Day 8

The scriptures for today are:
Judges 4:1-5:31
Psalm 94:1-23
Proverbs 14:7-8
Luke 23:13-43

I have read the above scriptures and find nothing wrong with them and they are certainly worthy of meditation and thought, but the message in church this morning was just too good to not meditate and listen to God about. It was good. If you are reading this and would like to listen to the message, you can download an audio version of it at http://www.brookside.net It is worth a listen.
I often have trouble being truly happy for people when good things happen to them. We can call these good things blessing. Even if the person who is being blessed does not believe in or follow Christ, it is still a blessing. It is a major flaw I have. I don't know that I am jealous, becuase most of the things that happen I wouldn't want to happen to me or would do if I was given a choice. I would hope that I am not an unhappy person but there are moments when I am truly not happy for other people. This is not what God wants for me. As I sit there listening to the message I keep asking myself: "Am I displaying God's love by loving other?" The honest answer is: NO. Not like I should be. God also showed me something that is most likely no secret almost every other God follower, but it was news to me. The greatest weapon, we as Christ-followers have is not the Bible, or Prayer, or Faith, the greatest weapon we as Christ-Followers have if LOVE. Love is the very thing that can bring your enemies to tears. Love is hard to ignore. Some people don't even know how to act in a loving relationship or how to respond to being loved.
We are called to love those we do not know, those who hate us and those we deal with on a day to day basis. We are called to live a life of love.
I was asked today what kind of legacy I am going to leave the people that I leave behind when I enter the Kingdom of Heaven. I could not say that I would leave a legacy of love. I want to be the guy that leaves a legacy of love and humility. Real Love cares. That sounds like an obvious thing to most, but it is rarely lived out. I don't want to be that guy anymore. I will no longer take joy in grief and will be joyous for all people and I will try to care as much and as often as appropriate.
It was a great message and I am glad that I was able to hear it. I think God really had something in there for me and I am happy that I was able to pick it up and dwell on it.
Father God, thank you for your numerous revelations to me. help me to never forget what I learned today and give me the opportunity to apply it to my life. Let me never forget that Real Love, Really Cares. Help me to leave a legacy of Love and Humility. help me to find the Joy in other peoples blessings and take no joy in grief. Give me a compassionate heart. I love you Jesus. In your name I pray, Amen.

Day 7

The Scriptures for today are:
Judges 2:10-3:31
Psalm 89:38-52
Proverbs 13:20-23
Luke 22:14-34

As I was reading Judges I was smacked right in the face with a profound God-ism. No matter how bad we mess up and no matter how many times and for how long we deny or disobey God he is always ready to save us. The Israelites turned their back on God every other generation and as soon as they cried out to God he gave them deliverance. God was always there and he never betrayed them as long as they kept his laws. Its not very different now. In fact, it is no different. No matter how far we stray away from God he is always there to bring us back in. Back close to his love, joy, and peace. Over and over again God brought the Israelites out of turmoil and persecution. Regardless of what they had done God was there when they asked for it.
God gave his creation what might be considered the second greatest gift of God. Free Will. Everyday we make our choices. They don't always please God and sometimes the don't even please ourselves. They are still choices. We make them everyday. No matter what choice I make, God is there to help me through the consequences. If those consequences are negative, he is there to comfort me and if those consequences are positive, he is there to celebrate with me. God never leaves me and no matter how often I disappoint him he is there for me. He there to bring me back. I don't deserve it, but he is always there. All we have to do is make the choice to ask and then submit to what God has to say to us. It seems like and easy choice when I am sitting around thinking about it, but when a situation smacks me in the face, it becomes infinity harder. Its a free gift, but it will cost you everything. Pride, selfishness, apathy, all are left behind and must be given up. It will cost me everything.
Father God help me to make the right choice and through those choices help me to bring honor and glory to you and not to myself. Help me to make those choices for the right reasons and not self-serving reasons. Thank you for always picking me up when I have fallen. Thank you for your never ending love. I love you Jesus. In your name I pray. -Amen

Day 6

The scripture for today is:
Judges 1:1-2:9
Psalm 90:1-91:16
Proverbs 13:24-25
Luke 21:29-22:13

