Read through the Bible in 2 years: Proverbs 13, John 13
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”
John 13:34 ESV
When Jesus knew that His hour had come to give up His life and return to his Father, He didn’t look to a bucket list of “Top 100 Things to Do Before You Die.” No, he washed His disciples’ feet. The most important thing to Him before His death was to leave an example of true love for His followers.
He gives them this “new commandment” – a very old commandment actually, but made even more difficult by the addition of “JUST AS I HAVE LOVED YOU.” It’s really, really hard to love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:31) This takes supernatural power. But to love others sacrificially as Jesus did – washing your friends’ feet, your students’ feet, even your betrayer’s feet – and even to lay down your own life for someone else, this is impossible apart from being born again, having a new will and new power working in you. (Philippians 2:13)
Will you please pray with me for the Lord to give you this strength?
Heavenly Father, I confess to you how hard it is for me to love others as myself, how totally impossible it is for me to love them as you have loved me. Help me to remember that what is impossible for man is possible for God. Nothing is impossible for You. I need You to give me both the strength and the desire!
Help me to remember that You loved me while I was a sinner, your enemy. You ran after me while I was running away from You.Help me to feel – and express – that kind of love for others, even when I don’t feel like it. Help me to pursue others like You pursued me.
Help me to consider others more highly than myself. Help me to serve my family and my friends, people who love me. Help me to serve my children and my students, people who are under my authority. Help me to serve the stranger and alien and even my enemy, remembering that You loved me when I was a stranger and alien and even Your enemy.
I need Your help. Please. In the strong and kind name of Jesus my Savior and Lord, I pray, Amen.
Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.
WHEREAS God is holy and righteous and true, WHEREAS God is merciful and gracious and kind, WHEREAS God is always with me, wherever I go, seeing my every step, knowing my every thought and every word even before I speak it, WHEREAS I have been created for His glory and pleasure with good works prepared in advance for me to do, WHEREAS my life is not my own, but fully His,
I purpose this day to live a holy life, pleasing to my Heavenly Father and Creator.
I purpose to draw near to my God and keep in unhindered relationship with Him, avoiding evil and pursuing righteousness, loving Him with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and loving my neighbor as myself.
I purpose to daily read His Word, consistently and persistently drawing near to Him, humbling myself before His perfect counsel, actively choosing to know and obey the Truth, submitting myself to Him rather than the wisdom of this world or my human emotions, so that I might be able to resist the schemes of the devil.
I purpose to treat my body as a temple of the Holy Spirit, being careful what I see, hear, and think about, where I go, and with whom I befriend, remembering the wisdom of Proverbs 13:20 that “whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”
I purpose to abstain from alcohol and drugs so that my mind, will, conscience, and emotions will not be clouded or confused by their influence.
I purpose to be above-reproach in my relationships with the other sex, treating women as sisters and men as brothers, recognizing that they are my joint-heirs with Christ and fellow image-bearers, rather than objects or idols.
These I do endeavor, for the glory of God, as well as for my good and the good of my fellow man.
When the Israelites returned to Israel after years of living in exile in Babylon, their first desire was to rebuild the Temple and begin making offerings to God. Unfortunately, it takes time to rebuild a temple, so they simply set up an altar where the temple once had been and began celebrating the feasts and offerings there.
When I read this, I thought about the saying, “Delayed obedience is disobedience,” and wondered to myself what things I’m waiting on, what ducks I’m trying to get in a row, before I start doing what God has called me to do.
God wants us to obey Him today. Now. Right now. Here. Where you are. Wherever you are.
How many times have I thought —
When I know more about the Bible …
When I have a bigger house …
When I have more money …
When I’m not so busy …
God called some to go back to Jerusalem, and those who weren’t called to return were called to give generously to those who were. Both of these jobs were important – to go and to give – and God equipped both groups to obey Him.
If God has called you to do something, He will equip you to do it.
Maybe you’re wondering, “What is God calling me to do?”
I don’t know the specific plans that God has for you, those good works that He has prepared in advance for you (Ephesians 2:10), but I do know God has called you to love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself.
Start there.
And sometimes what you’re supposed to be doing now to obey God is to be working on those things He’s called you to do.
Do you need to know the Bible better for the task He’s called you to do? Alright, then, what are you doing to work towards that goal.
Do you need a bigger house or more money for a task He’s given to you? How are you working toward that? Paying down debt … Saving money … Getting a higher paying job … Working a little on the side?
Do you need more margin to have the time for a job He has for you? How are you working toward that? Skipping your nightly TV shows or scrolling through your favorite social media platform might be a good place to start.
The Israelites began making offerings, but they also began working on the temple. Let’s start in the here and now, today, while also working toward the future and the generations to come.
