 Welcome back to the blog. We are continuing in the book of Isaiah. This week, we are taking a look at Isaiah chapter 2. Remember, our theme for the year is "wholeness." We will continue to focus on their places of barrenness (void of God) and how they got there. Then, we will explore the HOPE that still remains for them. Read: Isaiah Chapter 2. On your own, read/listen to Isaiah chapter 2. Remember, don't rush through it. I suggest reading and listening to it more than once. Then, write a quick summary paragraph in your journal describing what the chapter was about overall. When you're done, return here. Strategy: After reading Isaiah chapter 2, here is my short summary: Prophet Isaiah continued to speak to the leaders and the people of Judah and Jerusalem. In this chapter, he reference "the latter days (the time of the Messiah; when He will reign over the earth; the 1,000 year reign)." He indicated that there would come a time when the mountain of the house of the LORD would be lifted up and all nations would flow to it to learn from Him and submit to His way. This prophecy is also repeated in Micah 4:1-3. Isaiah challenges them to walk in God's light in that very moment. He then highlights the many sins that was keeping them from walking in the light of the LORD. The land was filled with idols, they worshiped their treasures, and they walked in pride, but it was all going to come to an end because the LORD would judge the earth. The verse that stood out to me was 22, "Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?" I kept reading it over and over. It stood out so much that I began to do a deep dive and studied the term "regarding (ESV)." It seemed like a simple instruction from the LORD, yet we still see humans regarding man more than God even today. The term regarding means to "esteem, value, or be guided by. We must be very careful not to esteem or be guided by any voice but the LORD's. There are many voices fighting for our attention. Yet, God's is eternal and the most significant to our wholeness. This was some of the idolatry in the land, hanging onto the guidance of those in power. It showed their greater trust in those individuals. It is like hanging onto the doctors for dear life when you are having a major surgery, instead of praying and seeking God to keep you. See my screenshot below.  Now, let's dive deeper: Take a few minutes to answer the 4 questions below either in your Bible or a journal (before reading what I have written). Once you're done, return here and compare notes. 1. What lies did Israel believe? They believed they had to be like the people of the east (ex: fortune-tellers). Their treasures and false idols would bring them success. They could build their own kingdoms with strong materials, and nothing could come against them. They could exalt themselves and their leaders. 2. What was God's truth that they questioned? Their identity did not come from idols they made by hand. God is more powerful than any idol or material they would use to build. God would judge the lofty pride of man. The LORD alone would be exalted. 3. How did the lies they believed distort their identity? They began to look like and do the things their pagan neighbors did. 4. What did they believe their purpose was in that distorted identity? I think they believed they thought they needed to become like the world around them, to have them as their allies. But there was still HOPE for them... Again, you will use my HOPE acronym and journal how there was still hope for them by answering the questions below. H (Spiritual Healing) - What was God's redemptive plan to come? What was one thing God (through Isaiah) instructed them to do in their current time? If they refused, how did that violate God's commands? O - (Overcoming) - What did Isaiah me by walking in "the light of the LORD?" P - (Purpose) - What was their purpose in chapter two? E - (Eternal Perspective) - How was "regarding man" the wrong perspective to have? Finally, take a moment to journal at least one of the application questions below: 1. Are you looking like the (unbelieving) world around you? How? 2. How can you change this? When you're finished, return here. My answer: I'm finding that being a "Christian" doesn't have the same meaning for everyone. As followers of Christ, we are to follow the Word and live set apart, in obedience to Him. Everyone doesn't believe that. Therefore, I have to be careful of my connections as I continue my journey in obedience to Christ. How would you answer? Leave a comment below. Be Blessed & Keep Studying with "HOPE in CHRIST" Denise M. Walker
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 Well, here we are. Are you ready, ladies? I hope so because I am. Before we begin our Bible study for 2026. Please take a minute to read the reminders below:
Let's begin. Read: Isaiah Chapter 1. On your own, read/listen to Isaiah chapter 1. Don't rush through it. I suggest reading and listening to it more than once. Then, write a quick summary describing what the chapter was about overall. When you are done, return here. Strategy: Now that we have read Isaiah chapter 1, here is my short summary: Prophet Isaiah was speaking to the leaders and the people of Israel about their rebellion and iniquity. They had "forsaken and despised" the LORD, resulting in them only practicing religion, oppressing, and even murdering. God would purge the evil from among them and restore them as before, and those who didn't repent would be consumed. In chapter 1, the verses that stood out to me were 21-31. These stood out because Prophet Isaiah explained (in detail) the causes of their barren condition. I sorted his statements using "cause and effect." This is a simple reading strategy that can help with a deeper understanding. I completed this T-chart in OneNote. See image below.  Now, let's dive deeper:
