Does this ring true for anyone out there? 🙂
“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” 1 Timothy 4:1 (NIV)
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
During the first of the year many Christians often resolve to be more purposeful in their spiritual growth. The Bible dedicates a significant amount of scripture to the importance of reading and meditating on God’s Word daily and spending quality time with God through prayer and praise. Because we know this, one of the main spiritual goals or resolutions at the start of a new year is to start a regular bible reading habit. Often people get off to a good start. Then, like many New Year’s Resolutions, what started off as a good intention gently fades, and it never quite becomes a habit or routine.
Two years ago I wrote a post on Tips to Start Reading the Bible on a Regular Basis. This might be a good time to go back and revisit that post for some great tips and a story about how and why I started my bible reading practice. This week I’d like to resume and expand on that discussion because I recently gained some more insight on a better way to approach bible reading.
My pastor, Whit George, just shared a different approach with our church[1]. Pastor Whit said that many of us approach bible reading in a couple of different ways. First, many of us approach our quiet times and reading like a duty, out of obligation or out of guilt. This approach is not as meaningful. It is not really “delighting” in God’s Word as Psalms teaches.
“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” Psalm 1:1-2 (NKJV)
Secondly, others of us approach scripture like reading a self-help book or instruction manual. We read it only for application. Reading for application is not bad—it’s actually a good thing. However, this approach doesn’t work when you read something that you can’t apply or when you don’t get anything out of what you read that day. To be perfectly honest, I have been guilty of both the “duty” approach and the “application-only” approach.
Check out what this husband at a craft store did! My mom shared this funny meme with me this week. I can definitely picture my dad doing this on a trip to Hobby Lobby with my mom!
“…for they will not go.” Jeremiah 37:9 (NASB)
It’s easy to lose spiritual focus and get distracted when things don’t seem to be going our way. It’s especially true when we see or experience injustices, trouble, unethical behavior or wrongdoing. However, the Bible encourages us that even, and especially in those times, we should keep our focus and our eyes fixed on Jesus.
God has been showing me some of that lately. I tend to get more frustrated and discouraged when I rely on myself and my own strength instead of remembering that I have a God that will give me the strength I need to handle and endure anything that comes my way if I’ll just look to him.
Sometimes things just get under our skin so much that we forget about God’s role and ability in the whole process. For example, state budget cuts and administrative changes have completely affected education where I live. I teach at a local community college, and we’ve experienced some significant negative effects as well.
In my department alone, over half of the classes have been canceled, instructors are receiving fewer teaching assignments but still have increased workloads, and a tremendous amount of autonomy has been eliminated. It’s super frustrating for both professors and students alike. I had a class canceled this semester, and a good friend of mine did as well, even though she was guaranteed a certain number of classes in return for some uncompensated work that she did.
In these situations it’s extremely easy to focus on the injustice. It’s easy to spend time stewing and trying to think of ways that we can make things right, change our circumstances, and/or make people see the error of their ways. What I should be doing instead is just focusing on God and the things that are in my control. I have to choose to shift my focus from the negative to God.
This one was courtesy of my sister’s Instagram post this week. 🙂 She wrote “mmmmmm think I’ll pass on this ride”!
“…for they surely make wings for themselves, and fly off into the sky like an eagle! ” Proverbs 23:5 (NET)
Photo by Ümit Bulut on Unsplash
As many people start the year with a fresh start and New Year’s Resolutions, it’s a time to look toward the upcoming year. The same is true for me. I’ll be participating with my church in a 21 day challenge involving 21 days of prayer, discipline and bible study. During the month of January, I will be spending some time in concentrated prayer. As part of my prayer time, I will be spending time praying for my blog, readers, and subscribers. I plan on praying for each person on my subscriber list individually.
There will be some general areas that I will be praying for each of you, which I’ll detail below. However, I’d also like to take this opportunity to reach out to you and see if you have any specific needs or prayer requests that you would like me to pray about. I would love to hear from you!
You can let me know your requests by:
I will add your specific requests to my list, and I will commit to praying for you and your needs. If you don’t have any specific needs, please know that you are still being prayed for by name anyway!
This winter decor window display is priceless! Apparently autocorrect even affects snowmen. I didn’t take this photo so I’m not sure which store deserves the credit. Super creative and relevant though! Good on them. 🙂
“…Our brothers have made our hearts melt…” Deuteronomy 1:28 (NIV)
“Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered” Psalms 105:5 (ESV)
This week I’m sharing the Top 10 Posts of 2017. I always like to take the first of the year to recount some of the top or most popular posts of the previous year. I like to share them for a few reasons…
First, there are several new subscribers/followers who may not have seen or read these posts and might find some of them to be helpful.
Secondly, looking back also helps me to remember what God has done and is still doing through this website. I continue to hope and pray that I am making an impact with what I write and share.
Lastly, it helps me (and hopefully you too) have ideas of how to pray based on what the current need or demand is, and when I know that I know how to continue to pray for others. What people are frequently searching or clicking on can be an indicator of some of their needs. Whether it’s a need for spiritual growth, leading others to Christ or overcoming personal struggles, I can pray more specifically based on these posts and their popularity.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #1
We are instructed to pray for our unsaved loved ones. Sometimes it’s hard to know how/what to pray. This post will give you some specific things to pray and give you an idea of what to expect when you start praying.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #2
Feeling unloved or unwanted is a common cause of insecurity. This post covers how to overcome feeling unloved by following some practical steps. It also includes a prayer straight from the bible to help overcome these feelings.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #3
Most people deal with insecurity in one form or another. This post addresses 9 common causes of insecurity with examples of each in scripture. I share some of my personal struggles with insecurity.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #4
Your name and its meanings might have more to do with your life than you think. Your name meanings might actually describe some of your character traits and/or the traits that God will use in you to accomplish His will for your future. This post discusses how your name might be prophetic.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #5
Knowing how to lead someone to Christ may seem nerve-wracking. It’s not as hard as you might think. This post includes 4 easy steps to follow to lead someone to Christ with links to follow-up posts about the next steps they need to take to further their walk with God.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #6
Part 1 of this post on being “salty” helps you to learn some of the qualities of salt and how you can use these qualities to make a difference in the world around you & in your spheres of influence. In short, it’s a few tips on how to walk the walk of a Christian in a sometimes not-so-friendly-to-Christians world.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #7
When people you care about are making bad choices, the most important thing to do is to pray. Prayer is extremely powerful and produces results (James 5:16). This post has a prayer you can pray for people making bad choices, as well as including several scriptures upon which the prayer is based.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #8
My husband, Eric, and I wrote this post together after we celebrated our 15 year wedding anniversary in 2014. We thought we’d have some fun sharing what 15 years of marriage has taught us. Check this post out for some funny and some serious tips.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #9
Do you ever just feel attacked? Maybe it’s time to fight back…in the right way. I do believe there is a time and a place to endure attacks, but I also firmly believe that God never intended for us to be doormats to be walked on by people. This post has a prayer to go on the offensive when you’re being verbally attacked by people.
Top 10 Posts of 2017 #10
This post contains some scriptures for when you feel attacked or persecuted. It’s helpful that God has given us some encouragement & direction on this topic. These scriptures are helpful and comforting to let us know that we’re not alone, that God is our avenger, and that we will be blessed and graced when enduring persecution.
P.S. If you are not currently subscribed and liked any of these posts, you might enjoy receiving new posts delivered right to your inbox each week! Sign up here.
Also, if you have benefited from any of these posts or if you know anyone that could benefit from them, please pay it forward and share them via the sharing links below! “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 1 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)
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