In my most recent blog I wrote about my experience of reading the Bible in 40 days. 4 days ago I started a new 180 day Bible reading plan. If anyone is interested in joining here is the link to the plan I made!
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19-TPf5ZxSNODu3LzAciDuWVG5IkEojtSFGJGZIult-Y
Throughout this plan I am 180 going to post one thing I took away everyday on Facebook. For what I took away these first 4 days, I wanted to put it in a blog and if anyone is interested in reading about what takeaways I have for these next 176 days please feel free to friend me on Facebook to follow along.
Day 1 of 180:
In Genesis 2:18 it reads
“Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to live alone. I will make a suitable companion to help him.””
Then after the fall in Genesis 3:22
“Then the LORD God said, “Now the man has become like one of us and has knowledge of what is good and what is bad…””
God makes it clear early on in the Bible how important community is. He does this by not only saying “It is not good for man to live alone” but by also being an example of community to us when he says. “Now the man has become like one of US.” The trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is a community in itself. Please don’t try to go at life alone. Embrace those around you. The church is not a building you go to on your own, but it is the community you become a part of.
Day 2 of 180:
Today in my reading plan, the end of Genesis chapter 7 and the beginning of chapter 8 stuck out.
In chapter 7 we read about Noah and the flood. This is a Sunday school favorite where most people know it rained for 40 days. Noah sent out a dove and it can back with an olive branch. But what is interesting is how it is rarely discussed what happened in between those 40 days and the dove coming back with the branch.
After 40 days when the flood stopped
chapter 7 ends with verse 24.
“The water did not start going down for 150 days.”
The chapter ends with Noah, his sons, and their wives stuck on the open water with no land to go to. If the book ended here God would have saved Noah and his family just to strand them at sea for them to die there.
But the book wasn’t over it continues to chapter 8.
“God had not forgotten Noah and all the animals with him in the boat; he caused a wind to blow, and the water started going down. The outlets of the water beneath the earth and the floodgates of the sky were closed. The rain stopped, and the water gradually went down for 150 days.”
Genesis 8:1-3
Sometimes in life we can feel like we are stranded. At times in our life we feel like God is not present, just as Noah may have felt at the end of chapter 7. But just know the book is not over. The story continues and God will not forget you.
Day 3 of 180:
At different points in the race the language barrier has been a struggle so naturally The Tower of Babel stuck out to me today, but not in a way I expected.
“At first, the people of the whole world had only one language and used the same words. As they wandered about in the East, they came to a plain in Babylonia and settled there. They said to one another, “Come on! Let’s make bricks and bake them hard.” So they had bricks to build with and tar to hold them together. They said, “Now let’s build a city with a tower that reaches the sky, so that we can make a name for ourselves and not be scattered all over the earth.” Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which those men had built, and he said, “Now then, these are all one people and they speak one language; this is just the beginning of what they are going to do. Soon they will be able to do anything they want! Let us go down and mix up their language so that they will not understand one another.” So the LORD scattered them all over the earth, and they stopped building the city. The city was called Babylon, because there the LORD mixed up the language of all the people, and from there he scattered them all over the earth.”
Genesis 11:1-9 GNB
When I first read this over it brings me to question why God created the language barrier. What’s so bad about people coming together to be able to accomplish anything they want? I’m not a scholar and my opinion may just be my own, but I think it’s because of verse 4,
“They said, “Now let’s build a city with a tower that reaches the sky, so that we can make a name for ourselves and not be scattered all over the earth.””
God made it clear he wanted His people to spread out and not be concentrated in one area. Genesis 9:1 reads “God blessed Noah and his sons and said, “Have many children, so that your descendants will live all over the earth.”” This point is again reemphasized in verse 7 when God says to Noah and his sons, “You must have many children, so that your descendants will live all over the earth.”
The goal in building The Tower of Babel was to make a name for themselves so they could stay put. I believe God didn’t want this, not because He wants to see us struggle, but because He wanted us to not be complacent and self reliant in life. He wants us to explore his creation and live a life pursuing His calling on our life. A calling that is greater than our own thoughts and dreams.
What I took from this is the importance of being willing to embrace change when God calls you to it. Change, uncomfortably and adventure, found when you pursue God’s will for your life, is a beautiful thing. It’s not something to fight against, because it is what is best for you! Also, sometimes God may just take the matter into His own hands and make that change happen anyway as He did with The Tower of Babel.
Day 4 of 180:
Today Matthew 4:9-10 stuck out,
““Then the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their greatness. “All this I will give you,” the Devil said, “if you kneel down and worship me.” Then Jesus answered, “Go away, Satan! The scripture says, ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve only him!’ ””
The world has a lot of to offer and a lot fighting for our attention. However, at the end of the day, their is nothing in this world greater than living a life for God.
