Reading Assignment for The Remainder of 2010

December 19th - 25th December 26th-January 1st
Revelation 13 - 17 Revelation 18 - 22
Luke 1-2 (For Christmas) Psalm 139 (For New Years Day)

As you can see, we have a bit of a change for the last two weeks of this year. The assignments are shorter for two reasons. First of all it will provide a shorter assignment in deference to the busyness of the season while allowing those who may have fallen behind to catch up a bit. Secondly, it will allow us to make a good start of 2011 by starting with Proverbs 1, Matthew 1, and our assignment in the Old Testament will back up a few chapters as we will start again in I Samuel 1. Now if you have already done the reading for the first few chapters of I Samuel, great! You have a head start, but starting at the beginning of these books will be better for those who may just now be joining us in 2011.

I hope that our journey through the Bible this year has been an encouragement and a blessing to you and that you will continue to read along together in the year to come. I would welcome your comments and posts over these next two weeks to share about how reading God's word together has blessed you this year, and I would like to encourage you to invite others to join us in the year to come! May the Lord bless you richly, as you continue to read and heed His word in the coming year!

Reading Assignment for December 12th - 18th

Psalms 144-150
I Samuel 11-15
Revelation 8-12
May the Lord richly bless you as you read His word this week!
May this Christmas season find you reflecting on the blessedness of knowing Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior!

Reading Assignment for December 5th - 11th

Psalms 137-143
I Samuel 6-10
Revelation 3-7

May the Lord Jesus Christ bless and keep you as you read and heed His word this week!

Reading Assignment for November 28th - December 4th

Psalms 130-136
I Samuel 1-5
II John 1, III John 1, Jude 1, Revelation 1-2

May the Lord bless you abundantly as you read His word this week! Happy Holidays to all! May your preparations for this Christmas be filled with family, friends, and fellowship!

Reading Assignment for November 21st-27th

Psalms 123-129
Judges 20-21, Ruth 1-4
II Peter 3
I John 1-5

Greetings all,

As you may have noticed, there are a couple extra chapters that have been assigned this week. II Peter 3 should have been included on last week's assignment but I miss typed the information, sorry about that. If you were paying attention you may have already noticed my oversight and read II Peter 3 on your own. If you did, good for you! If not, don't feel bad, just make it up this week, and please pardon my mistake. Now, Judges 20-21 will finish up that book and if we read only chapters 1-3 of Ruth that will leave one chapter to finish next week. It just makes sense to finish off the book this week.

Honestly, I recommend reading Ruth in one sitting. It is a beautiful story that flows very nicely from beginning to end and gives us not only a wonderful love story, and the family history of King David, but also gives us a beautiful illustration of Jesus Christ as the kinsman redeemer. I would love to year your thoughts on this wonderful book as we read it together this week!

May the Lord bless you richly as you read His word, and have a truly wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday!

In His service,

Ken Davis
Read and Heed The Word!

Reading Assignment November 14th - 20th

Psalms 116-122
Judges 15-19
I Peter 4-5, II Peter 1-2

May The Lord bless you as you abide in His word this week!

Reading Assignment for November 7th - 13th

Psalms 109-115
Judges 10-14
James 4-5, I Peter 1-3

May the Lord bless you richly as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for October 31st - November 6th

Psalms 102-108
Judges 5-9
Hebrews 12-13, James 1-3

James 1:17 reminds us that, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.(NKJV) How fitting a verse to read this first week of November. As the time for Thanksgiving celebrations draws near let us remember who it is that we are "giving thanks" to! Let the attitude of our hearts truly be one of thanksgiving as we recognize all that God has done for us, and all that He has promised to do, for as the very next verse of James 1 tells us, "Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first-fruits of His creatures." (NKJV) May the Lord richly bless you as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for October 24th-30th

Psalms 95-101
Joshua 24, Judges 1-4
Hebrews 7-11

(Hebrews 7:24-25) "But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them." (NKJV) How awesome it is that Jesus Christ, the Son of God lives to make intercession for.....US! The fact that Jesus is interceding for you, today, should fill your heart with joy and hope! Praise God that He has given us such wonderful assurances in His word! May you be wonderfully blessed as you read it this week!

