The NT Challenge and Beyond

I know what you're thinking: it's been forever since I've posted!!! :( I've missed it and plan to get myself back on track before college starts!! I hope you've still been reading a chapter each day. I have been reading, just not posting and I sincerely apologize!! If you have been reading along, can you believe we already finished Matthew?? WOW!! I can't believe we are already done with this first book!! Hopefully you'll be starting Mark with us soon if you are still trying to get caught up! Let's jump in to a new book! :) The first four books of the New Testament are all very similar: they tell the story of the life of Christ. But each author writes in a bit of a different manner, so we get to see the same story through different perspectives! I love those kinds of stories! Anyone else with me? I read some stories and wish there were a sequel of another character's perspective on the same story (like Mr. Darcy's version of Pride and Prejudice...

Hey! Welcome back! It's late, so I won't be writing too long, but I'll share my thoughts on Matthew 19. Again, I encourage you to read the chapter before continuing reading this post! :) Doing good: it's something that's been emphasized recently I've noticed. There are tons of scholarships for high school seniors, offering money to kids who "do something good" and send in a video or essay about it. But can a person really do good? In human eyes, it might be possible. But in God's sight, there is no way to be good. Jesus tells us so in Matthew 19:16-30. The rich young man is asking Jesus how to reach heaven and thinks that salvation can come through keeping "the law" (10 Commandments). He probably hadn't murdered anyone or committed adultery. This guy probably thought he was pretty good, and with good reason. He seemed pretty good to any human. But God's standards are a bit different... ok, His standards are WAYY different! There...

Hey guys! I know it's been a while since I've posted. I've been in North Carolina for a week with my youth group at summer camp, and it was a great week! I had the chance to spend time with old friends, make new friends, and hear the Word of God preached! When I got back, though, I didn't feel so good. By home diagnosis, I think I have a cold... not fun! So I've been resting the last couple days to 1)recover from camp, and 2) knock out this cold! I'm feeling better, so I decided it was time to return to my blog. I'm going to be away from my scheduled plan for a few days in order to catch up, but I'll be back to where I am supposed to be by the end of the week I hope! :) Today I will post about Matthew 15 (this was supposed to be posted on Sunday, July 29 if you are keeping up with the reading plan!)  I am choosing this passage because it was something we actually talked about at camp, and I thought it might be a good topic to get me writing again! If y...

Hey guys! Alright, time to wrap up the Sermon on the Mount. I did not have a chance to write any more on Matthew 6 today; not sure if I ever will, but I want to go through it again someday. Maybe when I finish the challenge I will come back to passages I want to highlight more! We'll have to see! :) Before today ends, I'd like to share with you my thoughts from Matthew 7. Again, there are so many things I would love to touch on, but my time is limited. So for now, I'll focus on verses 15-20: "A Tree and Its Fruit". There are so many things to say about this, but I'll stick with just one. This is a tough topic I think because it has revealed some things about myself that I realize I need to change. Now I know that these verses say to watch for false prophets whose lives may seem committed to Christ but they show no signs of that commitment. But I think it means more than just nonbelievers; I think that it applies in some way to Christians as well. I think t...

Today's post is going to be shorter. Why? Because there are so many wonderful things to write about and if I don't cut it down, I will practically write a novel. So what I am going to do is write about this chapter in pieces: one tonight and probably two segments tomorrow (that's planned between packing for camp, so we'll see how much really gets written!)   :)  There are a few topics I plan to cover, but the first one I'll choose is the last one mentioned: worry/anxiousness.  Who here worries? I expect every single person reading has their hand raised for this one! If you don't, I want your secret! There are so many things we worry about. I worry about my college decisions, financial aid, what I will do with the rest of my life, what others think of me, and so many other things. Why do I worry? The answer can be found in Matthew 6:25-34. Let's check it out! If you haven't already, I encourage you to read this passage before you continue reading. ...

The Sermon on the Mount... tough chapters! There are so many different ways to go with the teachings of Jesus in the next 3 chapters, where do I start?! I think I'll start with Matthew 5:1-2. These verses say, "Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them". The first thing that jumps out to me is how Jesus seized the opportunity to teach those around him. He didn't waste any time deciding where to go or what he should do. He just sat down and began to teach. Do we do that? Do we seize the opportunities we have to encourage others, to tell them about God's Word? I sure don't. There have been many missed opportunities that I regret second-guessing or waiting to see if a better time might come. There's another thing I see in these first two verses: his disciples came to him (verse 1). Now remember Jesus had just called them at the end of chapter 4. They were still new...

We live in a world where information is at our fingertips in an instant, where we can talk to someone in another country just by clicking a few buttons, where macaroni and cheese can be ready to eat in just three minutes! Yet we ourselves have not developed that quickness in our own personalities. I know I haven't. If my mom asks me to do something, the first words out of my mouth are usually, "I'll do it in a minute," although my actual response time is much longer. We don't do these things immediately. Why? Sometimes we can't get away from the project we are working on. But how many times do we say "in a minute" because we are too selfish to stop what we are doing and take the time to do what is required? I'm guilty of that probably 99% of the time! And you know what? Putting it off only makes it worse! If I don't want to do it now, what makes me think I'll want to do it in 30 minutes?! Yet I still postpone the inevitable because I...