Grace Word Study Step 3

We have talked about what a word study is, we have completed step one of selecting a verse/word and finding the Strong's number, and step 2 of finding the various translations. So today it is time for step 3, which will appear to be the most challenging, but is actually quite simple because you found the Strong's number in step 1.

Step 3 is to find definitions of the word you are looking at, definitions to the Greek word. You will find these in Greek lexicons and Bible Dictionaries (especially dictionaries of Bible words).

Hebrew and Greek lexicons are readily available online. The Strong's site we used in step 1 will also give you the Strong's definition of the word. Plus if you scroll down on the same site you will find Vine's - that is 2 definitions already, and two I always use!

A quick search for "Greek Lexicon" resulted in finding a great site called Bible Study Tools and their Greek Lexicon! It says it uses Kettle and Thayer, two of the ones I use in book form, so I think it is solid

But here is the biggest secret to make this step easy, or at least manageable: Most of the lexicons available are keyed to the Strong's number, so once you have that you can pretend to be a Biblical Linguistic scholar as you plug that into the sites and they give you the definition! No knowledge of Greek necessary! (It would allow you to go deeper, but for your personal study it is not required).

For a personal study I would recommend at least 3 definitions - and I have given you 3 sources above, so you could use those and be done! Or you could search form more sites, if you would like.

For an academic study it was recommended to me to use at least 7 definitions at a minimum, and that is still the standard I shoot for.

Therefore I always start with the Strong's definition, then go through all the ones available on my computer software, then the one in my Bible if it has one, and then any books I have.

When I was done my definitions looked like this, and it was kind of surprising what those definitions showed:

Lexicon’s/Bible Dictionaries

Strong’s – graciousness (as gratifying), of manner or act (abstract or concrete; literal, figurative or spiritual); especially the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in life; inculding graditude: acceptable, benefit, favor, grace, joy, liberality, pleasure, thankworthy. (From 5463 chairo, verb; to be cheerful, to be well, to be glad, to rejoice)

NAS Greek – grace, kindness, blessing, concession, credit, favor, gift, graciousness, gratitude, thank, thankfulness, thanks

NIV Greek – grace, the state of kindess and favor toward someone, often with a focus on a benfit given to the object; by extension; gift, benefit, credit; words of kindess and benefit: thanks, blessing

Thayer – good-will, loving-kindness, favor; the favor of Christ, assisting and strenghening his followers and ministers to bear their troubles.

Dr. Mills (from my Bible) – From the same root as chara “joy” and chairo, “to rejoice.” Charis causes rejoicing. It is the word for God’s grace as extended to sinful man. It signifies unmerited favor, undeserved blessing, a free gift.

Vine’s – friendly disposition from which the kindly act proceeds, graciousness, loving-kindess, good will. On the part of the receiver a sense of favor bestowed a feeling of gratitude. To be in favor with is to find grace with.

Analytical Greek Lexicon – favor, acceptance, a gracious provision, free favor specially manifested by God towards man in the Gospel scheme, gracious dealing from God, a graciously vouchsaved spiritual position (specific to this verse)

Word – grace, particulary that which causes joy; of the grace, favor and goodwill of Christ as exercised toward men; every kind of favor, blessing, good, as proceeding from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ; forgiveness of sin and reconcilliation to a Holy God.

Theological Dictionary of the New Testament – you (Paul) will get no more grace because you need no more, the grace you have been given perfectly fills the need you have. Grace is the basis of justification. It is a gift.

Is there anything in these definitions that surprised you or changed your thinking a little bit? Anything that stands out?

Do you have any questions at this point because there are only 2 steps left, and these last two are the easier ones!

Grace Word Study Step 2

Last week we looked at why anyone can do a solid word study and completed step 1. All from the comfort of your home with the power of the internet - step 2 is no different! All done from home, and if you are like me, it means it was done in sweats and slippers with a cup of something hot and yummy assisting!

The next thing I like to do is compile a selection of different translations of the same verse. For an academic version of this you should shoot for at least 7, and considering how easy this step is going to be, you might want to do 7 or more! But for a personal study 3 or 4 translations would certainly be good.

Why do I say this is so easy? Well, even if you don't have a number of Bible translations on your shelf or Bible software on your computer there are a lot of great sites out there that make it very easy to get as many translations as you want! For an online reference I most often use Bible Gateway where you can search by verse and then simply keep changing the translation. Plus it has the LOVELY benefit of making it possible for you to simply copy and paste into your document - the key reason I do this whole study in a Word document!

