Category Archives: Bible_Reading

Quiet Times in the Morning

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Still Life with Bible, Van Gogh

Reading books, listening to sermons, and having conversations that encourage us to grow in godliness is essential, and it is essential because sometimes the easiest thing is not getting up early to pray and read the Word of God. Many times our bodies win the battle, we stay in bed and then the rest of the day we feel like we are dragging our soul through the various circumstances and duties ahead of us.

I am now reading True Community: The Biblical Practice of Koinonia by Jerry Bridges and in it I found great encouragement to keep on waking up early to have quiet times (praying and reading the Scriptures) with God.

Let me share a few quotes with you so that you may also be encouraged:

“Our communion should be more than just having a quiet time in the morning; it should be an all-day affair. In fact, Isaiah and David take us one step further. They talk about having communion with the Lord even in the night. Isaiah said, “My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you” (Isaiah 26:9). David said, “On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night” (Psalm 63:6).”

 

“The morning quiet time lays the foundation for our all-day communion with God because it tunes our hearts to commune with Him for the rest of the day. It is a time when we can concentrate all our faculties on worshiping Him in reverent adoration. It is a time when we can give undivided attention to His Word and talk to Him in prayer.”

“We may have communion with God throughout the entire day, but seeking His face connotes an intensity of mind and heart that is usually possible only during our time alone with God.”

 

“Intense, organized prayer alone with God in the morning prepares us to breathe those quick, silent prayers that are needed so often throughout the day.”

 

“Matthew Henry says that to walk with God is “to set God always before us, and to act as those that are always under his eye. It is to live a life of communion with God both in ordinances and providences. It is to make God’s word our rule and his glory our end in all our actions.”

  

“How do we, then, practice communion with God throughout the day? If the morning quiet time is the foundation of that communion, Scripture meditation and prayer are the framework of it.”

 

“We can meditate on Scripture — think about it and reflect on it — throughout the day only if we have it in our minds. And we have Scripture in our minds only if we have made the effort to just plain memorize it. There is no shortcut to meditation that bypasses Scripture memorization.”

 

“Our emphasis today is on doing things for God, or on believing the right doctrines about Him. But few believers take time to commune with God simply for the sake of enjoying Him and adoring Him. In the church today, there seems to be very little of that thirst for God described in Psalm 42:1: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.”

Under His sun and by His grace,
 

Becky

When My Mind Wanders

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You know how it goes, one day -almost without noticing- you entertain one thought, one worry, one doubt, one fear, one question, one… and then two days later, and then three days later, and the next week, and the week after that you have a wandering mind, with no limits whatsoever, your spirit is troubled, and of course, you feel heavy burdened.

What to do now?
Go back to the Word of God.

Go back to the Scriptures and mediate on them day and night.  Memorize God’s Word, pray it, recite it, mutter it. The Word of God will dissipate all doubts, all fears, it will strengthen your heart. It will help you fight those vain thoughts.

James Smith said,

“We must mix faith with the Word; seek to hold fellowship with God through every portion; and realize the presence of the Holy Spirit, who alone can render the Word profitable”

How true this is! Let us come, to the Word. Let us abide in it, let us persevere with all diligence to keep it in our heart and mind.

Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.”  How do we come to Him? We come to Him in prayer and we find Him in the Word. It is there where we hear Him speak to our need, to our troubled soul.

Is your heart troubled and your mind wandering today?

Go back to the Word of God.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

Recommended article:

Profiting from the Scriptures by J.C. Ryle

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Finding Delight in God’s Word – We Don’t Lose Heart-

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This week during my Bible reading I read 2 Corinthians, and I was greatly encouraged to see that Paul used twice in this epistle the phrase, “we do not lose heart”.

“But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.”

2 Corinthians 3: 16- 4:1 ESV

In this first instance, we are reminded that we do not lose heart because it has pleased the Lord to set us free and to remove the veil from our eyes so that we see his glory. We do not lose heart because we know we are being transformed into the same image of Jesus. We do not lose heart because we know that our God is a merciful God.

In that, my friends,  I find great delight!

The second time Paul uses this phrase is here:

 

“Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

2 Corinthians 4: 13-18 ESV

Here we are reminded that we do not lose heart because we have an unshakable hope: we know that we will be resurrected and will be with Jesus in Heaven. We do not lose heart because we are grounded in the Word and live with our eyes fixed on the eternal things.

This is a truth that makes my heart sing.

Delighting in Him with you today,

Becky

 

Finding Delight in God’s Word – Proverbs 4: 20-27-

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My friend Leslie is hosting this year a wonderful challenge: Finding Delight in God’s Word. I read about it and loved her idea. This year in which I want to continue on the things I have attained and at the same time, be purposely watchful I must not forget that Finding Delight in God’s Word is what will help me persevere. If my heart is somewhere else, if it is not delighting in God’s Word, how can I continue in the way I should go? How can I be truly watchful if I don’t find my utmost delight in God’s Word, the Lamp to my feet?

So, I have decided to join Leslie, and as I keep reading my Bible following my own pace with this little help,  this week I found delight in these verses:

Proverbs 4: 20- 27  ESV

20 My son, be attentive to my words;
incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Let them not escape from your sight;
keep them within your heart.
22 For they are life to those who find them,
and healing to all their flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all vigilance,
for from it flow the springs of life.
24 Put away from you crooked speech,
and put devious talk far from you.
25 Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
26 Ponder the path of your feet;
then all your ways will be sure.
27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.

