Karen Ehman - Keep It Shut Study Guide: What to Say, How to Say It, and When to Say Nothing At All

ZONDERVAN

Keep It Shut Study Guide

Copyright 2014 by Karen Ehman

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Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

ePub Edition January 2015: ISBN 978-0-310-81948-6

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New InternationalVersion, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from The Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman CSB, and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible,New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Cover design: Dual Identity

Cover illustrations: istockphoto

Interior design: Katherine Lloyd, The DESK

First Printing November 2014

CONTENTS

Group Size

The Keep It Shut video curriculum is designed to be experienced in a group setting such as a Bible study, Sunday school class, or any small group gathering. After viewing each video together, members will participate in a group discussion. Ideally, discussion groups should be no larger than twelve people. You will notice occasional portions of the discussion where you are encouraged to break into smaller clusters of three to six people each for more heart-to-heart sharing and Scripture study. These times are clearly noted in the guide.

Materials Needed

Each participant should have her own study guide, which includes video outline notes, directions for activities, and discussion questions, as well as a reading plan and personal studies to deepen learning between sessions. Participants are also strongly encouraged to have a copy of the Keep It Shut book. Reading the book alongside the video curriculum provides even deeper insights that make the journey richer and more meaningful. (Also, a few of the questions pertain to material covered in the book.)

Timing

The time notations for example (19 minutes) indicate the actual time of video segments and the suggested time for each activity or discussion.

For example:

Individual Activity: What Is God Saying to Me? (3 minutes)

Adhering to the suggested times will enable you to complete each session in about one hour. If you have additional time, you may wish to allow more time for discussion and activities, thereby expanding your groups meeting time to an hour and fifteen minutes or an hour and a half. If you are also having refreshments and a time of sharing prayer requests, figure another thirty minutes.

Facilitation

Each group should appoint a facilitator who is responsible for starting the video and keeping track of time during discussions and activities. Facilitators may also read questions aloud and monitor discussions, prompting participants to respond and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to participate.

Between-Sessions Personal Study

Maximize the impact of the course with additional study between group sessions. Carving out about two hours total for personal study between meeting times will enable you to complete both the book and between-sessions studies by the end of the course. For each session, you may wish to complete the personal study all in one sitting or to spread it out over a few days (for example, working on it a half hour a day on four different days that week). PLEASE NOTE: If you are unable to finish (or even start!) your between-sessions personal study, still attend the group study video session. We are all busy and life happens. You are still wanted and welcome at class even if you dont have your homework done.

Scripture Memory

Each study includes a key Scripture verse that highlights the topic of the session theme. If you wish to maximize your learning experience, you may attempt to memorize these verses. In order to assist you with this goal, all six verses are printed in the back of the study guide.

You may photocopy this page on paper or card stock and then cut out the verses. (You really creative and crafty gals may even want to use scrapbooking paper to layer them on top of some decorative paper.) For your convenience, the memory verses are the size of a standard business card. You may wish to purchase a portable business card holder to keep them in. Then stash them in a handy place perhaps your car, purse, or laptop bag. You can practice memorizing them while waiting in the car-pool line or at the doctors office. Or you may wish to post them at your kitchen sink or on your bathroom mirror where you will see them each day. Laminating them will keep them from getting ruined if they get splashed.

It may be helpful to have the group facilitator inquire if any participants are attempting to memorize the key verses. Perhaps those members will want to show up five minutes early (or stay after for a few minutes) to practice reciting them to each other.

Bonus Session

Though there are only six sessions of video teaching, your group may desire to gather for one additional meeting both to review the session six personal study section as well as to celebrate your time spent together during this curriculum. For your convenience, a seventh bonus session has been provided, featuring discussion questions, activities, and themed recipes should your group decide to serve a meal or refreshments.

Ebook Instructions

In this ebook edition, please use your devices note-taking function to record your thoughts wherever you see the bracketed instructions [Your Notes] or [Your Response]. Use your devices highlighting function to record your response whenever you are asked to checkmark, circle, underline, or otherwise indicate your answer(s).

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.

(PROVERBS 18:21 ESV)

VIDEO: Sparks, Squabbles, Spats, and Such: Our Words Matter (19 minutes)

Play the video teaching segment for session one. As you watch, record any thoughts or concepts that stand out to you in the outline that follows.

Notes