WHY-BOTHER-AT-ALL?

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it." ~Isaiah 55:11

^"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."  ~Heb.4:12

 

  I have asked myself as to the point of posting my Bible reading exploits.

  Am I reading the Scriptures for the wrong reasons so as to appear pius or to confirm to others that I'm not as messed up as I could be?

 Why go to all that trouble to take one hour out of my day?

  Is there such a thing as insignificant or worthless Bible reading time?

  Do I sit down, read, then close the book, and have no idea what to do with what I've just read?

   What is the point of just reading it because it is what Christians do?

  Am I using it as a platform to argue or prove how wrong you are?

  If I'm not interested in letting God show me areas of my life that need change, why bother?

 Am I saying then don't bother reading the Scriptures?

  "By no means", because it matters what you read.  Your time in the Word will always be profitable.  It will show you're true colors.

 I love to celebrate the delight in reading God's Word.  As I move through life, I find myself moving toward what I love.  Finding myself inclined toward the re-reading of Scripture as in my "Camping Out In Romans" has highly captivated my heart. 

(32 times today, goal 50 or +)

   I have captured the beauty and excellence of God's holiness.  As I set out to explore a range of truths, it has made a difference in just knowing about God and personally knowing God.  That makes a difference.

  If I don't know what pleases God, how am I going to find out?  Where would I find direction in life and how best to serve him if I have not gone to his Word?

  Reading a whole book in one sit down provides a big picture within an even bigger setting.

So why bother at all to read Scripture?  Because, it is highly probable if your desire is toward reading scripture that it will also captivate your heart.

 "Ordinary faithful time spent in God’s word is never for naught. The deposits of scripture that we make in our own life, through personal bible study, will be used by God when we are drawing on the reserves." ~unknown
 As Paige Benton Brown so helpfully says in a talk,   "we are never overdrawn. There will come a day when we have nothing to deposit into the bank account of our mind and hearts. But the word we have deposited over a lifetime will protect us from bankruptcy. The deposits are doing something, even when they are small and we can’t see their outcome."

WHEN A PIECE OF THE JIGSAW IS MISSING

“Beloved the objects we look at are distant, and we are near-sighted.”
Charles Spurgeon

The saying goes "Death brings out the best and the worst in families."
We're all more or less the same, more than we think we are different.  Life is fading for many of us.

Life stages, such as becoming an "adult orphan" will be something we will likely most of us be confronted with.  With this in mind, in time we will all be faced with mortality.

The fact is, I don't think we ever get over a death. Yes, we may get through it, get used to it but not necessarily over it.

A piece of our life jigsaw has been removed.  It will never fit in the same way.

Grief can do strange things to us.  There is no rhyme or reason and at the most random times, a small thing will trigger memories.  I still get tearful when I hear or sing "In Christ Alone" as that was sung at my son's memorial service.

With loved ones gone, the family dynamics shifts.  Life lives on in our relationships or not with those left behind, with children or siblings. They say you do get to see people's true colors during these times.

  Families are a link to our heritage.
I wish I could write a really inspiring, God honoring post of all the incredible ways I have seen "the best" played out.

Matt & Dad

Grief makes us all do crazy, sometimes lousy, things with poor choices that we often regret.

Memorial services have become where we say wonderful things about our loved ones.  I'm going to be sad missing mine.  Well not really because you all know where I will be, not caring.  But it would be nice if we cared more about our loved ones before they go and get to know them better in the here and now instead of the then and when.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When the wicked advance against me
    to devour me,
it is my enemies and my foes
    who will stumble and fall.
- Psalm 27:1-2 (NIV)

---

The Lord Is My Savation in song click here

ANOTHER SUNDAY IN JULY

peo·ple-watch·ing

noun

noun: people watching;

 "The action or practice of spending time idly observing people in a public place."  Is it people-watching or watching people?

The Book Tent

 Do people still people watch?  Apparently they do because I do.  My tried and true locale, seat in the car has a view of the parking lot, that is perfect for people watching before Sunday services. It's not that I have nothing better to do but...

 You know what? People make for great natural entertainment. There is a certain beauty in watching individuals and is a surprisingly informative activity.  I find it a somewhat fascinating activity.  The busyness of the parking lot has always entertained me.