Judges is all about history. I knew that before I started, but wow. It really is like reading a history book. Its even full of words that I can not pronounce. the power of God is evident through all of those words. His love and justice is never ending. He is the same God then that he is now. Nothing has changed. Not even the people it seems like. We still do the same things and expect the same things. Its funny the way God reveals himself.
Luke was a different story. It was the beginning of the betrayal of Jesus and almost time for passover and last supper. Jesus knew what was coming and yet he stood tall and never gave in to very human temptation so say I will not do this. How awesome is that. He loved us that much. the message is simple. Christ loves us and died for us and without his death we would still be making animal sacrifices to gain forgiveness for our sins. We would have to go to a most holy place or a priest to speak to God. He loved us that much. Its easy to forget, but he loves us that much.
Thank you Lord for your love and your life and your death on the cross. Thank you for allowing us to come to you directly and through that we can have a personal relationship with you. Give me the strength to live that love everyday. I love you Jesus. Thank you for making the ultimate sacrifice even though I did not deserve it. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray -Amen

Day 5

The scriptures for today are:
Joshua 24:1-33
Psalm 89:38-52
Proverbs 13:20-23
Luke 21:1-28

Joshua is now finished and I am excite to go through Judges. Joshua ended with a choice. Will you serve God or will you perish. Not really a choice in my mind, but it was presented like a choice. Of course, everybody chose to serve God. We make this very simple choice on a daily basis. I make this choice on a daily basis. i am heartbroken to say that I don't always choose God. I know I wont be struck down with a lightning bolt or something like that, but it is far too easy to choose something other than God. Right now as I sat here reading my bible and making this journal entry my XBox is calling me from the living room. Its easy to flip a switch and enter a world of fast cars or guns. This time I choose God. I threw myself into his word and entered into his presence and I do not regret it. I have been wrapped in a kind of peace, and quiet joy that can only come from spending time with Christ. Joshua gave everybody that same choice. Not only did they choose God but they chose God for generations. Maybe for them it was an easy choice. They sure made it seem like it was. I can picture them just giving Joshua a stupid look and going DUH!, we choose God. Look what he has done for us. How could you not choose to follow him.
I look at what God has done for me and wonder how Could I not choose God? Yet day after day in some little way I don't Choose God. I choose TV, or basketball, or video games, or friends, or chores, something else that has no eternal value. now I am not saying that some of those things are not important, but are they THAT important. The practical side of me is thinking, well if you just managed your time better, or prioritized then you would not have to choose anything over God, but its more than that. I have the time and opportunity, but I choose wrong. I regret it. I enjoy my time with God. I feel like a better man, husband, father, employee, and friend when I do choose to spend time with God. God has delivered ME from so much, how can I not choose him over EVERYTHING?
Joshua made a new covenant with his people and maybe that was just to hold them accountable, but it worked. God worked. God made the unthinkable and impossible happen for his followers and unfortunately it took all of that for them to realize that god was in fact who he was claiming to be. I had the same pleasure. Through my situation and my life God has shown me that he not only exists, but that he loves and cares for me. Knowing this I have to celebrate my life and I am grateful for my past. Had I had a privileged home life I may not have come to realize just how powerful Christ is. My parents didn't really show me how powerful Christ was, so i had to depend on Christ to show me. He showed up in a big way in my life. I am grateful for that.
The reading in Luke is a little bit of the end times stuff. I tend to meditate a lot more lightly on these things and kind of just brush them off. I know that in the end, no matter what happens I will follow Christ and not deny him and as times get harder it only makes it more important to believe. I don't try to understand the end times and do not pretend to know too much about it. It far beyond my comprehension and it is going to happen whether or not I understand it. If I continue to Follow Christ and obey his law, then I will never be wrong. I can keep my faith regardless of my situation. Christ will never abandon me, why should I abandon him? the end will happen sometime. I am ready to follow Christ for all time. So, knowing that about myself, the end is really irrelevant. I know it to be true and have little doubt that it will happen exactly as Christ said it would, but the best I can do to prepare is to learn as much of his word as possible and guard my heart and mind from all the evils of the world.
Father God, help me to Choose you over everything else in this world. Make your presence huge in my life. Make it an easy choice in my mind. Mold me into a STRONG man of Christ. Make me a better husband, father, friend, and employee. When the time comes to choose you or death help to realize that I have already made the choice and I chose life. A life in Christ. A life where there is no death. Help me Lord, to renew my covenant with you on a daily basis. Help me to never forget what you have delivered me from. I choose to love you. Thank you for your perfect love. In Jesus name.-Amen

