by Jen | Feb 3, 2026 | DISO studies, Psalm 23
NEW TO THIS STUDY? START HERE.
Welcome! This week, I’m preparing to share the DISO study process at a women’s conference in central Florida. Please join me in prayer for the conference and specifically for the speakers and attendees: that it may be a time of celebration, restoration, and growth for us. Now, here’s my prayer and what the Spirit revealed to me in Psalm 23 this past week.
Last Week’s Work
MY PRAYER
Thank You, Father, for Psalm 23 and the impact it’s already had on my life. I’m excited for the chance to really dig deep here and get to know You, my Shepherd, better, too. Open my eyes, ears, and heart—help me see, hear, and understand Your Teacher, the Holy Spirit, so I can align with what this passage teaches. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen!
HUH? and WOW! MOMENTS
This time, I noticed these reactions to the text:
- HUH? Which word for God does David use for LORD (vv1, 6)?
- WOW! I just noticed this “poem” begins and ends with the LORD (vv1, 6)!
- HUH? How does Lord as Shepherd restore a soul? Is it related to being on righteous paths (plural)?
- HUH? What does David mean when he says, “anoint my head with oil” (v5)?
- HUH? and WOW! Interesting procession: the Shepherd leads David (vv2-3) and David leads “goodness and mercy (v6).”
Dig-In Challenges
If you’re studying along with me, listen to the Spirit’s guidance this week and choose your own topic (your personal treasure) from Psalm 23 to dig more deeply into. It can be anything you noticed in your survey of the text that raises a question or resonates with you, or you can use one of my responses above if you like. We’ll start out digging into the whole chapter and later focus on just the verse(s) that pertain to our individual treasures.
- PRAY for the Spirit to direct your focus for the remainder of this study. In your journal, record the personal treasure He identifies, along with any verse(s) relating to it from the study text.
- MINE: Read Psalm 23, focusing on three factors setting the stage in this text: note anything the Spirit emphasizes about the characters involved, any locations mentioned, and any timeframes discussed.
I’m looking forward to sharing my discoveries with you next week!
GO TO WEEK 3 >
by Jen | Dec 9, 2025 | DISO studies, Galatians 5
NEW TO THIS STUDY? START HERE.
Hello again. This week, I’m so excited to share how God blessed me as I started studying Galatians 5!
Last Week’s Work
MY PRAYER
Thank You, Father, for this chance to dig into Galatians 5 a second time! I am so grateful Your Word never changes. Yet every time I approach it, Your Holy Spirit teaches me something new. Open my eyes, ears, and heart right now to see what You have for me today, to hear the Spirit’s guidance, and to follow where You lead in this study, no matter how challenging. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen!
HUH? and WOW! MOMENTS
This week I experienced something I have to share! For the first time since I began using Huh? and Wow! moments to direct my personal studies, I knew without further prayer exactly which verse would be my study focus over the next seven weeks: A little leaven leavens the whole lump (Galatians 5:9 ESV). That’s because just two days ago this same metaphor appeared in another passage (1 Corinthians 5:6-8) I discovered in the Advent Bible reading list from Precept Ministries I’m following this year. And I was moved to write about it in my personal journal that day! Once again, the God who orders all things has aligned otherwise unconnected references in my environment. Like the star the magi followed to Jesus, I believe this is clear direction for my path in this study. What an awesome Christmas present from my heavenly Father! How can I not be excited about what’s in store in this study?!
Dig-In Challenges
If you’re studying along with me, listen to the Spirit’s guidance this week and choose your own topic from Galatians 5 (a personal treasure) to dig more deeply into. It can be anything you noticed in your survey of the text that raises a question or resonates with you, or you can work with the leaven metaphor, too. We’ll start out digging into the whole chapter and later focus on just the verse(s) that pertain to our individual treasures.
- PRAY for the Spirit to direct your focus for the remainder of this study. In your journal, record the personal treasure He identifies, along with any verse(s) relating to it from the study text.
- MINE: Read Galatians 5, focusing on three factors setting the stage in this text: note anything the Spirit emphasizes about the characters involved, any locations mentioned, and any timeframes discussed.
I’m looking forward to sharing my notes with you next week!
