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Josh and Anna participated in the Heart and Sole 5K hosted by the American Heart Association at our church.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 30:11-31:18; Matthew 26:47-68; Psalm 32:1-11; Proverbs 8:27-31.

Psalm 32:3-5 (NIV)
When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
[4] For day and night
your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.
Selah
[5] Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the Lord”–
and you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
Selah

Sin brings guilt that causes us to want to hide from God and others (remember Adam and Eve and their fig leaves?).  This guilt is a cancer that eats away at us from the inside out.  The cure is confession of sin to God and to trusted brothers and sisters in Christ.  James 5:16 (NIV)  Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  One of the exciting ways I see our church growing is in humility that leads to confession of sin.  As a result, people are being set free and experiencing intimacy with God and each other.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 29:1-30:10; Matthew 26:14-46; Psalm 31:19-24; Proverbs 8:14-26.

Matthew 26:40-41 (NIV)
Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. [41] “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

If there was ever a well-intentioned, sleeping disciple it is me.  My head is about to burst with knowledge about prayer, yet I find it so hard to pray.  Too often I would rather read a book about prayer than actually pray.  Why?  Because prayer is warfare and warfare is violent, hard work.  Left to ourselves, we will take the path of ease and least resistance which does not include prayer.  But fortunately, we are not left to ourselves.  Jesus not only modeled warfare prayer for us in the Garden of Gethsemane, but He empowers us to follow in His footsteps today.  Jesus, make me the prayer warrior you intend me to be.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 28:1-43; Matthew 25:31-26:13; Psalm 31:9-18; Proverbs 8:12-13.

Proverbs 8:13 (NIV)
To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate pride and arrogance,
evil behavior and perverse speech.

Most of the time I dislike sin.  But sometimes I like it.  But how often do I HATE it?  Do I try to see how close I can get to the line of sin without crossing it, or do I run away from that line as fast as I can?  I can’t love God and love sin.  In what areas have I become too tolerant and too comfortable with sin?

Beautiful rain in Ojai today.

Here is today’s Bible reading: Exodus 26:1-27:21; Matthew 25:1-30; Psalm 31:1-8
Proverbs 8:1-11.

Matthew 25:13 (NIV)
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

What does it mean to “keep watch?”  The two parables that surround this verse talk about living your life in such a way that you expect the master to return at any moment.  There is a state of readiness.  Life is lived with the long view of eternity and not the short view of instant gratification.  How is God challenging you to keep watch?  In what way is the temporal distracting you from the eternal?  Are you living today as if He could return at any moment?

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 23:14-25:40; Matthew 24:29-51; Psalm 30:1-12; Proverbs 7:24-27.

Psalm 30:5 (NIV) weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

It is guaranteed for God’s children that their weeping will not last forever.  This season of darkness will pass and the light of morning will come.  With the change of season comes renewed joy.  If you find yourself in a time of weeping, hold on.  Morning is coming, and so is your joy.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 21:22-23:13; Matthew 24:1-28; Psalm 29:1-11; Proverbs 7:6-23.

Exodus 23:4-5 (NIV)
“If you come across your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to take it back to him. [5] If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help him with it.

Sounds very Sermon on the Mount like doesn’t it?  Matthew 5:44 (NIV) But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.  Who is your “enemy”?  How will you love them this week?  Will you begin by praying for them?

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 19:16-21:21; Matthew 23:13-39; Psalm 28:1-9; Proverbs 7:1-5.

Exodus 19:16-22 (NIV)
On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. [17] Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. [18] Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, [19] and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.
[20] The Lord descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up [21] and the Lord said to him, “Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the Lord and many of them perish. [22] Even the priests, who approach the Lord, must consecrate themselves, or the Lord will break out against them.”

Let us not become too familiar, too cozy, too comfortable with God.  He is holy, holy, holy.  Let us not forget His holiness and may we treat Him with the reverence He deserves.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 17:8-19:15; Matthew 22:34-23:12; Psalm 27:7-14; Proverbs 6:27-35

Psalm 27:14 (NIV)
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.

Waiting is so hard.  We want it now. But if we always got what we wanted when we wanted it we would be spoiled, immature brats.  God is a better parent than that.  He knows we need to grow in maturity, so He requires waiting.  Specifically, He commands us to wait with our focus on Him.  While we wait, He grows us.  Don’t despise the waiting.

How did we get to Thursday already?  I’m looking forward to a good day of study in preparation for Sunday’s message on Romans 12:1-2.

Here is today’s Bible reading: Exodus 15:19-17:7; Matthew 22:1-33; Psalm 27:1-6; Proverbs 6:20-26.

Matthew 22:29 (NIV)
Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.

How true this is today.  The topical, thematic, felt-need, seeker driven preaching of the day has produced entire churches that are ignorant of God’s Word.  Too many congregations are a mile wide and an inch deep.  We desperately need a return to the Word of God.  It is no coincidence that the absence of the Word goes hand-in-hand with an absence of God’s power.  The measure of the presence of God and His power in a church is not a crowd hat experiences the warm fuzzy sensation that accompanies a well-performed praise song.  Rather, it is in the radical transformation of lives.  The lost are found.  Sinners become saints.  Those in bondage are set free.  May we truly know the Scriptures and the power of God.