Catching up {Post 2}

My summer has finally begun!

(No, that does not mean that it's just now getting hot where I live. Believe me, we've been having summer heat since mid-April.)

I mean that yesterday Mark FINALLY finished school for the year!

So I finally feel the summer freedom from grading papers and supervising school. Don't get me wrong, I love those things, I just feel that now I can get some extra stuff accomplished. Like working on my book again, getting to read more, having more time to play with my siblings, and simply relax.

I'm not feeling well at the moment, so it makes a good excuse to slow down a bit. Many other members of my family are also either sick or hurting right now, so I'd appreciate if you'd pray for the Tyler family.

Thank you. :)

I've been doing better with sticking with my Bible College lately, and I've been learning a lot.

I'm so glad that I cleared off my desk so I can now actually USE it as a desk.

I'm so thankful that my phone is awesome at also being a music player.

I've discovered that when I do any kind of school or study, I concentrate better with instrumental music in my ears.

As a matter of fact, when the music ends, I immediately begin to have a more difficult time of concentrating.

And of course, coffee is a must. ;)

I use a different color pen every day so I can see how much I've done that day, and where I started and stopped.

Besides, there's just something special about writing with different colored pens, right?

And of course, my beloved brown Rock of Ages Study Bible. I think I'm more attached to it then any other Bible I've ever had. It's so much more personal and dear to me.

I'll admit, that I've always found it difficult to follow a schedule for reading my Bible through. The One Year Bible has been the most effective for me, and I really enjoy it. It was given to me by a friend that preferred going by the schedule,so we each got what was best for us.

Have you ever read your Bible through? Have you used a schedule or the One Year Bible, or just did your own thing? Which was most effective for you?

This seems to be the more serious post, because I'd like to talk about the lessons I learned through the preaching and from experience at camp last week.

^This is Bro. Barnes, one of the main speakers of the week.^ 

It seems like the very first and the very last sermons I heard at Camp were the most meaningful to me. That could very well be because I was so busy for the rest of the week that my head was either still spinning from the busy days during church or that I was falling asleep. (If you've ever been a counselor at camp, you'd understand.)

The first sermon on Monday night was about taking a stand. He said that so many Christians think that they have to be equipped to be able to attack Hell with a squirt gun, or win millions of souls to Christ before they die. But so many times, God repeats this simple, yet difficult command. Stand. Just, stand. It reminds me of the song that says, "If just a cup of water I place within your hand; then just a cup of water is all that I demand." Jesus has equipped us to face the trials of life. He'll never give us something we can't handle.

When we feel like we're overloaded or can barely stand due to the weight of our burdens, it's often from unnecessary weights that we've allowed into our lives. Ungodly friends. Pet sins.Worry. Trying to take over God's job of planning our lives.

He illustrated by piling two other guys on the guy with the blue shirt. It was easier for him to stand with no one on his back, or even with the smaller guy on his back. But when he traded out the smaller guy for the big guy, then even added the smallest guy on top, he could barely stand.

See, God gives us the ability to stand, but the difficulties come when we pile unnecessary weight on ourselves.

The last sermon, or the final charge, was about Stephen, the first martyr of the Bible. It was about how to get God's attention, and get Him excited about what you're doing.

The three ways he mentioned was:

1. Taking a stand
2. Suffering for Christ
3. Forgiving those that don't deserve it.

It was a very inspirational and unforgetable week, for me, and for many others.

So that's the end of Post 2. Next time I'll be sharing a Bible study from a friend.

Have a great day!