Again, as you copy and paste your copies of your verses in, be sure to bold the word you are looking at!

When I was done this portion of my document looked like this:

Translations

NAS95S – And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

NLT – Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.

KJV – And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

NIV – But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

AMP – But He said to me, My grace (My favor and loving-kindness and mercy) is enough for you [sufficient against any danger and enables you to bear the trouble manfully]; for My strength and power are made perfect (fulfilled and completed) and show themselves most effective in [your] weakness. Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities, that the strength and power of Christ (the Messiah) may rest (yes, may pitch a tent over and dwell) upon me!

Message – My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness.

NRSV – but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

NIRV – My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness.

ESV – But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

At this point you will notice a few things:

Yes, I really did use 9 translations, but I did this for a couple key reasons. First, I am actually looking at the word sufficient in this verse as well, so as I collected verses I collected with that word in mind to - and then copied it into the other document. It makes life much easier if you want to look at 2 words in the same verse that you do the two studies in tandem for both this step and another step that I will show you in 2 weeks. Plus, I love looking at the Bible in multiple translations, it really helps me to grasp more of what the meaning is.

Second, you will note that in the Amplified version (Amp) there is a parenthasis right in the Bible verse that explains the word grace. This version does that a lot, and so it is ALWAYS helpful to include it, even if it might not be your favorite study translation.

Any questions? Is anything jumping out at you at this point yet?

Grace Word Study Step 1

Today we are just going to do the very first step. And honestly, when I start, this is usually as far as I go.

Step 1: Picking a Verse and a Word

For this study I chose 2 Corinthians 12:9 because that is the verse that is most meaningful to me right now, and the idea of God's grace being sufficient is especially comforting!

I begin by open up a Word document on my computer and entering the following:

Month and Year: January 2011

The verse:

2 Corinthians 12:9 – And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (NKJV)

I am always sure to bold the word I want to look at. (And if you are doing this with me, help yourself out by noting which translation you used - I recommend using the translation you normally use at this point).

I chose grace.

Now I get the Strong's concordance number (this saves you a TON of work). If you don't have a Strong's Concordance at home, that is fine, it is available online here. Be sure to record both the Strong's number and the transliteration of the word (that means the greek or hebrew word written with english letters)

In this case the Strong's number is 5485 and the transliteration is charis

That is it, we are done step 1. Your page should look kind of like this:

Date: January 2011

2 Corinthians 12:9 – And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (NKJV)

Strong’s # 5485 charis

That's it! Any questions?

Word Study Introduction

Too often when I talk to friends about Bible study I often a similar sentiment, that they want to really study the Bible, to really dig deep, but they are not Bible scholars so it is beyond their ability.

Really?

Let me give you a tip....

...do you belong to God?

...do you own a Bible? (or at least have access to one?)

If you said yes to those questions guess what? You are fully equipped to be a Biblical scholar.

AND, if you have a seminary near by, or your church has a well stocked library, or you have a buddy with a well stocked library who will share, you are in even better shape! Plus the internet is an incredible source of information that will help you!

There are a few kinds of in-depth study I enjoy, so while I go through it I am going to post how to do it here, kind of a sharing of my work.

We are going to start with a word study. Now if you saw the word studies I shared, you might immediately say, "I cannot do that! It is too much!" Gee, you sound just like me when I first saw what I had to do!

But you can do this, I assure you it is true! How do I know this? Because I can do it.

Therefore I invite you to do this along with me! I will go through step by step and you can either follow along with me, do it along with me, or do your own going through step by step with me.

In the next post I will share the first step!

Returning to Harbor

It is no secret that last week knocked me flat and hurt tremendously. And it has me rethinking some things, and returning to harbor, returning to the Word in a deeper way.

I do read my Bible daily and have that devotional time of reading, but I feel like I have been lacking in more serious study. I will be honest, somedays I struggle so much to find time for just my devotional time that I have no idea how to begin to find extra time on top!

But desperate times call for desperate measures, and it is time to make some changes again.

1. I emailed the class coordinator for the local women's BSF class, and they still have room for this year. They are studying Isaiah, and on February 7 I will be at the introductory class in order to sign up to resume my studies with BSF.

2. I am resuming word studies, the ones where I look specifically at one word in one verse to better understand the verse as a whole. I start by prayerfully considering which verse to use, or just going with the one God us currently focusing me on (you know, the one that all but smacks you upside the head when you are reading). I am starting with 2 Corinthians 12:9 and doing 2 studies looking at two different words:

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

These studies are never quick, but are always rich. Rather than committing to a number a month or one a week, I am committing to find a block of time every week to work on these.

3? Once these two studies are done I may trace grace through the Bible, which is the other style of word study, and yes, I do both, but this is the style I do the least.

Why do I share this? Well, a couple reasons:

First off, I am excited! I am eager to go back to BSF because it has been a tremendous blessing to my family in the past, and it is clearly God's prompting for me to return, even now when the timing is terrible! Also, I started the word studies, just the easy part of getting all the verses plugged in and finding the Strong's number, and was so encouraged even though I was exhausted.

Secondly, I use this as a place to think our loud, and to keep track of things.

Thirdly, I cannot imagine I am the only woman on the face of the planet going through a bit of a tough time right now when things are overwhelming, and if I can encourage you a little bit, that is a tremendous blessing to me!

Lastly, I am confident that God is going to get us through this, and that testimony is always worth sharing!

Done - Now What?

This is the point that is hard. I am done reading the Bible in 90 Days. Now what do I do? I think it is complicated by the fact that this is the second time I have finished reading the Bible this year.

My plan for the rest of the year is not necessarily my plan, it feels like a plan God started to write through what He taught me as we read. One thing that came up again and again in my reading was the importance of being faithful in the everyday. I am great at being faithful in times of crisis, but sometimes in the everyday I get off track. I miss a day of reading, which sometimes becomes 2 or more. I forget to stop and pray for that list I keep by my sink. My kitchen Bible gets put away during a cleaning and not pulled out again. It is little things, but these serve to pull me off course. I have a Bible study I have wanted to do for a while....actually I am pretty sure the book has been in our home longer than Miss Pear, who is 5. This study is about walking faithfully with God, walking worthy, and I will begin that on Monday.

That still leaves the question of my Bible reading because as much as I enjoy a Bible study based in a workbook they have never replaced actual Bible reading for me. So between now and the end of the year I will be reading the New Testament chronologically. Technically in my The One Year Chronological Bible NLT the NT started September 24, but after reading at 4 times the pace I don't anticipate it being a problem to catch up.

Although that is a concern for me...not having to catch up, reading at a slower pace. Another thing I learned while reading the Bible in 90 days is that while we are all wired differently, God has wired me to need large portions of scripture daily for my soul to feel nourished, to feel plugged into Him, to hear His voice. That is just me. I am not sure this is enough Bible daily for me, even with the study guide, so if it is not, I will just read 2 days of reading instead of 1, and see how that works.

So that is the plan...I think. I will let you know how it goes...but for now, I have some reading to do.

Happy Monday

Somehow last week kind of slipped by on me. I feel that happening right now more than usual. I think the craziness of life since October is still taking its toll on me. I guess I just figured it would be over, and I would feel great! Maybe not realistic, but I guess I did not think it through very much.

So now I am trying to take it easy and be restful and relaxed, trying to rejuvenate and rest in the Lord.

Reading the Bible in 90 Days is definitely helping.

But I discovered what I consider to be THE KEY problem with the program: it makes most other plans look unsubstantial, like they could never possibly be enough. (Bible in a year? I need more than that!)

I have already realized that there is a very good chance that when I finish reading in 90 days that I will turn around and start again.

I had anticipated this being hard and grueling, but it is not. Right now I am waking up some where around 5:30 AM to read, and am done by 7AM. And last night when my husband was doing his devotional time I sat next to him and started reading 1 Peter. I look forward to that time in the morning and realize that it is helping me get back on track in numerous areas of my life.

It is difficult to explain how I am doing in my 90Days reading because it is such a positive experience in ways that cannot be easily quantified or explained. I will say that I am very grateful God gave me the nudge to do this (okay, it was probably more like a shove). Today's reading is done, and I feel like I am growing in my relationship with God and understanding of His Word in a big way. I feel like I am getting back on track with life in general. And I am starting to feel more contented with where I am.

How is your Bible study going? What are you reading? What is God teaching you?

If you want to hear more from bloggers reading the Bible in 90 Days, head on over to Mom's Toolbox.

Bible in 90 Days, the first 31 days

It is wonderful to say that on day 32 I am still on track to read the Bible in 90 Days - actually 88 as there are 2 grace days built in. I do have 5 chapters left to read in today's reading, but there is no reason, Lord willing, they will not be read by bed time. I have fallen behind a day a couple times but have managed to make it up, and have only fallen behind one day when Miss Pear was in the hospital and one day when I was REALLY overwhelmed and overtired.

