Do you need to Restart your Bible Study today?

Last week I gave you a challenge, start a personal quiet time. How did you do?

I didn't do so well. I spent a few days actually studying but that was it. If you are like me, I want to encourage you.

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. - Lamentations 3:22-23

God's love is great and he doesn't allow our failures to consume us. His compassion never fails and he allows us to start fresh every morning.
So take a deep breath and realize that God loves you. You messing up and not following through on your challenge to spend time with him, is in the past. Strive to move forward with a new zeal.

If you seek to know God and spend time with Him, He will give you the desire of your heart, by being there for you to find.

But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. - Deuteronomy 4:29

10 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity.[b] I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.” - Jeremiah 29:10-14

So I must ask, how has your Bible Study been?  If you are don't want to answer that because it hasn't been good do not fret. Today is a new day, and God still loves you. So why not seek him with all your heart and soul. He will reveal himself to you.


Let's put together an action plan!


Why not sign up for Bible.com? You can download the Bible to your phone, tablet, or computer. They have some great plans and devotions. You can even listen through them if your connected to the internet.

In September I would like to do a short guided Bible Study. Follow me on my Facebook page to weigh in on it, or respond in the comments below.



Topics I'm looking at through Bible.com

Assurance - 4 days
Why Does God Love Me? - 5 days
When Your days are Hard? - 6 days

Cast your vote below or on facebook.

Lighting your Path; 3 reasons to study your Bible

Read your Bible or a devotion - Check! Yeah I've done my study for the day, off to play. This is not the way to do Bible Study. Why? Well it is because Bible Study is an important part of your relationship with Christ. Here are 3 reasons you should study your Bible.

1.  Reading the Bible helps you build a relationship with Christ.
   

   In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning. ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. - John 1:1-5

   Jesus is the Word that his passage is talking about, and He is the light that shined in the darkness.
   

   ⁹ The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  - 1 John 1:9-10

   The world was not prepared to know the heart of God and because of this when Jesus came the first time the world missed him. They didn't realize He was God and He was here. Don't miss Jesus, read your Bible so you will get to know him.  Much like a date, you talk to your date as a way to get to know them, well the Bible is the Word you have been given to learn about Jesus. How can you profess to have a relationship with someone you don't know? 
   
   
   
2.  Reading your Bible give you wisdom and guides your steps.
   

   ¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. - Psalm 119:105

   The word of God is a lamp for my feet, it leads my actions. It tells me right from wrong, and by knowing this I can make decisions that please God. As a Christian I am a Christ follower, and without the Bible I can't follow the steps of someone who lived so long ago. Yes, the Holy Spirit is there but without knowing the word of God then he can't remind me of Christ's steps. So I need to read my bible to learn how to act. 
   
   
3. Reading your Bible helps you to verify what your being taught. 

¹¹ Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. ¹² As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. - Acts 17:11-12

 The Berean Jews didn't just take what Paul and Silas said, believe and that was it. No, they listened to what they said eagerly, they then double checked what was said with the Scriptures, the word of God. By doing this their faith increased and they believed. We to should make sure what is being taught to us follows what the Bible says and we do that by studying our Bibles.



When we study our Bible we really should put together a plan so this week I challenge you to come up with a plan. It could be to right down what the Pastor taught and studying it. You can also use Bible Reading plans. One of my student Bible's has reading plans in it. I also like to use my Bible Concordance in the back of my Bible and study specific topics. (See Rejecting Rejection: Loving others anyway.)

What do you plan to study this week? Come back next week to let me know how your week of study went and what you learned!  

In a few weeks, I plan to show you a few different ways to study your Bible, but you will need a pen/pencil and a notebook. I use a composition notebook, but bright colors bleed through the thin pages. So I if you want to join me I recommend being on the lookout for a notebook.

5 Ways to show Love to Young People

We sit in a small room, just enough space for each of us to sit. It’s almost crowded, but they love it, and they love each other. It is amazing. Each person different yet they are building community with each other. They are caring for each other. This is love among my youth group. They are their own little posse, and this week we are going to use the adults to hopefully build community as a church, as a family in Christ. So this week let us learn to love the young people around us.

 

Just like any adult, a  young person longs to be known, yet be loved, they long for community. So how can love the young people around you? Well here are 5 ways you can show love toward the children and youth around you.
 

