Week one is done! Right before week one kicked off, our 17 yo dog got hurt and is paralyzed. This bumped his care level up to all-consuming. He is dependent on us for everything right now...much like having a newborn all over again. I am exhausted and so have learned that if I am going to read, I need to tuck that into my early morning routine and utilize breakfast and lunch time to read as well. By bedtime, I am done. I cannot string two sentences together, let alone do any concentrated reading.
The most surprising part of this journey for me is always two fold. The realization of how much time I waste during the day (rarely all in one setting, but five minutes here, five minutes there...it really adds up to an embarrassing amount). Second, as I am in God's Word more I realize that I talk about it more. I use examples to teach our girls, I filter news articles and/or real life events through His perspective. Which leads me to ask myself, on the days when I fail to get into His Word, when I am not reading it, thinking about it, meditating on it...then, when I go to speak and think...whose words am I speaking and whose filter am I thinking through?
MINE 😟.
I don't have anything wise or glorious to say on my own, I will always be biased by how I see _____, how I think about _____, how I feel about ____. So then how can I be sure when I am pulling from my words, thoughts, feelings etc; that they are true? And I am not being deceived? What standard am I measuring it against? If you have chosen Christ as your Savior, His Word is your standard. His Word is to be stored in your heart, it is to be upon your tongue, it is to consumer your thoughts...B90 is a great way to reset my (&your) calibrations.
The hardest part of this reading journey is recognizing the precision of God's Word, His unchanging nature. And then looking around at American Christianity and recognizing how far I often find myself from where He has asked me to walk. Oftentimes, I feel like a fruit-fly - flitting from here to there, prone to wonder, getting swept up in the latest thing (admittedly, we do have a lot of "things" that unfold in this house...dog things, medical things,...). I need an anchor to tether me, guide me, protect me. His Word is that tether, His presence is that anchor. In obedience and faith, my heart is secure.
I have read every day. I have read to myself and aloud. It has been BEAUTIFUL. I created a fun tracker in my bullet journal to color in, I am using a NIV journal Bible. I knew if I pulled out my study Bible (which I LOVE) I would get sidetracked and I just wanted to read and jot down questions/things I want to remember.
To those that maybe got off track this week, feel overwhelmed, or have more questions than answers...I have one piece of advice for you. I have been there; many, many times. Just keep showing up. Pick up where we are supposed to read today (Exodus 29:1 - 40:38 for full version, Exodus 32, 34, 40 for overview version) and simply start again. Write down your questions - but don't get caught up in them right now. Hang in there and just keep showing up. God is faithful, He will not, can NOT fail you.
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