Welcome to the Just RISE UP! online study!! I have been waiting for this day and so many of you have reached out to me with your excitement to do this thing we call Making Jesus Famous together as we RISE UP! and circle our entire life around our Lord.
This will be a space each week (every Monday, Wednesday, Friday) to come together and dig into the Word with intention of engaging the Lord via worship, prayer, Scripture reading, and community.
***This is a no-stress environment*** You come as you are. Come as you can. All of the material of the study will be archived HERE. BUT! I encourage you to make a commitment to dig in and engage. Sometimes that mean we have to make special space in our life to do so. That said, please don’t put pressure on yourself. We are here to spur you on and encourage and….maybe even challenge you a bit? That’s a good thing, right?
THIS WEEK’S TIME TOGETHER:
~See the video below…a special welcome from me to you
~We will be reading together Chapter 1 of Just RISE UP!
~Monday’s post will cover the first part of Chapter 1 of Just RISE UP!
~Wednesday’s post will cover the last two sections of Chapter 1
~Friday’s post: THE LIST…stay tuned…it will be fun, I promise!
***Each week I will include inspiring graphics that I invite you to share on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram (see below)
Shall we get started?
***(If you are reading this via email or on your smart phone, click HERE to watch the video welcome for week 1 of Just RISE UP!)
Dig IN!
Let’s read together our home base Psalm 145. Grab your Bible and read through Psalm 145:1-7 with a heart of praise. Pray that any distractions (good or bad!) will fall to the wayside for a few moments while you read Scripture in worship.
Your majesty and glorious splendor have captivated me; I will meditate on Your wonders,sing songs of Your worth. (Psalm 145:5 THE VOICE)
A LIFE of Praise
After we have read the Scripture a few times, let’s talk about making some BOLD statements of praise. I’m of the opinion that we have to be intentional about our worship in order to life a life of praise. We have to set a foundation in order to stand firm. Because, we all know life gets in the way, right? Things happen to deter our praise of Jesus who…
IS WORTHY…no matter what.
Amen?
~On page 10 (Journal 2 of Chapter 1) I asked you to write out all of the I will…statements. These are bold declarations of praise. Take a moment to write out some definitions of those declarations such as the word extol (verse 1) or bless (verse 2). Pick a few and write what those declarations mean by definition. (google it if you have to).
~Why did these declarations stand out to you?
~What does your day look like today? How can you make these bold declarations today no matter what life is throwing at you for the moment? How is your perspective changed after you take time in worship? I want to be sensitive to those who are dealing with tough matters. Your God is mighty. His ways are HIGH and GOOD even if we can’t see through the fog of life at the moment. He hears your pleas and He is blessed by your worship.
Journal IT! and Chat about IT!
I wonder if you will take some time to chat in the comments about the following questions. These questions were first posed with in the journal sections of Just RISE UP! Will you take some time to journal through it and then share your thoughts?
I want to hear from YOU!
~On page 5 of Just RISE UP! I candidly shared my past habit of using bad language. This was an example of life tweaks we make when our hearts truly desire to praise Jesus with every square inch of our life. After you have read “A Language of Praise” section starting on p.5 think about this…
How is our heart and mind and speech interconnected? How does the condition of your heart effect your thoughts and/or your speech?
**For me, this interconnection is about obedience. I have to make a choice whether it is daily or situation by situation, to praise the Lord with my heart, mind, and speech. We see a great example of this with Paul and Silas in Acts 16. (Look at page 13 of Just RISE UP!)
Picture this: It’s midnight. In the darkness of their cell, Paul and Silas—after surviving the severe beating—aren’t moaning and groaning; they’re praying and singing hymns to God. The prisoners in adjoining cells are wide awake, listening to them pray and sing. 26 Suddenly the ground begins to shake, and the prison foundations begin to crack. You can hear the sound of jangling chains and the squeak of cell doors opening. Every prisoner realizes that his chains have come unfastened. (Acts 16:25-26)
~At the end of page 13, I made this statement…what are your thoughts on combining the words praise (with heart, mind, and speech) and obedience?
With bold declarations that you will RISE UP!and live a life of praise, chains are broken and you are free to experience the blessings that come with obedience. (Just RISE UP! page 13)
Pray About IT!
Use the following prayer prompts from page 10 to journal your prayers.
~Father, You are worthy of my praise because You are . . .
~Thank You for allowing me into Your presence so that I may experience Your glory. Help me to go out and live a life of praise with my words . . .
Share IT!
Share the images below by saving to your computer and then sharing on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest. **Be sure to use #JustRISEUP
Talk about IT!
Now it’s your turn. Leave a comment below with any thoughts regarding the questions above OR anything you have on your mind as you read chapter 1 of Just RISE UP! Do you have any questions? Any additional thoughts? I want to hear from YOU!