Reading Assignment for October 17th-23rd

Psalms 88-94
Joshua 19-23
Hebrews 2-6

I have noticed that there are a number of you who are visiting the site from overseas, welcome! We are so glad to have you checking in on the site and hope that you are reading along with us. Please know that your comments and questions are welcome. Also I noticed that there may be a few of you checking in from other parts of the U.S. We would love to know where you live and how the Lord is working in your life through His word. Where ever you are from, please feel free to leave a comment on the site letting us know what state, or country is home to you. We look forward to the opportunity to get to know you a bit as we enjoy God's word together. May God bless you richly as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for October 10th - 16th

Psalm 81-87
Joshua 14-18
Titus 1-3, Philemon 1, Hebrews 1

This week will bring us to some of my favorite passages in the Bible pertaining to our Lord Jesus Christ. On Friday we will be reading Hebrews chapter 1 in which we read that God communicated in times past in a variety of ways with His people but in these last days has communicated with us by His Son! Jesus is the divine revelation. He is the express image of the Father! What glorious passages we find here! What an awesome revelation of the Glory of God! I pray that you are as blessed by reading these words as I am. May the Lord abundantly bless you as you read His word this week.

Reading Assignment for October 3rd - 9th

Psalm 74-80 / Joshua 9-13 / II Timothy 1-4

We read six chapters in the New Testament last week, so I'm only going to assign four this week, that will give us all of II Timothy this week and save Titus for next week. May the Lord bless you richly as you read His word!

Reading Assignment for September 26th - October 2nd

Psalms 67-73
Joshua 4-8
I Timothy 1-6

I know that this gives us one more chapter in the New Testament than usual but seeing as how I Timothy has only 6 Chapters it makes sense to read it all in the same week. Hope you don't mind the extra assignment. May the Lord bless you richly as you read His Word this week!

Reading Assignment for September 19th - 25th

Devotional Reading:
Psalm60-66

Old Testament:
Deuteronomy 33-34, and Joshua 1-3

New Testament:
I Thessalonians 4-5 and II Thessalonians 1-3


"A Word of Advice"
Welcome to "Read and Heed The Word!" If you are joining us for the first time, or if you have fallen behind and don't think that you can catch up within a week, then I would suggest the following strategy.

This week we are transitioning between two books, we are leaving behind both Deuteronomy and I Thessalonians and moving into Joshua and II Thessalonians. This would be a great time to jump right into the reading. I would suggest reading all of the assigned chapters from Psalms this week. One per day, starting Sunday and working your way through. As for the Old and New Testament assignments, I would recommend reading the assigned chapters from Joshua and II Thessalonians and then keeping pace, one chapter per day from each book Monday through Friday. This will allow you a few days grace to ease into the reading plan.

As for the parts that you have missed, not to worry! Reading the Bible is a life long process that should be repeated many times over. What we have already read you can get on the next time through! By joining us where we are and working forward from here you have the benefit of being able to leave your questions and comments and interacting with the others on this site, as well as the occasional devotionals that are left relating to the chapters that we are reading.

One other strategy, for those who like to do things in order, would be to go back to earlier posts from the beginning of the year and start your reading plan from the beginning! Either way, the important thing is that you start reading your Bible today, and heeding the word of God by applying it to your daily life. Feel free to leave questions or comments about the Bible on the site whether you are reading along with us or on your own! We would love to hear from you.

Blessings all!

Ken Davis

Reading Assignment for September 12th-18th

Psalm 53 - 59
Deuteronomy 28 - 32
Colossians 3 - I Thessalonians 3

Greetings All

The last month or so for me has been pretty busy! How about for you? I for one have fallen a bit behind in my reading plan and this is the week I plan to catch up! How about you? I am right on track with the Psalms but have fallen a bit behind in the other two sections. I have high hopes of being able to correct that this week. How about you? Are you right on track, or have you fallen behind a bit. If you have, which area has bogged you down? Is there a particular section that you are really enjoying and are finding easier to read? All of these are potential topics to discuss in the comment section of our blog this week.

