Read the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 17, 1 Chronicles 25-27
God is a God of order. He always has been and He always will be!
But, I’m a woman of chaos. Always have been… but by God’s grace He can change me to be more like HIM! Please, Father!
Father, help me. 🙏🏻 Please. 🙏🏻 Help me to be a good steward of my time, talents, treasure, and testimony. 🙏🏻 Help me to do things decently and in order. 🙏🏻Guide my thoughts, my steps, and my words and conform me into Your image. 🙏🏻By Your Grace and For Your Glory! Amen.🙏🏻
1 Chronicles 27:25-31 ESV — “Over the king’s treasuries was Azmaveth the son of Adiel; and over the treasuries in the country, in the cities, in the villages, and in the towers, was Jonathan the son of Uzziah; and over those who did the work of the field for tilling the soil was Ezri the son of Chelub; and over the vineyards was Shimei the Ramathite; and over the produce of the vineyards for the wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite. Over the olive and sycamore trees in the Shephelah was Baal-hanan the Gederite; and over the stores of oil was Joash. Over the herds that pastured in Sharon was Shitrai the Sharonite; over the herds in the valleys was Shaphat the son of Adlai. Over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite; and over the donkeys was Jehdeiah the Meronothite. Over the flocks was Jaziz the Hagrite. All these were stewards of King David’s property.”
Read the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 16, 1 Chronicles 22-24
1 Chronicles 22:12-13 ESV — “May the LORD grant you discretion and understanding, that when he gives you charge over Israel you may keep the law of the LORD your God. Then you will prosper if you are careful to observe the statutes and the rules that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Fear not; do not be dismayed.”
Read the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 15, 1 Chronicles 21
And David said to Ornan, “Give me the site of the threshing floor that I may build on it an altar to the LORD—give it to me at its full price—that the plague may be averted from the people.”
Then Ornan said to David, “Take it, and let my lord the king do what seems good to him. See, I give the oxen for burnt offerings and the threshing sledges for the wood and the wheat for a grain offering; I give it all.”
But King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will buy them for the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, nor offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” So David paid Ornan 600 shekels of gold by weight for the site.
Read the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 14, 1 Chronicles 18-20
“Be strong, and let us use our strength for our people and for the cities of our God, and may the LORD do what seems good to him.” 1 Chronicles 19:13 ESV
Read the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 13, 1 Chronicles 17
“Then King David went in and sat before the LORD and said, “Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?” (1 Chronicles 17:16 ESV)
The Lord Exalts or Humbles as He Wills – FormerAtheist58
Never Lost – Cain
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It’s so beautiful to read these four chapters (Romans 5-8) all at once. Feel the excitement building. Try listening to these four chapters together while you’re exercising or cooking or driving or cleaning your home. Only 21 minutes!
Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means!
How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.
Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 5:20-6:11 ESV
Did you notice how many times the words dead, death, and died appeared in these 13 verses?
I once was dead in my sins, but now that person has died, and I’ve been born anew! Praise God! I’ve been given new life, eternal life, in Christ. It’s crazy how ALIVE I feel now – and how dead I once felt, but I didn’t even know it. I once feared death, but now I look forward with confidence and certainty to eternal life with Jesus.
Heavenly Father, Thank You for taking what once was DEAD and making it ALIVE. I wasn’t just sick, Father. I was dead. I was among the walking dead. I didn’t just need healing. I needed revival. I needed to be born again. Thank You for Your mercy and grace, for bringing me from death to life. Thank You for sending Your own son to DIE in my place. It’s in His Name that I pray. Amen.
Saved my Soul – City Alight
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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Proverbs 25, Romans 4
Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness
Romans 4:4-5 ESV
The way I see it, most people around the world today are living in one of two ways:
Either they are trying to reach God by being really good …
Or, they aren’t trying to reach God at all because they just don’t believe or don’t care.
Well, what if both of those groups are wrong?
What if the truth is that God came to us, reached down to us, and the only way to find Him is by following the path of trust, not the path of trying harder?
Certainly, God wants His children to “work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.” (Colossians 3:23) But that hard work is the result of our salvation – rather than the way to salvation. Our good works are the fruit of our rebirth – rather than the means to it. Let’s put things in their proper order.
Like Ephesians 2:8-10 says, it is “by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
God is the perfect giver and salvation is the perfect gift
[Abraham] did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
Romans 4:19-21 ESV
Don’t you just love that two-word phrase, “fully convinced”? I do.
It made me wonder, “What am I fully convinced of? What am I really ‘certain-sure’ about?”
Am I fully convinced that Jesus died on a cross in Jerusalem 2000 years ago, was buried in an empty tomb, and rose from the dead three days later?
