible study is designed for young women and older
girls.
Some girls have never thought about what their dream is, so for
them this is the first step in even realizing that they can have a
dream. This session helps girls realize they're not stuck in their
present situations, but that there are wide-open waters available
to explore new thoughts, new possibilities, and, for some, a new
life. For those girls who have considered a dream for their lives,
this session helps them articulate those. As they define their
dreams through art and writing in the sand, they become both
tangible and possible to the girls.
Once the girls express these dreams, you'll lead them to
consider their dream from a spiritual perspective. The girls will
later be encouraged to think about the reality that God has a dream
for their lives as well.
Let's Get Started!
Welcome the girls and open your time with a brief prayer. Then
SAY: Wherever you've come from,
wherever you find yourself right now, whatever your future
holds…you are designed to shine! God has designed you to shine. It
doesn't matter your age, your work, or your experience, God has
designed you to be unique, like no one else here, and he has a plan
for you. Discovering this plan sometimes starts with a simple
dream.
The Bible, in Jeremiah 29:11, says, " 'I know the plans
I have for you,' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not
for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.' " Let's replace the
word plans in this verse with the word dreams and read it
again.
"I know the dreams I have for you," says the Lord. "They
are dreams for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and
a hope."
Today we're going to explore the dreams we have for our
lives, and we'll consider the dreams God has for our lives as
well.
Every time we meet we'll share a bit from the life of
Christina DiMari, who created You're Designed to Shine! Her
experiences and reflections are going to be part of our time
together.
Read aloud this part of her story.
Christina's Story
When I was a young girl, I grew up in a home where my mother
really didn't want children and my father was bipolar as well as a
violent alcoholic. From an early age I escaped my tumultuous home
life and took off for the calming sound of the waves crashing onto
the shores in Northern California. There the weight of limitation
blew off my shoulders as I gazed out onto the wide-open waters and
began to dream about what my life could be someday in my
future.
After I became a Christian, I longed to know what dreams God had
for my life. I listened. I paid attention to simple things people
said or did. Passages I read. Things I heard. Random hugs. Words of
encouragement. I looked up and noticed when they came.
My focus began to shift. Rather than just thinking about my
life, I started looking at how I could take what I had learned and
use it to help others.
While visiting my sister Anna in San Diego, I spent many hours
walking the shoreline and dreaming of building an organization that
would offer fun support and encouragement to girls and young
women.
Using the leg of a dried ocean star, I began to write
inspirational words in the sand-words that I wanted to say to
others.
Dream. Believe. Look Up. Ride Your Wave. Go the Distance. Enjoy
the Journey.
I continued writing until the shoreline was covered with words.
I placed the ocean star above the last word, and then sat down next
to it.
Within 30 minutes, the words had drawn more than 100 visitors.
They all stopped to read the inspirational sayings and to ask me
what they meant. When I told them what I wanted to do, each
stranger looked me in the eye and in his or her own unique way
blessed me by encouraging me to go for it. When the crowds of
visitors moved on, I looked out over the water, and instead of
thinking about all the ways I could never make it happen, I thought
of all the ways God could.
Many years have passed since I was a young girl, and many of my
dreams have come true-especially my dream to encourage girls and
women. And even now, as an adult, I love to go to the water and
explore new adventures on my horizons, new goals to achieve, fresh
ways to shine God's love to our world.
(Portions adapted from Ocean Star with permission from Tyndale
House Publishers, Inc.)
Encouragement
SAY: It's hard to say how a
dream starts. It's like a whisper in the back of our mind that
keeps telling us we were made for something more. Like a compelling
picture in an exciting drama being played out in a realm we can't
see, for a moment our hearts are captivated that we get to play a
significant role in the unfolding story. Through the business of
our lives, we are wooed by God's calling. Come. Follow me. Have
faith. I have a dream for your life. So now is your time to dream.
To celebrate your uniqueness and enjoy your life! It's time to move
from just thinking about something you'd like to do to actually
getting it out of your head and bringing it to reality. Each of you
has a dream that's personal and unique to who you are. As we
explore You're Designed to Shine! together, you'll discover more
tools to help you in this dream. You'll learn more about connecting
with the true source of life, God. You'll think about who you
travel with day to day. We'll uncover pearls you can learn from
along the way and gifts you'll receive, all as a part of
discovering the big dream God has been dreamin' for you. For
now…let go, have fun, and think big!
Have the girls open their You're Designed to Shine! Journals to
page 7 and begin to answer the questions at the beginning of the
Reflections section. Explain that the Pearl Girls woven throughout
the pages of their book are girls from around the world who are
here to encourage and shine for them as they begin their journey.
Allow about 20 minutes for this time of reflection. It's OK for
girls to talk to each other during this time, but do encourage them
to use their own reflections instead of trying to copy the ideas of
others. Girls who don't finish can do this later on their own
time.
Ask the girls to focus on one dream they have for their life.
Then have them turn to page 8 of their journals and write their
dream in the sand below the waves. Let them know they'll be sharing
this later.
After about five minutes, SAY:
Galatians 6:4-5 says, "Make a careful exploration of who
you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself
into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself
with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the
creative best you can with your own life." We're going to use our
time now to do just this-explore who we are and take responsibility
for doing the creative best we can with our own lives.
On page 9 you'll see some instructions, and the
following page is entirely blank. This blank page is for you to
express yourself with a visual image of your dream. This will help
you become more serious about making your dream a reality. You'll
see questions to ponder as you work.
You'll see quotes from girls who have gone before you.
You'll see a Bible verse. You can use any of the materials I've
gathered here or anything else you find that will help you express
your dream. You'll have about 20 minutes.
Show girls the supplies you've gathered, and let them get
started. This is their time to create, so don't give them too many
suggestions-let them be creative in their own ways! Do encourage
them to dream big. Pretend that money and support are available and
that they could start today. Using an illustration will help them
discover steps they can take to help their dreams become a
reality.
