"When you combine the actions of trusting in God, dreaming big, and working hard - anything is possible."
CJ Koutz
"When you combine the actions of trusting in God, dreaming big, and working hard - anything is possible."
David Koutz
Koutz Farm Chronicles & BLog
"There is a little weirdness in all of us. We embrace our weirdness and quite enjoy being a little different from everyone else. Learn to enjoy being yourself because you are unique, special, and amazing!" ~ CJ
Have you ever been told your life should be a television show? Our life is so crazy and we are a little weird, so that combination apparently makes us pretty interesting, enough so that we’ve been asked to share a little of ourselves with the world. That’s not so easy when you are afflicted with introvertness. That’s where the Chronicles & Blog of Koutz Farm comes in, our blog gives us an outlet that is perfect for the introvert in us to share our stories, our faith and testimony, our ups and downs and so much more.
In addition to giving us an outlet to share a little of ourselves, the blog lets us share a lot about God, the Son & the Holy Ghost. Mark 16:15 reads (ESV), “And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.””; the blog gives us that kind of networking power – a way to go into all the world to proclaim the gospel to all that are willing to hear it. So, friends and family, enjoy our posts on the Chronicles & Blog of Koutz Farm, the place for entertainment, education, spiritual growth, discovery, sharing and so much more.
Bible Study - The Daniel Plan (Day 3)
Koutz Farm Bible Study: The Daniel Plan (Day 3)
BIBLE STUDY FORMAT:
To begin this Bible Study, simply read the sections below: “Who”, “What”, “When”, “Where”, "Why", “How”, and “The Study Notes”. Use your own Bible as a reference and make sure to keep a journal handy for taking notes as the Lord guides you through your spiritual studies. When you are done, read the Prayer section (and pray along with us). Make sure to review the Action section and use our action points or make up your own actions. Make sure to check out our Questions & Answers section and if you want to dive deeper into your study invest some time in our References section, as well. This is how our Bible Study Format will be in this and all future Bible Study Posts. Let's get started...
Welcome to Day 3 of the Koutz Farm Bible Study for "The Daniel Plan” We are reading page 21 – 23 today. Expand each section below (Who, What, When, Where, How, & Study Notes) to read our notes for today’s Bible study of “The Daniel Plan“. If you have not ordered your study materials yet, you can click the affiliate links to the right to get the books we are using. Make sure to read Day 1 & 2’s notes to see other books/DVDs in the series and to view a list of other books by author Rick Warren. Don’t forget to let us know you are doing the study with us so we can reach out to you and support each other. Simply fill out the form on our Holler At Us page and tell us you are joining “The Daniel Plan” Bible Study.
Side note: If you want to get the additional books/DVDs in the series for a more in-depth study on your own, we have provided links to those below.
Note Make sure to read the disclaimers provided in the study materials from the authors/publishers. Also, make sure to read Koutz Farm’s disclaimers at the bottom of the page. Koutz Farm does not specialize in nutrition or medical services and this Bible study is not meant to diagnose or treat medical conditions, nor is it meant to replace the advice/support of a medical professional. Make sure to consult your doctor before participating in any health, nutrition, or fitness program including those discussed in “The Daniel Plan”. Your participation is at your own discretion and at your own risks.
Quick Links To Study Materials On Amazon:
WHO
Today, the “WHO” is you. This is about habits – your habits, making the “WHO” you.
WHAT
The “WHAT” today is all about habits. Rick Warren gives us four reasons why we struggle to break our bad habits.
WHEN
The “WHEN” for today’s study is now. What bad habits are you dealing with now? What habits do you want to break/change? These habits are things you are dealing with now – making the present our “WHEN” for today.
WHERE
The “WHERE” for our Bible Study today is honestly wherever you are. I would say since we are talking habits – the “WHERE” is within you. It is in your mind, in your muscle memory, in your actions, in your words, in your thoughts about yourself.
WHY
The "WHY" for Day 3 of "The Daniel Plan" study is the same as we had for Day 2 - because we want to start new habits. Now, with fibromyalgia haunting me, I know that I won't be able to post consecutively every single day, as much as I'd like to. When fibro decides to flare-up severely, I will do good to get out of bed for the day - so although I'm making new habits and working to get through the program I don't want to hold anyone back. Your why for doing the program may be much different than mine, but ultimately we want similar things - to be healthier. So our "community" why for today is to start creating new habits that help us to get healthier. We may go at a different pace, but we can still support each other through the program. Shoot me a message on the "Holler At Us" page to let me know you are participating in "The Daniel Plan" program with me.
HOW
The “HOW” today still focuses on using God’s power. Willpower alone is not going to fix things for you. You need God’s power to achieve long-lasting change like we are reaching for as part of this study.
STUDY NOTES
In reading the “Habits Are The Key To Your Success” section of Chapter 1 of the main book, “The Daniel Plan“, and noting some of my thoughts as I read, here are my study notes:
Change is hard, especially when you are trying to make big and lasting changes to improve your life.
