The book of Joshua rides an incredible high of victories for the Israelites who took over the Promised Land and showed the enemies that God was the Boss. Then, something happened. Joshua died and new leadership never really stepped up. The people settled into their homes, started families, grew crops and forgot about God. The Book of Judges is about the failure of the people who did whatever they wanted to do, then suffered the consequences by allowing their enemies to slowly take over. Despite being shunned, God stepped in and helped the people in ways they could never imagine. Enter Ruth, a Moabite, one of the enemies, who faithfully followed her mother-in-law to Bethlehem to give birth to David's grandfather. One day a king would be born who would give birth to the King of Kings. This was the ultimate solution to the problem of sin. These three books walk us through a times of great victory and great defeat. Kind of like our lives at times. However, we see through these books that God never gives up on His people and He always has a plan. PRAYING THROUGH THE BIBLE SERIES What is God's word? Simply put, it is the word of God spoken to people long ago who transcribed that information into writing. That writing was meticulously passed down for thousands of years to speak to us today. How did God speak to people in Bible times? -Audibly - God spoke directly to people who heard him with their ears or in their heart. -Through situations - God spoke through the actions and events of this world. -Through people - God spoke through leaders, kings and prophets who proclaimed God's purpose. -Through prophecy - God spoke about future events, then those events happened. -Scripture - God spoke through his written word when people read those words later. -Prayer - God spoke through the prayers of people. PRAYING THROUGH THE BIBLE SERIES recognizes the power of God speaking to mankind through His Scriptures. God's word was not only meant to be read, but applied. We must apply ourselves to these passages and adjust our lives to God's will. Today, God uses many ways to speak to us. This book incorporates those avenues of communication to ensure that God will speak to you during your quiet time with Him. Each section asks the reader to do six things. 1.Read the passage. Open up the Bible and read His Word. 2.Memorize the passage. A certain verse is given special focus. Commit it to memory. Remember it all day. 3.Understand the passage. Background information (Time, Characters, Place, What's Happening) help you to understand the context of the section you are reading. 4.Read the prayer. Read the written prayer as if it is from your heart. Don't recite them as words from a page, but a plea from your soul. 5.Keep praying. Prayer prompts are there to help you continue praying about other specific areas. Listen to the Holy Spirit and see if there is more you need to pray. 6.Journal your thoughts. In the space provided, write down some thoughts that you feel God said to your during this time. Every five sections I've included a "Prayer Thoughts" page to give you more room to journal your thoughts and write down prayer requests as you go through the Bible. Get ready to spend some quality time with God. Get ready for God to speak to you through His Word.