Heavenly Father, I lift up every man and woman who is reading this message at this moment in time and space. Please draw them to know You, to seek You, to love You, and trust You, and obey You. You are worthy to be trusted. You are worthy to be obeyed. Please lead these men and women on the paths of righteousness for Your Name’s Sake. Show them that straight and narrow path with the light of Your Word and the perfect wisdom of Your Holy Spirit. Provide for their every need – the wisdom, the time, the finances – to accomplish the tasks that You have prepared in advance for them to do. For Your glory and for our good I pray. Amen.
Twenty years have passed since I first heard Bev Bradley’s talk titled, “Loving and Teaching the Difficult Child.” I was in the thick of homeschooling my two oldest children along with taking care of a toddler. Mrs. Bradley shared from her heart about how much she had damaged her son (and her relationship with him) through harsh words and critical attitude.
I remember how often I reacted with sinful anger when my child absolutely, positively refused to obey my commands. I remember how often I spanked and shouted and screamed in anger, sin upon sin, in my attempts to get this child to comply. I walked around with a perpetual chip on my shoulder. I was angry at my husband, angry at my child, angry at the world. And underneath it all, I was angry at God.
Why had He done this to me? Why had He given me this difficult, disobedient child?
I went to Mrs. Bradley’s talk looking for some tips for training my child to obey, and I left with a dagger in my heart. Her words brought conviction of sin. I finally saw the log in my own eye, how much my own anger was contributing to this ongoing battle between two very strong-willed individual sinners. It was a turning point in my life as a mom.
But I also remember Mrs. Bradley’s words, “The Lord is restoring the years that the locusts have eaten.”
At the time I wasn’t familiar with the book of Joel. I thought she was referring to the locust plague that God sent on Egypt in Moses’s day, but still, those words encouraged me that it wasn’t too late, that there was still hope.
So I began to pray for that. I began to ask God to do that for me and my child, my family, to restore and heal the barrenness that my sharp tongue had caused.
Lord, please, will You please restore the years that the locusts have eaten?
Give me a new heart. Help me to be patient and kind. Help me to discipline with tenderness and righteousness. Keep my tongue from evil. Forgive me. Do a new thing in our family, Father, please. I need You. My family needs You. Please help us!
I wish I could say that things changed overnight, but that wouldn’t be true. I was still struggling and so was my child, but year after year, the Lord has grown us both. He gave me beauty for ashes and seedlings have sprouted in a desert land.
God has taught us more about the nature of love – that love and forgiveness and grace are intricately woven together.
And [Jesus and His disciples] came to Capernaum. And when [Jesus] was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?”
But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve.
And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”
And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”
Mark 9:33-37 ESV
For as much as I love teaching and writing for adults, I think my true calling is to teach children. They have my heart. There is something so special about the childlike faith of a child, their wonder and interest in learning new things, that really gets me excited.
I’m afraid that in the past I preferred focusing my energies on adults because it was a straighter path to becoming “known,” to garnering a larger audience. Like Jesus’s disciples who were arguing about which of them was the greatest, I fear that I was looking for fame, rather than simply being faithful to the Lord’s call.
Which reminds me of the lesson I taught this morning to the 5th-12th graders at my local Community Bible Study class. Here’s an excerpt from the lesson I shared after our study on Joshua 1-5. I hope it blesses you.
So, this week we began our study of the book of Joshua. This year we have already studied Ruth, 1st and 2nd Kings, and Job. These five books feature some of the most famous people in the Bible, people like Ruth, King Saul, King David, Job, and now Joshua.
But what about the two spies whom Rahab hid… Their names were not recorded for us in the scriptures, but they were still vitally important to God. Those two men’s faith was just as valuable as Rahab’s. Or what about the priests who carried the ark of the covenant, or the 12 men who carried the stones, across the Jordan – was their faith any less remarkable?
What about the parents who circumcised their children by faith? Or all those Israelites who kept the Passover by faith?
According to Statista.com, in a 2021 survey, 3,670 American teens between the ages of 13-17 were asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
What do you think these top 5 professions have in common?
Our culture is way too focused on being famous and way too lax about being faithful, simply doing the next thing that God has called us to. We are chasing after “fame and fortune,” instead of “God and goodness.”
If you have been born again, then you have been given the gift of the indwelling of the Holy spirit. The Holy Spirit of God dwells in you. Think about that.
And now He is calling you to just do the next thing, do the next deed of faith.
That may be as simple as reading your Bible and completing your Bible study lesson and then coming here and sharing with your classmates what God taught you that week. That may be as simple as sitting next to or striking up a conversation with someone you don’t know very well. That may be as simple as telling the truth when you want to lie.