Day 4

The Scriptures for today are :
Joshua 22:21-23:16
Luke 20: 27-47
Psalm 89:14-37
Proverbs 13:17-19

Everyday it seems that the word gets better. It speaks to me in a whole new way, but yet it reinforces What I have already read. When I read I read it in chronological order starting with the first book in the old testament and ending with the last book in the new testament.
Joshua is giving words of wisdom and blessing and warning to all of the tribal leaders in the promised land. After God has given these people (I say this in a very non-derogatory way) everything they have. He has delivered land to them that was occupied by some the very tough and hardened men. These people had no hope to take this land without God. The came up against impossible odds and becuase of the promise of God and the faith of the people this land was delivered to them. IT was a generous gift from God. and the only thing God asked for was for the people to believe that God would do what he promised. Before Joshua passed this valuable message, there was a little bit of drama in the land.
What i got out of this was that Things are not always what they seem and the people who had built this altar were so grateful and at the same time so scared that future generations would not worship God or there would be a misunderstanding and other tribes may forget that they do, in deed, believe and follow the law of Moses and the one true God. This altar was their proof to the word that they are God-Followers. Kind of a baptism of the people minus the water. What presence these people must have experienced. They wanted to world to know who God was. If only all God-followers would follow that way. What if everybody built a symbolic altar in their front yard? What would Nebraska look like? What a brave act. I wonder if I would be brave enough to make that kind of outward and very public gesture for Christ. Only time will tell.
I thank God that he is the God of the living and not the God of the dead. I thank God that someday we will be risen and able to LIVE with him even after this world has passed by us. My physical death is not the end of me.
As I sit here writing this I feel that my support system will waiver a bit. When Christ taught, it was not the "sinners" that questioned him. It was not the uneducated or Gentiles who tried to trip him up. It was the God-followers. The Teacher of the Law were the ones who did not believe that he was the Son of God and the one who came to save them all. He is the one they have been waiting for. I would never compare myself to Christ. I will never come close to that kind of holiness or perfection. I do, however, consider myself a Christ follower. The things that I am saying may not be popular or mainstream, but they are my heart. I d not speak with the intention of offending, but I know that I will. Christ in his perfection and infinite wisdom and knowledge, offended, how much more will an imperfect being (me) offend those who read my words. I love Christ and believe his teachings without reserve. The "religious" individuals of Christs day did not approve of his teachings. It was sad that even the people who claimed to know God the most refused to accept the greatest gift God would bestow upon his creation. I hope that I do not alienate anybody with this journal. I think it will happen and it will break my heart. I can only pray and hope that God gives me a chance to explain my self like the Reubenites and Gadites. I hope and pray that the people who disagree or are confused or are simply wanting to talk to me about this journal have the strength and courage to speak, or email, or comment, or something.
Father God, Thank you for your eternal and perfect love that is poured out for me and your entire creation, everyday. Thank you for the numerous blessings that you have bestowed upon me and the people around me and the earth. Thank you for your love of such an undeserving people. I pray that people who are religious that they would learn to follow you the way you intended and that all the legalistic rules and accommodations that religious organizations have made would be laid on the altar and put to rest. I ask that you remove the blinders from the earth and that all can see your Glory and love and truth. I pray that the earth would receive the free gift of your love, but never forget that this gift will cost them everything. Do not ever let me forget that this gift will cost ME everything. Give me the strength and courage and wisdom to speak your truth and convey your love. Help me to show the WORLD who you are. I love you God. In the name of Christ I pray- Amen.