1. Be present! This is first and foremost the most important desire, even if they don’t know it. Spend time with them; let them know you are there. Ask them questions, join in on their favorite activities (even if you’re not good at it). Talk to them. Just spending time with them will help you build trust with them. Go to a movie, play a video game, or go out to dinner.
2. Invite them! include them as much as you can. If you’re going grocery shopping and you might need some help, invite them to help you. Need an oil change, invite them along. Just let them know that you value their company. Help them learn to build community by showing them.
3. Challenge them! Challenge them in different areas of their lives, but most importantly challenge them spiritually. Challenge them to live out their convictions, challenge them to have convictions. Let them ask questions even if you don't know the answers. Show them how to continue to learn. In college one of my teachers said, knowing the answer is good, but knowing how to find the answer is also important. Help them to learn and think on their own.Show them how to use the Bible to find answers and build convictions.

4. Respect their opinions! Okay, young people will have different opinions than you. If you disagree don't just tell them their wrong; show them how you came up with your opinion. Just telling them they are wrong, isn't going to work. You need to show them, help them grow. (This is more important than you realize, with a world where truth seems to be fluid and ever changing, you need to help the youth to sort out their opinions. If they never agree with you, at least you have planted a seed that God will allow to grow.)
5. Love the youth where they are. It doesn't matter if they are wrong, or in a bad situation. Love them despite this. Show them that you love them unconditionally. Like God loves us despite our issues, sins and failures. We should model God and love the youth around us despite their issues, sins, and failures. Guide them, but most importantly don't allow what they have done to affect how you approach and treat them. They need your love.

As an adult, I long for community. From my experience working with youth, they long for community as well. This is a tough world and young people need to be taught how to build a community. How to use that community to learn and respect each other. They need to be taught that truth does not change. To help reach young people you need to start by loving them.

How will you love the youth in your church and life today? Please don't stop loving the young people in your life after a week, they need you every day!

 

5 Ways to love Moms!

Hello it is love others Friday. I hope you showed your pastor some love this week. If not you still can. Nothing says you have to love someone a certain day, week or month. So this week who are we going to love or bless? 

This week I challenge myself and you to love moms. Mom's are giving more then they ever imagined possible to this little baby, child or even teen. So let's love on them. How can we love moms?

1. We can love moms by feeding them and there family. Maybe a casserole, soup, or salad. You can even do a few freezer meals so all she had to do is pop it in the oven. Lasagna anyone? Don't be shy ask her what her and her family like, or go with one of your family's favorites. 
2. Is your friend canceling plans with you? Well another way to show her some love is to grab a couple coffees and head over to her house. Help her do dishes, fold laundry or let her grab a break and take a shower.  Babies and little ones are very needy and take her attention from her husband. So you can also volunteer to babysit so she can spend some time with her husband
3. Pamper her. Give her some baked goods to let her to know you thought of her. You can put together a little basket of bubble bath items, new books on cd, or even a gift card to her favorite shop.
4. Realizing she is exhausted so offer to run some errands for her or even with her. Offer to grocery shop, go to the laundry mat or dry cleaners. Doing these things for her means she may get some rest or can have some extra quiet time. Doing it with her allows her some adult time as well as a breather.
   
5. Last but not least let her know she isn't forgotten, send her a card with a note, a gift card, flowers or even a fruit basket. Maybe a singing tel-o-gram or a note on facebook. Just let her know she hasn't been forgotten.

Now that you I've given you some ideas let's get to work.  How are you planning to show a mom she is loved?

Join me next Friday as we continue to love others well.

Loving others: 4 Ways to love your Pastor Well!

As Christians we have been given two of the greatest commandments.  The first is to love God with all of our hearts, souls and minds.  The second greatest commandment is to love our neighbors as ourselves. So today we begin a month long challenge to love others and the best way to love others is how Jesus loved his disciples, by serving them.

¹³ “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. ¹⁴ Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. ¹⁵ I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. ¹⁶ Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷ Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. - John 13:13-17

Today we are going to put the lesson of Jesus washing his disciples feet by serving others to use.  We will serve one who has been put over us. We will serve and love our Pastors.  This actually falls perfectly for me as this past weekend was the two year anniversary for my pastor being at our church. Praise God for bringing him to our life. We look forward to more anniversaries with our Pastor.

So let's get started loving our pastor.



Thank you note in every language By: woodleywonderworks 

1. Thank your pastor - The best way to love your pastor is to show your appreciation for all that he/she does for the church.  They sometimes miss out on sleep because they are up with family members whose family is in the hospital, or with people who need counsel.  The time they give up to do God's work is great. So thank your pastor. You can thank your pastor to his/her face, sending a card, sending them a text message or even posting on their facebook page.



