Article by: Sarah Koontz
Raise your hand if you love to study the Word of God with other believers? What a joy it is to learn and grow alongside one another as we dip our toes into the springs of living water together (Jer 17:13).
I’d like you to take a moment to think of 4-6 people you would really enjoy studying the Bible with and jot down their names on a slip of paper.
Your friend from grade school. Your college roommate. Your military friend who moved away a few years back. Family members spread throughout the world.
Or maybe, you’d like to forge deeper relationships with the people who live in your neighborhood or attend your local church?
It doesn’t matter how near or far away they live. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been since you’ve connected with them. Just make the list!
If there was a simple (and FREE) way for you to set up an online Bible study group and invite these friends to join you for a 30-day Bible study of Psalm 119, would you do it?
Sure, it might take a bit of time and energy to get the group up and running. But think of the possible relational, spiritual, and emotional benefits of engaging your beloved friends in this manner.
By utilizing our free e-mail based Bible studies and existing social media platforms, studying the Bible online with friends is easier than you think!
By utilizing our free e-mail based Bible studies and existing social media platforms, studying the Bible online with friends is easier than you think!
Four Reasons Online Bible Study is Effective
I believe in the value and importance of studying the Bible in community.
Learning and growing alongside other Christians is an invaluable tool for spiritual growth.
- It’s messy and beautiful.
- It’s stressful and life-giving.
- It’s uncomfortable and necessary.
One of my prayers for our free online Bible studies is that they would be a resource to help Christian women mentor and disciple friends both near and far.
Whether you choose to connect in person, online, or over the phone; it’s important for women to study God’s Word together.
We each have a unique perspective, a unique story, a unique burden.
When we come together to share our perspectives, stories, and burdens—growth is inevitable!
By creating free educational tools that are delivered digitally, we provide a practical way for Christians to strengthen their communities through online Bible study.
By creating free educational tools that are delivered digitally, we provide a practical way for Christians to strengthen their communities through online Bible study.Here are four reasons online Bible study is an incredible discipleship and community-building tool:
1 – No Geographical Limitations
I recently shared our ministry with a couple who ministers to the military families stationed at Ellsworth Air Force base here in South Dakota. They were sharing the unique challenges of discipling military families (frequent moves, deployments, etc.).
One of the things that excited them most about our online Bible studies was the ability to maintain connections with families as they transition to a new location.
Because our Bible studies can be accessed all over the world, you can go through them with whomever you choose, no matter where they live.
2 – A Small Commitment with a Big Impact
We’ve had several small groups utilize our studies over the past year, and the feedback we receive is always along these lines:
It was so easy! Once we set the group up to receive the studies in their inbox, all we had to do was focus on building community and facilitating the conversation. -Carrie
Because our studies are packed with spiritual nourishment and delivered to individual inboxes on a daily basis, you can invite others to participate without fear of overcommitting your limited time and resources.
Because our studies are packed with spiritual nourishment and delivered to individual inboxes on a daily basis, you can invite others to participate without fear of overcommitting your limited time and resources.
3 – A Great Addition to Local Church Programs
I believe most churches would benefit from offering online Bible study in addition to their other women’s ministry programs.
Online Bible study gives churches a way to reach a whole new demographic of women for whom the traditional “in-house” Bible study isn’t a good fit.
They create an exciting opportunity to help women “on the fringe” establish positive relationships with other members of the church in a way that fits their schedule and lifestyle.
4 – An Opportunity for Evangelical Discipleship
Online Bible studies encourage evangelism and discipleship simultaneously.
Our studies help Christians grow deeper in their faith (discipleship) by encouraging daily Bible study and application. And because they are free, they are easy to share with friends (evangelism).
Online Bible study builds a foundation of trust and relationship between you and whomever you are studying alongside, creating ample opportunity for you to help them take the next step in their faith journey.
Online Bible study builds a foundation fo trust and relationship between you and whomever you are studying alongside, creating ample opportunity for you to help them take the next step in their faith journey.
We are excited to announce that an updated version of our beloved Free Psalm 119 Online Bible Study will release on April 1, 2020. We originally released this free Psalm 119 study in the spring of 2017.
Since that time, 6,500+ people have completed it. Over the past several months, we have worked to revise the study and infuse it with additional resources, including an audio version and a going-deeper guide.
It is our hope that today’s blog post will equip and inspire you to study Psalm 119 with your friends online.
In my 30 years of following Christ and studying His Word, I have never found a section of scripture that is more active, more penetrating, or more thought-provoking than Psalm 119.
Studying Psalm 119 has changed me, captivated me, catapulted me into the arms of a loving and merciful God. I believe it can and will do the same for you!
