The Book

To Do-ers List: Back to School Day 2: The Book

I love the digital age. Cell phones, iPods, laptops, e-readers. Technology – I am all about it. Technology not only changes businesses and industries, it also impacts the education system. Now, back in the day, when I went to college, we stood in line for HOURS to register for classes and buy our books. Today, it’s done by a few clicks of a mouse. Instead of juggling huge stacks of hardcover books, thanks to technology, many students tote a lightweight iPad, pre-loaded with textbooks. Text books are important, but we need to study The Book.

Students of the Book

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

Joshua 1:8

As students of the Word, there is only one book in which we need concern ourselves, the Book of the Law, otherwise known as the Bible. As students of the Book, we have two assignments: 1) constantly speak the Book (God’s Word), and 2) constantly think the Book.

Speak the Book

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth.” A more literal translation of this phrase is “this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth.” In others words,

everything we say should be soaked in the truth of the Word.

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What we say either lines up with the Book, or it doesn’t.

Let’s take a test. And yes, it’s open Book.

Our Words about Others:

Are the words you speak about others found in the Book? Are they true? Are they beneficial to the hearers? Do you speak God’s words over your friends, about your friends, to your friends?

Words about Circumstances:

Are the words you speak about your circumstances found in the Book? Are they true, encouraging and full of grace? Do your words speak life or death into your circumstances?

Words about Self:

Are the words you speak about yourself found in the Book? Do your words about yourself agree with what God says about you? You are called chosen, loved, redeemed, gifted and needed. Listen to your self talk. Don’t let Satan get a word in edgewise.

For Today:

The verse today shows a progression: word in, think, speak, and do.

Choose a verse, and write it on a note card.
Meditate on it. Ask yourself these questions. When should I do this? How shall I do this? Why should I do this?
Speak God’s Word into your challenges and situations. Pray it aloud.
Do what it says. Feed the poor. Forgive your enemies. Love the hurting. Pray about everything.

Resources:

To help you organize your daily study and record your experiences, please download and print the following PDF, or download the journal app to your favorite Apple device.

To Do-ers List Study Guide PDF
Days Lite: My Wonderful Life App free app from App Store.

Don’t forget to comment on your experience in the comment section below! Choose your verse/s for today and be a Doer of the Word. School is in session. Time to hit the book!

Previous Sessions of To Do-ers List, Back to School:

Day 1: New Clothes

To Do-ers List: Love Others

Day 2

To Do-ers List: Love Others

37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40

Since we started our series with God’s Greatest Commandment: Love God, it is fitting that we move on to His second greatest commandment: to love others as we love ourselves. Ouch! That is a tall order. In my opinion, it is easier to love God than to love other people. Other people can be annoying. They can let us down. And quite often they don’t love us back. How can we love somebody who does not love us? How can we love others?

Fortunately, loving others is a choice we make, which does not depend on their attitude towards us.

Loving is a choice, not a feeling.

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Identifying others.

Today’s verse uses the word neighbors. Love my neighbors … I don’t even know some of my neighbors. In the Greek, others/neighbors transliterates as plesion, which means “neighbor, friend, any member of the Hebrew nation and commonwealth; according to Christ, any other man irrespective of nation or religion with whom we live or whom we chance to meet.” Did you notice the spatial/geographical progression of the definition? Neighbor … friends … Americans … any person in the world. So others refers to everybody in the whole world. Wow! While it is impossible for me to tangibly love everyone, I can love others whom I chance to meet.

Loving others as you love yourself.

How do I love me, let me count the ways. Start by thinking about how you treat yourself. You take the best piece of cake for yourself (the one with the frosting flower). You sit in the chair, which affords the best view of the TV screen. You order first (always) at Panera. You ride in the front seat of the car. When with your friends, everyone eats at your favorite restaurant and shops at your preferred stores. Loving others calls for a 180 attitude adjustment.

Do you want others to pray for you? Pray for them. Do you desire mercy? Show mercy. Do you like encouragement? Encourage others. Do you want others to love you? Love others.

Love others as you love yourself.

For Today:

Before you start your planning for today, take a moment to pray for God’s guidance and power as you seek to love others. Today, as situations arise which involve others, think of how you’d wish to be treated and treat them accordingly. Be especially aware of people who:

cut you off in traffic (you and I have NEVER done this).
are slow in the checkout lane.
bring you food you did not order (or forgot to leave off the onions-again).
are late for an appointment, meeting, or dinner.

Use the To-Doers List Study Guide or a journaling app to plan and journal your day.

