Observations from Daily Readings (through Ezekiel)

I passed by one of our team leaders (Mary) two Sundays ago, and she asked me, "So are you keeping up in the reading?!" I was so glad for the challenge to stay current. Accountability helps all of us stay faithful in our commitments; never apologize for keeping people accountable! Thank you Mary!

More observations:

• Alisa wrote in an email, " I was fascinated to read about Ezekiel's calling to lay on his side for a year! Quite honestly, I do not know if I ever read that story before!" 
• A phrase written many times in Ezekiel -  “And they will know that I am God.” This is God's desire, that all people would know Him and worship Him. John Piper, a pastor and theologian in MN, says that "Missions exists because worship doesn’t." 
• Ezekiel really brings out the color of God's words by dramatizing it. What are we doing in our lives to bring out the color of God's Word to our world?
• Jeremiah ends with a very bright passage talking about the depth of God’s love as being deeper than the ocean. We are so thankful that God's love and mercy never ends, and His forgiveness is deeper than our sin!

Observations from Daily Readings (through Jeremiah)

• There are many references to Sodom and Gomorrah. That particular story of destruction must have played an interesting part in history, as Jews considered Sodom and Gomorrah to be some of the most vile of all nations. God’s comparison of Israel to those cities would have been quite a blow to Jewish feeling of elitism.
• Why would Jeremiah tell exiled Israel to “make your homes there” in Babylon? Maybe it was to counter what other prophets were saying about the exile ending shortly. Jeremiah was making sure that God’s judgment would not be taken lightly and that Israel would understand that God’s punishment would not be shortened. However, the light of hope does shine in the midst of tragedy.  
• We all have experienced  God’s hope as a “light at the end of the tunnel” in our lives. You know it’s going to be a journey, and you realize that with some struggles in life, you will just have to “deal with it,” stay faithful and focused. God has not forgotten, even if we feel like it. 

Readings up until August 2nd (through Jeremiah)

As we read through Scripture, we observed the following as a staff:

• Different sections of Scripture have slightly different information, and then also different perspectives (Chronicles, Kings, Jeremiah, etc.). One sees the situation from an historical perspective, another interprets God's intense feelings on the matter, etc. 
• Josiah...what happened? He started out well, but then it seemed maybe he became overconfident in himself and his judgement. He died, and his sons make terrible decisions. It's a good lesson for us. We have to stay focused. We have to stay in prayer and God's Word. Otherwise, Satan is crouching, ready to attack and deceive. Our only defense is God Himself, not our past experience with Him per say. We need Him presently, at all times.
• It is exhausting to read Scripture at times, especially with the rough political history preceding the exile and then the harsh language of the prophets to the Israelites. Makes you want to say, "Come quickly Lord Jesus!"...which was EXACTLY the point. The light of Jesus' birth will pierce the darkness for the exiled Jews, and ultimately for all nations and people. It is the least we can do to discover the joy, by reading this sobering and thought provoking section of Scripture. 
• Jeremiah and his scroll is a great lesson about just simply doing the work God calls you to do, leaving the results to Him. Sometimes we want to ensure longevity in the work we do. We must have confidence that the work we put into God's hands will last forever, regardless of what we perceive in this world. Only God's word will last forever...we are simply conduits.