When we began this reading program at the beginning of the year it had a two fold purpose. The first goal was to encourage regular Bible reading with a balanced diet of Old and New Testament reading. That first goal I believe that we have accomplished. The second goal was to provide a forum for discussions, questions, and encouragement. I don't think we have achieved that goal as of yet. I want to encourage you this week not only to do the assigned reading but also to leave a comment to encourage your brothers and sisters in their efforts to read and heed the Word. I will be checking periodically this week to see how we are doing. May the Lord bless you as you read and heed His word this week!

Reading Assignment for September 5th - 11th

Psalm 46-52
Deuteronomy 23-27
Philippians 2 - Colossians 2

May the LORD bless you richly as you read His word this week!

Update

Greetings all! Well, we tried a new format this month by listing all of the reading assignments in the top section of the blog instead of in a weekly post. I'm not really pleased with how it looked or with the results so there are going to be a few changes come September. It is my hope and prayer that you have all continued with your reading of the word and are well on your way to having completed the New Testament. I look forward to hearing from you as you continue spending time daily in the word. Blessings All!

Reading Plan for July 25th-31st

I Corinthians 13 - II Corinthians 1
Numbers 29-33
Psalm 4-10

May God bless you richly as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for July 18th - 24th

I Corinthians 8-12
Numbers 24-28
Song of Solomon 4-7 and then Psalm 1-3

The year half spent,

Benjamin Franklin said, "One today is worth two tomorrows." 2010 is now more than half spent and you may find yourself falling behind in the reading that you planned to do. Do not worry about those opportunities that you have missed but rather follow the example of the Apostle Paul who wrote in Philippians 3:12-14, "Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

So spend no more time worrying about the days that are past but neither put off until tomorrow the reading that you can do today! Pick up your Bible, find that quiet spot, and begin reading. If you are behind, don't worry about catching up just join us where we are and keep going from there. The treasures of God's word await you. May you be blessed as you read!

Reading Assignment:

July 11th-17th

I Corinthians 3-7
Numbers 19-23
Ecclesiastes 9 - Song of Solomon 3

My apologies for the tardiness of this post. I have been unable to access the internet over the last few days as I have been at summer camp with the youth. I had not expected to attend the camp myself this year but the Lord had other plans. The last few days have been incredible as I have seen the Lord moving upon the hearts of our youth in phenominal ways. It has been a great blessing to witness all that He has done. I invite you all to join us at the church on Friday, July 23rd for a time of worship and testamonies as the youth share about their experiences from this year at camp! May the Lord bless you as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for July 4th - July 10th

Romans 14- I Corinthians 2
Numbers 14-18
Ecclesiastes 2-8

Hopefully you all had a wonderful Independence Day! May the Spirit of the Lord fill your life with Liberty this week as you seek Him daily in His Word!!!

Reading Assignment for June 27th-July 3rd

Romans 9-13
Numbers 9-13
Proverbs 26 - Ecclesiastes 1

Faithful are the wounds of a friend...we are told in Proverbs 27:6. Those wounds are perhaps the means of the sharpening that is referred to in verse 17, "As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend." In order for iron to sharpen iron there must be a point of conflict, and for there to be a wounding however faithful it may be, there must be a point of contention. The strength of a friendship is not determined by the absence of conflict or disagreement, but rather by how that conflict and disagreement is manifested and managed within the friendship.

A true friend is someone who can see you as you are, tell you what you don't want to hear, and keep loving you in spite of it all. A friend tells us the truth, not out of spite, but out of love for who we are and who we are becoming in the Lord. God uses faithful friends in our lives to administer to us the love, grace, and council that we need to receive from Him. A true friend is a channel of God's truth, love, and wisdom in our lives, as verse 9 of this Proverb tells us, "Ointment and perfume delight the heart, and the sweetness of a man's friend gives delight by hearty counsel." Thanks be to God for faithful friends! May we both have, and be them.

