Habits

These are my reading goals for Q1 (quarter 1 of 2020)…

I always start with the Bible. I just finished the year-long Bible Project plan, which was amazing. There are video intros to each book. Now I’m starting a deeper study into the new Testament. This study will go through one chapter a day, and it will remain within the New Testament. It will take all of 2020.

As far as last year’s study, I learned a few things. For one, I read 73 books. I’m pretty happy about that. I was able to find—in many ways and forms—a lot of wasted time to fill with something productive.

I also learned that I can stick to my goals better if I continue to do what I’ve done in the past and set quarterly goals. A year projection is nice, but not always the most effective. Either way, here’s what happened in 2019…

I’ve set my reading and learning goals high. The Bible is a given, and is therefore not listed. I will read through it at least once. I’ve tried to diversify the books and videos on this list. It seems like I’ve taken a particular interest in the Holocaust, the Gnostic Gospels, and evidence for the existence of God.

I’ve listed 50 books, 50 documentaries, and just over 20 debates that I want to get through in 2019. On top of that, I’ve listed the Gnostic Gospels, a few other religious texts, and some reading like the Catholic Apocrypha, which includes several books on its own. I’ll cross off each item as I make it through.

There’s plenty more that I want to absorb, but I had to cut it off somewhere. I believe a plan for growth should be intentional, and that’s what led to this list. I’m never questioning what to read/watch next; I plan ahead.

Here’s to growth for 2019!

We talk about prayer way more than we talk about fasting, yet fasting is mentioned along side prayer so often. It’s easy to read the prayer part, since praying (or at least the idea of praying) is easy.

When we’re going through a hard time, we know we need to pray. Our friends tell us to pray, and that they’re praying for us, but again… what about fasting? I know it’s not my first thought.

Fasting is an unmatched tool in the results it can bring, but it’s so often forgotten. And I don’t think it’s because everyone is fasting and keeping it to themselves. Sure, we’re supposed to fast in secret (Matthew 6:16-18), but more often that not, we’re not fasting at all.

It’s really easy to forget about something that we rarely talk about in church, and are supposed to do in secret.

Now that I have your attention, and you feel like you should be fasting more (I know I do), let’s get practical.

Minimalism is the new trend.

In a world where owning more seems to be the goal, people are fighting back, and that’s good.

Materialism doesn’t bring the happiness people think it brings.

So, is minimalism the right path? What does minimalism mean for Christians? Let’s talk…

“I don’t want to live in a hand-me-down world of others’ experiences. I want to write about me, my discoveries, my fears, my feelings, about me.” – Helen Keller

The journal. It’s a commonality among the people we read about in history books.

That’s probably why so many people write about it, and about the importance of it.

“Keep a notebook. Travel with it, eat with it, sleep with it. Slap into it every stray thought that flutters up into your brain. Cheap paper is less perishable than gray matter. And lead pencil markings endure longer than memory.” – Jack London

Think about it. The Bible is here today, because people wrote. I doubt they blogged about their life (I hear computers were much slower 2000+ years ago), but they definitely transcribed it somehow.

Just read through the Bible. If I had a shekel for every time the Lord told someone to “write it down”, I would be able to buy a lot of sheep and oxen. And I would journal about it.

Journaling has a history that’s likely longer than known human history.

So let’s talk about what journaling can do for you, and what you can do by journaling. Then I’ll give you all the tools you need to create a new journaling habit or to refresh your current one.