Forty Three More Days

I am so happy to be in the New Testament!  Don't get me wrong, the Old Testament is full of richness as it teaches us about God and how He interacted with His people and serves as a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3:24), but I have been reading through the Old Testament for the last 136 days and I'm ready for the New Covenant.

It seems to me a great summary of the Old Testament is provided in Nehemiah 9.  Here the people confess their sin and praise God's mercy, faithfulness, righteousness and graciousness as they enumerate the many times God blessed them and provided for them.  They confess how often they stiffened their necks, disobeyed, rebelled and acted presumptuously and earned God's punishment but then were saved by God's mercy and grace when they repented.

Sounds a little familiar, doesn't it?  Too often I choose worry o'er the future rather than trusting God will provide as He always has in the past.  Too often I elevate other things, people, or even myself to a place that is God's alone, thus committing the same idolatry the Israelites were so fond of rather than holding Him in reverence and awe.  Too often I am stubborn and "stiff-necked" pursuing what I want to do rather than submitting to the Lord who knows best.  Yet He loved me first (I John 4:10), and while I was yet a sinner Christ died for me (Romans 5:8).  Mercy and grace indeed.
 
This challenge to read through the Bible chronologically in 180 days has been both rewarding and challenging.  I have spent more time in the Word each day than I think I ever have so consistently (at least 30 minutes every single day) and I appreciate the perspective of the "big picture" I have gained in reading large chunks of Scripture at a time.  It has been really good for me to spend more time reading the Bible than all the other books out there.  I have recorded each book of the Bible on my "reading list" as I read them and can't help but notice how much less time I've spent reading books authored by humans.

My handy, dandy Kindle tells me I am now 76% of the way through the Bible!