Psalm 46

Psalms always make for good reading...

v. 1 A very popular verse! If only I could more easily remember it when things get tough.

- becky

James 2:1-26

v. 1-13 Favortism is never a good thing. The only thing that can result is hurt feelings. A situation can also become uncomfortable for the person who is favored. Many times, they are not asking to be treated differently.

v. 14-26 It is important to remember that while it is good to do good deeds, this is not what allows to enter Heaven!!!

- becky

Matthew 25:31-46

My new devotional book came in the mail today! I ordered it from CPH. It's called Through Faith Alone, and it is 365 devotional readings from Martin Luther. I'm so excited! It looks really good. I'm trying to figure out how to connect it to this blog. Each day has a Bible verse to meditate on and a one page reflection on that verse written by Martin Luther.

Matthew 25:31-46

Ah, yes. Separating the sheep from the goats. I've heard Tim preach on this text before a couple of times.

It is important to remember that the Final Judgment is not about good things that we do while here. Final Judgment is about our willingness to follow God's commands. That's enough to keep me from being what I like to call a Sunday Slacker.

I'm going to sign off before I get on a soapbox. I don't want to get to sounding too judgmental. I'm not perfect either, but I worry for people sometimes who make poor choices. (Reference term above --> Sunday Slacker.) They will have to answer for their actions one day. I will, too, but I am confident that my heart is with Jesus.

- becky

Matthew 23:13-36

People who behave as hypocrites cannot be trusted, even in the world today.

Just my opinion...

- becky

Isaiah 58:1-14

Isaiah 58:1-14

A lesson in humbling ourselves - this is a good one to read every now and then.

When we do good things, we should do them because they are good things to do. The moment we seek out praise or reward for what we do, it completely invalidates doing something for good.

- becky

Isaiah 5:1-30

Isaiah 5:1-30

Isaiah 3:1-26

I always feel so refreshed after church on Sunday morning. It's tough to have to wake up to an alarm clock's buzzer on Sunday, but it's worth it. Isaiah and Mallory did SO WELL in church this morning. We ventured up a little closer to the front, and that really has seemed to help us. There is more for them to see, and my kids are nosy - haha.

Tim had the sermon this morning. He talked about how important it is for one's Bible to be an open book in their home, not just a book on a shelf. I'm proud to say that the Bible is a book that is opened every day in our home. :) I've really done well in sticking to the habit. So have you, if you're following along with me. Good job!

Pastor Koeller's Sunday School class was about Bible geography. He began his class by talking about how often people who try to predict the future are wrong. Only in the Bible has everything that was foretold been proven true.

Isaiah 3:1-26

The book of Isaiah tells us a lot about Jesus coming back on Judgment Day. This book reminds me of how important it is to have God FIRST in my life. Everything good that I have - and I am very blessed with a beautiful family - is a gift to me from God. It would be incredibly selfish of me not to be grateful to Him.

- becky

Isaiah 2:1-22

Isaiah 2:1-22

Isaiah 1:1-31

Isaiah 1:1-31

The book of Isaiah starts out rather powerful, in my opinion.

v 18-20 It's simple. Obey the Lord, and your sins will be forgiven. Don't and eternity will not be pleasant.

God's Word is very clear. I will admit that it takes a lot for my brain to think this early in the morning sometimes, but there is an advantage to reading early - I can mull the reading over all day long.

I don't worry for myself, but there are some that I worry about. How do I reach those who don't abide by God's law? Why is sometimes so hard to encourage others around us to live in the Lord? How do we overcome that? I have lots of questions this morning. Leave a comment in you want - how do you encourage those around you, especially those who don't believe or understand?

- becky

Habakkuk 2:1-20

Habakkuk 2:1-20

I've posted before that I've never read the entire Bible. Here's another admission for you - I've never even heard of this book! When I saw the reading on the LCMS web site, I thought huh?

As I began reading, I again thought huh? I happened to be reading from my book Bible, and not the link this morning, so I could skim back. Apparently, Habakkuk (a prophet) was complaining to the Lord about those who are evil and wicked, not following God's commands.

v 2-3 - The Lord tells Habakkuk not to fear, to be patient. Judgment Day will come, and it will be obvious who is living by God's command and who is not.

Good reading. I'm going to have to check out more of what this Habakkuk has to say.

- becky

2 Kings 8:1-6

2 Kings 8:1-6

The people in the Bible constantly amaze me. So many times they put their faith and trust 100% in God. God says leave your home for seven years, and they did it without questioning anything.

