NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) — This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curriculum and additional resources for all age groups.
This week’s Bible study is adapted from the Bible Studies for Life curriculum.
Bible Passage: Malachi 1
Discussion Question: What life situations might cause people to doubt God’s love for them?
Food for Thought:
This Sunday, race fans from across the country will tune in to see which of the 43 drivers in the field will take home the trophy in Dover. One name synonymous with motorsports will not be on the track. A Petty hasn’t driven in the Cup series in years, but the family certainly helped build the sport that draws viewers in for 36 races each year. Kyle Petty, son of Richard Petty, is now an analyst for the SPEED network, but beyond his trackside knowledge, the younger Petty is a Christian with a remarkable testimony.
When Kyle was just 15, he gave his life to Christ after losing an uncle in a pit road accident at Talladega. His relationship with Christ helped him through that loss. Years later, that relationship would help him through two more devastating losses. In 2000, the Petty family patriarch and Kyle’s grandfather, Lee Petty, passed away at age 86; five weeks later, Kyle’s son Adam, just 19, died as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash during a practice run at New Hampshire International Speedway.
Kyle and his wife Patti, also a Christian, had always prayed together with Adam as a family, but after his passing, both Kyle and Patti went through a season during which they doubted God’s faithfulness to their family. They both, however, understood that the doubts were normal for people having sustained that kind of loss. Though they read countless books on grief, they realized that the only book that would help them was the Bible.
In the years since Adam’s accident, both Kyle and Patti have been able to use Adam’s story to witness to others. Their faith has also helped them grieve and deal with his passing; “… it gives us a peace, some sort of peace of Adam and of what he was to us,” Kyle said. “And the way I look at it now it was a blessing to have him for 19 years. It was a blessing for us for him to be a part of our family. It’s just an amazing comfort to know that you can turn everything over to Jesus Christ.”
Bible Studies for Life is a life-stage family of resources that addresses key issues in the lives of adults and students. Consisting of seven curriculum lines developed for various life and generational stages plus two others designed for deeper study, these resources focus on the same Bible passage for each week. Information about the seven curriculum lines and more information can be found on the Internet at LifeWay.com/BibleStudiesforLife.
Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at www.LifeWay.com/SundaySchool.
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