The journey to read through the bible in one year. One thought and one verse from every book and chapter of the bible…
Exodus 25
Exodus 25:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from everyone whose heart prompts them to give.
We know from scripture that the tithe (10percent) goes to God. But after that we choose to give or not give out of what we feel in our heart. So the the question for me is, do I live a life of generosity where I am willing to give above and beyond, or do I settle for just giving what is expected. I want to live a life that models being willing to give anything and everything at any point and time no matter what the reasoning might be. And that includes that areas of giving especially as it pertains to finance...
Exodus 26
Exodus 26:30 “Set up the tabernacle according to the plan shown you on the mountain.
A lot of times I hear people complain about how boring or mundane these chapters are as it describes in detail every little thing that is supposed to go into the Tabernacle (which was the house of God). But I love it! I love that we get to see how detailed our God is. How much He cares about what things look like and what it was supposed to be made out of. To me it shows that He isnt just in the big things, but He is in the little as well. He wanted to show us who He is in fine detail!
Exodus 27
Exodus 27:18 The courtyard shall be a hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide, with curtains of finely twisted linen five cubits high, and with bronze bases
That is only about 150 feet long by 75 feet wide. Big for sure, but not huge! It made me think though of how much work went into the curtains. That would have taken forever! God wants and demands our best when it comes to following Him. Even in the building of the Tabernacle, He would not allow them to just skate through...or kind of get by, but made sure that they had to put some time and effort into it. The same is STILL true today. He demands and asks for it all. And we cant afford to give anything less...
Matthew 21
Matthew 21:10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
I love that when Jesus shows up in a real way, you cant HELP but talk about Him! As Jesus made His was into Jerusalem during the Triumphal Entry, He was what everyone was talking about. It was such a crazy phenomena...such a crazy sight that they HAD to talk about Him...argue about who He was and the things that He was about! When He shows up, He stops the whole show, and leaves everyone talking and saying..."who is this?"...
So far to date...
Books read: 1
Chapters Read: 98
Verses Read: 2934
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Servanthood
The journey to read through the bible in one year. One thought and one verse from every book and chapter of the bible…
Exodus 22
Exodus 22:22-23 22 “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. 23 If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry.
I love the charge that God gives to not take advantage of and to look out and help those who are in need. I think that it is awesome the way that God specifically says that He is going to hear their cry. If it is that important to God, then we also need to pay attention and act upon it.
Exodus 23
Exodus 23: 33 Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.”
We need to be so careful who we allow to be our closet friends and allies. I dont believe for one second that this means that we shouldnt be friends with or hang out with those people who dont know Christ...we NEED to, but we have to careful to not let those who are closest to us influence us to not follow of seek after Him. Who are the people that influence us the most and what do they influence us towards? Questions that all of us should spend some serious time in reflection on...
Exodus 24
Exodus 24:17 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.”
We always seems to have the best of intentions We hear about following after God...see Him...know what He has called us to, and so often start off being excited, and having great intentions to do what He says. Yet we always seem to fall off the task...grumble and complain. I can identify so often with the children of Israel. In this verse we see the response that they have. They are going to to do it this time! But inevitably, they fail. As most of us do. The difference is in how do we respond when we do. Do we continue to disobey...justify actions...or compare to others? Or do we repent...turn..and look to God and Him alone?
Matthew 20
Matthew 20:26-28 Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
I feel so strongly that any leader has got to be the biggest servant of all. These verses show why. Jesus didnt call us to lord it over people...take advantage of them, or make them feel small. He calls us to be the biggest servants. I believe so strongly that as leadership goes so goes everything else. If we want to show people to Christ and what it means to be a follower of Him, then we HAVE to model servant hood to others.
So far to date...
Books read: 1
Chapters Read: 94
Verses Read: 2790
Exodus 22
Exodus 22:22-23 22 “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. 23 If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry.
I love the charge that God gives to not take advantage of and to look out and help those who are in need. I think that it is awesome the way that God specifically says that He is going to hear their cry. If it is that important to God, then we also need to pay attention and act upon it.
Exodus 23
Exodus 23: 33 Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.”
We need to be so careful who we allow to be our closet friends and allies. I dont believe for one second that this means that we shouldnt be friends with or hang out with those people who dont know Christ...we NEED to, but we have to careful to not let those who are closest to us influence us to not follow of seek after Him. Who are the people that influence us the most and what do they influence us towards? Questions that all of us should spend some serious time in reflection on...
Exodus 24
Exodus 24:17 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.”
We always seems to have the best of intentions We hear about following after God...see Him...know what He has called us to, and so often start off being excited, and having great intentions to do what He says. Yet we always seem to fall off the task...grumble and complain. I can identify so often with the children of Israel. In this verse we see the response that they have. They are going to to do it this time! But inevitably, they fail. As most of us do. The difference is in how do we respond when we do. Do we continue to disobey...justify actions...or compare to others? Or do we repent...turn..and look to God and Him alone?
Matthew 20
Matthew 20:26-28 Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
I feel so strongly that any leader has got to be the biggest servant of all. These verses show why. Jesus didnt call us to lord it over people...take advantage of them, or make them feel small. He calls us to be the biggest servants. I believe so strongly that as leadership goes so goes everything else. If we want to show people to Christ and what it means to be a follower of Him, then we HAVE to model servant hood to others.
So far to date...
Books read: 1
Chapters Read: 94
Verses Read: 2790
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)