GO TO WEEK 3 >
by Jen | Mar 24, 2026 | 1 Samuel 17, David and Goliath, DISO studies, Introduction
Hello! Thank you for joining me for this new eight-week study! I’m doing something a little different this time, studying three excerpts from 1 Samuel 17 about David’s battle with Goliath and focusing on the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel (1 Sam 17:45).
This is the second study in my new series, God Who?, and my goal for this series is to learn as much as I can about the many names of God found in Scripture. I can’t wait to see what the Holy Spirit has planned for me to discover in the next eight weeks.
Let’s Study 1 Samuel 17!
This week, I’ll begin by praying and surveying 1 Samuel 17. If you want to study on your own with me, here’s what I recommend you have ready:
- A copy of 1 Samuel 17.
I like to refer often to the text I’m studying and sometimes make notes on it, so I copy the passage from blueletterbible.org, paste it into a word processing program like Google docs or MS Word, change the formatting to suit my preferences, and print it out. If you want to use the ESV translation, here’s a pdf of my Scripture study sheet with lots of room for doodles and notes.
NOTE: My study sheet does NOT contain the whole chapter, it’s verses 19-27, 31-37, and 40-51, limiting our focus to the specific aspects of the battle in those verses. If this is your first time studying this story, be sure to read the entire chapter at least a few times so you don’t take anything out of context (we’ll discuss this more in Week Six.
- A study journal.
We’ll spend the next seven weeks immersed in and learning about 1 Samuel 17. Since the work we’ll do each week builds on what came before, plan to record at least some highlights from your work over the coming weeks. I’m old-school and like the pen-and-paper method for journaling my studies, but it’s okay if that doesn’t work for you. If you don’t have time to write out or type your notes, consider dictating them into a notes app, or recording audio files, instead.
Or, you may decide to just read the entries posted here, and that’s great, too. You’ll get familiar with the process and see how the Spirit speaks to my situation. Either way, I appreciate you checking in with me, even if you can’t dig into 1 Samuel 17 yourself this time.
Dig-In Challenges
So, here’s how I’ll be studying this week:
- PRAY: I’ll be creating a prayer with which I’ll start each of my weekly study sessions. If you’ve studied with me before, you know I usually just adapt a previous prayer. Though I’ve pretty much memorized my prayer, I still write it in my study journal as a reminder to pray each time I start studying.
- SURVEY: Then I’ll read my excerpts from 1 Samuel 17, noting anything that makes me say, “huh?” (as in, “I wonder what that means?”) or “wow” (as in, “that is so awesome!”). I’ll record these and later ask the Spirit to direct me to the one I should dig into right now.
If you’d like more information about these steps, check out this printable summary of the process I’ll be using here. Or, you can always reach out to me with your questions through my contact page or at [email protected].
I’m looking forward to sharing what I discover in this process with you, and I hope you’ll make a habit of checking in with me each week!
GO TO WEEK 2 >
by Jen | Jan 27, 2026 | DISO studies, Introduction, Psalm 23
Hello! Thank you for joining me for this eight-week study of the 23rd Psalm.
This is the first study in my new series called “God, Who?” focusing on names of God found in His Word. By studying these names, I’m looking forward to seeing how God has revealed Himself over time to certain people and what that reflects about His unchanging character.
I’m starting with Psalm 23 because it has special meaning for me: I heard Psalm 23:4 spoken over me the day I was turned away from suicide and put my faith in Jesus. But I was so biblically illiterate, I had no idea my life had been supernaturally protected. All I knew for sure was that something prevented me from picking up the loaded gun, and my soul immediately praised and thanked God. Moreover, from that point on, life was different.
Let’s Study Psalm 23!
This week, I’ll begin by praying and surveying Psalm 23. If you want to study on your own with me, here’s what I recommend you have ready:
- A copy of Psalm 23.
I like to refer often to the text I’m studying and sometimes make notes on it, so I copy the passage from blueletterbible.org, paste it into a word processing program like Google Docs or MS Word, change the formatting to suit my preferences, and print it out. If you want to use the ESV translation, here’s a pdf of my Scripture study sheet.
- A study journal.
