And why has my week been so busy? For starters, I took a four-day weekend last weekend and was busy with my son. We opened a savings account for him comprised of spare change and can & bottle redemption. In Iowa, you pay a 5¢ deposit on every carbonated beverage for each can or bottle and that empty container can be redeemed for the nickel. So a 12-pack of Fresca will get him 20¢ that he can put in the bank. We had been saving his money in a domino box (the game, not the pizza) for a while and when we took it all in, he had $45! I'm ready to take out a loan from my own son! He wants to save for a Green Machine, a "big wheel" with levers to steer instead of traditional handlebars and is already more than halfway there! His birthday is toward the waning days of summer, so my wife and I will help him get one, but he has to contribute some of his money as a lesson in finances.

We also went swimming a few times, attended a softball game where his aunt Kylee pitched, played at the park and had an absolute blast! The best compliment I ever got was from him on Monday evening. "Dad" he said, "Do you have to go to work tomorrow?" I am still beaming at that question.

Finally, the cousin that had stayed with us for over a year to "get back on her feet" moved out under less than ideal terms. That caused more work from me than it would have under a normal transition, as I had to search the house for her things and pack them up. As of this writing, all of her furniture is still here, but she doesn't have a place to call her own yet, and I'm feeling very merciful toward her situation, even though she put herself there.

Am I upset about this move? Not on your life! It will be a very short financial transition for us, and within a month or two, we will be very much recovered. That's a secondary concern, however. Tina and I now only need to worry about raising our son and managing our household responsibilities. A heavy burden has been lifted from us and we are getting closer to each other and to our son than we had been in over a year. My step is springier, my smile is broader, and live is good. If we hadn't gone through this trial together, I'm afraid my family may not have appreciated the bond we share together as much as we need to.

That is where I'll leave off this morning. I call on you to examine the bond you have with those who love you. Enjoy these people God has brought into your life and don't ever let yourself take them for granted!

Yours in Christ,

---

Day 2

I'm reminded of the screen saver of a co-worker. Across her screen it says, "God will not ask any task of me that I cannot handle." This is so true, but I'd change it a bit to say that God will help me with those things that are beyond my power, because with Him all things are possible. This brings us up to today's reading. There's a bunch of doom and gloom, but did you catch that part about Israel's retribution? God was warning them of their coming punishment, but before that was even done, he was promising to restore them. That's the God I believe in!

You can put that into perspective in your own life as well. Are you in a bad situation? Do you think that it just won't improve from your current situation? God will restore you just as he did the nation of Israel! He's brought me up from the depths before, and in my experience, he does it so fast, I have to do a double take to see what happened! I spent about 15 months in a situation that was driving me to mild depression and in the span of under 24 hours the burden was lifted. I tell you, it's like listening to a country music song backwards. I have my house back, my car back, my dog back...

Day 3

Jerusalem, the faithful city has become a harlot. God had given Israel instructions as to how to follow Him. Israel sought wisdom in her own ways and failed to trust in the God who loves them so much. While God hates sin He desires to teach Israel His ways so that they might walk in His paths.

Today, as in the Old Testament, God judges sin with the purpose of drawing men back to Him. I do not understand God's ways, but I know that He seeks to draw people to Himself. God is a God of forgiveness. As God judged Israel for her sin, so He judges us today with the purpose of bringing us closer to Himself.

Day 4

So the day finally came and Israel was forcibly removed from their land and into Assyria. There is no point in wondering now why this was done. The Israelites had rejected the teaching of God long enough and it was time for them to understand what life without Him would be like. This is similar to the idea of being judged by your deeds. Some people don't think it's fair to end up in eternal Hell if you were such a nice person. They think that they should be judged by their deeds alone. And they are. Christ is the only bridge that can cover the gap. If you try to do it based on your works, that's your problem. You will be judged by those works and your torment will be based on your life. If you lean on God to take care of the arrangements, your good works will only determine the rewards you will enjoy, but the worst sinner to get into Heaven will have a much better time than the greatest nice person who doesn't trust in the Lord.

The Israelis were only being judged on their works with the idea of Godly intervention taken out of the mix. Even so, God is calling on His people to renew their faith in Him so He may make all of their sins better.

Day 5

If you apply for a position with a company today, you find that companies are looking for leadership qualities. Hezekiah became king at the age of 25. For the last sixteen years he had watched his father, Ahaz, fail miserably as King of Judah. So what did Hezekiah do differently? He brought in the religious leaders and told them to consecrate themselves to God. The first commandment is "You shall have no other gods before me." The religious leaders had violated this commandment for years. Hezekiah commanded the people to return to the Lord. It seems easy enough. Worship God and God only and let God direct the nation.

So what kind of leaders do we need today? God hasn't changed, nor have his commandments. Let's worship God and God only.

Day 6

There is a lot of prophesy here that we have seen in the last 50 years. We surely live in exciting times, don't we? Let's break it down a bit today.

1. Babylon was indeed overthrown and even today, it is an uninhabited land. I've seen on CNN and other news agencies that Saddam Hussein had a vision of making his kingdom into a second Babylon, complete with the statues and other trimmings, but the original land lays barren. It is truly a home only to wild animals.
2. Israel was to reclaim their land with the help of other nations. Does this sound a bit like World War II? Israel would be the captors there and rule over those in the land that were against them. Open the newspaper or check out any online news source and you will see that this has come to pass.
3. The passage also speaks of other nations who would be utterly destroyed. I have yet to meet a Philistine, you know. Are there any out there now? And that is just one example.
4. Finally, we have the throne that was established out of the house of David to speed the cause of righteousness. Jesus is that King and He reigns forever and ever.

Day 7

Boy, does this feel like a nice rain in the middle of a drought? King Hezekiah was no pretender. He decided to renew the covenant with God, and when we did so, he took it all the way! God listened to the prayers of His people and even forgave them for breaking the rules of the Passover because the reasons were out of their reach at the time. I'm excited to see what happens next week in the reading!

Weekly Link http://www.whatgoesintothemind.com From the site: What you pop into your mind from media, books and friends is how you’ll act and make decisions—often unconsciously. That’s why the people who publish Bibles, Christian music, books, videos, gifts, and other media, have named the Newsboys music spokespersons for its "What Goes Into the Mind Comes Out in a Life"™ I don't think I could describe this site any better. However, I can't reccomend a site without some personal input. This site points out that what you put into yourself will affect your life, the early decisions you make in life actually influence the remainder of your days. So many impressionable people allow themselves to be innundated with angry music, violent movies with gratuitous sex, and many other pollutants. This site points out that there are so many alternatives to mainstream media that are actually cool! Very cool!

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Thanks for sharing my goal of reading the Bible in its entirety this year!