5 quick facts about our Free Psalm 119 Bible Study:
- It’s convenient. The study comes straight to your e-mail each day.
- It’s quick. You can complete the study in less than 15-minutes per day.
- It’s free. And who doesn’t love FREE?!?
- You get rest days. The study follows five days on/two days off format.
- You get bonus gifts. We’ve packed the study with lots of digital freebies.
Not only is this 30-day Bible study offered completely free of charge, but it also includes several digital downloads including:
- Hand-Drawn Digital Artwork by Jenna Parde {Scribbing Grace}
- Printable Prayer Cards by Neely Beattie {One Acre Designs}
- Going-Deeper Guide by Sandra Bretschneider
- Downloadable Audio Version by Sarah Koontz {Living by Design}
Do you have a friend who is seeking, searching, or hurting?
Sign up for the Psalm 119 Study and send them a heartfelt, personal invitation to join you.
Then commit to connecting with them on a weekly basis throughout the thirty-day study (by e-mail, phone, video chat, or social media).
If you are feeling brave, invite a small group of 4-6 people to do the study with you and set up a private Facebook group to facilitate the conversation.
I promise this step of faith will stretch you in uncomfortable ways, but the eternal blessing is worth the sacrifice.
Additional Tips & Tools to Help You Succeed!
The laws of physics teach us that more force is required to overcome static friction (get an object moving) than to maintain kinetic friction (keep an object moving). In the same way, it is easier to engage in an active Bible study community than it is to begin one. Here are some additional tips and tools to help you succeed in this endeavor!
Step 1 – Make a Plan
Before you start sharing the study with your friends, it’s important to make a few decisions about how you’d like to set up your online Bible study community:
- What date do you want to start the study as a group? Note, if you start on a Monday the rest days will always fall on the weekend. We recommend that you, as the leader, sign up to start the study at least a few days before the rest of the group. This will allow you to get a head-start on the study material.
- How big do you want your online Bible study group to be? Your answer to this question will determine how you share the study. If you want it to be a few select people, personal invitations by phone or e-mail are the way to go. If you don’t mind managing a larger group, you may wish to put out an open invitation by social media.
- How will you connect with the other group members throughout the study? There are so many ways to connect online, and now is the time to decide what resources you will use to facilitate your online Bible study community. Of course, phone and e-mail are always an easy option. You could use free downloadable apps like Voxer, WhatsApp, Zoom, or Marco Polo. Or you could set up a private Facebook group or utilize google hangouts to facilitate the conversation. No matter what you choose, it’s important to make this decision upfront so you can easily communicate your plan with others.
- Who will you ask to help you lead the study or moderate the online group? Leading an online group is more fun when you have invited others to help you share the burden of responding to questions, posting comments, and facilitating the conversation.
Step 2 – Share the Study with Your Friends
Schedule some time to make phone calls, send e-mails, or write a few social media posts inviting people to participate in your online Bible study. Be sure to clearly communicate the following details about your online group study:
- What you are studying. Feel free to copy/paste study info from our landing page or use the one-click share links we’ve included in the study welcome letter. We also have several shareable graphics available here.
- When you are starting. Pick a start date and make sure people know that it is a 30-day commitment.
- How you are connecting. Let people know how your online community will function. Will you do daily discussion threads in a private Facebook group, weekly video chats on zoom, or share thoughts and prayer requests through an app? This is up to you (more tips/tools included in step 4).
Step 3 – Register Your Group For the Study
If you would like to have a group of people go through the study simultaneously, do not encourage them to sign themselves up. Instead, you will need to collect everyone’s information (first name, last name, e-mail) and then manually sign them up one day prior to your group start date through our subscription form at LivingbyDesign.org/Psalm119.
The best way to facilitate the signup process for a larger group of Bible study participants (20+) is to utilize a service like google docs or excel to collect the information and then e-mail our ministry staff at info@livingbydesign.org so we can upload the list directly to our e-mail provider on a pre-selected date.
Step 4 – Engage Your Group Throughout the Study
Once you have completed a few days of our free Psalm 119 study, I think you’ll see how simple it will be to lead a group through it. Your primary role is as a facilitator. It’s your job to encourage your group to complete the daily devotionals, and help them build relationships within the group by posing thoughtful discussion questions.
In order to make this task less overwhelming for you, we’ve created the following additional resources to support online study groups:
- Community Building Questions for the Psalm 119 study.
- Daily Study Graphics to download and post in your group.
- Lettering Challenge Prompts for artistic communities.
Thank you for partnering with us in our mission to build a bridge between God’s people and God’s Word.