Take a few minutes to answer the 4 questions below either in your Bible or a journal (before reading what I have written). Once you're done, return here and compare notes. 1. What lies did Israel believe? I think Israel believed that God was insignificant or like the false gods that man created. Maybe they believed that God wasn't all-powerful. Finally, God may not have been the final authority in their lives. 2. What was God's truth they questioned? God sees and hears. God is all-knowing. He's the only one who can save. Everyone will give an account of himself to the God who made us (Romans 14:12). 3. How did the lies they believed distort their identity? According to the text, they became evil doers, corrupt, rebels, liars, and thieves. People with no morals. They were filled with pride and desired other sources that couldn't save them. Overall, it was all about self. This was not God's will for their lives. 4. What did they believe their purpose was in that distorted identity? "Everyone loved bribes and ran after gifts. There was no justice for the widow or the fatherless." In other words, their purpose was to get all they wanted in life and live their lives on their own terms, no matter who they harmed in the process. Regardless if it made God angry. But there was still HOPE for them... Now I want you to use my HOPE acronym and journal how there was still hope for them by answering the questions below. Feel free to add your own questions as well. H (Spiritual Healing) - What was God's plan for spiritual healing? How did He instruct the people to participate in their healing? O - (Overcoming) - To overcome their separation from God, what did they have to do that included their free will? P - (Purpose) - What did God say they once were, which was His purpose for them? E - (Eternal Perspective) - How was their perspective different from God's divine perspective? Finally, take a moment to journal at least one of the application questions below: What lesson was God teaching in this chapter? How does it relate to you personally? How will you apply what you've learned to your own life? When you're finished, return here. My answer: 1. God was teaching that we are His creation, and He sustains us. 2. This relates to me personally as a parent. It helps me to always remember the LORD's position in my life, first. I always think in analogies. For example, when our children are growing up, they come to us when they are sick, in need of food, or money for school. They are aware that we are the ones who care for and sustain them through God's grace. Side note: I am aware that this is not everyone's story. I'm only connecting it to my personal experience as a parent. 3. I will apply this by remembering that God is holy and He made me, not for myself, but for Him—to live holy, set apart of Him. Be Blessed & Keep Studying with "HOPE in CHRIST" Denise M. Walker  We all have our favorite resources to use during Bible study. This post will share a few of my favorites!  The above photo contains my favorite Bibles. To begin, I use the ESV Journaling Bibles (Set of 5) all the time. I carry the one I'm reading with me in my journaling bag with highlighters, pens, stickers, and sticky notes, readily available to dive into the word at any time. There is plenty of space for writing, using stickers, and even drawing, if you so please. These are the most amazing resources. Next up, for digital journaling, I use my Microsoft Surface tablet with its pen. This is one of my favorite resources because I use Microsoft OneNote to take notes, and I still feel as if I'm writing on paper when I journal on it. For those who use OneNote, you are aware that the writing space is infinite. I also create pages in Canva to import in OneNote as a PDF. I also add stickers as images. I purchase some of these from Etsy or create them in Canva. As you can probably tell, I love to Bible journal, whether it is digital or physical. Finally, I have the Experiencing God Bible. This Bible is a treasured resource. Yes, you guessed it. It is by Henry and Richard Blackaby. I love this Bible because it contains many questions and prompts per chapter that helps enhance my Bible journaling time. Each chapter also has a section titled "Did you Notice?" This section summaries what should have stood out in the chapter. I love it!  Next, are my digital Bible study tools. I used to have a subscription with Life Bible/Tecarta, Inc. They provide many study resources for only $4.99 a month. However, I canceled it after purchasing some of the resources I wanted to add to my study tools. I can still use the ones I purchased. I love the way I can have 4 screens open at a time on my tablet. Tecarta has also added something called "Touch Points" that I can still use without the subscription. Here you can type in a topic you are interested in studying, and it will give you several verses that include this topic. I recommend checking it out.  Finally, Olive Tree has been one of my go-to resources for many years now. I have built a huge library of resources there. Once you have purchased materials on Olive Tree, they are available to you offline. Some of my favorite resources in Olive Tree are as follows: Thompson's Chain Study Bible, ESV Archaeology Study Bible, The Open Bible, NET Bible w/Full Notes, and Naves Topical Bible Index. You can't go wrong with Olive Tree. Not to mention, it is very user friendly.
