Give more time to spirituality

I bought the Daily Bible, NIV, and it sections out a certain amount to read each day to get you through the year. But what is amazing about it is that it is arranged in chronological order and they only list the Laws once, but in a more organized manner. I am only 3 days behind and have been keeping up pretty well usually. Plus for Lent the pastors are talking about prayer and having special prayer times.

I am going to set my alarm for a half hour later, but get up after only one snooze alarm. Then I will grab some coffee, banana and almonds, my usual breakfast. Get that down and then spend a half hour on the air walker. I have always had the news on and read while doing that. I am getting three study books and workbooks of Bible studies the church is putting on this year. The readings are articles and scriptures that take about a half hour to get through. And then there are some questions for you to think about. Then when I get home I will try and put in another half hour on the machine.

I might actually just read devotionals in the morning and then the studies after work. I will see what works best. And I will also probably have to get the morning thing going and then add the evening thing. I seem to have to take things in steps like that. But at least I have a plan. How to find more time to pray, and time to listen for an answer. Stay tuned I guess is all I can say.

ChristCare has really helped me. One Sunday I saw two members nearby and the worship leader was also one of us. When I move I need to find a really good church that has lots of activities and opportunities for making friends.

Bob and Lori are both teaching classes at the same time that I want to take. Bob’s is on theology. I want to hear that from a Methodist methodology. There are 3 short biblical reading and then a few very short articles that have a theme. Looked like about a half hour each.

Then Lori’s is about Bible reading, but 34 weeks long. But the same type organization. I think I will buy the books and either come when I have questions, or email the questions. That way I would have some reading to do each day and some direction as to who to get started.

I am reading about Methodist and Episcopal churches that I might feel form comforable in. I hope Bob has an answer. But it depends on how successful there on the loaded.

But we have a catholic church who has Stephen Ministers, and another Christian church wants to offer them. I say, there is alway room for more, and tell me more about your ways. I grew up without a common prayer book, nor a litugical calendar. I didn’t think I needed ritual. Only I love some mass services.

I am really making progress here. Joining the ChristCare group was one of the better things I have done. I don’t feel as isolated in church, when I can look around and see sisters I have shared my life with once a week and see them afirmming me. That and this Fall it seems the pastoral staff listened to what I told them I needed. Lori will have a class on discipleship and how to actually begin to study the Word every day and what you are supposed to get out of it. I don’t know how or where to start, so I need that. And then Bob is having a class on theology. I love to study theology. I want to hear what it is from a Methodist perspective. I hope neither of them give homework. I will be lucky if I can just show up and get notes to look at more in depth later. But I see lots of doable outlets to deepen my spiritual walk.

Went to Women of Faith conference. It was so good! I got a CD of the worship team’s new take on hymns. Feels like we are all still sitting there waiting for the speakers to start. We are going to try and go for the preconference next year and get a bunch of ladies to go with us. I am going to get the DVD and send a copy to Dixie. I have also bought a bunch of books on studying the Bible, got a 4-version parrallel bible, books on how to study the Old Testament and a book on Psalms. And in ChristCare we are studying a book. I am really working it right now.

I am doing well with this one also. Reading devotionals most mornings, and if I forget and start out cranky Jan loans me hers. Bought several books on studying the Bible so that is on my mind. Then I started meeting with a ChristCare study group. A good friend decided to join too, so that is good company and I feel good about it all. The pastoral staff called a meeting with a cross section of the congregation for our ideas on what we feel we need to hear. Well, I forgot to go, but emailed my suggestions. Sunday Bob is preaching on one of my concerns. I went home to see my parents, felt lonely as I got into town. The church is on my way home, so I just swung in to see who was in. There were all kinds of friends there glad to see me, so that was really wonderful. They are really becoming my family away from home.

Well, I go to church with out fail unless I am sick. I am a bit disgusted with my church girlfriends since they have been missing a lot lately. But I still need daily time in prayer and Bible reading and I am not doing that. I have read many spiritual books this year and plan to read more, but somehow I am not sure that is enough. I don’t know how to start. I started once, read Mathew, and said to myself, yes, those are the Bible stories ofmy youth, but they did not really speak to me as I was expecting. My catholic girlfriend at work says it is a discipline thing and we should not expect to get a personal word from God all the time. Maybe she is right. But I do meet with my counselor every week. We both agree that I should try a weekly women’s Bible study as well and fall back to every two weeks with her. I went last week, but for some reason they did not meet. The pastoral staff have asked a cross section of us to attend a meeting where we can tell them what we would like to hear and I plan to go to that meeting. So I am doing well in some respects and still I think I can do better. But I am going to tell them that I need help in figuring out how to study the Bible on my own and should I expect a personal word very often.