Day 3

Todays reading:
Joshua 21-22:20
Luke 20:1-26
Psalm 89:1-13
Proverbs 13:15-16

Joshua was a good read today. It started out as more dividing of land but ended in a very interesting story. I was amazed at a few things: 1. The tribes of Israel were very quick to judge, yet slow to condemn. They let the Eastern tribes explain the altar that they built. Building an altar was not a bad thing, when it was built for the lord, but this altar was not built directly for the lord. It was built as a reminder for their descendants, that we serve only the one true God. They were trying to honor God with a replica Altar. This altar was not for offerings or sacrifices but as a reminder of the God they serve and the God that had given them so much.Where is the replica Altar in my life? What reminders have I installed in my life to remind me of the God that I serve and his power, and greatness? I Don't know. I am truly blessed. I know that God loves me and created me for one purpose. I read my bible and I pray and those things definitely help to make Christ a hard part of my life to ignore, but maybe something is missing. What can I do that will live on past me? What can I do to have a share in the lord for generations to come? What will be my God legacy. These are very hard questions. These are the questions I will be asking myself in an effort to change and be more like Christ. I will never get there, but that shouldn't stop me from trying.
Luke was another great read today. It seems like Jesus never answered a questions directly unless it was really important. He used parables. Stories about common occurrences that have a lesson embedded in them. Each Story/parable is a glimpse into the heart of God. Its almost like Christ is telling us that we know what is right and wrong, we just have to think about it and do it. Christ wanted us to think and figure the answers out for ourselves. He had enough faith in humanity, to truly believe that we could figure it out and make the right decision.
Once again Jesus is delaing with the Chief Priests and Teacher of the Law. I don't understand why these people, after seeing what Christ has done, could doubt him and his intentions. forget for one second that Christ is the son of God and is God. He did good things, very good things. He united people who might have otherwise never been united. He spoke a great message of hope, love, compassion, grace, joy, peace, and prosperity. I guess a threat is a threat and these people felt threatened. Without the death of Christ we would all be lost anyway.
I get it! I am so excited. I think I got it. Jesus is talking in the parable about himself and the people that God sent before him. I got it. The man who owns the farm is God and God sent prophets to gather the people or fruit and they were sent away. Some were beaten and some were killed. Then the man sent his son and he was killed. Christ was killed. I am so excited that through prayer and meditation I connected the dots and think that I have understood this parable. I have been able to look beneath the surface. This is something I rarely do.
Psalms is always a refreshing read. It allows you to praise God daily from your living room. What a relief it is.
Proverbs is always kind of a light bulb moment for me. I read them and just kinda say to myself, "oh yeah. That makes sense." Like god doesn't make sense or something. He does I just failed to see it that way.

Father God, thank you for another day and another opportunity to serve you. Thank you that you your unending love is given to me. Thank you for creating me and then loving me enough to save me from myself. Thank you for your perfect insight into your word and for filling me. Give me the strength to live for you everyday minute of every day and forgive me when I fail everyday. Give me the courage to stand up for you and what is right. I love you Lord, and it is the name Of Christ that I pray, Amen

Day 2

The scriptures for today are:
Joshua 19-28:9
Luke 19:28-48
Psalm 88:1-18
Proverbs 13:12-14

