The Psalm Project

My Bible study group just wrapped up our study of Galatians and Ephesians. We took a good look at the end of Ephesians where Paul exhorts us to put on the armor of God and to stand firm. Now I’m not going to go into the whole armor of God thing except to say that almost all the pieces of armor he lists are of a protective or defensive nature. There is only one that is a true offensive weapon- “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” As always, our leader asks us how we are going to stay in the Word over the summer- another study, personal study, etc.

This was my morning on Tuesday.

• Wake and jump in the shower
• Walk out of bedroom dressed but hair and make-up not done
• Try to wake youngest
• Greet middle good morning
• Notice pee all over just yesterday mopped floors
• Clean pee up
• Attempt second wake up of youngest
• Start making breakfast and lunches
• Finally get youngest up
• Kiss husband good-bye on his way off to work
• Wish oldest good luck as she leaves early for marching band practice toting my griddle and other pancake making items to school for a speech
• Finish lunches
• Hug middle good-bye as he leaves for school on his bike
• Find missing shoe for youngest
• Take dog out so there is no more pee on the floor
• Take youngest to school
• Drive by the hardware store hoping its open
• Go home
• Heat oven to warm up cinnamon rolls for Bible study
• Finish hair and make-up
• Pull cinnamon rolls out of oven and re-plate onto serving platter
• Head back to hardware store for brown spray paint
• Find out spray paint on styrofoam will melt the styrofoam
• Choose regular latex paint
• Swing by oldest’s school to drop off paint
• Discover oldest’s speech class outside watching someone give a speech on how to ride a unicycle
• Pull up anyway
• Watch oldest turn 14 shades of magenta and hide behind her classmates (which only worsened the situation)
• Wave hello to some nicer classmates
• Drive off to Bible study

Bible study started at 9 am.

And here’s what I’ve noticed about summer- there’s even less quiet time. I don’t send my kids to school to get away from them but the fact is when they are there, they are not here thus quiet time is a little easier to come by. But even so, as I admitted today to the women at study, I am my own distraction. I find something to fill my thoughts with even if I never call a friend, turn on the radio, click on the computer or some other thing.

In my running, the more intense I’ve gotten over the last few months, I have noticed it matters what I put in my body for fuel. It also matters when I fuel up. It’s the same with my other training- the kind that “has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” 1 Tim. 4:8  It matters what I fill up with.

And today I’m going to challenge you to make it matter when you get you start your fill up. I got this idea from my friend Tori and I think she got it from someone else. Anywho- it’s not my original idea.

Before you scroll through your email, update FB status, text or tweet, listen to the news, or even… READ MY BLOG!… take up the sword. I’d love it if you’d read through the Psalms with me. One a day, that’s it. You can read through it on your Bible app, or pull the red ribbon to right page, it doesn’t really matter to me. I’d just love it if you’d do it.

“But today is the 2nd and I’m already behind and I’ve read your blog before reading my Bible and it’s not the morning and there are 150 Psalms and that will take forever and, and, and…”

Uh, no one is forcing you to read this right now; it will still be here when you are done. I‘d also like to point out I say nothing at all in comparison to the God-breathed.  And it’s only 18 verses if you do it right now. And the point is to challenge ourselves and do it- there is no one right way. And if you get behind, you can catch up- God’s not going to flunk you. And if you don’t think you can catch up, then skip ahead. It won’t take forever. But it means more than forever.

So here’s the deal- read one Psalm a day first thing if you can (though peeing on the floor is not acceptable, so take care of business). Try not to check it off the the list but pray and ask God to reveal Himself to you while you read. I’m trying not to make it complicated. You can journal, you can cross-reference, you can Hebrew word study if you’ve got the time, but that’s not what this time is about unless it really does become something you can spend more time on. ‘K?

So, who’s with me?