August Reading Plan & The Quiet Hours First Drafts DONE!!

Ok, I won’t lie. The past month’s Old Testament readings could be a bit of a slog. There were some big lists of unpronounceable names and it sort of felt like deja vu at times.

This guy became a king and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. So a nation attacked the nation of Judah until the people repented. Then a new guy became king. He did what was right in the sight of the Lord. He tore down the idols and rebuild the temple, again. Everybody was happy. But then he died and the new guy did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and the cycle repeats.

But then there was a moment that got me.

Five days ago, during the reign of King Ahaz, we get the clearest picture of what was really happening all the time in those days - and in our day, too, if we’re honest.

2 Kings 17:33 says “They feared the Lord, but they also worshiped their own gods, according to the practice of the nations from which they had been deported.”

Oof. I felt that one in my gut.

These people — who had seen actual miraculous signs, remember — were worshiping the God of Jehovah over on this side of town, and Baal on the other. Just in case. You never know.

Is that any different from us reading our Bibles, saying the Lord’s prayer, and then an hour later acting against our conscience because we don’t believe that God’s provision will meet whatever needs or desires we feel we deserve to have satisfied? (Fill in the blank there: food, shopping, ego, things we know we shouldn’t be watching…)

That repetition was almost a liturgy. A king “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but the high places were not removed.” A lot to learn…

And honestly, the action did pick up there at the end. The king of Assyria is currently holding the nation of Judah hostage. We literally left off with the king’s main big bad guy yelling, “You think your God is going to save you, huh? Has he saved any of the other nations we’ve conquered? Has he? Speak up!”

And nobody says a word, because King Ahaz has told all his people to stay silent.

Pins and needles, guys. What’s going to happen next!?

All I know is it’s about to get crazy. I’m talking Back To The Future, Angel Rambo, Raiders of the Lost Ark level wildness. Plus some of the most classic prophetic language in the whole Bible. I’m here for it.

And I haven’t even touched on the fact that we got to read through the Gospel of Mark. How beautiful was that? I love that we got to take our time through it. That was a nice pace.

This month in the New Testament we get to spend some time in Paul’s shorter letters. 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus and Philemon. This is where we get ideas like “praying without ceasing”, “Scripture being God-breathed”, and we get to see how Paul really talks to and about his friends. I like this more pastoral and personal side of him and am looking forward to this month a lot.

Finally, in The Quiet Hours news, I am SO EXCITED to share that I finished the first draft of the last of the three books earlier today! I can’t even believe it. I don’t know if it’s been a sprint or a marathon. It feels like it’s been a marathon of sprints. And I’m not done, by a long stretch, there’s so much more to do, both with proof-reading and prepping all the launch and marketing and design and yadda yadda, but to have the books actually DONE. It’s going to take a while to sink in.

I don’t talk like this very often, but: I feel like the Lord gave me this idea very clearly and strongly 18 months ago. To actually be here now, with three finished books and a looming release date, is surreal.

I celebrated by finally taking out the trash, then taking my daughter out for pizza and ice cream and a Kroger run. Tomorrow I’ll mow the lawn I’ve ignored for the past couple weeks. We’re those neighbors right now. Oh well. It will be good to get out there, move my body a little bit, and see something be physically finished, not just closed on a laptop.

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement along the way. I can not wait to start sharing this with you. I’m so incredibly grateful for you all, and for the Lord for allowing this time and opportunity.

Looking forward to seeing what happens with King Ahaz tomorrow morning. Somebody’s about to get smited. I can just feel it.