Monday, July 18, 2011

Siesta Scripture Memory Team: Living Proof Ministries July 15th Blog

My July 15th memory verses:

Isaiah 53:4
Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we consider Him stricken by God, smitten by Him and afflicted.

Isaiah 53:5
But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.

NIV

I need to get back to working on this more actively.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Thirty Days of Reading the Bible using Professor Grant Horner's Bible Reading System -- Update One

Well, I started off great.

Then stumbled.

But now back to it!

This is what the Bible Reading System is all about:

Professor Grant Horners Bible Reading System

Now, normally, with this system, if you get behind, you just pick up where you are. This is the beauty of it, in that those who are likely to just give up when they get behind no longer have that excuse to stop reading.

But the downside of this is the upside of a system tied to specific dates. It can be easy to get out of the habit of reading. Or, like what has happened to me since I started in April, you find that you are not reading more days than you are reading.

So, I decided on a challenge. To get me in the habit of reading each day. And then I fell behind.

I am hoping to catch up (remember, the system does not suggest you do this) and then try to read each day for thirty days.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Thirty Days of Reading the Bible using Professor Grant Horner's Bible Reading System

I am going to challenge myself to thirty days of reading the Bible using Professor Grant Horner's Bible Reading System. I am hoping posting here will help with accountability!

Praying the Offices: Why I Like This Form of Prayer

My watch alarm just beeped and it reminded me to pray. I set this alarm for a few minutes before noon so that I can pray the Lord's Prayer at noon. Today, I also prayed the office with Phyllis Tickle's book, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime.

Why do I like this form of prayer?

One day, I just got sick of my prayer list. My eyes were opened to the selfishness of the list. I was praying for good things for family, friends and myself. But it was just one long list of things I wanted God to do for me. Yes, many of them were spiritual things, but still....

1. Praying the office causes me to pray in the language of the Bible. Psalms and other portions of scripture are used extensively.

2. Praying the office lets me use some of the deepest and most beautifully worded prayers that I have ever seen. And they are things I want! For example, "The Prayer Appointed for the Week" for this week, from The Divine Hours:

O God, you have taught me to keep all your commandments by loving you and my neighbor: Grant me the grace of your Holy Spirit, that I may be devoted to you with my whole heart, and united to others with pure affection' through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Divine Hours, page 206. Taken from the Book of Common Prayer, slightly adapted for individual use.

3. By using the form of prayer, over time, I will begin to remember these phrases, ideas and perhaps eventual even memorize psalms and prayers.

I think those are my top three reasons. More later.