Okay, I have to admit: I've been a little behind on my beadybeady blog reading lately. In fact, I just sat down and read the last four blogs posted by you lovelies, because that's how far behind I was. All I can say is...wow, you all are so encouraging! For the past few weeks I have been feeling completely out of whack spiritually, but not in the way that it usually happens with me. Typically, I would realize after about two weeks that I have not spent much time praying or reading my Bible, and then I'd sit down, feel horrible, talk to God, and make a "commitment" to myself and to Him that I was going to change. This time, things have been different. True, I have not been spending much time reading my Bible these past few weeks, but in all honesty, I am not feeling horrible. I am not feeling like a total screwup Christ-follower, and I'm not even feeling like I need to make some serious changes in my daily time commitments. It's weird, because I feel like I have been surrounded by various people lately talking about their "time with God" like it's just such a normal, assumed part of life. Um, can I just say...it's not. Yes, I think there is a lot of value in reading your Bible daily and setting aside specific times to spend with the Lord. However, since middle school, I have tried at this and gone through significant periods of time in which I read the Bible every day, like clockwork. And I will admit to you now that very little of that daily reading was done because I was really seeking to deepen my relationship with God, and very much of that was done because I was told that's what I was "supposed" to do. How sad is that? Do you think God is really pleased with me reading the Bible just so I can say that I did? I have been thinking about this more and more since coming to college, and especially in the last six months or so, and I'm starting to believe that He probably feels more loved by me when I choose to read the Bible (even if that happens less often) as opposed to doing it as a part of a daily routine.
I just read through Matthew in my New Living Translation, because I am really interested in reading about what Jesus actually said and how he actually lived. (By the way, I mention the NLT because it is literally giving new life to the verses I have heard my entire life only from the NIV) You know what I'm realizing? Jesus said a lot of stuff that I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. He even said some things that I consider pretty controversial and that, based on my interpretation, are a little hard for me to swallow. Why doesn't anyone talk about these things? Okay, it's very possible that I am just reading the verses wrongly, but how the heck are we supposed to read these things in the context they were intended? I think I need my own personal ancient-Greek scholar to explain them to me. Oh wait...I already have one! ;)
Wow, I am really sorry. This is actually not at all what I intended to blog about. Hello, tangent! I guess you all got inside my mind a little bit! And that is the beauty of blogging. Perhaps I will write my original thoughts for you later, and perhaps not. I hope you all have an excellent rest of the week...and a week from today, we'll all be on Thanksgiving break!! :D
Besos y abrazos,
Heather Grace
2 comments:
I'll make you a deal. I'll be your Greek scholar, and you be my real life scholar. I'm a huge fan of the Bible, but I'm willing to admit that your job is bigger and better.
I've actually been reading Luke like clockwork every single day as part of a short-term project to apply the spirit of the Levitical code to my everyday life. Here is the passage I've been scratching my head over (among others).
"The Law and the Prophets we proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and people are forcing their way into it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of the pen to drop out of the law."
That's Luke 16:16,17. Did John bring about the Kingdom of God? Are people forcing their way into it? How? And aren't these verses almost contradictory? Luckily, context offers us a clue, because Jesus is talking about money right before this and divorce right after it...oh, wait...that's not remotely helpful.
You know what's weird? You'd think that if you put a little energy into it, the things Jesus said would be easier to understand...
But as I do my research project, all I've learned is that there are way more ways to interpret what he said than I ever would have thought of on my own.
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