Whatever it is, I want you to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow Him. He will never lead you astray.
He might ask you to step out in faith someday, to follow the example of Rahab and hide a fellow believer who is being persecuted for their faith.
He might ask you to step out into your own Jordan River in sharing the gospel with someone, whether a stranger or a friend, trusting that He will keep His promises to be with You as you take that first step.
Your name may never appear on any timeline or any top 10 of anything. You may never be a world-famous athlete or gamer or musician. You may never be a social media influencer or have a YouTube channel with millions of followers and you may never invent anything world-changing.
But, oh think of it, think of this, your name, YOUR name, can be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life! And if your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, you can KNOW beyond any doubt that He has a good plan and purpose for you!
Heavenly Father, I pray that You will raise up more parents and more teachers who will invest their lives in training up children in the way that they should go so that the next generation will place their trust in You. Please, Father, stop us from this crazy pursuit of becoming rich and famous, and help us instead to be faithful to do the next thing. By Your grace and for Your glory. Amen.
David knows he is about to die, so he calls his son, Solomon, to him. What did David say to this son who will be the next king of Israel?
Be strong.
Show yourself a man.
Keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in His ways and keeping his commands as it is written in the Law of Moses.
Deal wisely and justly with Joab, Barzillai, and Shimei.
Now I’m not (and never will be) the king of a nation but I (like everyone else on the planet) will one day draw my last breath. If today were my last day, what final words would I want to share with my children?
What would I say to my children if today was my last day?
I love you. I’m proud of you. You are a gift to me. I’m so thankful you’re mine. God made YOU on purpose, and He has a purpose for your life. Fear not. He’s not finished yet. God is on His throne. He doesn’t save people because they’re good. They’re not. None of us are. He saves them because He is merciful and has a purpose for them. You are saved by your faith in Jesus Christ, not by your works. (Psalm 139:1-16; Romans 3:10-12; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:3-8; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Romans 6:23)
Trust the Lord with all your heart. He is good. He is wise. Turn away from evil and do good. Choose to do the hard things out of love and trust for the Lord. (Proverbs 3:5-7; Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37)
Love is both an emotion and an action. Love others as God has loved you. Bear with others. Forgive them, remembering how much God has forgiven you. He loved you while you were yet a sinner, loving you even to the point of death, death on a cross. Remember that love is patient and kind. God is patient and kind with you, and He is calling you to be patient and kind with others. Love is not arrogant, rude, boastful, or envious. Love does not insist on its own way. The Lord of the Universe humbled Himself for you, and He is calling you to humble yourself for Him and His creation. Love never ends. Love endures. Love bears all things. He has loved you with a never-ending love. Love others like that. (Colossians 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 13:4-8; Philippians 2:1-8; Romans 5:7-8)
Children are a blessing from the Lord. Fill your home with them. Pour into them. Enjoy them. Train them up in the way they should go. Teach them diligently that they, too, will know and love the Lord. (Psalm 127:1-5; Proverbs 22:6; Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Psalm 78:1-8)
So, how about you? If today were your last day, what final words would you want to say to your children and loved ones?
Heavenly Father, How thankful I am for the hope that I have in my Savior, Jesus, who poured out His blood for me. How thankful I am to have the assurance that my last breath here on Earth is just the beginning of eternity with You. I pray that my children and grandchildren will have that assurance. I pray that You will strengthen me to be the mother and grandmother that You want me to be. Give me Your wisdom and lead me in when to speak and when to be silent. Make my words, Your words. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Make me a beacon pointing my family and my community to Him. For His Honor and for His glory I pray. Amen.
Have you ever had those days when you want to say to your growing children, “But, honey, it was me who changed your diaper. It was me who got up with you in the middle of the night. It was me who bathed you and dressed you. It was me who sang to you and rocked you to sleep. It was me who washed your skinned knees when you fell down in the driveway. It was me who brushed the knots out of your hair. It was me who taught you to sing the ABCs and count to ten. You should listen to me.”
God has those days with us, too.
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols.
Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk; I took them up by their arms, but they did not know that I healed them. I led them with cords of kindness, with the bands of love, and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws, and I bent down to them and fed them.
Hosea 11:1-4
God hasn’t given up hope for His children, and we shouldn’t either.
Heavenly Father, please, draw our hearts back to You. Discipline us with Your rod of kindness and woo us with Your love. Lead us with the cords of kindness and hold us fast with Your bands of love. And Father, please, draw our children back to You. Discipline them, too, with Your rod of kindness and woo them with Your love. Lead them with the cords of kindness and hold them fast with Your bands of love. Teach us how to parent them with love and grace and humility and gentleness and courage and firmness and truth. Make us parents after You. Teach us how to be godly mommies because You are the perfect daddy. In the Name of Jesus Christ, Our Perfect Example of all things we pray. Amen.
