Daily Strength

Over the last few weeks, I have decided to really dedicate myself to reading my Bible daily. The last year or so this has not been at the top of my priorities list, but it really should be, as a Christ follower. The Bible is the inspired Word of God and it is where we are taught, encouraged, and strengthened. Since I have been reading regularly, I am amazed at how much peace I have about my life and all of the decisions and choices that have to be made. I remember the the Lord provides, and that no matter how bad it may seem things are, there is an ultimate reason for them. I love the fact that all of the Bible points directly to Jesus, which is wonderful because he is our Savior and the one who connects us to God the Father. Sometimes I sit down with a block of time in the morning. Other times I read throughout the day during my breaks at work. Or sometimes if I haven't made time during the day (which I should!), I'll read and study at night before I go to bed. The most important thing if you are considering really studying the Bible for yourself is to make time for it in your schedule. Don't just wait and see if you can "fit it it," because most of the time it won't happen. And I find that when I make time, even if it means less sleep or more things to do, everything else diminishes in importance and everything ends up working out better than I thought it would have.

As much as I can every day I have been reading:

- one of the "Hebrew letters" of Psalm 119 (it is the longest Psalm and it is divided into sections, each
  one titled with one of the Hebrew letters of their alphabet)
- another Psalm
- the chapters in Proverbs, Acts, and Revelation that corresponds to the date of the month (for example,
  today is July 19, so I read Proverbs 19, Acts 19, and Revelation 19 this morning)
- 1 or 2 chapters in Genesis

I do not say this to gloat or bring attention to myself, but to encourage anyone who doesn't feel like they could ever really sit down and read the Bible and study it. It is possible! and it is incredibly rewarding. The method I am using right now where the chapter number is the same as the day's date helps me remember if I have read it or not. Once I have read through the books I am reading now, I may reread them to go deeper or simply continue on into other books. I just hope that once I am not doing the "number system" anymore that I will still make time for it! One of the reasons I chose to pick so many different chapters to read a day is because I love variety and it keeps things interesting and gives me a goal. If I were to only read one chapter a day, for whatever reason, it wouldn't seem as important to me and I wouldn't make time for it.

And for anyone who is interested, I use the MacArthur study Bible, and I think it is fantastic! I love all the comments on each verse. It helps me understand what I am reading so much better and includes references to verses that correlate to the passages I am reading. If you don't have one, I would encourage you to get one! They aren't that expensive and they are totally worth it. I also use the NASB version, which is the closest translation to the original languages the Bible was written in, but I believe ESV is also really good.