Archives For bible reading

10 Ways to Celebrate Scripture

Over the last 40 days, I’ve spent time exploring the garden with Adam and Eve, wrestling lions with Samson, visiting churches with Paul, and falling more in love with God with each turning page of his beautiful story. A few thousand crazy-pants friends and I went on an adventure through the entire Bible—about 30 chapters per day. (You can read about what this taught me, here).

After those 40 days ended, I felt spiritually full—like the buttons on my jacket were going to pop off. It’s a feeling I don’t want to let go of.

I’ve collected 10 ideas to celebrate the wonder of Scripture every day and wanted to share them with you– whether you read the whole Bible during Lent or want to lay hold of its treasures each day of the year. Feel free to add your own in the comments below and share this page with others:

1) Carve out time. I don’t know about you, but I can make every excuse in the book not to read God’s Word—I may have good intentions, like reading books about reading the Bible, but there is nothing like opening the pages and letting Scripture saturate you in God’s mercy, grace, and love. Continue Reading…

Sunday Still: He is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!

Congratulations to everyone who has been part of reading the Bible through in 40-Days in preparation for today. Even if you’re still making your way through the Scripture, my hunch is that your heart has been expanded like mine. Not only have I experienced this growing appreciation for God, His Word, and His work in our world, but I’ve had this pounding sense of expectation for today—the resurrection day! Continue Reading…

Shrouded in Mystery: Tips of the Trade for Understanding Revelation

It’s almost time to celebrate.

If you read yesterday’s post, you’ll know that I’m party-crashing Holy Week.

Why?

Because for the last six weeks, thousands of crazypants people like me took the plunge and committed to reading the entire Bible (yep—you read that right) in 40 days. (You can read how to join us and download a free reading guide, here).

And. We’re. Almost. Done.

I can’t help but start the celebration early, even if that does mean party-crashing Holy Week.

Throughout the last several weeks, God has been wowing, astounding, and infiltrating us with his message of hope, love, mercy, and grace. [Tweet this] This weekend not only marks the culmination of our 40 Day Bible Challenge, but the celebration of Jesus’s resurrection. Continue Reading…

 

PROPHETIC LITERATURE

 

Up next in our 40-Day Bible Reading Challenge for Lent are the prophets.

Pause for a moment and place yourself in ancient Israelite sandals.

Imagine what would run through your mind as you hear prophets spout off messages of doom and gloom or the promise of a boatload of blessings?

I imagine that those listening to Biblical prophets probably struggled to wrap their heads and hearts around the imagery-filled messages. On the occasions when the prophet’s message was clear and concise, the words weren’t always what the people wanted to hear.

Yet God selected these particular prophets to remind Israel of the covenant they made with Him as His people. The prophets delivered news of abundant blessings, consequences, or great things yet to come—like the promise of Christ.

As you read this upcoming week’s selection, you may want to mark up passages that you want to come back to later. When you have more time, you’ll want to pick up a Bible dictionary or commentary from time to time to decipher confusing imagery and hard-to-pronounce words.

Here are five things to remember as you dive into the Major and Minor Prophets: Continue Reading…

ENCOURAGEMENT

Thousands of people have joined in reading through the Bible during the 40 Days of Lent this year. People have invited their small groups, friends, spouses, neighbors, and co-workers to join in.

We’re already in Week Four of the Wonderstruck by Scripture 40 Day Bible Reading Guide. That means that by the end of this week we’re more than half way through.

If you’ve fallen behind, here are some tips on how to catch up.

As you’re reading and preparing your heart for the celebration of Christ’s resurrection on Easter morning, I want to offer you a jolly dose of encouragement.

God is doing more in you through this season of Lent than you realize! [Tweet this]

1. Notice What You’re Reaching For. Making a commitment to read the entire Bible during Lent is changing me—and I bet it’s changing you too! Continue Reading…