For today's check in I thought I would also share some of what I am learning. I am trying to get back into the habit of opening my Bible and notebook at the same time, otherwise I never actually open the notebook to make notes unless it is something profound or a clear "slap you upside the head" kind of lesson (to quote my old small group!)

Lessons from the last 2ish weeks - just the big ones.

In my last Bible in 90 Days update (2 weeks ago) I was wondering why:

I do have one question though, it comes from Joshua 1:

Josh. 1:12 And to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh Joshua spoke, saying,
Josh. 1:13 “Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, ‘The LORD your God is giving you rest and is giving you this land.’

So often we see this in the OT, and I am wondering why this particular phraseology, why not OUR God?

In my research I discovered that what the people were saying is that if they saw evidence that the Lord was leading Joshua they would indeed follow him. Interesting.

So now on to new stuff.

1 Samuel 17:34-37 - I had a note in my Bible that we should not despise small opportunities because they prepare us for larger opportunities; David tending the flock prepared him to tend and lead God's people. I also felt strongly that the Lord was teaching me to not despise small blessings, to practice accepting small blessings because that prepares me for big blessings. (Just say yes, please, thank you! when people offer help!) This is a big lesson I am working on.

1 and 2 Kings are so depressing to read. Even King David disappoints me at the end of his reign when he is such an indecisive leader, not acting as clearly or deliberately as he should, often splitting the difference or doing nothing. However, what is most depressing is the lack of godly kings. For example, Judah has 20 kings, but only 8 are considered to be good. And even the godly kings cannot seem to turn the tide of evil! 2 Kings 23:25 says that there was no king like Josiah who turned so completely to the Lord, and yet in 2 Kings 23:36-37 we read that his son did evil in the sight of the Lord. So sad. It reminded me that we must be deliberate in teaching our children about God and encouraging them in His ways, we cannot assume that they will just "catch it" in our house or that the church will do a good enough job, it is up to us parents to step up and take responsibility to teach our children about God.

I was struck by 1 Chronicles 13:7 - this is how the Philistines moved the ark, not how God said to move the ark. It was a strong reminder that we must constantly be seeking God and His ways! and in 14:12 to be RUTHLESS in removing that which opposes God in our lives.

Lastly, what struck me was 1 Chronicles 28:9, the idea of a loyal heart and willing mind. Still mulling that one around.

Achieving my goal

When we started this, I was up front and honest in saying I was not pleased with how my Bible reading was going (I cannot imagine God was either), and that I was determined to do all in my power to change that. I knew that the more I read the Bible, the more I would want to read. When we started it was tough to get through the entire day's reading, really tough, especially once the initial enthusiasm of a new plan wore off and the reality of the work required and life in general kicked in. But I persisted. I am stubborn that way. Already I see where it is getting easier, where the joy is definitely coming back, and there have been days when I was a bit surprised to realize I was done.

God is definitely starting to speak to me more clearly through scripture, although it could also be that I am finally hearing better. As I mentioned I am taking out my notebook and opening it at the same time I open my Bible, and I am definitely writing lots down with today's writings being particularly pointed and encouraging.

I have also started getting up earlier to read in the morning. Often Baby gets up to nurse between 5 and 6, so I have started just staying up. I get dressed, turn on the coffee and start reading. To help in this endeavor, the night before I get the coffee ready so all I have to do is hit the start button, and lay out sweats and a sweatshirt with my Bible study bag beside. This works well.

How is your Bible reading going so far this year? (Even if you are not doing the 90 Days) What is God teaching you?

Check over at Mom's Toolbox for more Bible in 90 Days Check ins.

Bible in 90 Days - Day 1

Day 1 and we are on track! Today's reading was the first 16 chapters of Genesis and it took approximately 45 minutes to finish it, which was excellent in my opinion, I expected it to take over an hour, but the shorter time could be due to being very familiar with the material. While this is not my first time reading the Bible cover to cover, it is the first time over such a short time period, and some parts are always more familiar than others.

One of our questions in the email today was to consider what Eve's sin really was. My first thought was that she disobeyed, but it went deeper than that. I think her biggest sin was doubting God's love for her. I think I commit the same sin, but often in the form of, "I am rock confident that God can do it, but doubt that He would do it for me." I confess this as sin, and have sought the Lord on it.

