Memorizing Philippians

Someone on Facebook posted this link challenging us to join in memorizing the book of Philippians. I read the link, and thought to myself, "no way". I kept coming across the link and felt more and more convicted to do this. I will do it! If you want to join me, pray for me, or give some memorizing pointers, leave a comment.

The first segment to memorize by next week:

(New Living Translation)

Philippians 1

¹ This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus.

I am writing to all of God’s holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders and deacons.

² May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

³ Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. ⁴ Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy,⁵ for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.⁶ And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

⁷ So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. ⁸God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

⁹ I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. ¹⁰ For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. ¹¹ May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

One word

J. took this photo in Maui in '05

We attended church with our friends last night. It was a night of worship and communion. Both J. and I really enjoyed it and felt refreshed and renewed. We participated in an activity called Lectio divina.

Lectio divina is a very useful and practical discipline for spiritual growth. Rooted in ancient monasticism, the practice is a fourfold cycle: Reading, Meditation, Prayer, and Contemplation. In fact, the term itself means "sacred reading."

During the scripture reading we were told to think of one word that really stood out to us, as if it were in bold print. Then we mediated on how that word effected our lives, prayed about it and worshiped.

My one word was OBEY. To me, to obey is to completely give my life over to God. No matter how unreasonable, questionable or silly the idea is to myself or others. I am to obey and follow Him and by doing this I will receive many blessings in return.

Hebrews 11:8 (New International Version)

⁸By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.

1 John 2:5 (New International Version)

⁵But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:

1 John 3:21-23 (New International Version)

²¹Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God ²²and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. ²³And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

David Crowder and crowded house

My mom bought tickets to see the David Crowder Band in concert for J. last month. It was a very nice birthday gift of VIP passes. We got early admittance, so we were right next to the stage. My feet were sure tired after several hours of standing, but it was such a great experience! We felt really old compared to many other concertgoers who chose to stand and not sit in the seats, but we held our own. Thankfully no one got rowdy, although J. did need to say something to some 7 foot "groupie" who pushed and shoved his way right in front of us and decided to block our view. We'd been there for an hour and a half saving our spot and he got there 5 minutes before the show started. It was very rude and J. was polite about it. The guy moved. We were glad. It was a great night of wonderful worship. Afterward we were herded to another room to meet the band and get autographs. J. had a great time.

My sister's wedding shower was yesterday too. We had to change the date due to some scheduling conflicts so it ended up being the same weekend as the concert. My sister lives about an hour away from the venue so it worked out ok. My girls and I rode down to the shower with my mom. (a 3.5 hour drive) The boys and J. drove in separate car to my sister's house. After the shower we met up, left all the kids at the house and left for the concert. We didn't have time to check in to the hotel, or eat dinner, but we got there in time. The kids did great, but it was tight quarters in my sisters little house. My mom and dad stayed the night too, and everyone helped with the kids. I think it wore everyone out. We came and got them around 11 and drove home. I am exhausted!