Also, feel free to comment on each other’s thoughts in the comments. Let’s get a good discussion going, ok?
I would love to connect with you through out the week. Here is where you can find me!!
Facebook: LIVE IT OUT! community
Twitter: @sarahfmartin
Instagram: @sarahfmartin
Did you pick any winner for the book? As I said I will not be able to purchase a book, and did not see anywhere if someone had indeed won. Thank you
Yay for studies! Love this!! I’ll be replying in further detail later today :)
Really looking forward to what God is going to do in and through this study! Anticipating what only God can do!
As I started reading through this morning it was really encouraging for me to read Psalm 145 out loud!
This was the verse that stood out to me today:
“The eyes of all wait for You(looking, watching, and expecting) and You give them their food in due season.” Vs 15 Amplified
As Sarah says “I feel this itch to be part of a movement” , me too!! Expecting and itching for more of Jesus.
Oh I love it, Cassie! YOu read the Scripture aloud. Great!
Thankyou for all the helpful insights and praise..it is an area I have neglected and kept for Sundays at church. I am now consciously aware of this need and now need to develop the habit . Going through a tough season and have had to take my thoughts captive lest I fall into despair and anxiety, this has been a huge blessing, walking daily with. God and relying on his help. Seems silly now, but embarrassed to say didn’t think to praise God as a daily habit…and this ties in with your linking praise to obedience…I think it’s perhaps been a case of taking God for granted in some sense although I do have reverential fear of The Lord..I also have since last week included praise and thanksgiving as part of my prayer journaling that I have started
Jeanine, I am SO GLAD that you shared your thoughts today as I KNOW there are others who feel the same way. Your honesty is refreshing so do not feel embarrassed, ok? I am so glad that you have added in praise and thanksgiving journaling to your day! Hugs!
YAY!
I think my head and mouth are interconnected that when my heart isn’t int he right place I tend to say more negative things and beat myself up mentally.
Tonya, yes this definitely is true. When are soaking not on Jesus but things that bring us down, it effects everything!
Please know I am praying for you as your walk this journey of your new book out and as you walk this study out! What an amazing heart you have, I am on fire for what The Lord is doing through you. Thank you for listening to your calling! #givinghimalltheglory
Ashley! I am so blessed by this comment. Thank you for the prayers!
Sarah when I first saw your book on Inscribe about a month and a half ago, I was super excited to dive in! The title grabbed me immediately because it is exactly what God has been working in my heart this whole year. I have struggled most of my life with performance-based achievement and the world’s view of being successful. All about numbers, and likes, and things of that nature. I can see where this has greatly hindered me in the calling God placed on my life many years ago. I have learned this year, through situations of being called way out of my comfort zone, reading Jennifer Lee’s “The Love Idol,” and my Pastor’s messages, that what Jesus wants is us not to make ourselves and our names famous, but His. When this really clicked in my brain this summer (I knew it beforehand but was broken from my past of trying to seek success the world’s way) it totally changed everything! And doors I have prayed for for many, many years began to open. I am walking in things I have only dreamed of and prayed for for 8+ years. The wait was hard and I never really knew why God didn’t open doors when I wanted them, but what I realized it was not about me at all, but about Him. My character had to match my calling and He had to get my heart to the place I wasn’t just saying it was all about Him, but it truly is down at my heart level, all about Him. I am almost done with week 1 and look forward to going through this book. I might not post often because I am leading our first women’s study at our church beginning this upcoming weekend, and I have to prepare for that as well. But I did want to post on this first day and let you know how excited I am about this message you have written! May we, as His daughters, make His name famous to this world and to all the other women out there. They need us to make His name famous because they need Him too :) Blessings to you on what God has called you to do!
Brandee! Thank you for sharing. I love what you said about your character matching your calling and How God did a work on you. We will be talking about this in chapter 4 for sure!! I’m glad you are joining us!
I’m so excited to start this study. I’ve started reading the first few pages and am enjoying the book already. I need to stop though and work on answering the questions and journaling. I have my journal ready but haven’t started writing in it yet. I also need to spend my time praising God so much more than I do. I pray and thank him for things but I don’t really stop and take the time to just praise him. I need to take more time in making him the focus instead of focusing on other things first and then on Him.
Stacey! Take your time with the questions. We are here when you circle back. Hugs!
I can definitely tell how praising the Lord with your heart, mind, and speech are a must daily. I’m a teacher and at the beginning of this school year I was having trouble with my students listening to me, to be quite honest I was constantly harking at them to sit down and listen. One day, it was just like it hit me to pray about it, so now each morning I pray for patience with my students. Once I started doing that, changing my heart, my mind and speech just followed. I found that when I prayed for patience my students listened and our day (the students and mine) went much better. My speech changed from harking at them all the time to actually having calm conversations with them, which I owe to the Lord for giving patience.