To Do-ers List Study Guide PDF The study guide is very essential to your learning!
Days Lite: My Wonderful Life App free app from App Store.

For ideas on how to love others, please check the resources below.

Love Like Jesus
Love By Faith

Don’t forget to leave a comment in the comment section below. Have a blessed day. Remember to love others!

In case you missed day 1, click on the link below:

To Do-ers List, Day 1: Love God

By Mary Kane

Short & Sweet: I am by Mary Kane

Nourishment and refreshment for the soul!

And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you.” Joshua 10:8

Too much of my life has been spent fearing the wrong things. Fear of failure, fear of accidents, fear of change, and fear of sickness and death have all cost me plenty, but nothing has been more costly than the fear of man.

Why do I fear man? I fear because perhaps what others say about me is true.

I am nothing.

I am wrong.

I am weak.

I am useless.

I am dumb.

I am broken.

I am … I am … I am …

I AM that I AM

The GREAT I AM!

In the GREAT I AM …

… I am called … I am chosen … I am gifted … beautiful … redeemed … forgiven … talented, restored, adopted, strong, wise, beautiful, useful, effective, influential, free, justified, blameless, pure, sanctified, holy, alive, secure, complete, victorious, and loved. I am because He is.

Fear of man will cause me to miss my calling; to leave unlived the life God has willed for me. The only thing God wants me to fear is Him. He calls me to lay aside all other fear, and live with boldness: standing ground, slaying giants, and tumbling walls.

Because of the Great I AM, I am.

Action Points:

1. Slowly, with emphasis, read the I am list out loud.

2. Mark in your mind the most important attributes in the I am list and thank God for what He has made you in Christ Jesus.

3. Make your decisions today based on the fear of God, not the fear of man.

Remember who you are in the Great I AM.

Life is sweet,

For more information on overcoming fear, please click on the links below.

Francis Chan: Fear Not

Joyce Meyer: Choose Boldness

The 12 Days of Easter: Day 10, Abundant Life

Day 10:Abundant Life

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10

abundant [uh–buhn-duh nt]

adjective

1. present in great quantity; more than adequate; over-sufficient

2. well supplied with something;

3. richly supplied, as with resources

Exploring the beachside at sunset, declaring “I do” to the one you love, laughing until your voice gives out – these are times when we truly feel alive. Everything in us bursts with life, and our hearts reverberate with joy.

Those moments are abundant life.

And, in the same breath, they’re not. Not entirely.

When I hear that Jesus came to give me abundant life, I imagine perpetual bliss. Perhaps you do, as well. While bliss is in the picture, it’s not the whole picture. The beautiful, sacred memories we treasure are a slice of abundant life. However, we can also experience abundant life in the midst of stress, pain, and frustration.

The truth is that abundant life isn’t defined by how good or bad life is going. Instead, it’s defined by my heart condition. How tender and open is my heart to God during the ups and downs of life?

The Easter story is the perfect illustration of this. While Jesus was preparing to be arrested and die on the cross, he pleaded with God: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). According to the Blue Letter Bible, the word “cup” is a metaphor for “One’s lot or experience, whether joyous or adverse … likened to a cup which God presents one to drink: so of prosperity and adversity.”

Abundant life is about drinking deeply of whatever cup God gives us. It’s about feeling to the fullest, all the while trusting that God will redeem our pain and enhance our joys.

Jesus didn’t turn on autopilot and cruise through life. Whether he was struggling with temptation or celebrating with his disciples, he invited God into every aspect of his day. His life was the very essence of “abundant” – rich, overflowing, and plentiful. Best yet, the abundance of His life spilled over into ours – bringing redemption, love, and grace into our dusty and dry souls.

Perhaps that’s the best part of living life abundantly – the overflow always spills into the lives of those near us.

Whether we’re having a mountaintop or a valley experience, let’s invite God in. I pray that Psalm 66:12b will be true of our lives: “We went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.”

points to ponder

How engaged are you in life currently?

What cup is God asking you to drink today?

What’s one way you can invite God into your joys or trials?

prayer

Jesus, thank you for your example of how to live abundantly. Help me to live constantly surrendered to you. When life is difficult and painful, let my trust in you endure. Redeem the hardship for your Kingdom. When life is beautiful, celebrate with me. Let me feel your love poignantly.

I pray you’ll fill my surrendered life with abundance. And I pray that the abundance will spill over into other’s lives and bless them.

Amen.

