Goals for 2013 - Read as Much Scripture as Possible

Continuing my discussion of my 2013 goals, I decided that I will read as much Scripture as possible. Last year I set a goal of reading over 3,000 chapters of Scripture. This year, I am not setting a goal.

I love to read the Bible. I love digging into God's Word and discovering how the story of God's redemptive plan plays out. The more of the Bible I read, the more I see how the pieces fit together.

The reading "plan" that I have used in the past and will be using this year is the Grant Horner Reading Plan. This reading plan is intense (10 chapters a day in 10 different locations), but it is an incredible experience. The thing I like the best is that there is no schedule to the plan. You can read at your pace without worrying about falling behind or getting into a hole.

If you decide to do this reading plan, be warned that you will develop a strong understanding of the Bible. You will read a number of different passages, many of them multiple times. You will begin to see how all of the writing flows together. And, if you tire of reading some passages multiple times, there are a number of sites online that offer modifications to the program.

What are you using to read Scripture this year?

The Promise of Salvation

I was doing my devotions yesterday out of Galatians 3. In this chapter, Paul is discussing with the Galatians how if humans make a covenant and it is ratified, no one can make changes to it. It cannot be annulled or added to. And this is with a man-made contract.

Paul continues to say that God made a promise to Abraham and that it is was made to his offspring. That promise, as I have been teaching my kids in Children's Church, was the Rescuer (Jesus) who would take away our sins.

Think about that for a second. If a man-made contract cannot be changed, how much harder is it to change a contract if God is the one making the promise? There is nothing that can be done to change the promise of salvation and those of us who are firm in that, through our faith in Christ, have nothing to fear.

Galatians 3:26 - For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.