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My Favorite Bible Study Tools

September 19, 2019 by Lauren 26 Comments

Photo by Chandana Ban on Unsplash

A few months ago I heard someone on a podcast refer to their time with God as the “daily office”.  I loved this so much that I have adopted it.  “Quiet time” and “devotions” can both be valid, but time in prayer, bible study and meditation are truly the work of the Christian life.  And my daily office is a top priority for me.  I must confess that it usually doesn’t happen in a quiet house in a cozy chair while drinking my coffee from a pretty mug.  That is – at this time in my life – a romantic dream.  And it doesn’t always happen at one time for me.  I try to attack prayer and scripture meditation before I leave the house in the morning and prayer again before I go to bed.  Key word being TRY.  And there are often short arrow prayers shot up throughout the day.  And my time reading scripture?  It sometimes happens on the treadmill or waiting in the pick up line at school.  I have two part time jobs, 2 busy kids and a house to maintain.  So I choose to make it a fluid part of my day.  It’s what works for me.

 

It can be challenging to stay connected and engaged when the most important part of my day is often sliced up into bite sized chunks.  But I have a feeling some of you might relate to a harried schedule.  So I’m sharing my favorite Bible study tools.

 

  1. an example of a planner My Christian Planner.  I use the calendar pages to write out scriptures I want to memorize, to jot down prayers and to praise God for the thing I am most thankful for that day.  It also gives me pages for sermon and bible study notes and anything else I need to write down that’s important.  You can find one like it here.  show an example of planner page
  2. The Echo app for my phone.  This prayer tool allows me to record requests, descriptions, add an image and add a reminder of when to pray (such as a surgery or doctor’s appointment date).  It also gives me the ability to mark a prayer answered or simply delete and has a prayer timer to help with this discipline.
  3. The Devotable App.  I have had the privilege to write daily devotionals for this handy instrument.  For days when time is running really short or I’m on the go, a short scripture, perspective and prayer keep me in line.
  4. The Blue Letter Bible App.  The capabilities of this tech make me a much better student.  I can search for scriptures by simple terms or exact phrases.  It also contains a concordance, explanation of original word language, translation comparison, text commentaries and cross references.
  5. NIV Quest Study Bible:  The Only Q and A Study Bible.  This new tool may become my favorite.  I was gifted a copy by the Bible Gateway Blogger Grid and am amazed by all it offers.  1000 people where asked, “What questions do you have about this portion of the Bible?”  Focus groups decided what questions should be included alongside the biblical text.  As an example, the margins beside Proverbs chapter 22 contain the answers to these questions:  “Why does God make some rich and others poor?”  “What is the explanation for God-fearing people who are poor or unhealthy?”  “Will good training guarantee that children will not rebel?” And it designates for us the top 100 most asked questions.  This Bible’s study helps include beautiful color maps, a dictionary concordance, subject index and prayers, promises and perspectives from the Bible.  Order one here to pump up your study time.  show bible

What are your favorite tools for time with the Lord?  Comment below.  One of yours might become my NEXT favorite!

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                                                                           And look up these great writers I link up with every week:

InstaEncouragements, Literacy Musing Mondays, Hello…Monday,

Dream Team link up, The Good. The Random. The Fun.

BloggerClubUK, Tea and Word Tuesday, Purposeful Faith,

GraceFull Tuesday Link-Up, Different Dream,

Let’s Have Coffee, Welcome Wednesday, Recharge Wednesday,

Worth Beyond Rubies, #TellHisStory Link Up, Porch Stories,

Encouraging Word Wednesday, Tune In Thursday,

Stories of Hope, Moments of Hope, IHeart Verse Link Party,

A Blogging Good Time, Fresh Market Friday, Feature Friday Time,

Friendship Friday Blog Hop, Faith on Fire, Traffic Jam Weekend,

Faith ‘n Friends, Dancing with Jesus, Grace & Truth, Booknificent

 

Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links. If you purchase anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

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Amassing August

August 29, 2019 by Lauren 28 Comments

Photo by moren hsu on Unsplash

It’s 97 degrees right now at 6:14pm in the Dallas area.  It actually doesn’t feel that bad considering most of the month temps reached 100.  That’s August in Texas and I say “GOOD RIDDANCE” to it.  While running errands, my deodorant outlives its usefulness in the 2 minute walk between building and car.  Color me over it!  Although we still have a month or two of wearing shorts around these parts, when the calendar turns to September I can at least START to imagine Fall around the corner.

 

Shelby attended Camp Blessing the first few days of August.  The owners and volunteers of this camp for special needs kids and adults do amazing work.  Shelby had a fantastic time while Chuck and I helped ourselves to some much needed respite.  Allie, my youngest, made the high school volleyball team on the 2nd and started games on the 3rd.  I’m excited that she earned her spot, but proud of how hard she worked to overcome her fear and anxiety.  To be honest, my girls don’t have to do anything to make me proud.  I was as proud as the proverbial peacock they day they were born and they hadn’t done a single thing.  If you feel the same way about your kids, make sure they know it.

 

Our church hosted Brett Kunkle, co-author of A Practical Guide to Culture:  Helping the Next Generation Navigate Today’s World.  I think I’ve mentioned the book here a time or ten.  I can’t say enough good about it.  My family also attended a prayer event there called Battle on Our Knees.  We spent time in guided prayer for our students, teachers, administrators and parents for back to school.  I can’t think of a better way to spend our time.  This month has also driven us to our knees for some loved ones fighting through medical and spiritual challenges.  Our hearts are a little heavy but it’s so reassuring to know that God carries that load for us.

 

Mid month Allie and I joined her cousin and my sister-in-law for a little girls weekend.  We traveled down I-35 for our other sister-in-law’s baby shower.  We ate, celebrated the next Baby Sparks and did a little back to school shopping.  When we got back in town we hit the ground running with Freshman orientations for parent and child, fundraisers, meetings, volunteering and a pep rally – all in preparation for the first day of school.  Both girls met the challenges of the first weeks with grace and aplomb.  I’m so thankful.  Allie will be in two choirs this year and had a lake party to get in tune with her new friends (see what I did there?).  And next week we have a meeting to kick off another round of Special Olympics for Shelby.

 

In entertainment news, we took the family and two of Allie’s friends to see Blinded by the Light.  So good.  This movie, based on a true story, follows a Pakistani teen in England in the 1980’s.  Bruce Springsteen lyrics motivated him to rise up from the persecution he faced and the old fashioned patriarchy of his family to chase his dreams.  I liked it so much that I woke up thinking about it the next morning.  Critics agree with me.  Fourteen year old middle class American girls – not so much.

 

Chuck and I (big Dallas Cowboy fans – don’t come at me, haters) got to tour the world headquarters of America’s team at the Frisco Star.  We had such a good time gawking at this state of the art facility and hearing about some of the fun history of the team.  Did you know Emmitt Smith’s scouting report shows him to be careless with the ball and lacking work ethic?  Please, did you SEE him on Dancing with the Stars?  Yeah, me neither.  We also saw the back-up QB Cooper Rush and Jason Witten, who is my husband’s favorite player.  Probably mine too.  I won’t post those pictures because I accidentally illegally took them.  I somehow missed the announcement that we could take pictures of anything except other people.  Oops.

 

I just finished reading The Wondering Years by Knox McCoy.  I love, love, love the Popcast podcast he co-hosts with Jamie Golden and was stoked when my best friend surprised me with the book.  If you enjoy some snarky humor and an unorthodox take on growing up as an evangelical Christian, grab a copy.  And use my link.  I would so appreciate it.  Today, I picked up Sex, Jesus, and the Conversations the Church Forgot by Mo Isom.  It comes highly recommended.  And last, I’m using Seeing God’s Hand:  Through the Art of Sign Language by Connie Rowland in my daily time with the Lord.  The author sweetly encourages me through the pages to look for God’s hand in the world.  What a timely message for us all today.

 

And that’s my month.  The good, the bad and the sweaty.  Thanks for following along.  I’d love to hear what YOU did this month.  Or what you’re reading.  Or watching.  Drop me a comment below.  Until next time, I love you, I thank you and I pray September treats you well.

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About Me

I love Jesus, my husband and caffeine. The order of these can change depending on how tired I am. When my two daughters, stepson, and 4 grandchildren get to be too much, I practice yoga. God graciously allows me to share our adventures, victories and flub-ups from my laptop. May He be glorified here.
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