A Dependent Daughter Study...Lesson 1 - A Picture of Dependence

A couple of days back, I shared thoughts about how God is working in me regards to my role as a dependent daughter. (You can read that HERE.) Tuesday night at Titus24U we discussed this idea, shared our experiences and looked at God's Word...the conversation could have lasted longer and our learning was not complete, so I'm back to dig a bit deeper. Personally, I've never led a study on my blog, but it's something God is leading me to do so I'm depending on Him and moving forward. 

Friend, I believe God led you here for a reason and I pray He uses this to encourage and equip you in your role as a dependent daughter. Feel free to work through the questions below and if you're led join in the conversation via the comments. We'd love to hear your thoughts and see what God is saying to you! Plans are for this to be a 3 part study, so lesson 1 today, lesson 2 "Depend on God or Man? There is NO Question" on the 26th and the final lesson, "Becoming a Dependent Daughter" on October 3rd. 

Honestly I still struggle a bit with the thought of me putting together a Bible study and then leading it on my blog, but I trust it's something God is leading me to do and if I say I depend on Him then I'd better submit to Him!! I take this step knowing it really doesn't depend on me anyway, God's Word is what speaks to us, equips us and changes us, so friend I look forward to walking through this with you!!

Now onto the study - 

Over the last 10 days I've had a heavy heart...I've learned of the death of 3 young people, which breaks my heart, stirs up fear and reminds me the future is unknown. Thankfully in my study and prep, I came across 2 Corinthians 1:8-10, here Paul says, "We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us..." 

Friends, I don't know about you, but when bad, hard things, especially death, happen I'm reminded that I'm not in control...God always shows me that I can NOT rely on myself. The other night we looked at this passage and a friend pointed out the reference to God delivering in the past, present and future...He's been there in the past to provide what we need, we can depend on Him to continue to do the same now and in the days to come. As we journey through this study, my prayer is that we will better understand dependence, have a stronger desire to depend on God and thus become more dependent on Him.

Prayer -
Dear Heavenly Father, Lord we come to you now with the desire to better understand our role as dependent daughters. We know You provide for every need and may even say we depend on You for everything, but Lord we want to live like this is true, every moment of every day. We ask You now to help us understand what dependence is and show us what it looks like. Open our eyes to see and our ears to hear, but most importantly our hearts to receive all You have for us. Father, we thank You in advance for what You will do. In Jesus Name, Amen

I held my son in my arms and God gave me a picture, a picture of dependence. At 8 months there wasn’t much Jed could do for himself, but he was cared for and content. The love he received wasn’t a result of his actions. He didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, but worry was not a result of that fact. No, this little guy was comfortable in my arms. When he cried, I came. If he was hungry, I fed him. As a Mom, if he had a need, I met it.  

1) That’s the way it should be…parents take care of their children. Make a quick list of all the things a child depends on their parents for…




2) Read John 1:12, if you’ve received Christ, who are you? 



3) The Lord’s Prayer, found in Matthew 6:9-13, begins with a specific name of God. What name is that? 


4) John 1:12 says, “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.”  We refer to God as our Father and He considers us His children, which means we are to rely on Him. Make a list of the things you depend on God for…



5) What does it mean to depend on someone?



6) Think of someone who you depend on…what makes them dependable?



7) Often we depend on the people we know, trust and respect…the same is true of God, the better we know Him and more we trust Him the more we will come to depend on Him. How can you get to know Him more? Do you want to know Him more? Spend some time praying about this…ask Him to give you the desire to abide in Him and grow closer to Him so that you can depend more on Him.






8) Let’s look at a few Biblical examples of dependent daughters. How did each of these women depend on God? What need did God provide? How did He do this?

Ruth - Ruth 1:11-18, to go deeper read the entire book of Ruth


Rahab - Joshua 2:1-24, 6:17-25


Mary - Luke 1:26-55


9) Friends, there is much dependence requires - obedience, trust and submission come to mind. What would you add to the list? In what is often referred to as "Mary's Song" (Luke 1:47-55), she refers to many qualities that make God dependable, what are they?



10) These stories are good, but God's Word is more than information; it is living, active and sharper than a double edge sword (Hebrews 4:12). He can use it to transform us, but we must seek Him. Ask God to show you what lesson He wants you to learn from the dependent daughters we just read about. (For more examples consider - Sarah, Esther or Hannah.) In question 1, we made a list of things children depend on their parents for...is there something you need to depend on your heavenly Father for? Take some time to pray about that now and don't forget to ask God for the desire to apply what You've learned so you too can become more of a dependent daughter!




Closing Thought - It's easy to say we depend on God, but let's commit to living like we really do so that we too can be a picture of dependence.

Thank you for joining me in the this journey and remember to join in the conversation below in the comments. (You don't have to be a blogger to do this....just use the anonymous option.) I look forward to hearing what you have to say and will continue to pray God speaks to your heart as you go to His Word.