Sunday (3/6)

Lent is a season of forty days beginning on Ash Wednesday and ending on Holy Saturday, which is the day before Easter. The United Methodist Book of Worship reminds us that, “Historically, Lent began as a period of fasting and preparation for baptism by converts and then became a time of penance by all Christians” (page 320). You are encouraged to set this season apart. Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai with the Lord (Exodus 34), and Jesus spend 40 days fasting in the wilderness as the Spirit of God guided him (Luke 4). What will you leave behind or give up during these 40 days to be with the Lord? What faith practices/spiritual disciplines/holy habits will you utilize during this season to be shaped and formed more and more into the likeness of Christ?

Sunday (2/27)

This Your Faith Journey devotional has been walking through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus, during January and February. This week we will conclude our time in Exodus. There will be opportunities to continue reading more Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Since Exodus is a continuation of the story of Genesis, if you did not read the book of Genesis you are encouraged to watch the Bible Project videos about it to help you understand the book more clearly. The videos are available on YouTube:

Sunday (2/20)

Jesus’ earliest disciples had a living relationship with the holy scriptures. Those of us who are Jesus’ followers today need a living relationship with The Holy Bible too. As part of our living relationship with the Bible, we are reading and studying The Old Testament in 2022. This Your Faith Journey devotional is providing you with a reading plan to help you to read and study much of the Old Testament this year. Throughout January and during part of February, we have been reading and studying the book of Genesis. Last week we moved into the second book of the Bible, Exodus. Since Exodus is a continuation of the story of Genesis, if you did not read the book of Genesis you are encouraged to watch the Bible Project videos about it to help you understand the book more clearly. The videos are available on YouTube:

Sunday (2/13)

Before there was a Holy Bible with both the Old and New Testaments there were sacred Hebrew scriptures of the ancient Israelites. Jesus said this about the Hebrew scriptures and himself, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets: I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17 NIV). The phrase “Law and Prophets” was a first-century way of describing what we know of today as the books of the Old Testament. In the decades after Jesus ascended to heaven documents were written by Christians that formed the New Testament and they were eventually combined with the Hebrew scriptures into what became The Holy Bible.

 

Jesus’ earliest disciples had a living relationship with the holy scriptures. Those of us who are Jesus’ followers today need a living relationship with The Holy Bible. As part of our living relationship with the Bible, we are reading and studying the “Law” and “the Prophets,” a.k.a. The Old Testament, in 2022. This Your Faith Journey devotional will provide you with a reading plan to help you to read and study much of the Old Testament this year. Throughout January and until this past week we have been reading and studying the book of Genesis. Now it is time to move into the second book of the Bible, Exodus. Since Exodus is a continuation of the story of Genesis, if you did not read the book of Genesis you are encouraged to watch the Bible Project videos about it to help you understand the book more clearly. The videos are available on YouTube:

Overview Genesis: 1-11 by the Bible Project:

Sunday (2/6)

This Your Faith Journey devotional is walking through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus, during January and February. This week we will conclude our time in Genesis, then begin to read Exodus next week. There will be opportunities to continue reading more Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this week:

Sunday (1/30)

This Your Faith Journey devotional is walking through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus, during January and February. There will be opportunities to continue reading the Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this week:

1. How do you see yourself in the story when reading biblical narratives?

Which of these characters would I be?

In what ways is their story similar to my story?

2. Are you using a Study Bible?

A Study Bible is a very helpful tool for understanding each book of the Bible. They include information shared by scholars about historical and cultural realities during the time depicted or the era of the document, the author, when the book might have been written, the intended audience of the document, themes and messages within a book or letter, and more.

The NIV, NRSV, ESV, and NLT Study Bibles are worth considering if you do not own one. There are a few available from the AUMC Library in the back of the Chapel. You can also purchase a Study Bible from ChristianBook.com, Cokesbury.com, or Amazon.com.

3. What do these verses reveal about humanity?

4. What do these verses teach me about myself?

5. What do these verses reveal about God?

6. Invite the Holy Spirit to speak a message to you through the verses you read.

7. Read, study, and discuss scripture with a small group or another person.

Sunday (1/23)

We are on a journey through the Old Testament in 2022. During January and February, this Your Faith Journey devotional will guide you through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus. There will be opportunities to continue reading the Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this year:

1. How do you see yourself in the story when reading biblical narratives?

Which of these characters would I be?

In what ways is their story similar to my story?

2. Are you using a Study Bible?

A Study Bible is a very helpful tool for understanding each book of the Bible. They include information shared by scholars about historical and cultural realities during the time depicted or the era of the document, the author, when the book might have been written, the intended audience of the document, themes and messages within a book or letter, and more.

The NIV, NRSV, ESV, and NLT Study Bibles are worth considering if you do not own one. There are a few available from the AUMC Library in the back of the Chapel. You can also purchase a Study Bible from ChristianBook.com, Cokesbury.com, or Amazon.com.

3. What do these verses reveal about humanity?

4. What do these verses teach me about myself?

5. What do these verses reveal about God?

6. Invite the Holy Spirit to speak a message to you through the verses you read.

7. Read, study, and discuss scripture with a small group or another person.

 

*If you do not have a Bible, consider downloading the YouVersion Bible App for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play for your smartphone or tablet. You can also use www.BibleGateway.com to look up and read various translations of Bible verses online for free.

Sunday (1/16)

We are on a journey through the Old Testament in 2022. During the next two months this Your Faith Journey devotional will guide you through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus. There will be opportunities to continue reading the Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this year:

Sunday (1/9)

If you have not started already, you are invited on a journey through the Old Testament in 2022. During the next two months, this Your Faith Journey devotional will guide you through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus. There will be opportunities to continue reading the Old Testament books after the Lenten season in March and April. Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this year:

Sunday (1/2/22)

As a new year begins, you are invited to embark on a unique journey through the Old Testament in 2022. During the next two months, this Your Faith Journey devotional will guide you through the first two books of the Bible, Genesis and Exodus. There will be opportunities to continue reading the Old Testament books after the Lenten season. Before you begin to read Genesis, you are encouraged to watch the following Bible Project videos about the Old Testament and the first eleven chapters of Genesis. The videos are available on YouTube:

TaNaK/Old Testament by the Bible Project:

 

Overview Genesis: 1-11 by the Bible Project:

 

Below are some questions and suggestions to help you as you read scripture this year: