A confession

On a much less serious note, I have a confession to make.

While I've worked at the same coffee shop for almost 4 1/2 years, I often frequent other places to get my coffee fix. Starbucks is my most frequent option (mainly because they are EVERYWHERE) but I also go to other local shops as well.

Actually, I go to coffee shops not because I'm terribly addicted to coffee, but because its where I can get the most work done. The only problem with this is that I spend WAY too much money on coffee during the week.

Then I found out that there are websites dedicated to "ghetto Starbucks recipes". Other sites refer to these as "Starbucks hacks". Its basically where you order a cheap cup of coffee and then add your own other ingredients to it to make it a fancier and cheaper drink than what Starbucks could give you.

One option I tried today was ordering a tall coffee, room for cream, and then adding Hot Cocoa powder and milk. It only tasted OK, so I'm going to be looking for new recipes and ways of "hacking" my Starbucks coffee. Suggestions and recommendations are welcomed!

Unfailing - Acts 13

I'll admit it. My lack of posts this weekend means that I failed to crack open my Bible. My goal of reading the Bible everyday has been broken. I could come up with a lot of excuses. But the facts are I had not interest in reading it.

The past week or two since I started this journey of reading I had been filled with this excitement and joy while reading. I couldn't wait to do my daily reading. But then I got busy, made excuses, and lost this excitement.

While resuming today I focused on Acts 13. Paul is speaking to the people in the synagogue. He outlines the history of Israel, and how they continued to turn away from God. But God kept his promises. He gave us Christ, and carried out his painful plan so that His people could live.

For hundreds and thousands of years God has blessed His people yet we keep turning away. This weekend I barely even thought about what Christ has done for me, and what His plan is for me. I spent all week before that deeply desiring to learn more about God and His plan. And then I left it.

Maybe your thinking, "What's the big deal?" But for me it was a big deal. I feel like just as I begin to really learn more about God's plan for me, and learn about His love and grace, I fall off the wagon. I return to my sin and forget about all those things.

But God is unfailing. He is faithful. He forgives. He's shown us that throughout His Word. So while I'm deeply sorry for turning my back on God, I want to thank Him for never changing. His gift of forgiveness happened once for all on the cross. Thank you for that.

Balancing Act

Balancing is hard. At least for me anyway.

I just finished reading "Introduction to the Intertestamental Period" by Raymond Surburg. Overall the book was pretty dense, but I managed to get a lot out of it actually.

One interesting point was about the Pharisees of Jesus' time. When I read about them I often think of self-righteous leaders who looked for personal praise as they flaunted their Jewishness and ability to uphold every minute detail of the law, even if it was not what God intended.

This description might fit some of the pharisees we read about. But they had good reason to be the way they were. The Israelites (Jews) had faced intense persecution during this "Intertestamental" Period (Period between the Old and New Testaments). So to preserve the traditions, teachings, and faith they valued so deeply, some took it upon themselves to adhere to the teachings of the Torah. They took it seriously. They saw others around them become more like the Greeks and lose their Jewish faith and teachings. They did not want this to happen.

So, while trying to balance between losing all the teachings of the law, and following the law, they went to an extreme. What began with good intentions went way too far.

This has probably a way simplistic version of what I read, but I believe it is accurate.

I struggle with this same sense of balance. When I mess up and gossip at work, embellish my stories to make myself look better or to get ahead, or neglect those who need my help, I feel guilty. Which we know that God forgives and that all fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We don't need to be overwhelmed with guilt. But we also need to recognize our sin so that we can repent.

I've been having trouble balancing the two. How can I be appropriately sorry for my sin without that turning into guilt that reflects my unbelief that God forgives? I want to be sorry for my sin so that I can repent and leave it behind, but too often that turns into guilt that weighs me down.

I thank God for His Word though. He keeps reminding me that because of Christ I'm forgiven. I don't need to do anything to earn that. Overwhelming myself with guilt won't "cure" me of my sin.

I wonder if anyone else struggles with this balance at times, and how God reveals to them his conviction of our sins but also his forgiveness. This is something I'm going to be praying about a lot. But in the mean time all I can do is turn to His Word for that comfort of forgiveness that it brings. Thank you Jesus.

PS. It took me about 10 minutes to take this picture. So hard to balance....No this is serious!

New Hillsong United CD

Wow. I love the newest Hillsong United CD

It's called A_Cross// The_Earth and every track has been great. I listened to it probably 6 times through just driving around today. Check it out

Face of an Angel

Just a quick post for now.

