Read Slow. Let Your Heart Learn.

I took an extended time off to recharge my batteries, pray, think, and talk to many friends. You will hear about what I learned over the coming year.

Since I retired from my position at CRISTA a few years ago, my wife Kathleen and I have started sitting on the couch together every morning. We read, talk, and pray. It usually lasts about one hour. 

Fourteen months ago, we started to read the NIV Chronological Study Bible by Thomas Nelson. It arranges the books of the entire Bible in an order corresponding to the times they cover. The first five books appear just as they do in the traditional Bible.

From then on, they continue as the years roll through, ending with the Book of Revelations. In addition, the compilers have added a wide breadth of inserts. They explain other events that were going on around the world at the same time, along with additional insights and definitions to explain the readings. 

The total number of pages in this section is 1,449. In addition, there are 200 pages at the end containing even more information and maps.

Take the Time to Learn In Your Heart

When we meet each morning at 9:00 am, I begin by reading out loud the passage where we left off the previous morning. We do not have a goal to read a certain amount. Kathleen and I finished the Old Testament on December 30, 2022.

I can’t believe I read the whole Old Testament out loud! Some of it has seemed tedious, and others lit our hearts on fire. It took us 14 months to complete. 

Those 14 months are a testament to the saying, “Inch by inch, life's a cinch. Yard by yard, life is hard.” We intended not just to get the reading done, but to get the teaching in our minds and, more importantly, in our hearts. We READ SLOW (you have to when you are reading out loud), often stopped to discuss the reading, and committed what we learned to prayer.

The Word of God is meant to transform our lives.

I admit that this commitment is much easier because I am in a significantly different stage of life, having a schedule I can control. Our daily meeting is on both our calendars and is our highest priority. We help each other stay committed to the task. 

Thirty-three years ago, I committed to a new life mission purpose statement, “To have an intimate relationship with God and my wife.” I figured if I could get that right, everything else would fall in place. It has worked out pretty well.

I will talk more about what “working out well” has meant. (It’s not always an easy go of it!)

We have just cut the price of my book Living Large to $9.99. It also talks about other stages of growth and adventure I have been through.