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One Word 365 – 2019 Edition

Finding One Word To Live By For 2019

For several years now, I have chosen one word by which I strive to live by for the year. I have never had much luck with resolutions at the beginning of a new year, and have much greater success by choosing a single word to make the focus of my personal growth for the next twelve months. I feel that I am able to become more of who I want to be, and more of who Gods wants me to be in this way.

One Word 365 - 2019 Edition

Over the past few years, I have chosen several words that have had a similar base to them. Last year, I chose to live “unhurried.” And the year before that, I chose to live in the “present.” Both of those stemmed from the feeling that God wanted me to live much more focused that I have been, and to set aside some things that, while being good things, were consuming much of my time and energy. This year’s word is along a similar vein.

I won’t go into details about all the words I have chosen to live by over the years (If you want to read through some of my other choices, and my reasons for them, here is a brief list). However, I will share with you that I believe that God is leading me to choose words words with similar concepts for a reason. I think he is continuing to grow me in these areas, and helping me to become more of the person he desires me to be.

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Read Through The Bible in 2019

Because It Matters What You Read

I can think of nothing higher on my priority list each day than to spend time in God’s Word. It’s that important. It really is.

Bible on Bench

I have tried over the years to find a Bible Reading Plan that makes a significant difference in my life, attempting and eliminating various options over the years. A few years ago, I found one that works for me quite well, and 2019 marks my seventh year of using it on a daily basis. I’ll describe it below, along with the impact it has had in my life.

Before I get to that, though, I want to reinforce what you probably already know to be true: that a daily Bible reading discipline is a necessity for the Christian life. It is difficult, if not downright impossible, to grow without spending significant time reading and studying the Word of God.

I won’t go into all the details of that in this article. I have written extensively on this over the years. Briefly, I’ll list several of the articles here:

I believe I might qualify for this club, and if you ask my kids, I definitely qualify for it. However, I don’t see it as a negative thing. In fact, I’m kind of intrigued by some of the things presented in this short video about the club. I think I’m going to have to do some more research into this.

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Memorize Scripture: Psalm 119:89-92

Hiding God’s Word In Our Hearts

While most of Psalm 119 doesn’t flow like a daily spiritual account of the author, some portions of it feel very personal. For instance, the twelfth stanza seems to be a personal cry out to God. Take a look at the first half in Psalm 119:89-92:

Psalm 119:89-92

With this stanza, we move past two points, the lowest, most despairing portion of the psalm, which we studied in the last three stanzas. We also move past the halfway point of this psalm. The preceding stanzas also seemed very personal, a glimpse into the suffering and affliction the psalmist had experienced.

In this passage, we begin to see that God came through, just as expected and as promised, and the tone of the psalm begins to pick up. In fact, from this point onward, Psalm 119 will continue to move upward, and in this passage, we see that the basis for that encouragement is the Word of God itself.

The first three verses here seem to almost state the same thing, that God’s Word is everlasting, and that it is something that we can depend upon, and build our lives on. God’s Word is everlasting, just like his faithfulness, and the laws he enacted.

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Chosen People by Robert Whitlow

A Book Review for The Randleman Review

Chosen People by Robert WhitlowI am a big Tom Clancy and John Grisham fan. I enjoy the legal aspects the Grisham brings, and the action and political thrillers that Clancy writes are spellbinding. So when I was first introduced to Robert Whitlow, I compared him to a mixture of those two authors. After reading several of his novels, I still think that’s the case to a large degree.

Whitlow definitely has his own writing style, even though it may be reminiscent of other authors. And because of that I have thoroughly enjoyed every novel I have had the chance to read by Whitlow. And the more I read, the more I enjoy his work.

That’s the case with the latest novel to come from his pen, Chosen People. Whitlow takes a look at the Jewish/Arab cohabitation that exists in Jerusalem, with the threat of antagonistic neighbors in the surrounding nations, and creates a storyline that is compelling and captivating. His main character is a young Arab women who is an attorney in the US, who takes on a civil case representing a family that suffered during a terrorist attack. As she researches the claim, along with the help of a Jewish American lawyer, they get wrapped up in the underground world of terror and espionage, unsure of who they can trust.