I can't do that by myself. None of us can. Living a Christian life is incredibly difficult to do, and we can't do that without the help of the Holy Spirit. It doesn't matter why we are here. What matters is how we live our lives. Are we thankful for all that God has given us? Do we show this in our actions?

- becky

2 Kings 6:8-23

2 Kings 6:8-23

God protects us and keeps us safe. It is not always easy to remember this. The irony is, if I would turn things over to God and not worry about them myself, then life would be easier.

- becky

Joshua 22:21-34

Joshua 22:21-34

Well, if I had just kept reading yesterday I could have answered my own question... Tanya, I'm so glad you answered, though! It allowed my sleepy brain to easily process today's reading. I'm reading the verses on-line. We have so many Bibles around the house, but I thought on-line reading would be easier. I think I'm going to start reading directly from the book. The LCMS web site can dump you right in the middle of a book for reading, and it would be nice to be able to skim back or ahead to catch myself up with what is going on.

Anyone else planning to order the new Lutheran Study Bible?

- becky

Joshua 22:1-20

Church went well this morning. We made it thru...the ENTIRE service! Woot woot - first time in about 3 weeks. :) Tanya, how did it go sitting closer to the front? I moved up a pew hoping that someone would sit behind us, preventing Isaiah from crawling under. It worked! Maybe if we say closer, and he could see what is going on crowd control would be easier for me...

On to today's reading --> Joshua 22:1-20

As this chapter in Joshua begins, it is important to remember that God will provide for us - rest, food, financial needs, etc. - but we must also obey Him. This only makes sense. Why should we expect to sit back and relax in life, forgetting or choosing not to show God how thankful we are for all that He has given us. Set aside the things that we need in our lives here; think of the greatest gift of all. Jesus.

As I continue reading, I am easily reminded that I don't know enough Bible history. So, the altar that the people built was not for worshiping God...? Can someone comment and explain to me? You, see. This is why I'm glad other people are reading along with me! You can help me out when my comprehension skills fail.

- becky

Deuteronomy 16:9-22

Deuteronomy 16:9-22

The verses show the recurring theme of 7 in the Bible - 7 weeks and 7 days, in this case. The feasts make me think of the upcoming holidays. (Thanksgiving is my favorite!) It is so easy to get caught up in the commercialism (is that a word?) of the season. An Advent Calendar is a good daily reminder. There should be something like that to use during the month leading up to Thanksgiving!

- becky

Deuteronomy 15:1-18

Deuteronomy 15:1-18

Once again this week, I am reminded that the Lord provides. With the weekend coming, it's also nice to have the recurring theme of resting - in this case it's the seventh year, but these verses still serve as a reminder to rest on the seventh day.

That will be a challenge. I'm going to challenge myself to get things accomplished tomorrow. My motivator will be the thought of resting on Sunday. Care to join me in the challenge?

- becky

Numbers 27:1-11

Numbers 27:1-11

This is a story of family. I could blog a lot about family. I wish I lived closer to my family. Some days it is easier than others, but I am always missing them and wanting to live closer. On a lighter note, my parents always talk of downsizing. We were visiting on vacation two years ago, so I went around their house taking pictures of the things that I wanted them to hand down to me should they go crazy with a rummage sale. It was all silly things - a candy dish, mixing bowls, a spice rack - but they are all things that remind me of my childhood.

- becky

Leviticus 25:35-55

Leviticus 25:35-55

v 35-43 These verses make lots of sense to me as they begin. Ways of helping those less fortunate immediately came to mind. This is a time when we are often skeptical in helping people because there are so many bad people out there waiting to take advantage of us. I'll have to blog more about this topic later. My brain is still waking up, and I can't seem to get the words out right this morning. To sum up my thoughts - I should worry if someone is trying to take advantage of me or not; God will take care of that for me. I should put my trust in Him.

- becky

Leviticus 25:1-34

Leviticus 25: 1-34

v18-22 Give to the Lord, and He will provide.

Not the easiest read this morning. There is a lot of this belongs to this person, and this belongs to that person. There is still the commong theme of loving your neighbor, and I noted above I recognized the theme that the Lord really does provide.