We’ll spend the next seven weeks immersed in and learning about Psalm 23. And the work we’ll do each week builds on what came before, so plan to record at least some highlights from your work over the coming weeks. I’m old-school and like the pen-and-paper method for journaling my studies, but it’s okay if that doesn’t work for you. If you don’t have time to write out or type your notes, consider dictating them into a notes app or recording audio files instead.
Or, you may decide to just read the entries posted here, and that’s great, too. You’ll get familiar with the process and see how the Spirit speaks to my situation. Either way, I appreciate you checking in with me, even if you can’t dig into Psalm 23 yourself this time.
Dig-In Challenges
So, here’s how I’ll be studying this week:
- PRAY: I’ll be creating a prayer with which I’ll start each of my weekly study sessions. If you’ve studied with me before, you know I usually just adapt a previous prayer. Though I’ve pretty much memorized my prayer, I still write it in my study journal as a reminder to pray each time I start studying.
- SURVEY: Then I’ll read Psalm 23, noting anything that makes me say, “huh?” (as in, “I wonder what that means?”) or “wow” (as in, “that is so awesome!”). I’ll record these and later ask the Spirit to direct me to the one I should dig into right now.
If you’d like more information about these steps, check out this printable summary of the process I’ll be using here. Or, you can always reach out to me with your questions through my contact page or at [email protected].
I’m looking forward to sharing what I discover in this process with you, and I hope you’ll keep checking in with me each week!
GO TO WEEK 2 >
by Jen | Dec 2, 2025 | DISO studies, Galatians 5, Introduction
Hello! I’m so glad you’re joining me for this eight-week study of Galatians Chapter 5.
This is the final study in my current Restoration series of a dozen or so previously examined passages. The original studies are no longer available online. Rather than repost those earlier versions I created using previous iterations of my study method, I’m redoing them here with the current DISO process. I’ve loved having those earlier posts for comparison as I work through familiar passages, but when this study ends in eight weeks, I feel the Spirit leading me into passages I haven’t yet explored. So, stay tuned for new adventures in Bible study! In the meantime, though…
Let’s Study Galatians 5!
This week, I’ll begin by praying and surveying Galatians 5. If you want to study on your own with me, here’s what I recommend you have ready:
- A copy of Galatians 5, plus access to the entire letter to the Galatians.
I like to refer often to the text I’m studying and sometimes make notes on it, so I copy the passage from blueletterbible.org, paste it into a word processing program like Google Docs or MS Word, change the formatting to suit my preferences, and print it out. If you want to use the ESV translation, here’s a pdf of my Scripture study sheet with lots of room for doodles and notes.
- A study journal.
We’ll spend the next seven weeks immersed in and learning about Galatians 5. And the work we’ll do each week builds on what came before, so plan to record at least some highlights from your work over the coming weeks. I’m old-school and like the pen-and-paper method for journaling my studies, but it’s okay if that doesn’t work for you. If you can’t or don’t want to write your notes, consider dictating them into a notes app or recording audio files instead.
Or, you may decide to just read the entries posted here, and that’s great, too. You’ll get familiar with the process and see how the Spirit speaks to my situation. Either way, I appreciate you checking in with me, even if you can’t dig into Galatians 5 yourself this time.
Dig-In Challenges
So, here’s how I’ll be studying this week:
- PRAY: I’ll be creating a prayer with which I’ll start each of my weekly study sessions. If you’ve studied with me before, you know I usually just adapt a previous prayer. Though I’ve pretty much memorized my prayer, I still write it in my study journal as a reminder to pray each time I start studying.
- SURVEY: Then I’ll read Galatians 5, noting anything that makes me say, “huh?” (as in, “I wonder what that means?”) or “wow” (as in, “that is so awesome!”). I’ll record these and later ask the Spirit to direct me to the one I should dig into right now.
If you’d like more information about these steps, check out this printable summary of the process I’ll be using over the next eight weeks. Or, you can always reach out to me with your questions through my contact page or at [email protected]. I’m looking forward to sharing what I discover in this process with you, along with relevant snippets of my previous study from 2021, so I hope you’ll keep checking in with me each week!
GO TO WEEK 2 >