So I'm reading through Acts 6 and God's telling us about Stephen. He's at the point where he is brought before the council and is questioned. People were lying about him, bringing forth false accusations. Stephen was humbly serving others and spreading the saving Word of God, and yet people were attacking him, but more importantly trying to attack and bring down Christ.

But chapter 6 ends with this..."And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel"

In the midst of this terrible persecution, with enemies around him, Stephen had the face of an angel. People could see the Christ in him and it angered those who opposed Christ. It can't be a good feeling to try and oppose Christ and those who serve Him, but then have to look in the eyes of this servant of God who had the face of an angel.

I want to pray that I might be a little like Stephen was at this point. To undergo hardships (which I have NOT faced anything like Stephen) yet to have the joy of the Lord in me because of what Christ has done for me. Thank you Jesus for the what you did on the cross.

Ok, that wasn't too short, but seriously check out Acts 6 and 7 for the story of Stephen. It reminds me of how little I suffer, and how much I complain and mistrust God. But God forgives and sustains, brings joy and comfort to me. Just like he did for Stephen.

Do you have BOLDNESS

To be bold. It's not an easy thing. At least not for me anyway. In some situations I can be very bold. Among my friends and people I know well I can be bold. Inside the church it is easy to share my faith and to be bold.

But is that really boldness? I have a hard time being bold in my everyday life. Some of you may know that I work at a coffee shop. I meet new people everyday and have built a lot of good relationships with customers and the other employees. I've thought so many times about all the opportunities I have to share my faith and to be bold. But way more often than not I miss out on these opportunities and don't take advantage of them.

Peter and John in Acts 5 were bold. They had been brought before the authorities before and told not to preach the name of Jesus. But they kept on doing it knowing that they risked their lives and freedoms. So they were brought before the high priest and told once again that they better stop. They had prayed for boldness with the other believers back in Chapter 4, and God did not hold that back from them. How awesome! Chapter 5 ends with the two apostles "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name" (v. 41).

The thing I struggle with the most is feeling like a hypocrite to God. I read these verses and pray for boldness. I truly want to share Jesus with others. How could I not after reading of God's awesome works in His people? But then when I'm presented with opportunities to share the name of Christ and tell others about the cross, I shy away. This has been a huge struggle and brought feelings of guilt.

But I know that God forgives. That He loves me and wants me to grow. So I want to continue praying for boldness and for opportunities to come my way. Thank you heavenly Father for your Son. Thank you for your Word and those who came before us. Thank you for boldness and I pray that you would continue to teach me about it. Amen.

Acts 1-3

God is living and active, working through you and me.

If there is one thing that Acts is showing me is, it's that Christ's work did not end on the cross. While the early Christians may have been expecting for Christ to make his triumphant return during their lifetimes, they definitely did not sit around lazily waiting for it to happen. They let God use them and turned to Him for help and direction. One of the first stories is when the 11 apostles (12 minus Judas) have to find a replacement for Judas. They could have just picked their favorite, the one with the most experience, or put it to a vote. Instead the Luke tells us that, "they prayed and said, 'You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place'" (Acts 1:24-25).

The apostles could have reasoned that since they were the ones sent out by Christ, the ones who witnessed his transfiguration and resurrection, that they were able to decide for themselves who their new companion would be. I mean, these weren't no bums. They walked and talked with God. Certainly they could have thought to themselves that they should be able to decide who the 12th apostle would be.

But they didn't. They turned to the Lord and prayed. They admitted that this decision was the Lord's, not their own, "show which one of these two YOU have chosen". Could the apostles just have chosen one of their friends and called it a day? No one would have questioned their authority I suspect. But they didn't do that. Instead they fully relied on God, and asked Him to show them who would take the place of Judas.

Why don't I do this. Instead of searching out God's wisdom I rely on my own - which isn't very much. Instead of recognizing that God probably has a plan for me, I worry about what will happen. I get nervous and fail to trust my Creator. Jesus did not stop working after his time on the cross. No, He came back from the dead to live so that we could also live with Him. He has a plan and a will for our lives. So that we don't have to worry, so that we don't have stay awake at night wondering what will happen. So that we don't have to second-guess ourselves. So that we don't have to cry our regrets away. God is living and active, he loves me (and you) and wants us to call on him in every circumstance.

A breaking point for me came while I was trying to decide what to do after I graduated college. I thought and thought about what to do. More school? Get a full time job? Both? Where to go to school? What if I make the wrong decision? What if I fail God? What kind of question is that? This decision consumed my life. Every once in a while I prayed about this decision, but I did not rely on God and trust that He would guide me and sustain me. That's a big difference.