Am I fully convinced that the Bible is the inspired word of God Himself and that it has full authority over my life?
Am I fully convinced that God is the eternal, Almighty Creator of the universe and that He will one day judge the living and the dead for how they spent their time on earth?
Is my faith just the “blow out the candles on my birthday cake” wish of a fool, or is it based on the solid, trustworthy, unchanging wisdom of the Lord and His Word?
I hope you’ll take some time today to ponder these questions, and that no matter the size of your faith – whether it’s as small as a mustard seed or as big as an elephant – it will be rooted deep into the bedrock of the Lord who holds you fast.
Heavenly Father, Thank You for all of Your many, many gifts: the gift of faith, the gift of salvation, the gift of Your Holy Spirit, the gift of forgiveness, the gift of new life and fresh hope and eternal peace. You are the perfect giver. I pray that I would have a heart of humble gratitude, receiving these gifts with thanksgiving. I pray that You would use me to share these gifts to the four corners of the world, for the glory of Your Name and the good of my fellow man. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Standing on the Promises
He Will Hold Me Fast – Selah
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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 111, 2 Samuel 10
And he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you.”
2 Samuel 10:11 ESV
How often do I try to do it on my own, refusing to ask for help from others?
Sometimes I need help physically – carrying something, reaching something up high, opening a jar.
Sometimes I need help emotionally – someone to listen to me or give me a hug or speak an encouraging word to lift me up or a stern word to snap me out of a pity party.
Sometimes I need help spiritually – someone to pray for me or give me wise counsel or point me to an applicable passage of Scripture.
But, I’m afraid that all too often I want to do it myself like my younger daughter is famous for saying a few too many times. I’m reminded of Galatians 6:2-3, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” (ESV)
Heavenly Father, I need Your help, Your guidance and strength, Your encouragement and chastisement. But, Father, I also need help from others, from the body of Christ here on earth. I need others to be eyes and ears for me. I need others to be hands and feet for me. I need others to speak truth to me. Please, Father, help me to be humble and to ask for help when I’m in need. Help to see the great company of fellow workers who want to labor together side by side for Your kingdom and glory. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 89, 1 Samuel 11.
Once again I was reminded of the story of the Levite and his concubine which took place in Gibeah (Saul’s hometown) in Judges 19-21, particularly Judges 19:29 ESV, “And when [the Levite] entered his house, he took a knife, and taking hold of his concubine he divided her, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of Israel.” Along with Judges 21:14 ESV, “And Benjamin returned at that time. And they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh-gilead….”
Saul is a Benjaminite from the city of Gibeah. He would have known these stories. In fact, his family would have been directly touched by these events recorded in Judges.
Now notice the connections in 1 Samuel 11. Nahash the Ammonite is attacking the people of Jabesh-Gilead — Was Saul’s mother from there? His aunt? His best friend’s mom?
Saul took the yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them to all the other tribes in Israel — Just like what the Levite had done with his concubine’s body. It had worked last time to get the people involved, and it worked this time for Saul.
Our family’s traditions, the stories we grow up hearing, the attitudes of people around us, they impact our lives. How I react to my husband, my children, and the cashier at Walmart is shaped by my upbringing. The takeaway for me in this is twofold. One, as a mom, I want to consider the impact I’m having on my children. How am I shaping them by how I behave and what experiences I invite into my children’s lives? Two, as a grown person, how are my actions today being shaped not by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God but by my past. How am I following my passions, instincts, and impulses rather than the Lord?
Heavenly Father, I love You. All Your ways are right. All You do is good. Father, I want to follow You all the days of my life. I want to be conformed into Your image. Make me more like You. I pray that all my actions would be led by Your Holy Spirit who dwells in me and Your Inspired Word which is a lamp to my feet. Give me wisdom as a mother to recognize how my attitudes and actions, what I let into my children’s lives, what I put in front of their faces, will shape their lives in the future. Help me to live for Your glory. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 80, Ruth 3-4
My husband sent me this picture from his John MacArthur study Bible, saying that John MacArthur compares Ruth to the virtuous wife in Proverbs 31.
Ruth Baker, in her January 2, 2019 blog post at GoThereFor.com digs further into this idea. Read it here.
Heavenly Father, help me to be a virtuous woman, to take good care of my husband and children, and to work diligently day after day. May I do my husband good and not harm all the days of my life. May the teaching of kindness be on my tongue. May I open my mouth with wisdom. May I remember that charm is deceitful and beauty is fleeting, but that a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. In the name of Jesus Christ, my Lord and redeemer, I pray. Amen.
Proverbs 31:30 song
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