What I Read Today

I know people have many different ways of reading the Bible. My goal is to REALLY read through the Bible, no matter how long it takes me. While I've read through the Bible before, it was a quick, very fast method that just didn't work for me. So, I came up with something that works for me.

Starting in Genesis and Matthew, I started reading one chapter from the Old Testament and New Testament. After a few months of this, I realized that the Old Testament would take a while so I also chose another book in the middle of the Old Testament. Currently I'm in Deuteronomy, Isaiah, and Philippians and today's passages just spoke to my heart in very different ways.

First, was Deuteronomy 4. I think I was struck by the idol section of Deuteronomy. How many times do we put things above God? Although they are not golden calves like before, we still have temptations every day to put things in front of God. Even this morning while I was going to sit down to do devos, I thought, "Hmm, I should check my e-mail since I'm waiting for someone to e-mail me a response". I knew if I made that one decision, my devos might not happen and I'm SO glad I had devos instead of wasting time on the internet :)

Second passage was Isaiah 26....I love any passage that uses the word "yearn" and this passage did just that. Talking about trusting in the Lord and how "my soul yearns for you in the night, and in the morning my spirit longs for you." There's a whole lot of great stuff in Isaiah....you should just go read the passage for yourself (and all of Isaiah for that matter!)

Third, the New Testament is easy and Philippians is one of my favorite books of the Bible so I'm thrilled I'll be spending the next week or so in Philippians. Although I love 1:21 ("For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain."), the verses that really made me think today were 1:27-30 that talk about "conducting yourself in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ". But, it doesn't stop there, it then goes on to say "Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm..." How we act at all times matters....you NEVER know who is watching you and it shows our true character, not just who we are on Sundays or around "church people". But, the only way to do that is to be filled and overflowing with the love of God and people will see Him while we are just the instrument.

So, if you don't know what to read today, here's three passages that will have plenty for you to meditate and pray over: Deuteronomy 4, Isaiah 26, and Philippians 1. That, my friends, is what I read today.