The more his fruit increased, the more altars he built;
as his country improved, he improved his pillars.
Hosea 10:1 ESV
God has given us every good gift to enjoy. He has blessed us with heat and sunshine and air to breathe. He has given us homes to live in and children to fill them. He has blessed us with abundant food and wealth. He has given us eyes to see, ears to hear, and minds to comprehend. Yet, what do we do with all of these gifts?
Do we enjoy them or neglect them? Do we praise Him or take credit for them?
When was the last time you thanked God for the children sitting around your table or clinging to your legs?
When was the last time you took a leisurely walk outside and thanked God for the blue sky and warm sun?
It seems that the more full our homes and lives become, the less interested we become in the Lord. Why is that?
Why would the Lord bless us with more if it will just turn our hearts away from Him? It is His mercy that keeps us begging for our daily bread. It is His mercy that makes us hunger for the gift of a child. It is His mercy that keeps us dependent on Him for a roof over our head and money in our bank account.
My word for 2024 is “Enough.” Is the Lord enough? YES! He is! Has He given me enough? YES! Yes, He has! My cup overflows with His love and grace and goodness.
Heavenly Father, Help me to be faithful in the little things that You might entrust to me more things. Help me to be thankful for every single little gift, the birds that sing before the sun rises, the wind that blows gently through the trees, the sound of trickling water. Thank You for giving me eyes that see and ears that hear. Thank You for giving me a mind and heart that know You. Thank You. You are enough. You are more than I need. In the Name of Jesus Christ who redeemed and delivered me. Amen.
Today the kids and I read our fourth advent devotional in “From Creation to Christ” along with Luke 4. If you don’t have your own copy, you can order your own a Kindle version instantly, while you wait for the paper copy to arrive.
“Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. … So Abram went, as the LORD had told him.”
– Genesis 12:1, 4a ESV
“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.”
– Luke 4:1-2 ESV
My husband and I are about to celebrate our twenty-eighth wedding anniversary. Many of those years have been hard, friends, and sometimes I’ve questioned what God is up to. Why did He put the two of us together?
In the first five years of homeschooling, I often second guessed whether God had really called me to this because it was an uphill battle day after day. Now with the end of my homeschooling days on the horizon, I can look back and see God’s hand with me every step of the way. I know that God has carried me and walked with me, even though the path has been at times twisty and rocky.
Our culture has sold us the lie that if we obey God, then everything will be smooth sailing. Don’t believe it. It wasn’t smooth sailing for Noah or Abram. It wasn’t smooth sailing for John the Baptizer or Jesus Christ or His disciples. Don’t be surprised when it’s not smooth sailing for you.
My job isn’t to question and argue and second-guess, to help God figure out where I ought to turn. My job is to follow where God leads and stay on the path that He has set before me. My job is to trust and obey.
Heavenly Father, You know all the answers. You know what path is best. You are almighty. You are all-knowing. And You are good. Help me to trust You and to stay on that straight and narrow path. Help me to go where You lead me. Help me to follow You rather than trying to get out front. Help me to go where You send me. Help me to trust and obey. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my faithful Shepherd I pray. Amen.
Let’s pray and worship the Lord together with Hannah and believers around the world.
My heart rejoices in You, Lord, for You have raised me up from the ash heap and set my feet on the solid rock of salvation in Jesus Christ, our Lord.
I rejoice in You, my God, for there is none holy like You. There is none besides you, Father. Indeed, there is no rock like our God.
Keep me humble, Father. Let me not become arrogant or proud. Help me to remember that You are a righteous judge, knowing and seeing all things, both visible and invisible. Help me to see the log in my own eye. Keep me on my knees in humility before Your throne of grace.
Increase my faith, Lord. You break the bows of the mighty, and You give strength to the weak. You make the full hungry and the hungry full. You give children to the barren, and You take children from those who have many. The number of every man’s days are held in Your hand.
You have given Your only Son, Jesus Christ, that we may be forgiven and redeemed and receive the gift of eternal life with You. Make us ambassadors for Your kingdom, sharing the good news to all four corners of the earth and making disciples of all the nations.
You, Father, are the giver of every good gift, of children and wealth and power and wisdom. Help us to be good stewards of these gifts. Make us instruments of Your peace, blessing the needy with all that You have blessed us, our time, talents, treasures, and testimonies.
The whole world is in Your hands, Father. We pray for the leaders of our nation and the nations around the world. Guide them. Grant them wisdom. Give them strength. Humble and exalt in Your perfect wisdom and timing, and help us to trust and worship You no matter the cost.
In the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, we pray. Amen.
Teach What is Good 
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