It gets very interesting.  If a car fits, park it, right?  Trying to squeeze a large in a compact spot can get quite interesting.  You park, get out to assess the situation, do a walk around,  pull up and move over slightly, try to get out and then change your mind and look for a larger space after wife gets out and leaves.  Hope she can find the car latter on.
It was another bright rather hot day so I did not linger too long, however, it was long enough to be entertaining.
It was long enough to watch "the stroller", "the saunterer", "the power walkers", and the Bible carriers.
The first thing I notice is, people wear such interesting things and have special features about them.  Men wearing suits blend in very well with the rest of the crowd.  Others teetering in spike heels, wondering how that is working out for them after reading that "High heels can be a girls best friend."  Really?
There is always a sense of wonder.  I tend to think that maybe most of us are or turn into people watching to pass the time without realizing it.
I began people watching when I was around 10 when my father would leave me in the Jeep to guard it while he went on errands during our monthly excursions into the city.

We sure have a bunch of unusual people and you get the feel of the beauty of GCC.  It is very relaxing and enjoyable to sit in quiet and solitude.  I sit waiting for a magical moment to exit when I hear a tap of the window interrupting my revere.  A friend stops to chat.  Something catches my eye, someones dress is inappropriately tucked up revealing Victoria's Secret.  My friend catches up with her and quietly explains something needs to be corrected.  Shh, don't tell anybody else we noticed and hope nobody else did.
I finally determined that it was time to exit the car and make my way through the various patios, dodging Grace Walk, I turned the corner and headed for the Book Tent, spied a couple friends, stopped to chat and then made my way around the tent in an attempt to capture the perfect angle for a photo. 

I made a couple of other stops before heading to the Sundays In July elective, The Begattitudes with Andrew Curry.  It so happened I had difficulty following the lecture with an Irish accent.  He did mention that all Scripture is God breathed even the genealogies, or the begats focusing on Gen.25, with the sons of Keturah.

God had a real concern for the nations through out Scripture.  Well there is much more to say about this but in a week, the message will be available on line.
The highlight of my Sunday on this day in July was seeing and chatting with various friends I have known through out the 43 years of attending GCC and chatting with someone new in Spanish.

1. 
   

HELLO FROM UKRAINE

Monument to the founders of Kiev

So I woke up the other morning and fb told me that certain friends were having birthday's and that I should help them celebrate by posting to their timeline some birthday recognition. I did, by not cluttering up their timeline.
Next month, August is a heavy month on that account.

Well, anyway, this past Wednesday I spent some of my time improving myself, I had some diagnostic testing.
Upon inquiring of an unusually chatty, ultra sound technician as to her accent she told me she was from the Ukraine and spoke Russian.

It developed into a very interesting conversation about her homeland and how beautiful it was over there. 
I shared with her how my ancestors had immigrated from there in the late 1800's for religious purposes as they felt that some of their freedoms were beginning to be taken away during that time.
But what made this Wednesday colorful was that when I got home from that adventure, the snail mail had arrived and deposited a very special first class, heavy sort of envelope in our mail box.  It was addressed to me with my name in beautiful calligraphy style and very neat penmanship.
  It contained four photos, a post card and a page and a half letter describing her trip with the STM (short term missions) about her adventures to the Ukraine this summer.  It was a beautiful experience for her as well as a time of spiritual growth. 

I am that proud "Nursery Mother" as I had that timid, little fearful girl as a toddler who had a vocabulary that would send any toddler into the next level, in our church nursery years ago.  In the nursery I was known as Teacher Becky but now years latter, I'm Mrs. Schoof and I love it.  My nursery toddlers are now going on missions trips, being baptized and some are now bringing their toddlers to church.  Isn't life wonderful?

16 CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

“I am sure it is God’s Gospel; for nobody could have invented it. A plan so just to God, so safe to man; and I am all the more sure it is God’s Gospel because there are many that hate it”. ~Spurgeon

 "The law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Galatians 3:24 nkjv
(I know, I know, just stepped out of Romans, but...)