Thanks to our guest writer, Amber Miller, for writing today’s post! Amber is Jane’s daughter and Mary’s niece. Here’s how she describes herself: Board game fanatic, coffee enthusiast, and proponent of loud laughing. I Live in St. Louis with my incredible husband, trying to further God’s Kingdom one small step at a time. You can read Amber’s blog at LiveandLaughLoud.com.

The 12 Days of Thanks Giving: Day 8

Day 8:Purpose

“But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Exodus 9:16

purpose[pur-puh s] noun

1. the reason for which something exists or is done, made, used, etc.

2. an intended or desired result; end; aim; goal.

3. determination; resoluteness.

4. the subject in hand; the point at issue.

5. practical result, effect, or advantage: to act to good purpose.

One of the Greek words for purpose is prothesis. At its root, prothesis means to set forth to be looked at, to place in public view. According to this definition, part of our purpose in Christ is to make manifest the power of God in our life. We are to shine forth how He has redeemed, restored and shaped us into the image of Christ. We place ourselves in public view when we purposefully use our gifts to speak God’s truth to the lost of the world. How are you using your gifts to show the world there is purpose to your life?

Give Thanks for Purpose

Purpose of Life: Dear Father, we give thanks for You have called us to live a life of purpose. Thank you we have a reason to get up each day and we have important work to do for Your kingdom. We also give thanks because You use all things for Your purposes … good things, bad things, hard things, painful things. You even re-purpose our failings and mistakes to work for our good and Your glory. Father, You have specifically gifted us to be fruitful and effective ministers of your Word. We are Your hands and feet. Please send us and use us according to Your purpose. We thank you for the gift of purpose.

More Purpose

One Anna, One Purpose a Bible study by Mary Kane

On Purpose a short Bible study by Mary Kane

Believer or Achiever? an article by Joyce Meyer

Comment

Please leave a comment below in the Speak Your Mind section on what God teaches you today about purpose.

Previous Links

purpose. Dictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sacrifice (accessed: November 15, 2014)

“Exodus 9 (New King James Version).” Blue Letter Bible. Sowing Circle. Web. 22 Nov, 2014. <http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Psa&c=111&p=0&rl=0&t=NKJV>.

The 12 Days of Thanks Giving: Day 7

Day 7:Redemption

“He has sent redemption to His people: He has commanded His covenant forever:” Psalm 111:9

redemption [ri-demp-shuh n] noun

an act of redeeming or atoning for a fault or mistake, or the state of being redeemed.
deliverance; rescue.
atonement for guilt.
repurchase, as of something sold.
recovery by payment, as of something pledged

Redemption is one of the most beautiful words in the whole of human language. The fact that One would atone for the sin of another is inhuman … in fact, it’s divine. In Hebrew the word redemption transliterates as peduwth, which means, “a division or distinction; from the primary sense of cutting.” Cutting. The cutting of the whip in the flesh of Jesus … the cutting away of the bonds of sin from our hands and feet. The cutting away of old habits, attitudes and mindsets of the old life. The cutting away of sin and shame by the cutting of Jesus. Redemption enables us to live as God created us to be, righteous and free.

This Thanksgiving, let’s give thanks to God for His gift of redemption.

Redemption of Purpose: Father, Your Word says we are Your workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which You prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Thank You that You created us on purpose, for purpose. We confess we have used our gifts and talents for our own purposes. Please redeem every sinful act. We ask You to recommission our lives for Your purpose. Thank You for calling us to live effective, significant, purposeful lives for You.

Redemption of our Mind: We thank You, Father, that You have given us a sound mind. Your word says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength. May we use our mind as tools to pursue You rather than instruments of sin. Please redeem every sinful habitual thought pattern by the truth of your Word. Thank you that You train our mind to think Your thoughts, that we might not sin against You.

Redemption of our Past: Dearest Father, we thank You that in Christ Jesus we have been completely redeemed. You have bought us back from the bondage of the Enemy with the precious blood of Christ. We are now free to live as slaves of righteousness. Where we have squandered our talents and treasures on sin and pleasure, Your Word promises to restore the years “the locusts have eaten.” We give thanks that You give beauty for ashes. Every act and deed of our past has been redeemed for our good and Your glory. We truly thank you.

More Redemption

Redeeming the Time a blog post by Jane VanOsdol

Walking with God a Bible study by Mary Kane

Comment

Please leave a comment below in the Speak Your Mind section on what God teaches you today about redemption.

redemption. Dictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sacrifice (accessed: November 15, 2014).

“Psalms 111 (New King James Version).” Blue Letter Bible. Sowing Circle. Web. 22 Nov, 2014. <http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Psa&c=111&p=0&rl=0&t=NKJV>.