We usually start off a plan for change with a sense of excitement, but as things get hard or life throws in the typical distractions, we tend to lose those feelings and our commitment can fade away to abandonment of the planned changes.
Habit forming is the best way to have long-lasting success when making big lifestyle changes.
Warren list four of the most common reasons bad habits are so hard to break (you’ll have to read the book to find out what he says, but here are my notes/thoughts on what he wrote):
Comfort: you have lived with these habits for a long-time;
Identity: you feel that your habits define who you are rather than something you do;
Reward: you get a short-term reward, but it has detrimental long-term effects (think sugar);
Discouragement: You are your worst critic, but if beating yourself up wasn’t enough it is important to know that Satan is actively working against you to discourage you.
Rick Warren reminds us, “You are a unique creation of God, flawed by your nature and choices, yet deeply loved by God. No man or woman will ever love you as much as God does.”
Humans like instant gratification and many of our social problems in today’s society are because of, as Warren notes, “our unwillingness to delay gratification”.
Warren tells us, “Since Satan cannot hurt God directly, he tries to hurt God’s children. Satan does not want you living a healthy life because that honors God.”
Warren tells us that we need more than just good intentions and willpower to change – we need the POWER of God behind us.
While doing external research for the Q&A section, I ran across the “Worth Beyond Rubies” website, talking about the dangers of instant gratification. I liked what the author, Diane Shirlaw-Ferreira had to say, “We become driven by our flesh and its wants, rather than by the Spirit. In essence, we remove God from the situation.”
PRAYER
My Father In Heaven,,
I know I’m flawed and I struggle with sin every day. I can be my own worst critic, but my enemy, the great Deceiver, is good at planting seeds of doubt in my mind and often makes me feel worthless, hopeless, and makes things feel so impossible. God, I am so grateful I have your love to counter the damage the devil tries to do to me. I am thankful you pull me out of the pit of despair and continue to pick me up every time I fall. Thank you for putting hope back into my heart and giving me the courage and encouragement to keep trying day-by-day. Without you, I would be lost. Without you, the devil would surely succeed in taking me down. Thank you for not allowing him to win. Thank you for rescuing me from myself doubt and for giving me the wisdom to know when I’m being manipulated by the evil one. Thank you for your protection and unconditional love. Thank you for sending your beloved son, Jesus, to take my sin away. I wanted to just thank you today, but I must ask that you continue keeping me out of the hands of Satan. Keep him out of my mind and do not give him any power in my life. When he does try to attack, please step in and give me the discernment to know it is him trying to manipulate me again. Keep me safe from the devil’s schemes. I love you, my Creator, my Father In Heaven.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.
ACTION
Read: “The Daniel Plan” pages 21 - 23
Read: Ephesians 4:22 & 4:24, and read Hebrews 11:25
Order your Bible Study Materials for this study: “The Daniel Plan“, “The Daniel Plan Journal“, or the 2-book set.
QUESTION & ANSWERS
QUESTION:
DOES THE BIBLE TALK ABOUT THE DANGERS OF INSTANT GRATIFICATION?
ANSWER:
Yes. There are multiple verses that directly address the danger of being a lover of instant gratification and many others that can be applied to this situation indirectly. The story that stands out the most though, is the story of Jacob and his brother Esau (Genesis 25:29-34). Here are some other examples:
Proverbs 7:18 & 17:21
2 Timothy 3:2
1 Corinthians 9:27
Make sure to click the links below under our references section for more info...
QUESTION:
WE KNOW THAT SATAN CAN'T HURT GOD PHYSICALLY, SO SATAN COMES AFTER US. WHY DOES GOD ALLOW SATAN TO DO THIS?
ANSWER:
This is one of the most common questions and a tough one to accept the answer. First, remember that as humans we do not know or understand the things of the heavenly realm. With that being said, humans were the ones that made the choice to fall away from God's laws, ushering in evil. While God limits Satan's power, Satan does have control of this earthly-world. "Got Questions" has explained it well, "Attacks from Satan, along with all other tribulations, can cause believers to love God more, resist Satan more, practice patience, and grow stronger in our faith in many other ways."
QUESTION:
WHAT IS THE NUMBER ONE (#1) REASON PEOPLE FAIL AT TRYING TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT LIFESTYLE CHANGES?
ANSWER:
The number one reason we fail at making significant lifestyle changes is because we flat out give up. We aren't persistent or consistent. in working towards creating new habits or chasing those goals that we originally setup for ourselves to be able to make the needed changes.
Read more reasons we tend to fail by checking out "Success.com's article: The 7 Reasons We Fail" (also linked in the reference section below.
BIBLE STUDY TIPS
We suggest getting either the two-book set with the Journal and The Daniel Plan in a physical copy that you can use to take notes in etc. At minimum, you can do what we did at first and buy the Journal in physical form and The Daniel Plan book in the digital form (on platforms like Amazon's Kindle Unlimited or Audible).
REFERENCES
Check Out These Other Great Books By Author & Retired Pastor, Rick Warren:
Our favorite Study Bibles:
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