Tag Archives: Spiritual Growth

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Establishing The Discipline Of Bible Reading (ESD)

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The benefits of reading the Bible are almost too numerous to count. If we want to develop spiritual disciplines that help us to grow our faith, then this is a simple first step.

But how do we go about this? What are some ways that we can implement this into our lives? All too often, I hear people say that they’ve tried to read the Bible, but either get discouraged, or fail in their attempt to stick to it.

In the past, I’ve written several articles about how to go about creating an environment where Bible reading and study can flourish.

I’ve used several different styles of Bible reading over the years, and have found one that fits my life pretty well for the time being. I seem to gain a lot from what I read.

I use a system where I read ten different chapters a day. Using this system, the Bible is divided into ten different lists. The idea is to read one chapter from each list daily. When you reach the end of the list, you simply start it over. Some lists are longer, others are shorter, so each one will end at different times. This guarantees you will be reading different portions of the Bible together every day. Many times, you’ll see correlations you never knew were there, simply because you haven’t ever read those passages together before. It’s pretty incredible. You can read more details about this system here.

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The Importance Of Reading The Bible (ESD)

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If you take a look around our society today, you see a level of superficiality that is almost unbelievable. Somehow, over the last few generations, we have turned into a culture that is focused on instant gratification, looks only to ourselves, and refuses to nurture the inner life.

The curse of superficiality is at epidemic proportions in the twenty-first century. The problem lies in the fact that we have lost the ability to be deep people. We are smart. We are connected. We are talented. But we aren’t deep.

If we want to see some incredible change in our lives, we need to be able to look at the inner life and take it deeper than we ever have before. And one of the easiest ways to do this is to spend time in the Bible.

Bible Reading Plans

Tomorrow, we will look at several ways to start this discipline, or deepen in in our lives. But to day, I want to look at some reasons why this is so important.

Here are ten reasons to spend consistent, daily time in your Bible.

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Memorize Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:6-7

Paul expressed in last week’s passage just how joyful he was to see Timothy’s sincere faith. In this week’s passage, he expands on that comment, giving us a deeper glimpse into Timothy’s ministry.

Take a look at the passage in 2 Timothy 1:6-7:

2 Timothy 1:6-7

This passage is an often quoted passage, focusing on the difference between the spirit of timidity and the spirit of power. This is usually quoted to encourage someone to be bold in regards to their faith, encouraging them to speak out about God and what he has done and will do.

However, that’s only a portion of the truth contained in these two verses. Yes, Paul is encouraging Timothy to be bold. But there is much more going on here.

Last week, we saw Paul express joy for Timothy’s sincere faith. Now, he reminds Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God.” This is directly connected to the previous verses, evidenced by the clause “for this reason.” This is an unusual expression for Paul to use, occurring only here in all of his letters. It indicates that his thought here is directly connect to what he has just said.

He encourages Timothy to “fan into flame” the gift he received from God. The tense used here in the Greek is a present infinitive, and can mean to either “kindle anew” or “keep on fanning into flame.” The second idea makes the most sense here. Paul isn’t suggesting that Timothy needs anything further than the gift from God that he has already received, or that it has dwindled and needs refreshed. Rather, Paul is simply encouraging Timothy to continue steadfastly in his faithfulness to God and in his ministry to him.

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Book Review – You’ll Get Through This by Max Lucado

You'll Get Through This by Max LucadoSometimes you read a book at exactly the right time that you need it.

That was the case for me with Max Lucado’s newest book, You’ll Get Through This. My family has experienced a lot of upheaval over the past few months. We’ve moved across the country. We have family members facing serious debilitating illnesses. The economy isn’t great and we have to stretch to make ends meet.

In other words, life happens.

Sometimes, though, when life happens, it is easy to feel discouraged.

Lucado’s new book is written with that in mind. Taking a look at the life of Joseph, from the Old Testament, Lucado offers hope and encouragement for those times that get you down, those times that are discouraging and turbulent.

We’ve all been there. Circumstances are not what we would like them to be. Maybe it’s financial. Maybe it’s a health issue. Maybe it’s a relationship falling apart. Or a job with difficulties around every corner.

Joseph had it pretty bad as well. Throughout You’ll get Through This, Lucado examines how he responded to a family that hated him, that sold him into slavery. Lucado digs into how Joseph responded to the injustice of being wrongly accused and thrown into prison. And Lucado studies how Joseph handled his monumental rise to power, and his reunion with his family after twenty years.