Reading Assignment for June 20th-26th

Romans 4-8
Numbers 4-8
Proverbs 19-25

As we delve into Romans this week I am amazed all over again by the beauty of the gospel! How incredible it is that "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 May you be changed this week, as you spend time reading the word of God!

Reading Assignment For June 13th-19th

Acts 27-Romans 3
Leviticus 26-Numbers 3
Proverbs 12-18

May The Lord bless you as you read, and heed His word!

Reading Assignment for the week of June 6th-12th

Acts -22-26
Leviticus 21-25
Proverbs 5-11

May The Lord richly bless you as you read His word this week!!!!
Your comments, as always are a welcomed blessing.

Reading Assignment For May 30th - June 5th

Acts 17-21
Leviticus 16-20
Psalm 148-Proverbs 4


May your joy blossom,
As you spend time in The Word this week!

Reading Assignment for May 23-29th

Psalm 141-147
Acts 12-16
Leviticus 11-15

May the Lord bless you as you read His word this week!

Reading Assignment for May 16th-22nd

Psalm 134-140
Acts 7-11
Leviticus 6-10

This week I invite each of you to write the comments. Take a moment to record here your thoughts and or observations regarding the verse that stood out the most to you during your devo time, even if it wasn't from the current assignment. I look forward to reading what each of you have to say. Don't worry about sounding profound or eloquent; just share your thoughts and feelings regarding what the Lord is saying to you through His word, and may God bless you richly as you partake of His word this week!

Reading Assignment for May 9th-15th

Psalm 127-133
Acts 2-6
Leviticus 1-5

As we venture into Leviticus this week we are going to be reading about the various offerings that the children of Israel were to offer to the Lord. As you read these chapters do not be blinded by the repetitious nature of the various offerings, take each chapter in stride. To the careful observer the foreshadowing will be evident. In these chapters we have a picture of the sacrifice that was to come so many centuries later. Whether priest or peasant, king or commoner all needed the benefit of the atoning sacrifices.

In these pages we are reminded that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. Praise the Lord that the sacrifice for our sins has been made once and for all in the person of Jesus Christ our Lord, for as we are told in Hebrews 9:11-14, "...Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (NKJV) May this time in God's word be a blessing to you all. Your questions and comments, as always, are welcome.

Reading Assignment for May 2nd-8th

Psalms 120-126
Exodus 36-40
John 18-Acts 1

Reading assignment for the week of April 25th-May 1

Psalm 113-119
Exodus 31-35
John 13-17

May the LORD bless you richly as you read His word this week!




Thy Word!
This week our reading in the book of Psalms will bring us to the longest chapter in the Bible. Psalm 119. Psalm 119 in the Hebrew language is an acrostic poem, with each section containing eight lines and each line in the section beginning with the same Hebrew letter. For example, in Hebrew each line in the first section begins with the letter Aleph, and in the second section every line beings with the letter Beth, and so forth and so on until the end of the twenty second section accounting for each of the letters in the Hebrew Alphabet in order.

This could have made it a sort of ABC book for the children of Israel. It would have been very wise to use it in this way as each line extols the great value of God's word. In fact in the New King James Version of the Bible the Word of God is mentioned in all but four verses, and given the fact that there are 176 verses in this Psalm it is safe to say we have identified the writers theme! The terms that are used to describe God's word in this chapter are words like law, testimonies, precepts statutes, ways, commandments, words, ordinances, judgments and things of this sort. Be sure to let these verses sink in section by section as each one communicates different facets of God's word to our hearts. As we read this chapter this week let us join with the Psalmist and make our request to God, "Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statues, And I shall keep it to the end. Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart." vs. 33-34 And may the LORD Bless you as you meditate on His Wonderful Word!

Ken Davis

Greetings all, here is our reading assignment for the week of April 18th-24th

Psalms 106-112
Exodus 26-30
John 8-12

Happy reading! As always, your comments and questions are welcome!