Reading the book of Romans in one sitting has it's advantages.  For me it has heightened alertness to reoccurring words and phrases.  After spending many days, daily reading/audio reading, theme and segments have emerged as I have explored its riches.
  The encounter with my soul has been deep.  I have greatly longed to understand this book.  The depth I found was in just reading it over and over again.
(today 23)
  In my 68 years of life, I had studied the book in College, have listened to many sermons, lectures, and read books on it but the impact of just reading has greatly contributed by far my understanding the most.
By way of observation, there are 78 occurrences of the word LAW and 60 of the word SIN.  I noticed a concentration of the word SIN in chapters 5,6,7,8 so I underlined each of those words.

 In the seemingly ordinary act of reading the Bible, something miraculous happens: we are given eyes to discover the glory of the living God.  There is something intimate, an emotional feeling about holding that Bible, that leather-bound book in my hands.  I am able to underline and scribble insights to measure my spiritual experiences.
Who knows perhaps my children and grandchildren will read my chicken scratches and semi-legible notes sometime in the future. 

 "In that book I say that Christians should not let a single day go by without Bible intake (reading or listening) and prayer. These are like two legs on which we walk to make progress in the journey of Christian growth in Christ likeness." (quote from Dr.Andrew M.Davis book, An Infinite Journey:Growing Toward Christ Likeness.)

There is much to say about reading God's Word in Romans.  I have found the following observations during this time:

1. Because I love God, I found I delight in his Word.
2. In getting to know God, I found myself better prepared to enjoy my reading.
3. I have attempted to make it a spiritual priority to read.
4. I did not begin just for the intellectual exercise.  What I read is what I hear from God.
   

1. I read to get a better grasp the will of God so I can believe it and obey it.
2. I have found that I needed to spend sufficient time to devote to such a venture.
3. I read for the spiritual benefits from the Lord.
4. I have received incredible residual  benefits by visiting the same book over and over again.
5. Some of those verses begin to jump out of me at the oddest times. 

What started out as wonder is awesome!
The wonder drove me on.
The excitement of not knowing where Camping Out In Romans would lead.  The unknown and marvel of discovery brought the book of Romans alive to me.
I will continue to pursue the wonders that Romans will reveal, however, this will be my last post to conclude, CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS.  Perhaps in the future I will post concerning my future finds in Romans.
By no means will I be ending this venture.  I intend to keep on reading.  My goal is to reach 50 Lord willing.
It is my hope that others will catch some of the excitement and affinity toward Scripture reading re reading.

I finally captured a photo of my little songster high up in the orange tree.

  His songs are not as frequent as before but his persistence cheered me on.  You can barely see him, top of orange tree branch,middle left, just below the wire, but that was his tree and his spot.

15. CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

I continue to fill the pages of my life by keeping a record of my multiple readings in Romans.

  For someone like me who has kept a journal off and on it helps me process what is going on in my mind.  I find it very cognitively beneficial and useful camping out in Romans.

Yesterday, I was on the hunt for one favorite verse in that book.  I found it:   "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ".  Rom.5:1
I selected it because it describes my relationship with God.  A relationship marked with peace.  It provides the basis for enduring in the midst of trials and affliction. 
 Because of the "therefore" it includes previous verses.  The first result of being justified is peace with God.
In the search for a favorite verse, I read the book in slo-mo style highlighting and boxing in the word "Lord."  It took me 30 minutes longer to read the book.

I find that many times when a word is repeated many times, it is reasonable to conclude that it is important.
The book has 16 chapters and approximately 7,111 to 9,447 words and 433 verses.
I will be investigating the occurrences of the many key words as I noted their frequency in my many readings.(21)
Today I ventured into listening to the first two chapters by audio in Spanish.  That was quite an interesting experience.  I was surprised as to how much I understood because of the many times I read in English.  Even though Spanish was my first language, it later turned into my second language.  I will explore this option more but could only assimilate two chapters before my mind went on overload.  One of my favorite holidays in Mexico among the churches was "day of the Bible".
Out of reverence and respect for the reading of the Word, I love the tradition that we all stand as it is read at GCC.
What a precious and unperishable treasure we have in God's Word.