Jodi! I LOVE teachers. Thank you for what you do. True mission work there at the schools. Thank you for sharing this. I think parents could do the same in their houses in order to not yell at the kids all the time. I know I could totally use more patience! Glad you are joining in!
I loved the fact that you called me out on my language in part 2! I don’t cuss often, and I try not to drop the OMG bombs, but they do slip out. Saying OMG is now IMMEDIATELY unacceptable for me. And keeping my Ps 145:1-7 “guidelines” for praise at the forefront of my mind is a new priority.
LOL! I have no problem doing a “holy call out” on myself and then sharing that with my friends and readers. Glad you are joining in Rachel!
I’m excited about this study on making Jesus famous, learning to change the perspective of my life, and been able to open my mouth to praise freely to worship the Lord and not be shy of who’s around listenning and what they might think of me… “It’s challenging”
I want to Rise Up and Live it Out!
Yay! Maria Elena! Wait till next week…we are talking about perspective big time! So glad you are joining us.
Sarah!!!!! I am so excited to be able to be a part of this study now that I have a book! I was so shocked to see an email from you yesterday proclaiming that I won the giveaway. I noticed that in the comments someone wanted to join but couldn’t afford a book. Do you plan on having another online study for it? If so, I would love to share the book with someone who can’t afford it that need the words from the pages so they, too, can make Jesus Famous! I don’t remember her name and don’t want to single her out because I am in the SAME SITUATION. I couldn’t afford a book myself. But I want to give back. Thank you so much for your obedience to the Lord and your passion for making our Jesus Famous in your life. I also struggle with a bad mouth myself and want so much to have all three, my heart, mouth, and mind to be in sync. This is one thing that I’m constantly in repentance of. Aghhh!! I keep saying thank you, but I am so thankful!
Hugs to you!
Hello ladies! I am getting started today! Looking forward to going on this journey with you! I will share more after I have a chance to go through the study info that Sarah has shared!
Hey Gena! :) Working my way through the 2nd Journal tonight and loving it! Thanks for joining me for this study!
Good Morning Deje! I was working on the 2nd journal yesterday as well! I am not much of a journaling person so I am giving it my best :)
Yay! I’m glad you are giving it a shot. It really is just a way to stay engaged in your conversation with the Lord.
I really like the pace that we have to complete the study! :) Even though I haven’t started on The Language of Praise yet, I love this quote from pg. 3 where you said, “The more we immerse ourselves in the pure truth of the Bible, the more naturally we make the minute-by-minute choice to worship Jesus in every mountain and valley in life.” That is what I want to do – I want to praise God no matter my circumstances so my children can learn to do the same.
Awesome!!!!
Sarah, thank you for sharing your journey on kicking the obscenity habit. I am where you were and am working on my language right now. I truly love Jesus and want what I say and do to reflect that. Something I have discovered is that the language I use depends on the people I am with. That is making me reconsider several friendships and fringe friends. It is also a relief to know that I am not the only Christian who loves the Lord who struggles with language. Praising God for His forgiveness and a fresh start to improve! :)
I am right there with you. my language is really different depending on who I am with- I do think I need to control it better when my emotions run high at home though! Praying through it!
Deje, I totally get the part about our language with certain people. I encourage you to fill up on Jesus and let His Spirit permeate your heart and speach with the fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5!) But, I also encourage you to consider how you might be a good influence on those friends you mentioned. It is really a fine balance that we must cover in prayer. Thank you for sharing. Such great points!
Getting ready to move on to Day 2, but I wanted to share some notes from my journal from Day 1. Sarah, you asked us to look up the word “reverence”. When I looked it up, I found the definition to be ‘Honor or respect that is felt or shown’. I love how the definition has the words ‘felt’ and ‘shown’. These are both action words and it makes me think that our reverence of God is an action on our part. We have to take action and feel / show Him how important He is to us – praising Him with our feelings and actions.
Oh this is SUCH a good point, Sherrie. I’m all about action words. Thank you for sharing.
the definition I found was “an attitude of deep respect tinged with awe” I LOVED that description and felt it described how we should feel towards OUR Lord!
That’s great, Jacqueline – I love that one – I’m gonna write that in my journal too!
Pingback: Just RISE UP! Online Study Week 1 Midweek - LIVE IT OUT! -- Sarah Francis Martin
I read psalm 145 outloud and then decided to write it out in my journal. It helped me connect with what David was writing. There were two parts that stuck out to me and had to be highlighted! — Pg. 5. “There is always something to improve on; I am a work in progress.” OH how true this is…. we will never ever be done growing in Christ until the day we are face to face with Him!! and ” Jesus is worthy of my praise no matter what” In good or bad- Praise shall always be on my lips!