What a great set of verses to start the day off with. You read and think that what God has to say through his word is the most awesome thing you have read and how can it get any better, until you read something else in the bible. I am grateful for this time I have to read the word and just digest it a little.
Joshua was once again a bunch of dolling out of land to the tribes. It appears that after this land was given to them, they still had to go and occupy it. Than meant fighting your way into occupation and maintaining that occupation. Something else that was talked about was a paragraph about a safe haven. They were to create a safe haven for those accused of accidental murder. It was a place that you would be safe from the family and friends of the victim. Sounds like a great idea. The land of Joshua was in the middle east and it seems that if this practice was still in use there might be less tribal warring in that region. This is yet another example of God's perfection. He saw that as an issue before men thought about it. I know its a small thing, but God doesn't always move heaven and earth to show us his will.
Luke was good too. I was a little angered at the Pharisees. It was that kind of anger that hits you when you are watching a movie and the bad guy keeps winning. you sit there wondering when they good guy will get some ground and just win already. Usually the good guys win and Jesus won in the end. He has to lose everything to win. That's the irony. we are not exempt from that irony. For a man or woman to win, we must lose everything. We must surrender and give our lives over to Christ. The Pharisees were trying to kill Christ even then, but his followers saved his life. They hung on his words. People were hungry for a fresh word. He taught in the temple and the people were listening. Once again relationship conquers religion. That was one of Christs goals or purposes. To denounce religion and build a relationship. He desires to be in relationship with you, me and everybody, regardless of your past, present, and future sin. That's the point, right?
The one thing that stood out to me in this verse was Luke 19:40. What a powerful statement from Christ! "If they keep quiet, the rocks will cry out." I take this in two ways. Number 1: Christ will be exalted on this earth. Even if that exaltation comes from the rocks. Number 2: Failing to cry out to God will result in rocks crying out. This will let us, as Gods creation, that we are not loud enough. Well everybody, the rocks are screaming. We must cry out to the lord. The Pharisees wanted to quiet the disciples down. Religion wants to hold you back. Don't let that happen. Cry out and seek him.
The last thing that really got my attention was the Proverb. The wisdom that comes out of Proverbs is amazing. This is such an applicable verse, especially to those in the military.
This has been day 2. I have a long way to go and I hope to get there. I pray that I do not miss the point and I have the strength and courage to continue on. I pray that I am not confusing myself or anybody else. I pray that I can stay the course and in the end be a better husband, father and man. I pray for those around me and those reading this today. I pray that Christ would change their hearts and minds and they too would be better off. I pray all these things in Christ name, amen.

Day 1

In addition to an actual journal post (which I have done) I will Explain what I am planning to do. I am going to be doing a daily bible reading, meditation, and general thoughts. The difference is I am going to put everything on this blog. Nothing will be censored or played down or sugar coated. This will be exactly what I am thinking, and what I feel God is speaking to me. If you would like to follow along. I will be using the http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com reading plan starting with today. Along with that I am going to ask myself the folowing questions during, and after the reading:
1. What scripture hit you today?
2. What struck you about it?
3. What do you think God wants you to do in response to this insight?
4. What do you think it would look like in Nebraska (and the Nation) if every Christian man and boy were to respond to this portion of scripture like God is asking you to?

I will be posting daily updates and if I don't I will do some catching up. I am still going to keep an actual hard-copy of the journal and hope to just transcribe. I may add to my writing or simply leave things out. What I choose to leave out, will be of no consequence.

I am really just doing this out of obedience to God. I feel that I need to do this. So here is Day 1.

The verses for Today were Joshua 16, 17, 18, and 28; Luke 19:1-27; Proverbs 13:11; Psalm 87:1-7
I really enjoyed reading today. I felt that Joshua was a lot of this person begets this person and this person gets this land and so on and so forth. It was actually a very easy read. When i got to Luke, however that was a different story. Luke started out telling the story of Zaccheaus. What a great story! This man GOT IT! He got it in a way that most people will never GET IT. he understood what it meant to follow Christ and he put value in what he believed. HE gave away half his possessions and wealth (which was considerable) and gave money back to the people he had stolen from with 400% interest. All this at the simple wish for Christ to dine in his home. The Israelites did not like this. They saw Zaccheaus as a "sinner". They failed to realize that so were they. What were they thinking? Why did they think they were any better than Zaccheaus? This got me thinking.
Somebody once said that Hell is filled with religious people. I believe that to be true. These people who questioned Jesus (in their heart) were religious. Somebody somewhere along the line taught them that they were somehow better than all the other sinners. This is simply not true. Christians ARE SINNERS! There is no way around it.
"religious" Institutions make people feel judged and unwelcome. Churches make people feel loved and forgiven and safe. "religious" institutions fill their building with pompous, self-righteous individuals, while churches fill the building with caring, gracious, and loving people. There are numerous "religious" institutions that masquerade as churches and many religious individuals who only desire to be "religious." my prayer for myself and all of you is that you strive to be more like Christ and you stand up to all those who are religious.
Make no judgment. WE ARE ALL SINNERS. None of us deserve the gift of Christ, but we can all receive it.
Sin is sin. We all do it and while man puts degrees on sin, God does not. The only thing that matters is a relationship with Christ. An active relationship. Hopefully all Christ followers will act with humility and obedience and these acts will separate us from the "religious" people.
I had trouble with the second part of Luke 19 and would value any input on the parable of the Ten Minas. Thank You and God bless.