So much, so little describes how I feel about our study of Colossians. There’s so much God has for us in Colossians, but I’m always a little frustrated by only having 30 minutes on Sunday to teach (okay, okay, so it’s 40+ minutes.) The only way around this problem is either for me to teach longer (Can I get an Amen?) or for you to be in the Word during the week. I think we’d all agree that the better solution is for you to be in the Word, so let’s go!

     You may have noticed that we changed the format of our weekly Bible study. The hope is that you’ll learn to enjoy a living conversation with God each day. To help you grow in this, we’ve provided four steps that describe a way to approach the Spirit of God and the Word of God to help you experience the Lord. Remember, though, the goal isn’t to “master” the four steps or check them off as you process through them. The goal is to have a living conversation with God. He wants this!

     I remember a mentor telling giving me an acronym for engaging a new acquaintance in conversation. It went like this:

R = Relax, you’re good with people and it’s not that hard to talk to them.

A = Ask the person questions about themselves.

M = More, follow up their answer with more questions to learn more about them.

P = Personal, relate personally to what they’ve shared, sharing something personal about yourself.

      I tried this and guess what? It worked! Before long, I didn’t need to think about the four-step acronym, I had internalized concept and conversations had become more natural. The goal wasn’t to “master” the RAMP process, the goal was to have deeper conversations with people.

      With the new Bible study format, avoid treating the four steps like a checklist. Try reading through them and then  think about how you would explain the process to a child. If the whole concept of meditating on a Scripture and engaging the Lord is new for you, it may help to talk about the concept of having a “living conversation” with someone in your life group or a friend who has a little more experience. Most of all, begin to expect God to engage you through his Spirit and Word. He wants you to know him more! (John 17:3)