Reading Assignment for April 11th-17th
Psalms 99-105
Exodus 21-25
John 3-7

Five loaves and two fish, but what were they among so many? Have you ever felt like you just didn't have what it takes? Have you ever felt like you just didn't measure up? Have you ever felt as though your best efforts just weren't enough? If you are like most people, the answer to these questions is a resounding YES! All of us face feelings of inadequacy from time to time, and to tell the truth, we're right; we aren't enough. Isn't it liberating to know that God realizes that we aren't enough as well? Psalm 103:14 says, "...He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust." I am blessed to serve a God who knows my limitations!

The amazing thing however is this, despite our limitations, God still wants to use us to meet the need at hand. So what do we do when the task at hand seems far beyond our powers? The answer is this; we give what we do have to the Lord. When we give ourselves to Him, insufficient as we are, He receives us to Himself. Just like the five loaves and two fish He will take us, break us, bless us, and make us enough. If you find that you are discouraged by your own limitations, remember that you serve an limitless God. Give all that you are to Him, and He will accomplish through you all that He desires to do, by His power! The Lord bless and use you this week.

Reading Assignment for the week of April 4th-10th
Psalms 92-98
Exodus 16-20
Luke 22-John 2

I hope that you all had a wonderful Resurrection Sunday! What an awesome time to celebrate the Risen Savior together! This week as we finish the last few chapters of Luke we will be reading once again about that first resurrection morning. May your meditations on these scriptures keep the reality of the risen Savior fresh in your hearts and in your mind as you head into this new week!

Reading Assignment for March 28th-April 3rd

Psalm 85-91
Exodus 11-15
Luke 17-21

Your comments and questions are welcome.
Have a great week!

Reading Assignment for March 21st-27th

Psalms 78-84
Luke 12-16
Exodus 6-10

Restore Us!
Where does restoration come from? It comes from God! In Psalm 80:3 the Psalmist cries out, "Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!" Remember Christian, your hope is not in politics. Your hope is not in financial success. Your hope is not in the powers and the policies of man. Your hope, if hope it is, is to be found in God and in God alone! "Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine, and we may be saved? No! We SHALL be saved! The favorable gaze of God upon us is Salvation! That favorable gaze can only fall when we are found in Christ Jesus our Lord! The Father sent the Son to restore us to Himself, and when we stand in Him, the face of the Father shines upon us, and we are saved! May you be found in Him today!

Read and Heed The Word Reading Assignment For March 14th-20th:

Psalms 71-77
Exodus 1-5
Luke 7-11

Sometimes in the business of life we can lose site of the things that are really important. Don't let the business of life keep you from spending time in the Word of God. Make time for reading and meditating on His word every day; and if a day, or two, or even three go by and you haven't taken the time to be in His word, don't become discouraged. Just pick up your Bible and start again. Remember, each day is a gift from God. As someone once said the past is gone forever, the future is yet to be, but today is a gift from God, that is why they call it the "present". So don't be discouraged by the missed opportunities of the past, and don't fret about the future, just pick up your Bible, and make the most of today! May God bless you as you read and heed His word! I look forward to hearing from each of you this week regarding the things that God is speaking to you as you spend time in the Scriptures. Have a blessed week!

Reading Assignment For March 7th-13th:

Psalm 64-70
Genesis 46-50
Luke 2-6

Your comments are welcome! Have a great week in His Word!

Reading Assignment March 1st-7th
Psalms 58-64
Mark 13-Luke 1
Genesis 41-45

Read and Heed The Word
Monday February 22nd - Sunday February 28th
Psalms 51-57
Genesis 36-40
Mark 8-12






Taking a Journey With Joseph
Now here is a young man who went from riches, to rags, to riches. In the beginning we find Joseph the favorite son of a very wealthy man. Jacob's parents had played favorites with their children and the bad habit had been passed on to the next generation. Joseph was the golden child in his father's eyes, and his brothers were plenty jealous! To make matters worse, Joseph did not endear himself to them. He wore a coat that set him apart, and was very vocal about some amazing dreams that suggested that he would one day rule over them. Not exactly a recipe for sibling harmony!


