New Orleans Recap

I know this entry isn't about my reading challenge, but the New Orleans trip was a pretty important week in my life, so I want to tell you about it. Last week, 6 adults and 3 youths went to New Orleans on a mission trip through White River Christian Church and Crossroads missions. We worked on restoring a house in a rougher part of town. Most of the crew painted or cauked during the week and a handful of lucky guys were glad to get their hands on some sledgehammers to bust up some sidewalk and driveway. It was a phenomenal week. It was hard work, and totally worth it.

There are so many things I want to tell, but I don't want bore you with a super long entry. Oh! Concerning my challenge, I became completely caught up on all my reading on the way down. Yes, I read 23 chapters of Deutoronomy in 1 day. Actually, I really really liked it. It seemed to me like a very long pep talk. You see, the Israelites had been wondering in the desert for 40 years, and now they were about to enter the promise land. Moses, unfortunatley, was not allowed to go into the promise land, so he was giving his finals words to his people. He reminded them to what God has done for them again and again. He told of their rebellion and how God still forgave them. He wanted the Israelites to continue to follow God, even if Moses was not with them. If you haven't read Deuteronomy before, I urge you to read it, it's one that will make you think.

Well, anyway, getting back to New Orleans. Probably one of the things that I learned/had a God experience the most was God finally answering a prayer. For many weeks before the trip, I had been asking God to give me guidance on what he wants me to do (for college and all). I asked him to show me while on the trip. There really wasn't one distinct moment when I 'knew', but by the end of the week, I had this peace about it, like God was confirming my hearts desires. I want to go into ministry, I don't know what kind or anything, but I want my life to be surrendered to God, and my actions to be for his glory. Serving in New Orleans this week confirmed my desire for that.

The entire was so interlaced with God's will. We were able to meet some amazing people from Ft. Wayne, Kentucky, and Wisconsin, and we had the chance to buy some baby formula for a young gal asking for money on the streets. God moved this last week, and I truely feel blessed to have been a part of it.

Confession Time

It's confession time. I'm actually surprised I've made it this long not having to deal with it. Everything was going great until I got sick, but I cannot blame my nearly swine flu-like symptoms.(H1N1 to anyone who would like to be politically correct) But, I cannot ignore the truth of the matter, I have fallen severely behind in my reading. Now, severely might mean something totally different to you people, but I mean it as I might as well be reading for the rest of my life kind of severely. I am 23 chapters behind, and in Deuteronomy language, that's about 6700 hours of reading ahead of me. I am thoroughly dreading it.

It's like a knife in my heart, honestly. I want to read to catch up, but I don't want to read since there's so much and Deuteronomy is no fun. It's not entertaining or uplifting or thought provoking or anything. It's like reading a dry history book. I hate to consider the very Words of God like that, but that's where I am right now. I want to change my attitude on it, but I don't know how. I want to read the words of my Bible in reverence and awe. I want to finish Deuteronomy by October 20th. I want to keep to the word of my challenge. I think God's providing a way...

Tomorrow morning 7 other WRCC folks and I will be leaving for New Orleans on a mission's trip for a week. We have a lovely 14 hour van drive. I am hoping and praying that I will be able to catch up in this time. Keep our team in your prayers this week, I praying for God to do big things this week!

I don't know what day I am in this challenge, maybe seventy something, and I have a big mountain to climb this week.

Oh how he loves...

I was looking through some other people's blogs this morning(considering I'm home from school sick) and came across a video on one of my friend's blogs. I've heard the song "How He Loves Us" played by David Crowder and in the Sr. High, and this version's quickly moved to the top of this list.

I've been struggling with understand/caring what the stories in Leviticus and Numbers are even about. I know that these are the divine Words of God and should be read with as much respect and reverence as the Gospels or the Psalms or Proverbs, but I often find myself skimming and not caring about the offering of one silver plate weighing a hundred and thirty shekls,and one silver sprinkling bowl.....(Numbers 7).

I've thought about the last 3 1/2 books of the OT I've read, and wondered what was the big picture? What was the point? Why tell all the tells and regulations and procedures. We as Christian no longer practice them, why are the important? God gave these people these laws to protect them, to protect their lineage. It was from these people that Jesus was born. God wanted these people to live as holy as possible to preserve the precious blood within them that would then become Jesus' blood. Even the OT is about Jesus. Isn't that crazy?

If you have any other opinions or reasons for the OT, let me know. Since I have 35 1/2 books of them to go.

It's Day 59 and I'm loosing interest in the OT. On a lighter note, I read about how the ground opened its mouth and swallowed 250 people. If I had faith of a mustard seed to move a mountain, I wonder what kind of faith of would take to make the earth eat people?







It's crazy how God works. I was planning to talk about a story I read in Numbers 16, and the Kim Walker song, "How He Loves Us" totally fits.

In this story, a handful of men in the Israelite community did not like was Moses was doing, so they gathered 250 men and rose up against him. Some of the story I don't quite understand, like why Moses said in the morning the Lord will show who belongs to him or why these men even were upset with Moses. What I found totally crazy was in verses 21-22. God told Moses and Aaron to leave the rebelious people, so he could destroy them with hurting them. But they didn't, they fell facedown towards God and asked for mercy on these 250. That takes courage.

I guess the connectiong I'm trying to make between this story and the Kim Walker song is this: