HERE'S HOW:

Grab a Bible. If it fits your style, also grab a journal to write in.
- Which Bible version is best? The one you read! If you don’t have one, let us know! Print, Online, and Apps are available.
- Invite family or friends to join you.
Pray! Ask the Holy Spirit to help you as you read. HE WILL.
Check to see if there is a video to watch today
Look up and read the assigned reading for the day.
Look up the assigned Psalm that day: pray it out loud.
Pray! Ask the Father to apply those readings to your life and to help you join Jesus where He is already working. HE WILL.
Participate in Worship on Sunday!

July 1

An important part of reading biblical narratives is learning how to understand the nature of "the plot," how stories are arranged into a pattern of conflict and resolution. In this video we'll see how ignoring the sequence of the plot can lead to a distorted interpretation of biblical stories.

Read Jeremiah 18-22, then Pray Psalm 20. The story of Jeremiah at the Potter’s house is memorable. The metaphor is powerful on an individual level, let alone our neighborhoods, towns and even our land. Pray about how the Lord is molding and shaping you to be a part of His bigger plan!

July 2

Most of us think of characters in Bible as either sinners or saints, good or bad. At least that's how Bible stories are presented to children. In this video, we'll explore the ways biblical authors present characters as more complex and morally compromised than we usually imagine.

Read Jeremiah 23-25, then Pray Psalm 21. Zoom in on 23:6, “The Lord Our Righteousness” is a title for Jesus, (remember, Jesus means “The Lord Saves”). But this name is a direct foreshadowing of what Jesus would do for each one of us, and this passage is a prophetic announcement hundreds of years before the fact!

July 3

Every story has to take place somewhere, and very often locations have a special meaning or significance evoked by events that already took place there. In this video, we explore how biblical authors use settings in narrative to meet the reader's expectations or mess with them.

Read Jeremiah 26-29, then Pray Psalm 22. Chapter 29 is a passage to remember. The context is as bad as it gets, and it is in the middle of this great calamity that God promises verse 11. Always take this passage together with 2 Corinthians 1:20!

July 4

Design patterns are one of the key ways the biblical authors have unified the storyline of the Bible. Individual stories across the Old and New Testaments have been coordinated through repeated words and parallel themes. These patterns highlight core themes of the biblical story and show how it all leads to Jesus!

Read Jeremiah 30-32, then Pray Psalm 23. Chapter 31 is among the most important in the Old Testament! Study especially verses 31-34 (remembering this is poetry). Here we see the bold promise of the New Covenant, which we celebrate and receive every time we participate in the Body and Blood of Christ through The Lord’s Supper!

July 5

Did you know that a third of the Bible is ancient Israelite poetry? Poetry is a rich and artistic form of human communication, but often the most difficult to read. In this video we'll explore the unique characteristics of biblical poetry, so you can discover its beauty and power for yourself.

Read Jeremiah 33-36, then Pray Psalm 24. Jeremiah can’t stop talking about Jesus (whom he calls “the righteous branch” and The Lord Our Righteousness”), who will bring about total restoration for God’s people, ALL of them!

July 6

Read of Jeremiah 37-39, then Pray Psalm 25. Chapter 39 tells the story of the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. All of Jeremiah’s warnings have led to this moment.

July 7

Read Jeremiah 40-44, then Pray Psalm 26. The wrath of God pours out. Resist the temptation to “look away” or pretend God won’t do such things. And note to whom He brings His wrath! This is not against the nations, this is against His people. Look at it. And ponder the sheer Grace of Jesus who rescues us from such fates in this world and the far worse fates in the world to come! See 1 Corinthians 10:11-13!

Week Twenty-Six