One day, his brothers found the opportunity to do him in, but rather than kill the little guy they figured they could make a quick buck by selling their brother into slavery. The young favorite of his father would find himself in the slave trader's caravan. It wouldn't be long before he was purchased by Potiphar and through his faithful service rose to power within the household of this Egyptian officer. His favor however would be short lived as he was falsely accused and thrown into prison. Amazingly enough we never hear Joseph complain. Through it all his trust in the Lord and his faithfulness to his God never seems to waiver. Would we do as well? In time the Lord would see that Joseph was released from prison and made second in command of the nation of Egypt. His brothers had intended to do him evil, but the Lord was at work in it all!


In the trials of life, do we remain faithful? When things go wrong, do we look for the hand of God? Do we hold back our tongue from complaining and trust that the LORD is directing our path? Do we honor God in our suffering as well as in our success? If not, then we can learn from the example of Joseph! May the Lord bless you as you read his story this week!

"As Many as touched Him were made Well"
Reading Assignment For February 15th -21st
Psalms 44-50, Genesis 31-35, Mark 3-7

Our reading this week will take us at some point to Mark 6:53-56. In verse 56 we read that, "Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well." If we want to be made well spiritually, let us draw near day by day and touch the hem of His garment through reading His word!

In Romans 12:2 we are told to be "transformed by the renewing of our minds." And in chapter 9 of Mark next week we will see that same word used in verse 2 which says of Jesus, "and He was transfigured before them." This signifies a dramatic change in our way of thinking, a metamorphosis that takes us from a worldly to a heavenly perspective just as Jesus was changed from his earthly to a glorified appearance there on the mountain. When we touch the hem of His garment through our daily reading of His word may this metamorphosis begin in us!

Read and Heed the Word!

Reading Assignment for February 8th-14th

Psalms 37-43
Genesis 26-30
Matthew 26-Mark 2

May the Lord bless you richly as you read and heed His word!

February 1st - February 7th Reading Assignment

Monday through Sunday: Psalm 30-36
Monday through Friday: Genesis 21-25 and Matthew 21-25

Thanks for checking in on this weeks post. This week, instead of my writing a long post, I would like to invite each of you to leave a comment sharing your thoughts. Let us know how you are doing, and how the Lord is speaking to you through His word. Just a sentence or two would be great! Don't worry about being profound, just be real. We would all love to hear how God is blessing you this week!

Thanks,

Ken

Eye have an idea.

By this time some of you have possibly fallen behind in our reading plan, or perhaps you are joining us for the first time and feel like it is too late to start because we are already too far ahead of you. Let me present another way of looking at things. Reading the Bible is the business of a lifetime. We should never be done with the Bible because the Bible will never be done with us! Once we finish reading it through, the best thing to do is to start again. Each time we read it be it the first or the fiftieth new insights are revealed, new layers of God's unsearchable love come into focus, and we are amazed all over again! So if you are just now joining us, or have fallen more than a week behind, rather than stressing out about trying to catch up, just cut your losses and join us where we are. It would be better for you to keep reading and stay with the group, than be overwhelmed and give up reading all together! So pick up your Bibles and starting reading! Our assignment for this week is as follows:

Monday-
Psalm 23, Matthew 16, Genesis 16.

Tuesday-
Psalm 24, Matthew 17, Genesis 17.

Wednesday-
Psalm 25, Matthew 18, Genesis 18.

Thursday-
Psalm 26, Matthew 19, Genesis 19.

Friday-
Psalm 27, Matthew 20, Genesis 20.

Saturday-
Psalm 28

Sunday-
Psalm 29

So start where we are and get reading today! I look forward to hearing from you!
May God bless you all as you spend time in His word every day.

The heavens declare...
The firmament shows....