The thing is we can't fail God if we seek discernment from Him and rely on His ways. We might not always be perfect and do exactly what He wants, but knowing that he will bring us back to Him and work out His perfect plan for us will be infinitely better than relying on our worries or intellect.

Thank you heavenly Father for your Son Jesus. Thank you Jesus for the cross, and for getting out of that grave and living for us. Show me the way you want me to live. I ask that you would have me rely fully on you instead of on my sinful way of thinking. And thank you for your Word and for teaching us about how much you love us. amen

The Beginning of Acts

Unfortunately, I started this journey before I started this blog. I'll admit it, I've already read through Genesis - and I will probably add those ideas to the blog later. For now, my journey will re-start through Acts.

The book of Acts has always interested me. I majored in History during my time as an undergrad, and I love learning about the stories of our past. Acts seemed like a good place to start. Actually, knowing that I would connect deeply to historical books like Acts and Genesis, I thought about saving them for last so that I would have something to look forward too. The more I thought about it though, the more I realized that the Bible is full of stories. But Bible stories are more than stories. The Bible saves people. What other story in the world can say that. The Bible is more than words and collections of facts. Reading the Word can save people eternally, and also lead us to a more full life right now. For the Kingdom of God is both waiting for us in heaven, but also here for us on earth.

The power of the Bible, and of God who wrote the Bible and of Christ who speaks in the Bible, and of the Holy Spirit who opens the words up for us and speaks to us, is what is capturing me right now. It is honestly amazing me to watch our powerful God work in and through such simple means. Acts tells us so much about our loving God and what He has done, is doing, and will do for us. God is not resting on his laurels. Yes, the Bible was written thousands of years ago. But the things He promised then, He's still working out now. The Holy Spirit....still working today. Christ's saving death on the cross.....still saves people today. I think I've written enough for one post. I will write about my thoughts on Acts 1-3 next time.

Tools of the Trade

So since I'm recording my journey through the Bible, I thought it might be helpful to include some of the "tools" that I use to study the Bible.

Ta Da!! The first tool I use is..my Bible. I love my ESV Bible, so if I quote from Scripture, it will most likely be from the English Standard Version

The second tool I have is my Macbook. Beautiful isn't it. But seriously, it is a huge help especially with my Logos Bible Software. With original language tools, commentaries, dictionaries, and countless books, I definitely recommend Logos for everyone studying the Bible - no matter what your level.

Another key tool is my Moleskin journal. I have it organized into different sections like: Journal, Calendar, Goals, Prayers, and Random notes. This little book includes so much information and is such a help to keeping me organized.

Last in my box of tools is.....Coffee. So important. And since I work at a coffee shop, it is often free. Nothing quite like it. If I can have my way, I'll most likely be having an Americano.

These are by no means the only resources I use when doing my studying. But on most days this is what I bring with me when I study.

I also want to add that all my studying does not take place by myself. I think it is really important to learn and grow with others. Personal Bible study is great, and important, but I think it is even more important to learn with and from others.

Introduction

Hello All,

So why did I start this blog? For a number of reasons, but first it might be helpful to give you a little background information on who I am. I am currently a student studying to receive my Masters of Christian Education. I hope to one day soon work in a church teaching and leading people.

But that probably does not answer the question of why I started this blog. Well, I have realized for a while now that while I have been a Christian my whole life, I don't have a very deep understanding of God's Word. Yes, I minored in Theology at a Christian university for my Undergraduate work, have attended church my whole life, and grew up in a Christian house. However, I never took it upon myself as an act of personal responsibility to study or care about what the Bible teaches. I've always believed in God, loved God, and felt like I wanted to serve Him. As I was realizing that I wanted to serve Him, I also came to the realization that I needed, and more importantly I believe, wanted to learn more about Him.

So I've decided to read through the entire Bible. I've read through most if not all of it before, but this time I want to make a concerted effort to study the Bible and apply it to my life. Another point I'm realizing is that reading the Bible is one thing, but diving into it and covering your entire life in it is completely different.

At first I was going to follow a pre-determined reading plan but I soon found that I tend to revolt against such constraints. Instead, I will follow a pattern of reading Old Testament books, and then New Testament. I started with Genesis, and will follow up with Acts.

I wouldn't have started this blog if I thought no one else would get anything out of it. I hope you join me as I try to follow the footsteps of Jesus. I truly want to learn as much about Him as I can. The Bible is God's Word for His people, and I'm finally realizing how awesome that is and how much I want to learn about Him. I hope you do too.