Tag: word

Hypocrisy

Posted on by Analise

Hey guys, this has been on my heart and I wanted to tell you what has been going on with me.

One of the reasons that I feel like I haven’t been writing as much is that when I find something that I want to talk about- it sometimes ends up feeling hypocritical. I can’t write a post about how I like working out in the morning if I stopped working out in the morning because it just didn’t fit with my schedule anymore. Or, I feel like I can’t write a post about supporting your husband in his endeavors when I am currently not being a supportive wife.

I have bitten the apple of perfection and when I don’t measure up, it’s not worth sharing.

In other words, I felt like I failed you by writing as an imperfect person.

God is showing me that perfection has never been my story. It has never been my advantage in life.

It’s not even fair for me to expect perfection from myself. That is like saying that I am self-sufficient, when truly I am prone to and even eclipsed by flaws and vulnerabilities. I am not always going to be the best at everything and I surely am not going to get everything right on the first try. In fact, I am pretty bad at a lot of things and I am still trying to figure out most things.

I have learned that this is ok. It’s ok to have missed the boat on how to pose for pictures or do your makeup right every day or dress like an adult person. I have to have grace with myself and I don’t have to appear to be perfect for anyone. The Bible actually talks about God’s grace being sufficient for us when we are weak and imperfect.

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

I hope that by being completely honest and grace-filled with myself, you can also take encouragement and be grace-filled with yourself. Admit your flaws, He knows them already. Remember why you have a need for a savior in the first place- imperfection.

I hope this serves as a kind of disclaimer for my future posts- ahem, I don’t do anything perfectly and we are all learning together.

Love you guys,

Lise

Writing in My Bible

Posted on by Analise

 

I am a book destroyer- no, really. I love feeling like my non-fiction and my books for school have been used up and that all their knowledge has been imparted to me in some way. I am the same way, if not more so, with the Bible.

I began scribbling in my bible when I started participating in Good Morning Girls on WomenLivingWell.org. This program was just what I was looking for at the time because I wanted to make a habit of reading my word every single day. Daily quiet time is what worked best for me and it really set up my day to focus on God for the rest of the day. More about how I do my quiet time can be found here.

 

This is how I write in my Bible.

 

The first thing I needed was a Bible that I use specifically for this purpose. I got mine for free for attending Chapel service at Howard University for the first time. I didn’t realize what a valuable resource I had until I decided that it was perfectly OK for me to write in my books- including my bible. I now use it every day for my personal quiet time along with my life application bible. Mine allows me to read the Word as it flows naturally without commentary. When I need some help understanding a concept I will refer to my life application bible. I write in the margins, in between the sections, beside verses, anywhere really. I love doing this and highlighting as you will see below. The NIV is my bible version of choice at the moment and both of my bibles are in this translation.

The second thing that I needed were these fabulous pens that showed how serious I was about my doodle game. Jk, I don’t doodle because I have no artistic ability whatsoever. I bought these pens initially for studying for STEP 1, so I could write in the margins of First Aid. When it was over, I wanted to continue using them because they became my favorite pens ever.

There is no specific system for how I underline or write beside verses because it just works better for me to write on the fly. There are no spatial restrictions because my mind doesn’t work like that and because my pens are so fine tip that I can scribble everywhere on the page with masterful precision. I use a different color every day for variation and because I love having a colorful bible. I underline and write what each passage made me think, what God is convicting me about through His Word, or what application point I realize through reading. When I refer to my life application bible, I go back my highlighter friendly bible and write in the margins what I learned. I love these pens like I love empty notebooks and Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

 

Lastly, I use highlighters to accompany my writing pens. My highlighting, like my underlining and writing, has no specific system. Whatever speaks to me or a verse I want to emphasize is immediately highlighted and I write what I am thinking out to the side. My favorite verses and the verses that I read in Jesus Calling are all highlighted. Every day is a different highlighter’s time to shine because it helps me to see what/how much I read on the previous day, plus it makes my bible look beautiful.

