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A Review of "Lazarus Awakening"

Best-selling author JoAnna Weaver has recently released a new Bible study series and Study Guide in addition to her book entitled "Lazarus Awakening."  In this eight week series, which is filmed in the Holy Land, she retells with a unique perspective the story of Mary, Martha AND Lazarus.  Each of us,  she explains, has a bit more in common with Lazarus than we might realize.  We are bound in the death clothes of fear and doubt and Jesus is calling us out of our proverbial tombs and into life with Him.

Each of the eight videos is about twenty minutes in length.  The study guide includes a follow-along lesson with practical application, journaling prompts, Scripture memorization, fill-in-the-blanks, and space for reflection.  In addition, the lessons DO require reading from her original book.  Since I didn't have that, there were gaps in my study, but I still believe the curriculum is valuable on its own.  If you are a leading a study, there are additional promotional resources and a script available i
on the third disc for use as needed.

I found JoAnna's wisdom and knowledge of Scripture to be inspiring and captivating.  Her joy and passion felt authentic.  This study would be relevant for a variety of audiences, but I always envisioned using it for women's ministry, primarily because I feel that women could relate well to JoAnna's style and personality.

My favorite aspect of this series might be that it is filmed on location,  adding a sort of depth to my own understanding of what Mary, Martha and Lazarus would have experienced.  In the very first video JoAnna describes the tomb as having a mid-chamber where family grieved. It was located between the actual tomb where the deceased was buried and the outside world.  It was a way for people to be sheltered in their grief, but some people would actually try and live in this space.  It was a perfect example both of how God covers us in our mourning and also how we get stuck in this place between life and death.  We get trapped by our fears and failures and all sorts of other things.  But God calls us out of the tomb just as He did to Lazarus.

I really enjoyed this study, which is exciting because it is currently available on Right Now Media, to which our church subscribes!  The one downside is that (aside from needing the book AND the study guide), it doesn't offer subtitles.  We have a friend whose first (and second) language is not English, so this study would be hard for her to follow.   That doesn't really impact my review much though since it probably doesn't describe the majority of audiences. 

I hope you enjoy the study!  I received a complimentary copy from Bloggingforbooks.org for my honest review.
 

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