Intro to The Chara Project: Chara is Joy
How exciting is this! The Chara Project team welcomes you to our very first week.
When we look at the greek word for JOY in biblical text we find the word Chara (pronounced khar-ah). Chara is used to describe ones who rejoice, who are glad, and who have received joy!
Doesn’t that sound refreshing?
This is the kind of joy we will be chasing.
This my friends, will be the heartbeat behind The Chara Project community.
We would much rather greet you in person so you could see how EXCITED we are about gathering with you weekly to discover how understanding God’s life giving Word brings great JOY!
There are countless verses in the Bible that speak to lasting joy. We chose Psalm 5:11 for the way David speaks about how taking refuge in God brings about shouts of joy. Maybe like us at The Chara Project, you are also hungry for lasting joy.
The culture of the world offers temporary happiness around every corner. It will be our project to find true, life-altering CHARA together.
“But let all who take refuge in you rejoice: let them shout for joy forever. May you shelter them, and may those who love your name boast about you.”
You can count on us to walk with you through a passage of scripture that will not only speak to your heart on themes of life that matter daily, but you can plan on learning HOW to understand the Bible on your own!
This community is for ALL whether you have been in Bible study your whole life, or if this is your first week ever. We can not wait to share this space with you as we introduce the Chara Bible Study Guide to bring the Biblical world alive!
To get started, we will walk through the easy to remember acronym that will come in handy every single time you open your Bible.
Context
History
Author
Research
Apply
Let’s begin by checking out some highlights from the CHARA Bible Study Guide. If you want access to the full guide, click here.
The CHARA Bible Study Method
Context:
Understand the context of the surrounding passage. This first step will be helpful in determining what is going on in and around the passage! We read verses around the passage we’re studying to grasp the larger understanding of what message was being conveyed.
History:
Understand the history and cultural context of the passage. Biblical history is exciting and reflects the culture of its day. In this step we will understand how the original hearers would have heard the message. We will discover when the message was written and who it was written to.
Author:
Understand the author’s perspective and their style of writing. God inspired real people - 40 authors from different walks of life to write eternal truths in what is now known as the Bible. We will discover details about the author of our passage, along with what style of writing in which it was written.
Read:
Understand the passage through deeper word and translation study. This is where we dive in and ask all of our questions! In reading the passage in different versions of the Bible, we start to see repetitive themes, words and phrase. Prayer is also a super important part of this step - asking God for an understanding heart and renewed mind. Remember to look for what God is doing and why.
Apply:
Identify how you can apply this passage to your life. This is where we get to take all we have studied and respond to engaging in a deeper relationship with God’s Word! We will finish with asking questions about what we discovered during our Bible study.
Also, journaling through scripture can help your time in God’s Word become personal and relational. Write down your observations, questions, fears, struggles, and prayers. Over time, we can see how God’s faithfulness has been demonstrated throughout the Bible, and in our own personal lives.
Check out this video that introduces you to The Chara Project team and explains the CHARA Bible Study Method.
As we get to be good friends with this guide, it will become the tool we use to dig in and gather the info we need for understanding and personal application.
We look forward to digging in to discover and deepen our understanding of the Bible with you. We have developed a simple resource for you to use as you study the Bible! The CHARA Bible Study Method is a FREE resource that will help you learn how to study the Bible. Learn what questions to ask when studying your Bible, where to look for information and how to apply scripture to your life.
Written by: Jenny Howell
GET THE CHARA BIBLE STUDY METHOD
Interested in the full CHARA Bible Study Method? It is a FREE resource that will help you learn how to study the Bible! Get access to the full details around each of the CHARA Bible Study Method in a beautifully designed printable version to use as you study the Bible on your own.