It helped that the Lord was clearly showing His love for us. We told Miss Pear about her surgery today, and while it was very hard, she handled it better than anyone so far. Her biggest concern was if she could take her teddy with her and if we would be there with her (yes, yes). Afterward, when I was struggling to keep it together God gave me this huge sense of peace.

So, yes, He can do it.

And yes, He will do it for me too, I am not excluded from His blessings.

If you would like to join in the Bible in 90 Days head over to Mom's Toolbox, and on this post there is a link to download the reading schedule.

Cover to Cover, 90 Days

I know, I said I was taking a bloggy break, I had started my Christmas Break to focus on what is important, but during the start of the girls' naps when I was checking email and reading a few blogs something caught my eye, and I felt The Nudge, you know, the one that is God basically saying, "I hope you are paying attention, this is important." And because I bend to God's schedule, not the other way around, we interrupt this bloggy break for something important.

Mom's Toolbox is hosting a Bible in 90 Days Read Along, starting January 1. Today she is asking if we are in, and is asking us to explain why.

Well, the key reason I am in is because God said to.

Okay, done.

Okay, maybe there is more.

There were many a year that I read the Bible cover to cover in the course of a year. And that was great, but it sucked to wait until September to hit the Gospels. Then I had kids and stuff got a bit crazy, I threw out the calendar to read wherever I felt led, and then just started reading a Psalm and and a Proverb a day and another chapter (alternating between OT, OT Wisdom, Gospel, Epistle), before finally just reading wherever I felt led. And that kind of worked but I have found I am not reading as much as I would like to. So this sounded like an excellent way to kick start my reading routine again.

But let's be honest, the second biggest reason for taking on this challenge is the fact that our 4 year old is having open heart surgery January 11. (Before you panic, she is very healthy and her aortic valve is currently healthy, but that will not remain the case without surgery). At first glance this could be a reason NOT to do this, after all, when will we have time? But that is why I need to do this. Without the accountability, the encouragement, my Bible will sit, or it will be picked up for only a chapter at a time. But this is the time when I need to all but drown in the truth and comfort of God's word. When I know I will need God's word more than ever. When my time will be crunched more than ever. When I will be at the end of my mommy rope more than ever.

And so I am signing up for the challenge.

Read the Bible

Cover to cover

90 days

about 4 times my previous rate

Will you join us?

How often do you read your Bible? Is there a schedule you like to follow? Do you have a favorite book of the Bible? (Current Favorites: OT - Haggai, Micah; Gospel - John; NT - Ephesians) Do you have a Bible Reading goal for 2010?

We will now resume our previously scheduled bloggy break (but will read any comments joyfully).

Living Word

So often as I read the Bible it seems like a specific passage pulls me in, speaks to me, prompts me in some way. Lately I have been camped out in Ephesians. A friend called and wanted to talk about something in Colossians, we did, but I immediately returned to Ephesians. And I cannot say why, except that it seems to be where the Lord wants me right now. There is a prayer at the end of chapter 1 that speaks to my heart right now, a prayer for spiritual wisdom.

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 1: 15-23 NKJV

Stand Firm...by being still

In reading along in my Standing Firm calendar I wanted to share with you last week's reading:

Be still, and know that I am God
Psalm 46:10a

In the secret place we simply stand. No great agenda, no mighty ambitions, no rush to move on to the next thing. All we can do is stand and burn in
holy love for our King.
Bob Sorge.

To go along with this Ann at Holy Experience has been writing an excellent Wednesday series called:



This week's post was the start of a new sub-series and the post is called: The Art of Scripture Reading: Why Read the Bible? Needless to say I am looking very forward to Wednesday. What I love about Ann's posts is that she is very focused on the relationship with the Lord, the love, the everyday, and that speaks to my heart!

Deciding Where to Start

I have been re-evaluating my Bible time, trying to find a way to make it more consistent and more than a lick and a promise some days, and I am making progress.

I am doing better about getting my kitchen Bible out again. (Rather than just using Daily Light)

I discovered that if I put my copy of Daily Light out when I cross stitch or knit or quilt it is excellent for meditating on, which is how I had been using it in the kitchen (Daily Light is a devotional that is a compilation of scripture, so for each morning and evening there is a selection of scripture on a common theme).

I am consistently doing Bible time with the girls at breakfast time. (As well as trying to work in using Rod and Staff's Bible Stories to Read and Bible Stories to Color after lunch, which is only working every 2nd or 3rd day as lunch is right before nap time).

Mr. Pear and I are consistently reading together right after we put the girls to bed. (He chose the minor prophets for us to read - such an excellent perspective right now!)