 

Do I do this all the time? Well, yeah if I have time to do my quiet time as I do it normally. I love doing this because it really keeps my mind focused and allows me to see what I was thinking about a passage days, even years, later. When a preacher refers to a passage that I have already gone through, I can see what I was thinking about the passage in my previous reading and then add to it from his sermon, if I want to.

 

How do you interact with your bible when you read and what are some tools you use?

Personal Quiet Time

Posted on by Analise

 

I am my best self in the mornings. I get more done, I am more focused, and I just love the feeling that I have an entire day ahead of me. When I first started, it seemed like a natural fit for me to do my devotional time/quiet time in the mornings for this reason. I wanted to give God my best self, and I am simply not my best self after 5 pm.

These are the things that I do every morning that set the tone for the rest of my day. Doing this gives me encouragement to draw from all day long. It also gives me a scripture on my heart that I can share with someone who may need it. I love the way I am doing bible study right now, but it is not a rigid regimen. If I feel like I want to focus on prayer alone one morning, I do it. If I feel like I just want to focus on reading the word, I do that instead. Why not?

 

Here is what I am currently doing.

 

Jesus Calling

I have had this devotional for years now and have completely gone through it a total of 0 times. Embarrassing, I know, but I never committed to it until this year. I have been consistent with it this year, I’m happy to report. I love how every day in the devotional gives you biblical truths in layman’s terms or in the form of a letter! I also love that it points you back to the scriptures that the “love letter” is drawing from. Every day in the devotional is relatable for someone like me- a worrier and a person dealing with impatience amongst other problems. I recommend this devotional to anyone who is looking for something to read daily that points them back to scripture.

 

The Bible

This part of my quiet time is the crux of what I need. If I do nothing else, I try to get some bible time in (and since Jesus Calling has scriptural references, I sometimes use that if I am running late). I am a firm believer in interaction with the text. I feel like I am more focused on reading and less distracted if I am making sure that I am deriving points from the text every so often. Interaction with the text simply means that I am very daintily scribbling all over my Bible. I am highlighting, I am underlining, I am writing in margins, and I am referring to other scriptures as I read. I have a Bible specifically for this and I have more about how I scribble and destroy my Bible here.

 

My Prayer Book

I started doing this a couple of years back when I first was exposed to Heather Lindsey’s ministry. She recommends keeping a prayer journal. I don’t know what it is about me and blank notebooks and excuses to write in them, but I was sold. I do this informally and I have gone through about 4 notebooks in this manner. This year I have a larger notebook that may take a while to fill up, but I adore writing in it. My entries are all prayers to God. In them, I tell him how I feel, thank him for answering my prayers, ask him when he will respond to my prayers (David style), ask him for help, and pray for others. It’s basically my blood, sweat, and tears in a notebook. It is a big must for me because as a distractible person, I find myself getting distracted when I pray (I will forever keep it real with you guys). Writing my prayers down keeps me focused and engaged while I am talking to the Creator of the Universe. Doing this has honestly helped my prayer life and I am incredibly grateful.

Another benefit of doing this is that when I pray about something, I can go back and see that God has always answered my prayers in the past. I can go back and see that God has always been faithful. It really helps my faith because truth be told, he doesn’t fail me. It also halts some of my “God, why haven’t you responded to my prayers yet??” prayers.

 

This is what I do every morning, it takes maybe 30 minutes and I can see the dazzling effects of having intentional daily quiet time. If I forget to do it one morning (which happens sometimes, especially on weekends) I simply try to do it in the evening or get back to it the next day. Easy.

Another beautiful thing that I have added is a friend who also does her own devotional in the morning. She texts me to make sure I have had my quiet time and I LOVE the accountability.

 

What are some of your morning devotional habits? I would love to hear about them in the comments!

 

Love you guys!

 

Lise