Saturday 6 August 2011

The Bible in 90 days.

I am currently trying to complete the challenge to read the bible in 90 days. I have had comments from friends who I respect admiring my commitment to reading God's word. The truth is that this commitment began with a feeling of shame. I profess to be a Christian but the truth us that I am really a bit rubbish. Let's face it you only have to look at my blog to realise this. Sustained activity for a few weeks then nothing for months on end.  The truth is that despite professing faith and being baptised in 1989 (wow that really is a long time ago, to give you a clue Nigel Mansell won the Brazilian grand prix in his first race for ferarri on the day I was baptised) I have never in all those years read the whole Bible. I do not just mean that I have not sat down and read it in one sitting, i mean that their are books of the Bible that I just simply have bit read.
Like many Christians I suppose the new testament is quite well read the gospels especially. The old testament though is a different story though. Because  the reading plan starts from the beginning I have been reading large chunks of the Bible I have never read before.
It has been a challenge some books (1 and 2 chronicle's I'm looking at you) being repetitive in Kings being evil well apart from a few standing out. What I have noticed more than anything is a God who pursues his people. The story of the old testament is one of a God who is constantly calling back people who have deserted him to go off being sinful. This leads me to two conclusions:
Firstly not much has changed we are still going our own way and sinning against the living God we only need to look around to realise this to be true.
Secondly God is still in pursuit revealing himself to us and calling on us to come back to him and worship him as we did before.
It's good to know that as much as some things change God does not.