Bible Study Evangelista Show

No matter how well you know the Bible, Ignite will offer you something new, both as a hermeneutic and in its practical, personal approach to Scripture. The first chapter is Lectio Divina (meaning holy reading). It covers the ancient Christian practice of daily prayer with Scripture that we Baptist's called the "daily quiet time." We start with lectio divina in the book, because that's the usual way to learn to hear God speak in and through the Bible. Nothing heals like God's Word, because only love heals, and there is no way to heal fully without an intimate relationship with the Healer, Jesus Christ, in which He pours His love into you and your suffering. He does that, every single day, by speaking to you through the daily readings. The best way to begin healing is to hear God speak, experience His presence, and discern His will for your life through the daily readings of the Church. How? Modeled on the Annunciation, the LOVE the Word® method invites Our Lady to guide each of us in her own personal prayer

Discernment of spirits used to solely mean "diagnosing" whether someone was led by the Holy Spirit or the enemy. But it's more complicated than that, isn't it? The same person, even holy people, can be influenced by both the Holy Spirit and the enemy. Ignatius of Loyola compiled and systematized the Desert Fathers' tradition of discernment, so that now we understand "discernment of spirits" to mean deciding for oneself or another what must be attributed to the Holy Spirit, and what comes from one's own imagination or the suggestion of the enemy. Because St. Ignatius of Loyola's rules for discernment are so substantial, I have included a simplified version specific to discerning whether we are hearing from the Holy Spirit or not. (Copy, paste, print, and share!) Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Sarah S; Michael T*; Sheila I; and Roger L, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja in a monthly Bible study on the Book of Romans! *Whoa, than

In this hour of all-but-universal darkness, we need a spiritual deepening that makes us really dare to live out the power of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Nothing less will save us or our world. This series is an invitation to step into the fire of the Burning Bush, a fire that burns without consuming, without scorching, without singeing; a fire that arrives on the wind, is fed by the wind, and rests upon the crown of each disciple, sending him out to light flames of love and light in our world. This fire and wind is the Holy Spirit. O souls, created for these grandeurs and called to them! What are you doing? How are you spending your time? . . . You are blind to so brilliant a light and deaf to such loud voices. -John of the Cross This series is not about the Charismatic Movement; it's not about tongues and miracles and healing. It's about a "still more excellent way" (1 Cor 13). Love, the POWER. The Mystery. First, we'll explore the mystery. The Holy Spirit reminds us that God is mystery. The Son is God

For this last, summary episode in the Angels series, I am offering the best concise 48-minute synopsis on angels and spiritual warfare I know of. Ha! The Bible shows us that the spiritual battle we are all engaged in is centered on fear versus faith. So please enjoy the first chapter of my book Fearless, without interruption. Technical note: the podcast hosting service I use has not been working for over a week; this is why you did not get this podcast last week. I couldn't get it fixed between Holy Week, Easter, and Monday when my silent retreat began. As a work-around (it's still not working), I added the audio through the native player on my site, so it looks different. I should have it fixed by the next series in a few weeks.  Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Morgan J; Monica H*; Savana A; Jessica S; and Elysia G, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja in our Bible study on the Book of Romans!*A special "thank you"! LOVE the Wor

This series probes what the Bible, the Catechism, Church Fathers, St. Thomas Aquinas, and contemporary exorcists reveal about angels, their relationship to God, one another, and the human race. Episode 1 explores what it means to say angels are "spiritual and incorporeal beings" and the extraordinary powers and abilities they employ in their tasks.   Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Laura H; Alisa K; Robin N; Deborah B; Robin D; Carrie JH; Joanna C*; Silvia F; Dorothy G; Clara G; Jane M; Kim R; Christine Y; Genevieve M; Jamie R*; Marcie C; Jean A; MJO; Monica M; Gabriela M; Jill S; Kate H; Mary W; Michele Van W; and Norma C, for loving and lifting me! *A special “thank you” for your generosity! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja in our Bible study on the Book of Romans! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own practice: lectio without the Latin. Get the book based on Sonja’s method in the right margin, How to Pray Like Mary.   L | Listen

New around here? Welcome! Woops! I just tripped myself trying to curtsy for you in my schlepping boots (seriously, the html keeps kicking out my left arrow, curtsy, right arrow). No problem. I’m more flaming Bible teacher than Southern belle anyway, hence the “evangelista” moniker. Yes, I made up a word, but it’s entirely applicable, since by definition an evangelist simply shares the good news of the Gospel from his own point of view. And honey I’m no “him,” but I always have a point of view, so I’m your evangelistaaaah. Speaking of good news, isn’t holiness more domestic than cosmic (right?) — in the trenches of dirty bathrooms, fighting children, irritable spouses, the struggle to stop raging or overeating, crazy schedules, and overwhelming workloads? We’re all sweating and dirty with the effort to love and lift all He’s given to us (John 17) – those people, duties, callings, and longings that break our hearts and make them sing, sometimes at the same time. But most times, we need to be loved and lifted ou

Gratitude is the only thing that has been found to actually increase your baseline happiness, called dispositional happiness. Other things, such as self-medication, will cause a temporary increase in happiness, but then you return to the baseline. But over time gratitude increases dispositional well-being, or happiness, permanently! Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Jennifer M; Deborah W; and Maureen G, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja in our Bible study on the Book of Romans! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own practice: lectio without the Latin. Get the book based on Sonja’s method in the right margin, How to Pray Like Mary.   L | Listen (Receive the Word via audio or video.)  O | Observe (Connect the passage to your life and recent events.) Which of the strategies for practicing gratitude do you feel most drawn to? Can you implement each one? Is it surprising that God made thanksgiving good for us? W