This week our reading in the scriptures will bring us to the 19th chapter of Psalms. This Psalm begins with the glorious words, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork." The chapter ends with the prayer, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer."

When we recognize the glory of God in His creation it is like seeing a beautiful painting. When we see the painting we are amazed at the skill of the artist. The beauty and creativity of the work that we see makes us appreciate the skill of the one from whom that beauty flowed. The difference however is in this, when we consider the fact that the one who created the firmament also created us, appreciation for His creative power is no longer sufficient, appreciation becomes gratitude and our hearts move from being pleased by His creation to being filled with a desire to become a creation that is pleasing to Him; thereby eliciting the response, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer."

"But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD."

This week's reading from the Old Testament takes us through the life of Noah, a man who found grace in the eyes of the LORD. Noah's generation was very wicked, verse 5 of chapter 6 tells us that "...the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." This resulted in a world that was filled with violence and evil imaginations. Does this scenario sound familiar? How like our world today! In the midst of this wicked generation the LORD found a man who's heart was right toward Him, a man who would do "...according to all that the LORD commanded him." Genesis 7:5. Are you willing to become such a man or woman in your generation? I pray that you are!

Time to catch up!!!!!! If your reading program is still in park it is time to bump up the rpm's! Now is your chance to make up any reading that you may have missed this past week. Today your reading assignment is Psalm 7. That's it! Tomorrow your reading assignment is Psalm 8, and if you are at church on time I will read that one for you! It couldn't get much easier than that could it? So here is your chance to make up any reading you have fallen behind on. At this point you should have read Matthew chapters 1-5 and Genesis Chapters 1-5. Take some time today to make up any chapters you have not read so that you don't fall any further behind. I hope that you have enjoyed this last week of Bible reading as much as I have! Remember to tell your friends and family members about the reading program and about the blog site. It isn't too lat for them to join in on this wonderful blessing of reading God's word together! Amen? Amen!

On your mark...get set...

2010 has arrived!!! The time has come for us to begin this wonderful adventure together in God's Word! We begin this Sunday, January 3rd with Psalms chapter 1. How fitting that the word tells us how blessed we will be if we "delight...in the law of the LORD..." and "meditate day and night" in it.

I have recommended that we use this portion of our reading as a launchpad into prayer. Each day, every day, it is important that we spend time with the LORD in His word and in prayer and the Psalms can be an excellent way to enter into that time of worship and communion with the LORD!

Some of you might ask the question, "How can we use the Psalms to enter into prayer?" That is an excellent question and I would like to take a moment to offer up one example. As you begin find a quiet place if you can where you can be alone and avoid interruption. Determine to turn off your cell phone, or any other distraction if you can. Once you have found your spot you might begin something like this, "Heavenly Father, thank You for this time, thank You for allowing me to meet You here. Please bless this time and help me to draw near to You in it, communicate Your heart to me, and help me to be open to the leading of Your Holy Spirit. Amen." The exact words are not important, use your own, but ask God to lead and direct your heart as you read His word. Then read the Psalm, in this instance Psalms 1. After reading and thinking about what you have read, you can then use the Psalm as a launch pad into prayer. That might look something like this, "LORD, thank you for Your blessings. Please help me to be a person who does not listen to the council of ungodly people, please help me not to stand in the path of sinners, or to associate with the scornful! Please help me LORD to delight in Your law, help me to meditate on it and understand it. May it be in my heart and in my mind both day and night. LORD please make me like that tree that is planted by the rivers of water, may I drink deeply of Your Holy Spirit. Please LORD, make me fruitful in your service and prosper my way that I may be both blessed, and a blessing to others. Thank You Lord that You know my way, and that You have declared me righteous in Christ Jesus my Lord." Then from there, just continue in prayer lifting up to the LORD those things that are on your heart.

So there is your example, I encourage you to apply it as the LORD directs you in your prayer and Bible reading time this year. I am eager and excited to see all that the LORD is going to do in our hearts as we look deeply into HIS WORD together this year! May the LORD continue to bless you as you continue to seek His face!