- becky

Leviticus 19:1-37

v1-7 In the particular Bible I am reading - the on-line link to ESV from the LCMS web site - the section title is The LORD is Holy. I like that the word Lord is in all caps here. Just the title written that way serves as a reminder.

v12 Having children has really opened my eyes on this issue. I don't want my kids to hear me say something inapporopriate and repeat it themselves. How would I then explain to them why they shouldn't say it? I realize that I have slips of the tongue, but this verse is a good reminder to me. Note to self: watch language ALL the time, even when really frustrated.

v20-22 Question here! If forgiveness is God's greatest gift to us, when did these people have to give a guilt offering? I'm not questioning anything; I'm just curious and wanting to understand these particular verses. (This Bible blog commentary is tough. I'm trying to wrap my thoughts around all of this, but I don't want to say something wrong. Do you ever feel like you live in fear of offending people? It really is tough to put yourself out there as a model Christian. I think we could have a whole discussion on that topic sometime.)

v26-28 Pretty self-explanatory here. Are pierced ears okay? My ears are pierced.

Happy Monday! Lots to do today, but I've started my day off right!
becky

My Intentions

This morning, I attended Pastor Koeller's Sunday School class called Bible 101. Our topic was different Bible translations. It was quite interesting to see the different interpretations that are out there. I learned about paraphrase Bibles, and how those tell God's Word from someone else's viewpoint. Just as an FYI, I believe the synod's first choice is the ESV Bible - English Standard Version. If my husband is reading this, I would really, really, really like to get myself a copy of the Lutheran Study Bible coming out at the end of the month ;-) .

Anyway, I'll get to the point of this post.

I got to thinking about my Bible blog after class. I want make clear my intentions here.

1. I want to read completely thru the Bible.
2. I want to encourage others to read completely thru the Bible.
3. I want a place to record my thoughts as I am reading.
4. I want a place for others to discuss what they are reading in the Bible.

I do NOT intend to translate, interpret, or paraphrase the Bible in any way. I am simply dumping my brain as I read.

I'm lucky to have a pastor for a husband. He's a great source of information when I have questions. I don't know if he reads this blog of mine, but hopefully he does. (Honey, if you're reading this, please feel free to leave comments on any post if my thoughts are not going the way that they should. If you also want to post discussion questions every once in a while to get discussions started, that would be great, too!)

I hope that you will join me in reading and discussing God's Word.

- becky

Exodus 23:1-13

v1 - Stop gossiping!

v5 - To me, this goes along with the whole love your enemy thing. That's really a tough pill to swallow, but in the long run I think it could help your enemy to eventually not be your enemy anymore. Confusing sentence, but it's early. I haven't had my coffee yet, so it's kind of hard to get my thoughts together.

v12 - Making it to church on that 7th day is a great way to prepare for a new week. I make it to church weekly, but it's a challenge once I am there. With Tim officiating, it's tough for me with Isaiah and Mallory by myself. I don't like to utilize the nursery during the service because I want them to learn how to behave in church. We've started lasting as long as they can; when they can't sit still anymore, we retreat to the cry room. They have a little wiggle room in there, and I can still focus on the service. Anyone have any better ideas???

- becky

Exodus 20:1-21

Oooh, the Ten Commandments - good place to get back into this!

v2 - God is responsible for all that is great in my life.

v3 - No other gods includes things like money, TV, Facebook (the greatest time sucker around right now).

v5 - I think God is telling us that through our example of loving Him, our children will learn this. If we reject God, isn't it more likely that our children would, too?

v8 - Thank you, Lord, for giving me permission to rest one day!!! :) I can certainly devote one tiny, miniscule hour in worship to You each week.

v17 - God has richly blessed me. Why should I want what other people have if I truly appreciate my blessings?

- becky

LCMS Web Site

The LCMS Web Site has a link for daily readings. I'm going to use that as a guide. I need someone else to tell we what to read; otherwise, I get too overwhelmed. :)

- becky

Priority Mix-Up

Being back to work has been tough for me. I will be the first one to admit that I completely fell off that wagon with this blog, and the wagon took off without me. My house is a complete mess; my kids and husband deserve better that this. I'm making it to the gym only once each week; I deserve better than that. I was lying in bed thinking this morning about why things have become so difficult for me. I believe it's because I have also stopped reading the Bible daily.

I can't change everything that is in a disarray (is that a word?) at once, but things can slowly change for the better. I just need to be careful that I don't bite off more than I can chew. Good ole baby steps.

My time in God's Word is the first thing that needs to improve. Strength comes from God. Motivation comes from God. God speaks to us through His Word. If I am going to listen to what He has to say, then I need to READ GOD'S WORD.

- becky