Priorities

Hello everyone!
It has been pretty low key here! Still no word on the form we need to go home. So, we are still waiting! In the mean time, we are trying to find things to keep us busy (other than our 1 year old obviously lol). Things that have kept me busy are crocheting, reading, and hanging out with our friends and making new friends. The other thing that will also be keeping me (us) busy are the messages from the 2014 Desiring God National Conference. The theme was "Look At The Book". I am SO EXCITED to hear what God has laid on the hearts of these ladies and gentlemen! Josh and I listened to the first message tonight! It was called: You really can! Why and how to memorize big chunks of the Bible.  I have always struggled with memorizing. I'm not good at it and in my mind it takes too much time. John Bloom stated that this is not supposed to be a guilt trip, but is supposed to help us see why we should do it and how it is beneficial to memorize big chunks of the Bible.

So, here are some notes that I took while listening to this message! You can find the full message here (http://www.desiringgod.org/conference-messages/you-really-can-why-and-how-to-memorize-big-chunks-of-the-bible) I highly recommend it!

10 REASONS WHY MEMORIZING BIG CHUNKS OF THE BIBLE IS BENEFICIAL
1. Because we have a bad memory!
- I thought it was odd he said that, but it makes sense. My memory is poor, so I need to memorize scripture!
- We need to drive things in to our memory by repetition

2. We need to feed our minds
- Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.  It is hard to think of these things if we don't know what they are!
- When we are struggling (depression, marriage issues, defeat, failure etc.) we need specific truths and promises, not just a general overview.

3. The Bible is too accessible to us
- "What we have in abundance are things we tend to neglect" John Bloom
- We have so many Bibles, it's tempting to let the Word of God be "out there" instead of in our hearts. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly... Colossians 3:16

4. Because we have the internet
- the internet is teaching us how not to read. We browse and don't digest. We are losing patience and don't allow for deeper reflective reading. We NEED deep reflection of the Bible

5. We don't know the Bible as well as we think
- when we memorize large chunks of scripture, we can see a lot more than we realize
- we will see the flow of thoughts and get to know the Biblical writers etc.

6. God's Word will become more precious
- the more you invest in the Bible, it becomes more valuable, precious and essential.

7. It will help me to see more of God's glory
- For example, nature is beautiful and displays God's glory, however, just by looking at nature doesn't tell you that God gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life. We need God's Word

8. Memorizing large portions of scripture will fine tune your lie detector
- lies are lethal and destroys lives and souls

9. Because we are going to suffer
- We will all have trials and tribulation
- suffering is at times confusing and disorienting
- memorizing scripture gives us a well to draw from and will help us endure

10. because our brothers and sisters are going to suffer
- memorizing large portions of scripture is not only for us personally, but our brothers and sisters will suffer and they also need concrete promises

Just click on the link above to listen to the technique on how to memorize large portions of scripture! One point he really stressed a lot was that memorizing scripture really helps you to LISTEN to God's Word. So, I am looking forward to trying this out eventually and feeding my mind! It was a very good message! I really want to make memorizing scripture one of my main priorities so that I can know Christ more.

Now, on to gifts!

Gifts:
55. Rain noise maker to block out the extra noise while sleeping
56. A fan
57. A joke and music show put on by some of the kids today
58. Band aids (I cut my finger today! So they came in handy!)

Once again, thank you everyone for everything you have done for us and for your prayers and encouragement!

For Christ's Glory,
Marissa