The Chronological Bible

A friend mentioned that she was going to be reading through her chronological Bible this year. I had never heard of such a thing at the time, though our church does offer a chronological reading list for anyone who would like to read through the Bible chronologically. (Please understand that it is as chronological as a human being is able to figure out without God stepping down out of heaven and saying, “It goes like this …”)

I picked up The Daily Bible which, as it turns out, is what my friend has. I am really enjoying reading it so far. Mine is the NIV Bible and is divided into 365 readings. Each reading has some commentary with it. I’m not a big fan of Bible commentary until after I’ve tried to figure it out myself, but because I’m quite a long way from having it all figured out, I have found the commentary quite interesting.

I recommend The Daily Bible if you’re looking for a fresh way to read through the Bible.

The Rise and Fall of Chocolate Chip Cookies

Honestly, I do not know what happened. Gabe and I made the worst choco. chip cookies today! I bet it was those pesky eggs. We’ve been doing so well without them that the other ingredients probably didn’t know what to do with themselves. That’s what it was. The baking soda decided its services weren’t required because the culturally prominent leavener was back. Yes, the baking soda quit and the dish ran away with the spoon.

Wednesday

All of the Nicklebees awoke to another day again. That’s pretty convenient most days. [Ack!! Edited to add: I mean that some days it's inconvenient to wake up when I'd really rather sleep through the day, not that I think that it's inconvenient for someone else in the house to awaken yet again!!]

Dub awoke early this morning to the sensation of hives forming around his eyes and elsewhere on his face. I wonder if we’ll ever figure out what causes that. He seems to get hives at random and they seem to cover his whole body so quickly that I need I need to give him something, this morning it was Benadryl, post-haste.

I was just reading Psalm 107 this morning and thought it was curious that people think that the God of the Old Testament was so unloving. I suppose He is as unloving as the parent who will allow her child to make his own decisions and suffer the consequences of acting on foolishness. And yet God, when His children cried out for help, rescued them. Yes, He disciplined them but when, by their own wickedness, they got themselves in trouble, He always heard them when they turned from the ways and cried out for His help. Even though He met their every need, they turned to other gods. Even though they worshiped false gods, when they repented and turned to Him for help, He heard them and saved them from calamities of their own making.

1 John 3:1a

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!

Another beautiful day

The weather is almost perfect here today. Air conditioning is optional. The sky is blue and there are dozens of puffy white clouds. I got a few pictures. Unfortunately they are stuck on my camera.

Dub has a guitar lesson today. He took his electric guitar to see if the song he is working on sounds better. I thought it sounded great!

I heard today that Heidi’s mother had 12 puppies!! I didn’t know that was possible!

Bible study was last night. I’m really enjoying going through Seeking Him. There is definitely a lot to think about!

We had a contest to see which team could say the most verses so far. I knew most of the verses but none of the references, and the verses I did know, I knew in more than one Bible version so that goofed me up. I need to come up with a mnemonic device to attach each of the references with the verses. I remember the point of the verses, though. That’s the important thing. I’ll just keep on working on them and hopefully will get them next time around.

These are the verses we’re working on so far:

Week 1 - Revival

Hosea 10:12

Break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the LORD until He comes and rains righteousness on you.

Week 2 - Humility

Luke 14:11

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Week 3 - Honesty

Proverbs 28:13

Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper but he who confess and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

Week 4 - Repentance

Psalm 51:50

Create in my a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Week 5 - Grace

Hebrews 4:16

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need.

Week 6 - Holiness

Hebrews 12:14

Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the LORD.

One of my favorite songs lately is Made to Love by Tobymac. We are made to serve God and God alone. Made to Love talks about that.  It’s a great song and very catchy.  I tried to download the ringer version to my Sanyo but … well, we won’t mention that company today.  It’s such a beautiful day, why ruin it!

Speaking of Made to Love, I found this humorous video on YouTube. I don’t think it’s supposed to be a spoof but a person can’t help but chuckle if they’ve seen real Tobymac vids.  I don’t know how to embed videos so you’ll have to click THE LINK.  Sorry about that.

Sunday, July 8, 2007

Ever have one of those times when you felt like staying in bed but then you get up and do what you had intended to do and are very glad afterward? For some reason, Sunday mornings are very difficult for me, personally. The kids are usually ready for church before I ever drag my carcass out of bed. That’s just sad.

Today our pastor preached on Christian Partnership. He wasn’t talking about business or shacking up (”domestic partners”) but about the body of Christ.

Ugh. I am so distracted by the chocolate popcorn I just made. I’m not eating any more just now. It is bordering on gluttony and besides that, it is hard to concentrate on posting when there’s popcorn cemented between my teeth with cooked high fructose corn syrup. See why we don’t eat during church?? I need to go pick, brush and floss a minute here. Be right back.

… time lapse of about 5 minutes …

Okay, I’m back. I should’ve known better than to grab that first handful of popcorn.

So our Pastor preached another good sermon. He talked about partnership within the body of Christ, as I said. He talked specifically about the blessings. The text was Philippians 2:19-39, in which Paul talks about Timothy and Epaphroditus and three things a disciple of Christ does.

1. Disciples share a common philosophy of ministry. (Ministry = What can I give? Job = What can I get?) Ministry is a calling and a heart thing. A job can be both a ministry and a job.
2. Disciples share the same spiritual development in that a ministry mindset places the Gospel at the center. It is more important than health or safety. The Gospel is about service, not performance. **Remember to pray for our Christian brothers and sisters in places where Christians have to risk life and limb to live for Christ!!**
3. Disciples share the responsibility. Timothy and Epaphroditus shared in the work of the Kingdom of God. Epaphroditus almost died trying to help Paul.

Pastor pointed out how some sports teams, though they may not be technically great teams, they have a dynamic that works well and can at times overcome their stronger opponents.  The people work together well, regardless of their abilities.Oh! One really great example Pastor used of the unity of purpose and everyone sharing the work was an Amish barn raising. I have never seen a barn raising but I have heard about them and a thing like that is amazing to me. A whole bunch of people get together and build a barn in a day. Everybody works together, each person knows what they need to do and they do it until the job is done. That’s how we’re supposed to be, Christians! Have you ever been involved in something like that? I have (though not a barn raising) and it’s so cool to be a part of accomplishing a goal that’s way too big for one person but nothing for a whole group.

That was plenty to chew on, for me anyway.  We already have our clothes just about ready for next Sunday.  Hopefully we’ll hit the ground running next week.

Have a great rest of the day!