The Family at Dinner By: Anton Raath 

2. Feed your pastor - How about taking a meal to your pastor. During the Holy Holidays the pastor is spending time away from their family preparing for church services. Just think of Christmas, how many services does your church have in the month of December? Our church has our regular services, Christmas Eve, and even a watch night service on New Years. That is just in December. My pastor, bless him and his wife, are gone from early Sunday Morning until after evening service every week.  Our Pastor spends the time in between services preaching at a retirement home, and visiting the sick. How about picking a day and taking a nice home cooked meal to the pastor and his family.



waiting for big fish By: Georgie Pauwels 

3. Spend time with your Pastor - Being a pastor can be a lonely outreach. Pastor's are the ones who give us God's word, and well sometimes we don't like what they have to say, especially when our toes are being stepped on. Also our Pastors spend a good amount of time giving away parts of themselves, visiting the sick, preparing their messages. How about spending some down time with your pastor and his family. Go out to eat, have them over for dinner, go fishing (you never know until you ask, our pastor loves to fish). Give your pastor some down time and remember that we each need community, even our pastors.

4. Ask your pastor how you can serve them - Jesus knew his disciples needs, he knew they would need their feet washed so he did. We are not Jesus, we don't know the needs of others.  So how about asking your pastor if there is anything you can do for them. It could be making copies before service, praying a prayer of encouragement and building up after a long week. Oh there are some many ways and yet since I am not a pastor I have no clue.



Feet By: Pedro Ribeiro Simões

Through the rest of this week how about loving your pastor. Did I miss something? Share it in the comments below. Are you a Pastor and have something that I didn't bring up but you would love, share it with us! We love our Pastors.

Join me on Fridays in the month of July as I challenge you, and myself to love others well.  

Becoming a life long student with scripture journaling



A few weeks ago I gave you the why you should scripture journal. Need a refresher? Check out Leaving a Legacy of Growth through scripture journaling.

Now that you know the why, lets tackle the how.  I found scripture journaling after I found bullet journaling. In case you haven't figured out while I love electronics there is just something special about being able to write important things down. This is even more true for Bible Study. Why, well that is because I can then come back to it, I can see it, and I learn from both reading and writing. Even cooler is something I mentioned in my previous scripture journaling post, you can pass on a legacy of your growth to your family.

Okay so how did I get started. I started and am still working in a graph composition notebook. I like this, but I find that the pages are thin and so highlighting is out. So if your going to use a composition notebook I suggest using colored pencils. Did you know that you can buy colored pencils that are erasable. Wow, that was an awesome revelation for me. Well my OCD has me using pens until I lose them or run out of ink. So until then I am just using plan colored pens.

So what do you need to get started?

1. Notebook - you can use any kind of notebook you want. 3 ring binder / composition or spiral bound notebook, moleskin! Find something that you like and use it. If you use a 3 ring binder your going to need either loose leaf paper or you can find printable Bible study sheets that you might prefer. Remember this is about your growth so use what is most comfortable for you.
2. Bible - How can you study and journal the scripture if you don't have it. I suggest that you find a translation that works best for you. If you can't understand then that is going to make this difficult.
3. Writing utensils - Pens, pencils or color pencils. Use what makes you happy, what allows you to express what your learning.
4. Highlighters - Highlighters allow you to draw attention to things that stick out to you. So you can use highlighters, you can also use colored pencils, or even water color paint. Remember this is your journal and you should use it to express what your learning
5. Mercy - While I recommend passing these journals on once they are finished, you should offer yourself grace. I personally am not a fan of my writing or my art, but I try to not stop me while I write, draw or anything else.

Okay do you have what you need? Awesome, lets get started.

Getting your journal ready

1. You need to decide what you want to study. You can pick a topic, you can pick a book in the Bible, or you can pick a bible story. I used a you version devotion to help guide me through scripture. You can do that, pick a devotional book and use it as your guide. 
2. Open your journal and create an index page. You can do this by simply writing index across the top. This will be helpful in helping you find what you have learned if you want to review a specific topic, story or book. 
3. Now you should number some of your pages. You can do this on the bottom or top corner. I suggest at least doing about 15 pages.

Finally, time to use your journal

Okay know is the time to journal what your learning. I do this as a literal journal. I write the scripture that really speaks to me and then I write how is spoke to me. I underline important things within the scripture. I have a Life Application Bible and sometimes I put the notes from that Bible.

Remember that journaling what your learning is about You and what You are learning. So take time to experiment and be creative. My challenge for you to is now that you know how I started my journal you can take the opportunity to create your own journal. Just take the time to grow and challenge yourself.