Thursday, December 9, 2021

Spiritual Disciplines

 I have been a list maker for a very long time.  I remember my mother using her pocket calendar to keep track of her appointments and birthdays and I remember all the snippets of paper containing various lists she had tucked away in that plastic-covered book of fun.  And I know I'm in very good company with other list makers around the world.

My problem with making lists is that I had collected a small mountain range of colorful sticky notes.  I had made these mountains over years of taking notes and while I had them in multi-colored stacks, they weren't organized into themes.  I organized these notes into various categories few years ago and keep much of that information in A5 size planner binders.  I reference and work in these binders on a fairly regular basis.  (These are Carpe Diem six-ring binders; the slightly larger red one on the right is a Webster's Pages product.  Classified Information: I secretly want all the solid colors made in the Carpe Diem A5 line:  Mustard, Persimmon, and more; oh my!) 

One list I have started is a list of Bible studies I want to do.  I have read or heard about some and others are studies I have been wanting to do for some time.  I learned to study the Bible at an early age--my dad was the first #BibleNerd I knew--and I have found that I have a passion for seeking and knowing God through His story.

However, as I started to keep a list of #AllTheBibleProjects I wanted to study I struggled with filing them into categories.  So many seemed to fit in more than one category and I've spent so much time sorting through them.  But I think I am getting closer to figuring out these categories for myself and then I can make binders and add to them as I continue this lifelong journey.  

Focusing On God Spiritual Disciplines
daily Scripture reading, daily Scripture writing, Scripture memorization, prayer
NEW:  I am adding creative/crafty Scripture Journaling with my DSW.

Growing My Faith Study Workbook
OT kings, OT prophets, OT judges, Bible women (OT and NT), Hebrew words, Greek verbs, word studies, Jesus' "I AM" statements, Fear Not 365 (apparently there are about 365 "fear not" or "do not be afraid" phrases in the Bible-one for every day)

Loving My Bible Reference Materials
Bible book summaries, Bible chapter summaries, my Scripture Treasure Box, and charts, graphs, tables, helps, etc.  I am also adding pages of my favorite hymns from a few hymnals I have as they speak so much #truth
NEW:  I have added the 3:16 and 1:9 verses, as well as the 40 Things a Christian Receives at Salvation study.

I am sure I will always be adding to these lists and it may be that I move different items to other binders as my needs change and my faith deepens.  But I feel pretty good about this for the moment.

Do you have binders or notebooks you keep studies in like this?  What do you keep in them?  Maybe this has helped you to think about your Bible study habits and how to keep it all organized.

Blessings to you!  Come back again!

6 comments:

  1. I never "studied" the Bible growing up and my parents were basically Sunday Christians only with us kids, although they studied a lot together before we were born. I never got many of those fundamental things studied like I should have so I have been so overwhelmed with what to study, how I should do it, and finding a good practice to study by. I do write scripture daily so at least that's a start. My hubby is not yet saved so he is doing a super deep study with our minister (hubby was raised JW so he is learning what is actual truth now) and I actually started joining them because he was learning some fundamentals I needed as well. I thought about verse mapping, or a word study to start with. I feel like I need to be guided in a study but I don't care to trust the throngs of false junk out there. I also am very much wanting the mustard and persimmon, ha! And I have zero memory of making this blog name many years ago until I commented the first time... but then again, I don't usually remember much!

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  2. I just put up a post today about My Faith Planner and all the things I have in it. Maybe you'll find some ideas?

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  3. Anonymous5/16/2022

    Hi Michele! It’s S from FLC. I love your blog and I’m so impressed at how in depth you study and how much you love the Word of God! 😍Thanks for sharing your ideas with us. 💕

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  4. Thanks for this! It helps mightily with "the overwhelm" and I now know something to do with my hoard of binders/ planners :)

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    1. Exactly! I was also overwhelmed by all the great information I had and somehow had to organize. It took me a while to get it organized (and I still reorganize haha) and I am glad to share a little something!

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