And I am finding my way in a quiet time during the first part of afternoon nap time rather than waiting until bed time. Although I am still working on it I am currently working my way through a Bible Study that is an area I feel challenged in. I am also trying to do more reading in general throughout the day.

All this to say that as I was contemplating how to get going in a meaningful way again I seriously considered what level of depth I could handle (gone are the days of in depth Bible study on my own with commentary only to clarify parts I simply could not understand and then to compliment my own study! I know I will get back to that, Lord willing) I realized that while Baby and I are not sleeping through the night, and am still nursing Baby I needed something to guide me and to help keep me focused, hence the Bible study.

But before I reached that conclusion I considered the wealth of excellent advice and teaching I have received in the just over 10 years I have been serious about my faith and actively studying and learning. There are 2 points I would like to share with you.

1. Daily Study A dear friend who I would consider to be a mentor to me, shared how she does her daily quiet time, a method that has worked for her for years. Each time before she starts she asks the Lord to teach her something new, for new and fresh revelation. And she stays until He does. And each day she faithfully records it in her journal. She has stopped dating her journal, except to date the entire journal book with a start and finish date because she simply knows that the entry before today's was yesterday's, and the day before that etc.

Her relationship with the Lord and her practical and intellectual knowledge of the Bible testifies to both His faithfulness and hers.

When I am not completely scattered and exhausted this is the method for daily quiet time / study I use, and while I have not attained her level, the Lord uses her to encourage me along this way.

2. In Depth Study So often when we look at a book of the Bible to really dig deep into, to really go through verse by verse, word by word, and spend extended solid time in we gravitate to the best loved books....John, Ephesian, Hebrews, James....

The best advice I ever received completely turned that on it's head, and completely changed the way I approach this.

The advice was that if we use that method we will be strong in only our favored portions, and only shore up our strengths. Which still leaves us weak. Better that we would open our Bibles to the table on contents and carefully read the list of books. Make a list of the 5 books you know the least. Read those books and then organize them in order starting with the one you understand the least, or is the most confusing to you.

Congratulations, you now have a list of 5 books for this method of study!

He also recommended to take that list and ask your pastor for a list of recommended resources. Not only will this give you an excellent start on your research, it will probably make your pastor's week!

Once you have worked your way through this list of 5 books, repeat the exercise. This way you are shoring up your weak spots, and are becoming stronger! Especially if you are rewarding yourself by reading one of your favorite books through as a gift to yourself after your heavy studying! And be sure to keep your study notes!

The Mommy Bible

...no, not the kind that is the guide to being a mommy, God is still showing me the way on that one, for which I am am thankful because we would be in trouble if I was on my own!

What I mean is that you only have to look at my Bible to know I am a mom.

If the stickers stashed in there did not give it away, some other things might....

....like the pages that Miss Pear crinkled in her little hands when she was too little to know how to flip but loved the crinkle pages.

....like the crinkled pages from when I could keep Miss Pear occupied for a long time by just letting her flip through my Bible to feel and hear the pages.

....like the page in Hebrews that sports a huge pen mark across it and part of the next page, also courtesy of Miss Pear.

....or like Baby's addition yesterday when in her excitement of discovering the crinkly pages (I don't use my study Bible to read to the girls, I use a NIrV Bible, so simpler, but still a full on Bible without the crinkly pages). Baby's addition was to almost rip out half a page of Genesis. I lovingly taped it back in while assuring her that while it is great to get excited about God's Word, when we talk about digesting God's Word we don't mean literally, so please don't pull the pages out....

Trusting and Focusing on God

Recently I have been praying about finances a lot. Unlike many people, what motivated me was not necessarily the last year in the stock market, but rather that we were expecting Baby Pear. Being pregnant has always made me feel vulnerable, and always brings one of my very biggest fears to the top: the fear that I will have to return to work and trust our children to day care and public schools. This is an unreasonable fear as the Lord has impressed upon us very firmly that He does want me home raising our children. But part of me is still afraid. Kind of a case of I believe but help my unbelief.

In light of some of the headlines I wanted to share some verses with you that have been helpful to me, that have encouraged me.

Psalm 50:10-12, 15
For every beast of the forest is mine.
And the cattle on a thousand hills.
I know all the birds of the mountains,
And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
For the world is Mind, and all its fullness...
Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.

Philippians 3:8-10
Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings being conformed to His death.

And then two verses that are essentially life time verses for our marriage.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not evil to give you a future and a hope.

Isaiah 59:11
The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.