No matter which resource you choose for Bible study, I only pray that you will dive into God's word and draw near to Him. Stay tuned for my Bible study strategies I will be sharing with you here on this blog. Be Blessed & Keep Studying "The HOPE Way, Denise M. Walker  Welcome and thank you for visiting our page. The H.O.P.E. Way is part of HOPE in Christ Ministries, Inc.
We will begin the year 2026 in the book of Isaiah. God has taken me back to this book, and it has been speaking to my heart because I believe it is relevant for our time. The theme he has given me for this year is "wholeness." This word is the foundation of Hope in Christ Ministries. It is woven through my writing, speaking, and teaching. According to the Webster's Dictionary, wholeness means to be mentally or emotionally sound; free of defect. Other synonyms for wholeness are well, restored, free from wounds, free from injury, recovered, and healed. The opposite of "whole" is barren. This means that one is "lacking, infertile, desolate, devastated, destroyed, or shattered." This is where Israel was as the book of Isaiah opens. This is also where many are in our world today. In order to walk in wholeness, we must come to HOPE in Christ and allow Him to do the work in our lives. We can't make ourselves whole. We need H (Spiritual Healing in Him), O (The power to Overcome our past and present circumstances), P (To understand we were created with His purpose in mind), and E (To change our perspective and shift our eyes to eternity). We also need to know how we got to that place of barrenness in the first place: 1. We began to believe Lies. 2. Those lies caused us to question God's Truth. 3. This truth exchange caused our Identity to be distorted, causing us to lose sight of who God created us to be). 4. Our distorted identity lead to confusion, chaos, and misplaced Purpose 5. Without God's truth, knowing our identity, and His direction, we lost HOPE. I know what you are probably thinking, "This is going to be deep." I agree, and I believe that is exactly where God wants us to go, deeper. He wants us to slow down in the word and identify our own areas of "barrenness," allow Him to make us whole, so we can move in purpose and help others out of their barren places. With that being said, I want those of you who will join me to know that "wholeness" is the anchor, and it will flow through our Bible study as we walk through Isaiah together. This blog is for women like me who know they have some barren places in their lives. You have believed lies and doubted God's truth at times, which distorted your identity. This caused you to wonder about your purpose and made you lose hope. However, you refuse to give up because you desire the LORD, you enjoy studying His word, and drawing closer to Him. You also want to learn strategies to help you go deeper and journal through the Word. This vision was birthed over ten years ago as I stood in my English language arts classroom. I was teaching my 7th graders literacy strategies to use when reading. As I stood there, God spoke to my heart about how much more important His word is on our journey to wholeness in Him. So, here I am walking in obedience and hoping you all will join me. If that's you, let's get started. Be Blessed Denise M. Walker |
“Where literacy strategies meet Scripture.”AuthorDenise M. Walker is the founder of 
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