Heart At Peace

Our whole life can be thrown out of balance by the lack of “a heart at peace.” That, of course, is exactly what the devil wants. He pursues his evil goals in four ways: he makes accusations, stirs up animosity, floods us with anxiety, and pollutes our minds with garbage. But with God’s help, we can reclaim peace.~Jim Cymbala

Think about those four things. Did any of those things happen yesterday? Fight to reclaim that peace. Talk to the Lord today while you are reading your bible. 

Great Blessings

“Great blessings belong to those who don’t listen to evil advice, who don’t live like sinners, and who don’t join those who make fun of God. Instead, they love the Lord’s teachings and think about them day and night. So they grow strong, like a tree planted by a stream— a tree that produces fruit when it should and has leaves that never fall. Everything they do is successful.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭1:1-3‬ ‭ERV‬‬

We read in Psalms 1 the simple promises of a full and blessed life following the Lord. Is there anyone who does not want a life of strength and blessings? Why are there so few who find this? In verse 2 the secret is to love the Lord’s teachings and think about them day and night!

Are you willing to pay the price to inherit this? To live with no regrets? To face the future without fear of what it holds? Begin today, January 1, 2019. Do not go another day without running after the Lord. Commit to read his word everyday. If you haven’t read the entire Bible from cover to cover, what are you waiting for?

I'm reading the @YouVersion plan 'Eat this Book: One Year Bible with Daily Psalm'. Check it out here:

Eat this Book: One Year Bible with Daily Psalm

1 Year

Following aspects of the traditional Jewish order in the Old Testament, this plan offers a sustainable reading pace, allowing you to experience first the Old Testament and then the New Testament in one year. Each day, you’ll explore an average of four chapters, and you’ll close your time in prayer by reading a Psalm.


Eat this Book: One Year Bible with Daily Psalm

Suggestion...invite someone to join you on this journey. You Version has the option to invite someone to hold you accountable. You will change your life and possibly someone else’s. Happy New Year! Praying that 2019 will be the most wonderful year of your entire life.

Start Reading Your Bible

““Jeremiah, get a scroll and write on it all the messages I have spoken to you. I have spoken to you about the nations of Israel and Judah and all the other nations. Write all the words that I have spoken to you from the time that Josiah was king, until now. Maybe the people of Judah will hear what I am planning to do to them and will stop doing bad things. If they will do that, I will forgive them for the terrible sins they have committed.””
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭36:2-3‬ ‭ERV‬‬

Jehudi began to read from the scroll. But after he would read two or three columns, King Jehoiakim would grab the scroll. Then he would cut those columns off the scroll with a small knife and throw them into the fireplace. Finally, the whole scroll was burned in the fire. And, when King Jehoiakim and his servants heard the message from the scroll, they were not afraid. They did not tear their clothes to show sorrow for doing wrong.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭36:23-24‬ ‭ERV‬‬

I have always been intrigued by this story. It's like watching a movie and seeing the king burn the scroll and wanting to shout out, "Don't do it!" We know what happens at the end of the story. Everything that Jeremiah prophesied came true.

“This is how Jerusalem was captured: During the tenth month of the ninth year that Zedekiah was king of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. He surrounded the city to defeat it.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭39:1‬ ‭ERV‬‬

Does this remind you of America today? We are playing with fire. We ignore anything and everything that God talked about in the Bible if we don't agree with it. We are taking the Bible, one page at a time, and thinking that if we burn it, it won't exist.

But the end has already been written. Jesus will return. Every knee will bow to Him. Makes me want to reread the messages over and over again and incorporate that truth into my life. I want the words to be the first thing I read every morning before email or Facebook.

Today is a great day to pick up your Bible and start reading it cover to cover and letting God's Word transform you.

Goals for this Year

“Always remember what is written in that book of law. Speak about that book and study it day and night. Then you can be sure to obey what is written there. If you do this, you will be wise and successful in everything you do.”
‭‭Joshua‬ ‭1:8‬ ‭ERV‬‬

I would love to be wise and successful in everything that I do in 2017. I know that the only way to do this is to know God's Word. The only way to know God's Word is to read it often. The incredible thing about this is that we all have iPhones and iPads and internet connections at our fingertips. We spend a lot of time looking at our phones and iPads. Spend part of that time reading the Bible. We can read God's Word in the morning, during lunch, at the doctor's office, when we first get off work, etc.

I encourage you to pick an app, like YouVersion, and pick a plan to read. I shudder to think that if I had not chosen this path many years ago, I may have made totally different decisions. Trust me, I made a lot of bad decisions. However, continually keeping God's Word in front of me gave me a better chance at making the best decision.

The other part of this verse says to "speak about this book." Share what you read in God's Word. Analyze what it means during Sunday morning small groups or weekly Bible studies. If you are not attending either one, make that a goal for 2017. Don't keep it to yourself. Talk about it all the time so that others will start thinking that you really love the Word and live by it!

In less than two weeks, the new year will be here. Set goals for 2017 that are radically different from last year. Pray before you begin and ask God to help you set goals. When 2016 began, I had no idea all the things that would happen...some good and others not so good. Can you imagine how thankful I am that I was trusting in the Lord this past year and not leaning to my own understanding?

None of us can fathom what this year will hold. Events that must be bathed in wisdom and prayer. Get ready. The new year begins whether we are ready or not.