Jesus taught that all scripture testifies about him so that in him we might have life (John 5v39-40). King David taught that it is only by living according to God's word that we're kept on the right path (Psalm 119v9). What then could be better than reading the entire Bible? Click the menu to read about the program, choose a month or Bible book - or just work through the blog posts day by day.
BEGIN WITH PRAYER
"Lord open my eyes and my heart."
Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world.
Understanding to grow in
There are times in life we feel completely overwhealmed, facinig situations where none can help. However, there is always one who can: The experienced fishermen were nearly swamped, but Jesus calmed the storm with a word. None had been strong enough to subdue the demonized man (5v4) as the legion of demons within him were so many and so destructive as to inhabit and destroy two thousand pigs. But they were so subject to Jesus' as to require his permission to transfer to the pigs, and the man so delivered as to be "in his right mind" (5v15). Next is the woman who experienced bleeding. No doctor had been able to help. She had just got worse (5v26). But a touch of Jesus' power and she was "freed" from her suffering. To top it all off, Jairus' daughter died, experiencing the one afflication it is impossible to find help with. But Jesus' could raise her like raising someone from sleep, and was so confident of this as to be prepared to delay his journey for the bleeding woman. And what links all these miracles is the need of faith. The words: "Don't be afraid; just believe" (5v36) bring such comfort. The lesson for the fishermen was that, knowing who Jesus was, their first and instinctive response to the storm should have been to ask him to act, as it was for the woman as soon as she heard of Jesus. Those who do so, often find their problems resolved. Of course, in God's mysterious providence there are times in which they don't seem to be. But they can be sure that the one who so easily calms storms, liberates the demonized, heals the sick, and raises the dead, will deliver them ultimately as he brings them into his kingdom where these things will be no more. As you read note how faith is taught.
Mark 4:35:5:43
Finish this reading by pausing to ask yourself:
Finish this reading by pausing to ask yourself:
1) What’s the main thing it teaches me about God or his purposes in Christ? Then praise him for this.
2) What’s the main thing it teaches me about his will for me or the world? Then pray that home.
Devotion to offer up
You could read this aloud and perhaps as a springboard to further prayer.