Author unknown

14. CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

^" For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."  ~ Hebrews 4:12

"But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it."  2 Tim.3:14

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 
~2 Tim.3:16 
 (yes, couldn't help dipping outside of Romans)

At the beginning of this venture, I had a negative preconceived idea that eventually once the reading honeymoon was over it would  lead to boredom and loose its appeal.  On the contrary, now after many readings (19), I find it to be totally opposite.  I find myself excited at the prospect of the next reading, savoring the anticipation of the next chapter, the next verse, the next paragraph, the next word.  I guess this is what it means "For the Word Of God is alive and active."  I am only now beginning to deeply comprehend the passion that previous great men in history have had for Romans.  (Martin Luther, John Calvin, John G. Mitchell, my professor, G. Campbell Morgan, John MacArthur)

Like Paul, I find myself emotionally distraught at times. Tearing up at the many times I disappointed my Lord.  Taking and hour out of each day to read the whole book has been quite a feat.
In a way, my spiritual biography, vol. 2 begins here in Romans when I was born again.

  My opening pages of life began in 1949 where I entered the human race in a foreign country with a black defective heart, aka sinful degenerate heart.

Romans 8:5-8
⁵ Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. ⁶ The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. ⁷ The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. ⁸ Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
 

13. CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

“If we could see ourselves as God sees us, we couldn’t even stand ourselves!”
          –attributed to Mel Trotter 1870-1940

I tried to capture a photo of our little songster perched high in our neighbors orange tree but he eluded all attempts by continuing his chorus a top the telephone pole.  I think he had his eye on me as I did his.
I continue to be as inspired as this little creature to continue on.

My previous assumptions of Romans being a "difficult" book are slowly dissolving after each reading.  Stepping away from those presumptions by just reading the book have begun to erase some of those preconceived notions.

Since I have begun this extraordinary journey through Romans, I have become more aware of a tremendous sense of hope.  That is if I choose to follow.  A hope for the future.
Because of all that God has done for us, we reap those benefits.  By faith we get them.  By faith we take them.  By faith we embrace them.  By faith we treasure them.  By faith there's more.

I am not saying that comprehending the passages has been easy but it has required more mental make-up.  I have always been theologically challenged but take comfort that the Word is for everybody and anybody no matter the comprehension.

"But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'"Rom.9:20
 "For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,"  Rom. 10:12 

 Still trying to keep within the parameters of just reading the book with minimal outside commentaries. 

“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man." ~the Greek philosopher, Heracitus

 Stepping into Romans is not the same each time read and with each read through, there is a little a bit of something different noticed each time.

I have not yet reached the point to wanting to stop and savor each individual verse although I suspect that desire will come once I have grasped the whole book, however, periodically a verse catches my eye, I jot down the reference for later after I have done another read through.

12. CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

Now just what makes Romans a best book in the Bible?
Went exploring today.

 “Did you not understand?”
  “Do you NOT understand?”
  What don’t you understand?”
  were the quotes I awoke to resounding in my half awake, foggy mind this morning after a restless, mostly sleepless night after listening/reading in Romans the night before.

  The smoke alarm was chirping to the sound of our nocturnal songster outside the window.  His persistence to continue day after day and night after night fascinates me, perched in the same tree.  If it is a mocking bird that I highly suspect upon googling, he may be a young, lonely, unattached bachelor singing a love song or a forlorn older male who’s lost his mate. Only during brief times during the day does this chorister take breaks.

A Minor Bird

By Robert Frost

I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;

Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more.

The fault must partly have been in me.
The bird was not to blame for his key.

And of course there must be something wrong
In wanting to silence any song.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/a-minor-bird-by-robert-frost

A Minor Bird

By Robert Frost

I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;

Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more.

The fault must partly have been in me.
The bird was not to blame for his key.

And of course there must be something wrong
In wanting to silence any song.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/a-minor-bird-by-robert-frost

  Do I have that kind of persistence

A Minor Bird

By Robert Frost

I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;

Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more.

The fault must partly have been in me.
The bird was not to blame for his key.

And of course there must be something wrong
In wanting to silence any song.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/a-minor-bird-by-robert-frost

e to keep camping out in the book of Romans?  Do I have that persistence to pursue, to prevail?  Do I have love for a book I formerly thought a bit hard to comprehend?

I am praising the Lord for my ultimate source of encouragement, the Scriptures.  The more I soak in the book, it’s truths, the more assured I am that God is taking care of me just as he has for the past 68 years.
  I am just as safe putting my faith in him when things are going great as well as when chaos and adversities are all about me.

I believe!  I found the book's heart!
 “For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” ~Rom.1:17
The whole book appears to unravel from that one verse, that one word, “RIGHTEOUSNESS”.  If I understand this one word then perhaps it opens  understanding to the rest of Romans.
Righteousness is basically “conformity to a standard."