The first verses are a wonderful encouragement to abide in the Word, to read it and contemplate it. The more I read the Word of God, the more I incline my ear to it, the more I delight in it. And of course I must memorize it; if I don’t do so, how am I going to keep it within my heart?

Verse 23, “Keep your heart with all vigilance,  for from it flow the springs of life.” is a verse we have read and heard, but really, read it slowly, once again. What am I doing to keep my heart with all vigilance? As a mom, it seems that I am more willing to “keep my children’s heart with all vigilance” than to do something practically about my own heart. I know (or I presume to know) that I know what my children should do to keep their hearts. But what am I doing to keep my heart with all vigilance? This goes perfectly with what I am aiming for this year: Be watchful, Becky.

And I keep reading, and I delight to see that God tells me how I should be vigilant:

* Watching my words, all that I say.

* Watch where am I fixing my eyes;  where I am focusing. It is so easy to stop looking at the goal. While doing school with my children and grading, while cooking and baking, while enjoy a cup of coffee, a good book, a great conversation, I must remember at all times that it is that in Him that I move and live and have my being. It is for Him that I do all things.

* I must ponder the path of my feet. Take time to consider if I am walking in the way I should go. Am I building my relationships or tearing them apart? Am I mortifying those sins that I still pamper? Am I walking straight or maybe I am just starting little by little to swerve to the right or left?

I delight in God’s Word because it is there where I see how much I need Him and how much I hunger for Him.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

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From My Bible Reading -Nehemiah-

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Nehemiah is an incredible story, I come and read it again, and once more God speaks to me there. isn’t it amazing how the Word of God is living water, nourishing and giving life every time we encounter it?

It is God’s Word and so I read attentively:

“Now it happened in the month of  Chislev in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the capital…” that Nehemiah, the cup-bearer of king Ataxerxes, heard the terrible news that the precious land God had given them was desolate, there was no longer a wall around it, the gates had been consumed by fire.

The people there were walking in darkness. Nehemiah grieved.

However, Nehemiah knew what to do when terrible news  came. He had to pray. Pray to the Deliverer, pray to the Almighty, pray to the Promise Keeper.

And so he prayed, he prayed standing on God’s Word, on the promise He had made to  his people generations ago. He prayed with full conviction that God would hear him and would answer his plea, because He knew His God. He knew that God was faithful to keep His promises.

“As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned.  We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples,  but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’  They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” (Neh. 1: 4-11 ESV)

He cried, mourned, fasted and prayed before the Lord, he confessed his sins and the sins of his people, but he knew God would listen and remember His covenant, His Words spoken to his servant. He knew God was the Promise Keeper, and indeed God heard him and kept his promise.

“And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.” (Ch. 2:8)

May I learn to always pray with a fervent heart to my God who remains faithful, even when I sin.

May I pray always standing on his promises which never fail.

May I pray like Nehemiah.

May the good hand of my Lord be upon me as I walk daily on my way to heaven…

Today I am grateful that even when I see a world of darkness around me, 
God’s Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

 

 

This is a repost from the archives (May 4, 2010) 

 

 

>Hello, Saturday

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>Good morning, Saturday!

It is very cold this morning; I am still on my pj’s and coffee is almost ready; I am ready to bake some orange scones for my family, I am sure they would love to wake up and find some warm treats… I will be back in  a minute.

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Here I am ready to enjoy the day; the scones turned out great! You should give them a try! (Petra, if you are reading this…I thought about you while baking them, hope one day we could have a real “tea- party” with our friends!)

Today I want to share with you my grateful note….

I am grateful for my dear friend Eileen, for all the effort she has been putting into writing our Philippians study. She has done an incredible job, and has put a lot of effort into it. This is the first time I have studied a book like this, and I have learned a lot. It has been a joy to dig into the Scriptures and treasure these words in my heart.

If you have not followed the study I encourage you to start it today. It is here for you, take advantage of it; I am sure you will be blessed and you will also exercise some discipline into the constant study of the Word of God (there is homework for 5 days of the week). You can start on the introduction, or directly into week one.

I wrote this prayer after one of the studies (based on Philippians 1)

Thank you, Lord, for remembering me and my children; 
I glorify you, O God, from whom all grace and peace flow.
Thank you, Lord, because you have called me to be part of your family, 
to have partnership in the gospel with the saints around the world.
Thank you, because whenever I see my sin, 
whenever I struggle to mortify my flesh, 
your Spirit remind me that it is You who began the good work in me, 
it is by grace that you have called me and by grace that I will finish the race; 
it is You who will complete the good work in me. 
It is not because of me, but because of you, and on this promise I rest assured.
Lord, help me not to forget in my prayers those who are suffering persecution for the gospel’s sake, 
and help me to be ready, if the day comes, 
to stand firm as the saints who have been willing to die joyfully while defending and confirming the 
gospel.
Father in Heaven, help me to abound in your love, in your Word, 
that I might be ready to discern and approve what is excellent in your sight, 
and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ;
let my life be fruitful at all times, 
in every season, 
let me bear the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ,
to the glory and praise of God.
In Jesus’ name which is above all names.
Amen

Have a wonderful Saturday, dear friends.

Around the corner. 

I have been reading this series by Sharon entitled Parenting with Humility from A to Z, maybe, if you have time, you would like to read it:

Parenting with Humility from A to Z – part one-
Parenting with Humility from A to Z – part two–
Parenting with Humility from A to Z – part three-
Parenting with Humility from A to Z – part four-

And Trisha has posted today a very insightful post  about parenting, No Cookie Cutter Children. You don’t want to miss it!

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