What the Lord has been teaching me is to trust Him, to look to Him and not stare at my problems. But rather to lift my problems up to Him and really trust Him. He is trustworthy and loves me. I am to let Him be the one in the driver's seat. This is another exercise in working on my type A personality and remembering that I am not in control He is, and that even though He has made me a very capable woman who can take charge and get things done, that only works when I am trusting on and leaning on Him.

So whenever I start to dwell on what we can and cannot do, on what the issues are, I need to shift my focus, and remember that the Lord knew full well what He was doing when He moved us here and put us in this precise home. (Believe me, God picked our house). It is His job to work, and my job to trust and obey. (One of my favorite hymns)

What verses of the Lord's provision are helpful to you?

Unusual Provision

Like may Christians I am well aware that the Lord is my Provider, but often in the course of everyday life I forget. The attribute of Provider is not one you can just search for the word in a concordance, rather you need book like Nave's Topical Bible to look it up, to see instances of God's miraculous provision.

A great chapter for this is 1 Kings 17 where the Lord uses Elijah to proclaim a drought.

In the first part of the chapter we see the Lord miraculously providing for Elijah. He provides daily and sovereignly.

In the next part we see the story of the widow's oil, where her flour and oil lasted miraculously as she shared what she had.

The chapter ends with Elijah reviving her son, this once again providing her with a son.

So often when we (okay, I mean me) think of God's provision we think about the big things, the monumental things, we don't think about the each and every day. We forget about the little things.

Like the shampoo bottle that was almost empty and I had forgotten to buy, I prayed for it to last until I could get a new one. That was in July, I actually made an emergency run to the store. The bottle was immediately put upside down to get everything out, and each time I would wash my hair the amount I would need would come out followed by air, I was sure it was empty, but each shower this repeated, for over two months. I finally threw out the bottle last night.

Like the lunch meat I got on sale for about $0.50 a package that has been lunches when I had no energy and when I needed to stretch our budget.

Like a grandma ordering a much needed dress for a Christmas present.

Like the gift card that just perfectly covered the cost of a new diaper pail when our old one quite working.

Like the provision of meals through friends when we were just too tired.

Like the great diaper sales when I needed to think about stocking up for Baby Pear's arrival but had to make it fit in the budget I had. We ended up with more than enough plus tons of wipes!

I am finding that the Lord's provision is still miraculous, but if we just watch for the big things that He does (and He definitely still does big things), we miss the small everyday things that teach us to trust and strengthen our faith.

Thoughts on Leviticus

I finished Leviticus last night, and despite it's reputation of being hard to read and difficult to understand, I really enjoyed it, again. I have had a whole new perspective on Leviticus since I studied it in BSF 7 years ago (wow, was it really that long ago?). We studied it as part of the Life of Moses study which is beginning again in September, and I cannot say enough about BSF's dedication to the clear teaching of God's Word and teaching people to study for themselves or the study on the Life of Moses.

Anyways, as I was reading, I was struck by three things.

1. In the first few chapters where sacrifices are being discussed a key phrase keeps reappearing in the NKJV, and that phrase refers to the offerings as a "sweet aroma" to the Lord. And it got me thinking about it in terms of my daily life, my daily tasks, are they a sweet aroma to the Lord or just something to get done. I would like to think that they are a sweet aroma, but know that sometimes my attitude is...um...lacking. Definitely something to work on here.

2. Kind of in tune with that was the way the Israelites, specifically Moses and Aaron responded. "Just as the Lord commanded." They were obedient to the letter in the method, there was no quibbling or whining, they just did what God said, even the hard stuff. Yup, lesson here too.

3. Leviticus 11. There are so many things I understand better in the Bible now that I am a mom, and this chapter is one of them. Is it just me, or does this somehow sound like the modern equivalent of, "Eeew, don't eat that, it's gross!"

On a side note, I was wondering two things as I typed this up:

1. Do you avoid and skip Leviticus the same way that I used to, or skim it when you get to it just to get through it?

2. Does each member of your family read the same translation of the Bible or are you all different? (We are all different here as we ended up getting a children's translation for Miss Pear, but I guess that she and baby will have the same translation, so we will be 4 people, 3 translations...)

Genesis 18 Thoughts

In early January I was reading through Genesis as part of my quiet time, and I got to Genesis 18 where Abraham intercedes for Sodom:

And the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.”
And the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave,
I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”
Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD. And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.”
Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?”
So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.”
And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there should be forty found there?”
So He said, “I will not do it for the sake of forty.”
Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?”
So He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
And he said, “Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?”
So He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.”
Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?”
And He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.”
So the LORD went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place.