I stepped out of Romans briefly to visit some other passages.

 “They READ from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.”  Nehemiah 8:8
(So, they read which led them to understand.)

Matthew 22:29 “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.”  (“All errors arise from not knowing the Scriptures and the power of God.”)

In closing just a reminder to myself to not miss the point that it IS God's righteousness that is demonstrated in his offer.

I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;

Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more.

The fault must partly have been in me.
The bird was not to blame for his key.

And of course there must be something wrong
In wanting to silence any song.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/a-minor-bird-by-robert-frost

11. CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

Today I felt my enthusiasm languishing. 

Returning to the same book is not always easy as I admit to the fact, I want to move on.

  Unfortunately, I felt a sense of failure at my resolve to continue and had to remind myself of the purpose for this adventure. 

Paul was so transparent about some of his faith struggles and simply describing the immensity of the problem with sin. The struggle is great.
Today as I began a 16 x's reading/listening since camping out in the book of Romans, I sensed a rebellious spirit within my soul.  A loss of focus after the first few chapters.
I had to mindfully return to my initial intentions, to better understand God as well as understand myself. 
 I found that through continual reading I have a stronger sense of belonging to God.  To purposely write about such things gives clarity to my own unfolding life story.
I pray that God would continue to give me the motivating desire to saturate my mind with its depths.

So I left myself with an invitation to return later in the day to the book of Romans.

10.CAMPING OUT IN ROMANS

It isn't always that I awake with such godly thoughts as usually I am more focused on rescuing myself from some sort of nonsensical dream, however, I awoke with the words from John 17:17 reverberating in my head.

Matthew

  "You're Word, God, is true."    "You're Word IS True!"

The Rewards

It was one of those moments that I just wanted to meditate on and savor those words snuggling deeper under the covers, letting the memories flood back to the times I helped my children memorize verses in Cubbies and AWANA.

Hannah with Cubbie Bear

Matthew in middle

Having now read or listened to Romans thirteen times, I was struck by Paul's teaching strategy and use of frequent questions (around 85) to move along in the passage to help his readers to think hard about what he was writing.  Following are 15 of Paul's questions:
^3:1 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the benefit of circumcision?
^3:9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin;
^3:29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also?
^3:31 Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.
^4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?
^4:9 Is this blessing then on the circumcised, or on the uncircumcised also?
^7:1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?
^9:30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith…
^10:18 But I say, surely they have never heard, have they?
^10:19 But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they?
^11:1 I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He?
^11:2 Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?
^11:11 I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous.
^11:24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?
^14:10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt?

Getting ready for the AWANA bike races in the far parking lot.  Instead of strollers, we used play pens.

I am sure Amy is in one of those photos.  Sorry Sarah, you were only in our thoughts as a next one.

Karl directing traffic

Getting ready for the bike race.

Anticipating the bike race, Karl standing, waiting.

A SUNDAY IN JULY

The fellowship quotient at church is one of it's distinguishing features.

I sat in an air conditioned room where the noise level was high.  Some were standing around talking, laughing, and joyfully carrying on.  I listened.  I listened carefully.  It told me a lot.  It was the sound of fellowship. 
I struggled with a strain of individualism as I preferred to stay glued to my seat.  I dated and titled my note sheet waiting for my Sunday in July to begin.  I sat eagerly awaiting for it to begin.
A planned "fellowship" time followed for the next ten minutes as we were encouraged to greet those around us, slightly annoyed, I reluctantly stood up and introduced myself to two young girls who were sitting behind me.  Now when it comes to conversations sometimes I wonder.

  The noise level was high hampering my hearing.  So I asked the girls if they were college students.  They both answered, yes.  The conversation continued and then one of the young girls asked if I was in school.  I was very amused as no one had asked me that for years.  I told them I was retired with a brief explanation.  I'm still walking away with that memory.

Back in our seats, we transitioned by singing "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" and then settled into being reminded of God's presence during life's storms.
"What we can see through a tear is better than seeing through a telescope."  Did not catch the author of that quote.

Trials reveal who we really are and how one views God.  We traveled rapidly through Psalm 46 and the take on this chapter is GOD IS PRESENT to give calm, comfort, and control of troubled hearts.  Nothing gets by God.