According to the Scriptures, complaining and thanksgiving are both multipliers. Complaining multiplies scarcity, fear, futility, and purposelessness; while thanksgiving multiplies a few loaves and fishes to feed all who are present, with plenty left over.   Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Jannifer S, and Carolyn McK, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja in our Bible study on the Book of Romans! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own practice: lectio without the Latin. Get the book based on Sonja’s method in the right margin, How to Pray Like Mary.   L | Listen (Receive the Word via audio or video.)  O | Observe (Connect the passage to your life and recent events.) Have you thought about how thanksgiving for what "little" you might have could actually be the catalyst for receiving more from God as a gift? What has the Lord said to you about that through this episode?  V | Verbalize (Pray about your thoughts a

Once, when wallowing in suffering and complaining to God, "Why me?", He answered me with, "Why not you?" It was a sobering question that re-ordered my negative thinking toward thankfulness for all the terrible things I didn't have that I could. That was when I realized it can always be worse, a reality I remind myself of every time something "bad" happens.  The Jewish practice of praying the Eighteen Benedictions, or The Amidah, taught them that everything in life is ultimately a gift - undeserved and unmerited - from the great Benefactor, Who is gift Himself. Such a practice of constant thanksgiving centers one's life on eternity and prevents the faith-killing entitlement that leads to futility, purposelessness, negativity, and finally hell. Because the truth is, everything is gift, and we don't deserve any gift whatsoever.  Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Ashley L; Tina S; Holly A; Amanda S; Beth W; Peggy H; Glora C; G&H E; Mary S*, Mary P; Jennifer A*; Anita C; Elizabeth P*; Diana R*; Debby F;

Gratitude is a worldview, but is it a secular worldview or a sacred one? If gratitude is so obviously good for us, emotionally and physically, why are we so ungrateful? And why are Christians who have so much to be grateful for as negative and as physically unhealthy as the godless? Biblical gratitude helps us return our hearts to the eternal. Living in the midst of so many evils, temptations, and sins, the problem becomes losing sight of the eternal, of becoming distracted. Gratitude helps us focus properly, and that’s why it heals. In this episode, we look at the etymology of the word gratitude, "the three benes," the differences between the secular and sacred views of gratitude, and the number one reason why we should be grateful.  Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Cheri M, Sheila H, and Frances P, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja: Our Bible study on the Book of Romans meets January 9! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method

Perhaps we think back to the Garden of Eden and imagine how glorious it would be to live like Adam and Eve in Paradise before the fall, with our souls clear and free and full of light, and in full and immediate control of the appetites of the body. Or we try to imagine our lives without the darkness and difficulties of the suffering we have personally endured? What kind of healthy, happy person "might have been"? What if the elevation of the human person in Christ is actually BETTER than it would have been if sin and suffering had never entered the human picture? What if you, yourself, are becoming BETTER through the healing of your personal suffering, in Christ, than you would have been if you had never experienced that suffering? Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Chloe F; Noreen C; and Ester L, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja: We're studying the Book of Romans! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own pract

It's hard to impossible to be physically healthy when you hate your body. Media, trauma, disease, pregnancies, abuse, ageing, bullying - how a person perceives her appearance and feels in his body directly impacts his or her physical health. What is the truth about your body? "The human body shares in the dignity of "the image of God": it is a human body precisely because it is animated by a spiritual soul, and it is the whole human person that is intended to become, in the body of Christ, a temple of the Spirit . . . For this reason man may not despise his bodily life. Rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and to hold it in honour since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day" (CCC 364-365).  Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Patty K; Michele F; Donna H; Mary L; Carlene G; Kathy B; Elaina C; Christine D; Suzette S; Deb F; Katrina H; Leslie A; Barbara S; John P; Casey M; and Linda P, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-up

Unity, permanence, holiness, reverence, glory: "For no man ever hates his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the church" (Eph 5:29-32). This is where I get to tell you some wonderful news from here on the home front about the Catholic Evangelista apostolate. The next series, Somata, on physical healing begins September 12! Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show, Norma C; Natalie C; and Chris G, for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja: We're studying the Book of Romans! LOVE the Word® is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own practice: lectio without the Latin. Get the book based on Sonja’s method in the right margin, How to Pray Like Mary.   L | Listen (Receive the Word via audio or vide

So you're needy? You were created to be needy. In fact, you were created with an abyss of neediness because your neediness was meant to be satisfied. You were created to be cherished.  Adam and Eve were created needy: they needed food, water, work, and intimate relationship before sin ever entered the Garden. The tragedy of sin was that it separated Adam and Eve from the Source that was meant to satiate their neediness. But Jesus restored our connection to the Source. So embrace your neediness, direct it properly, and you will grow out of leeching and/or stoic behaviors that prevent you from fully satiating the neediness that otherwise eats you alive.  Thank you to my newest Friends of the Show Ann T; Amarys R; Mariann H; Michele T; Jessica J; Mary C; Fidelis L; Peggy P; Susan D; Martina MacD; Tracy D; James McN; Ellen C; Linda D; Mary McJ; Peggy H; Hannah C; Michelle M; Susan G; Rebecca H; and Amy B for loving and lifting me! Friends of the Show get all Premium Content and monthly meet-ups with Sonja: We're