Sep 23rdThe Greatest Story Ever Told
I was listening to the tapes from “Family Camp”, which I didn’t go to this year, but a lot of people from my church did, and in one of the messages the speaker mentioned reading through the Bible in 30 days and how it had changed him, as well as others he knew who had done it. He mentioned that for him it meant reading something like 48 pages in somewhere about 2 hours per day. Not a terribly insurmountable goal, I thought to myself. Hmmmmm….maybe I’ll try it – not so I can say I read through the Bible in 30 days. That would be kind of meaningless. I happen to be a “big picture” kind of person, and so it intrigued me to consider how my view of God might change if I could see the whole scope of history from creation to consummation in that short of a time span.
So I started out today. In my Bible, reading the entire book in 30 days amounts to about 35 pages for a total of 1044. BUT as I was beginning to read page 1, I started to think about all the times as a kid that I had read entire books of 1,000 pages or more – think the Hobbit and LOTR series – multiple times in no more than a day or two. Nothing else got done, of course, and I often read way into the wee hours of the morning in order to finish a book before going to sleep, but once I started a good book, I seldom put it down for any but the most demanding tasks. I wouldn’t even put it down to go to the bathroom (learned how to zip my pants with one hand) or go to school (I was quite proficient at reading while walking.).
What if . . . .
What if I set out to read the Bible in that same spirit – as a book that was so good and so much to be devoured in one sitting if possible – that only the most pressing necessities could tear me away from it. Hmmmm . . . .
Of course, I’m no longer a kid, and there are things like laundry and work, and such that won’t be put off, so I kind of doubt that I would have 48 uninterrupted hours to finish the entire 1044 pages, but we’ll see how it turns out. Not so I can say “I read the whole Bible in x number of days!” but so I can read the greatest story ever told.
Nov 28thRefreshments Anyone?
And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. –1 Corinthians 6:11
I do not know all of the Savior’s reasons for choosing the woman at the well. I know that His revelation of Himself to her constituted an everlasting rebuke to human self-righteousness. I know that every smug woman who walks down the street in pride and status ought to be ashamed of herself. I know that every self-righteous man who looks into his mirror each morning to shave what he believes to be an honest face ought to be ashamed of himself….
Jesus was able to see potential in the woman at the well that we could never have sensed. What a gracious thing for us that Jesus Christ never thinks about what we have been! He always thinks about what we are going to be. You and I are slaves to time and space and records and reputations and publicity and the past-all that we call the case history. Jesus Christ cares absolutely nothing about anyone’s moral case history. He forgives it and starts from there as though the person had been born one minute before. (A. W. Tozer)
Jul 21stWhat’s up Doc?
Still not a whole lot. We did have some fun with the neighbors’ corn while they were on vacation by putting some ears we had bought at the grocery store on sticks so they would think they already had corn on the stalks. Fun, fun, fun. 
I’ve been evaluating Nancy Guthrie’s new book, Hoping for Something Better: Refusing to Settle for Life as Usual, to see what kind of potential it has for a ladies Bible study either at home or at the church. I’m thrilled with what she has put together. Hebrews has always been one of my favorite books of the Bible for a couple of reasons – 1) chapter 12 literally saved my Christian life at a time when I was wondering if I would ever make it past first base, and 2) it’s been the book that most consistently raises my spirit right up into the throne room of heaven. I can point out verses in just about every chapter that have lifted my soul right out of my skin and into the very presence of God, and I like that. Nancy seems to have found all my favorites and then some.
So I’m in that in-between time where one major step is finished (for now – I sure hope that wasn’t the only time I’ll ever be directly involved in foreign missions!), and I’m actively praying and preparing and starting to plan for the next step.
Jul 7thQuotes From The Calandar Part 3
A great teacher never strives to explain his vision–he simply invites you to stand beside him and see for yourself.
R. Inman
If that’s true, then Jesus must be the greatest teacher of all. Right off the bat in John chapter 1, he says to two curious men, “Come and see.” He could have just told them what they seemingly wanted to know. Instead, they left his house that day fully convinced that they had found the promised Messiah and went to find their brothers and friends to tell them to “come and see” for themselves. A few chapters later, a woman with some baggage in her past made the same discovery and convinced her entire village to “come and see”. At first, they believed because of her own story of meeting the Messiah. Then they saw for themselves. A great teacher producing great teachers. The Spirit and the Bride say come. . . . come and see.