When life throws a curve ball our way, how do we respond? Through looking at Joseph’s life, we can gain some incredible principles for our own life. We can rest assured that God is right there with us, even though despair and despondency dog us at every turn.

And, we can realize that we’ll “get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don’t be foolish or naive. But don’t despair either.”

With God’s help you will get through this.

Are you facing circumstances in your life where you need this reminder? If so, would you care to share so we can pray for you? You can leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

I highly recommend that you read You’ll Get Through This, by Max Lucado. You can purchase it at Amazon.com in print or for Kindle.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links”. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.“

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Memorize Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:3-5

True to form, Paul begins his second letter to Timothy with a brief statement of thanksgiving. This is fairly typical of Paul’s writings. He makes a point to bring thanksgiving to God to the table in everything he does. This letter is no different.

You can see his statement of thankfulness in 2 Timothy 1:3-5:

2 Timothy 1:3-5

Thankfulness is an attitude that has suffered in our culture in recent years. We’ve opted for a sense of entitlement and superiority, instead of gratitude thanksgiving. This is unfortunate, because the Bible has much to say on the topic of being thankful. It’s often very obvious, such as 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

But much of what the New Testament, and especially the writings of Paul, has to say about being thankful seems to slip past us without being noticed. That’s because a lot of it is found in the greetings of his letters, which we sort of gloss over. After all, it’s just a greeting, right?

There is a lot of theology packed into Paul’s greetings. Remember the deep theology we unpacked in 1 Timothy 1:1-2, Paul’s first greeting to Timothy? There was a lot there, and his greeting to Timothy in the second letter is no different.

Paul is thankful. For what? It’s unclear exactly what Paul is thankful for, because he doesn’t explicitly state what he is thankful for in this passage. However, from what he does say, we can infer that he is thankful in at least two areas.

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How To Stay Encouraged: Find Your Niche

Last month, I posted several articles about how to stay encouraged, especially in ministry. I had planned to finish the series before the holidays, but simply ran out of time. As a result, this last part of the series has been on my mind for quite a while.

Perhaps the most practical way to stay encouraged is to find your niche. When you know your purpose, and live accordingly, you experience much more in the area of encouragement than almost anything else can do for you.

How To Stay Encouraged: Find Your Niche

We face a tragic crisis in America, and around the world. We are facing a crisis of identity.

Too many of our students are graduating from high school, or even college, and have no idea what they are going to do with their life. In fact, more college graduates have moved back in with their parents than ever before in our history.

These people are going through life without any idea of what their purpose is. And when that happens, it leads to discouragement, to despair, and ultimately, to depression.

But if you know what your purpose is, if you’ve found your niche, then you’ve already taken steps to avoid those downfalls. Finding your niche is one of the most critical things you can do to stay encouraged. And this is applicable at all levels; it fits your individual, personal life just as it fits into the life of a church or other organization.

In fact, I think those are the key areas that you need to look at when identifying your niche. You need to see what your purpose is as an individual, and you need to see how that fits into the greater purpose of your local church, and then into the global church as a whole.

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Memorize Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:1-2

The message of 2 Timothy is vastly different from the message of Paul’s previous letter to Timothy. In this second letter, Paul encourages Timothy to suffer with him and endure hardship that comes when preaching the gospel.

This year, as we examine and memorize the letter of 2 Timothy, keep in mind that Paul is nearing the time of his death, and is passing on the mantle of ministry to his young colleague.

We will begin with Paul’s salutation in 2 Timothy 1:1-2:

2 Timothy 1:1-2

2 Timothy is the letter that follows 1 Timothy, but not necessarily immediately in time. There is some debate as to Paul being the author, but most scholars seem to accept this as the case.  Let’s take a look at some of the historical background and the salutation.

Background and Audience

2 Timothy finds Paul in a Roman prison. This is probably not the same imprisonment we see at the end of Acts, since both Timothy and Mark were with Paul at that time, when he wrote Colossians. In all likelihood, Paul was released from that imprisonment, continued in ministry, and was arrested again, possible at Troas.

Paul writes this letter to Timothy during this second jail term, anticipating his execution. Eusebius dates Paul’s execution to A.D. 67, placing this letter in either 66 or 67.

From several references in the letter, we can guess that Timothy was probably in Ephesus again, just as he was when he received 1 Timothy. And just as with the first letter, Paul writes to Timothy, but expects him to share the letter with the whole congregation.