Focus: Holy Scripture (1/7)
Day: 01/95
Pathway summary: Study of the Word of God with expectation of Holy Spirit inspired revelation.
Justification: (Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Psalm 119; John 16:7-15; 2 Timothy 3:16-17)
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Setup:
Considering the topic, it would seem to be prudent to have a bible study curriculum of some kind; starting off I have none. As my ultimate goal is to be a better Christian (and with the immediate application of being a better husband, a better father, a better son, etc.), I elect to learn what the Bible says about love. I suspect I have glossed over much of what the bible says ... so I shall review it, pray on it, and (as stated above) expect the Holy Spirit to reveal something.
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Prep:
A quick web search on Bible studies on love reveals that more people have written more on this one subject than I anticipated. Not surprising - as love is earnestly hard to master. We are counseled to love God with all of ourselves. And we are told that Jesus IS love. It thus, must be worth the study.
A quick web search on Bible studies on love reveals that more people have written more on this one subject than I anticipated. Not surprising - as love is earnestly hard to master. We are counseled to love God with all of ourselves. And we are told that Jesus IS love. It thus, must be worth the study.
I'm also sticking with 1 Corinthians 13 - unless I feel guided to meander. Cause I'm tryin' to grow - I earnestly want to be open to what the Holy Spirit has for me
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Execution:
I began by praying, asking for revelation, clarity, focus. I recorded my thoughts, notes, and conclusions in a separate paper notebook. Today's Bible study revealed some things about 1 Corinthians 13. In particular, the first three versus focus on motive.
I began by praying, asking for revelation, clarity, focus. I recorded my thoughts, notes, and conclusions in a separate paper notebook. Today's Bible study revealed some things about 1 Corinthians 13. In particular, the first three versus focus on motive.
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Day 1 Conclusions / Thoughts
I know I personally tend to spend most of my time/energy doing the following: talking/singing/making music, knowing/thinking/praying, sacrificing/donating. In essence, no matter what you're doing, if your fundamental motives are not based on love, you will not last, nor will your works matter, nor will your voice/value endure. Our culture values all of these things - we have shows centered around how pretty someone sounds. how smart they appear, how reliable they are, how able they are to foretell (using mysticism or mathematics), how generous someone is - etc.
Ironically, we all know that anyone who isn't motivated by love is functionally doing for the wrong reason; however, it is easy to forget that in the moment ... especially if you're the one acting. How easy it is to be engaged in an activity that seems to be helpful but ... we're motivated by wanting to be elsewhere, or attracted to someone (physically or emotionally or otherwise), or waiting our turn to talk (instead of just listening), or donating goods and clothes for the tax write-off or simply for de-cluttering.
I suspect it is easy to over-apply this lesson ... and I recall I am notorious for taking an initial, fundamental realization/revelation and applying it WAY too generously. So I will leave for now - save for one earnest acknowledgement. It is so great that God still wants to talk to me. I ... don't *feel* closer just yet ... but I fully acknowledge that the revelations from today's study were from Him. So, so grateful that He still wants to talk to me. <3
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