Genesis 18:17-33 NKJV

I was thinking about this passage, and there are two questions that keep running through my brain, in fact, they are still running through my brain and I have no answers.

1. Abraham quit interceding at 10. What would have happened if he had continued? Would his prayers have save the city?

2. How were there not 10 righteous people in the whole city? Already we have four - Lot, his wife and his two daughters, so I guess I am shocked that 6 more could not be found in the entire city!

I would love to hear your thoughts on this!

New Year Bible Reading Plan

I have to confess, I am still casting around for a Bible reading plan that works for me.

Before I was a mommy I would start in Genesis and plow through to Revelation, hopefully finishing on or before December 31, and most years I was successful. This gave me an excellent overview of the Bible. The only thing I did not like about it is that I had to wait until about September to be in the New Testament.

Then I began reading an Old Testament book, a Wisdom Book, a Gospel, and an Epistle before beginning again. And that worked fairly well too, but I did not have that "read in a year" focus, so I don't think that I read as frequently or as much.

This past month I started another plan that has me read 4 chapters a day with the Gospels being read more than once, so I will let you know how that goes. But reading a chapter in Genesis, a chapter in Ezra, a chapter in Matthew and a chapter in Acts each devotional time was making me feel like I was channel surfing through the Bible and was way to discombobulating! So now I am starting with a chapter in Psalms and then reading 4 chapters. In my 4 chapters a day I will first read Genesis (OT book) then read Luke (Gospel) and then read Acts (NT Epistle) before going back and reading Exodus. Once I finish Psalms I will read Proverbs before again returning to Psalms. I have discovered that I am the kind of girl who needs to just spend time in one place at a time in the Bible to be really enriched by what I am reading!

If you are new to the faith or to reading your Bible your goal may be one chapter of the Gospels a day all year, thereby getting a solid understanding. It may be reading through the New Testament this year.

The best Bible reading advice I have ever received, aside from, "This is your Bible, your manual for life, READ IT!" was to pray before I started reading, asking the Lord to teach me something new, to show me a new aspect of Him and of His plan for me, and then write it down.

But whatever your plan, may I encourage you to make a plan and stick to it?

What is your Bible reading plan for 2008?

Word Studies -Introduction

This is the start of the special item I have been working on for while I am taking a bloggy break in order to move to our new home and try to get somewhat organized! I hope that you enjoy it and are blessed by it!

Updated to add: Well, our buyer's lender broke their promise, and our moving day slipped one more day, now packing on Wednesday and moving on Thursday, but I am so exhausted and stressed out that I am still starting my bloggy break today.

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For a seminary class I had to complete what the professor called word studies.

These were completed by following these steps:

1. In a specific verse we chose a specific word.
2. We looked that word up on Strong's to get the number and the word in the original language, as well as the definition.
3. Then we looked the word up in at least 6 different lexicons, and recorded the definition.
4. After that we looked up the verse in at least 7 different translations....
5. Followed by looking up the verse in at least 7 different commentaries, again recording what we found.
6. Then we looked at all the information we had gathered, prayerfully, and wrote what he called the Word Application.

I completed 12 of these.

As I will be taking a short bloggy break while we move, I am posting all 12, and then all my references in reverse order, so it might look kind of funky in a reader, but on my blog it will be a read from the top down kind of thing....

If this is something you are interested in doing in your study time, I would encourage you to visit a seminary library to do this! They welcome visitors, and are happy to help you and let you plug in your laptop while you work - this is how I completed mine! Although we are slowly building our own reference library, it is nowhere near large enough to pull this kind of research off - neither will it be anytime soon! :-)

Also, many lexicons are now coded to Strong's, so you don't even have to know Greek or Hebrew to do this!

Any ways, I hope you enjoy these!

Please keep in mind that these focus on what the Lord was saying to me in November 2004.

If you are going to link to this, please kindly link to this introductory post....

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Part 1 - 2 Chronicles 15:7
Part 2 - Psalm 3:3
Part 3 - Psalm 37:4
Part 4 - Proverbs 9:10
Part 5 - Isaiah 25:4
Part 6 - Daniel 6:26
Part 7 - Micah 6:8
Part 8 - John 14:6
Part 9 - Romans 12:2
Part 10 - Galatians 3:24
Part 11 - Colossians 1:13-14
Part 12 - Hebrews 11:6
References / Bibliography
Conclusion