Day 10 -- Wednesday, March 31st, 2011

Chapters read: Gen 9-11, Job 9-11, Matt 9-11

Meditated on: Job 10:11-12 and Matt 9:1-2.

I didn't do my reading on Monday and Tuesday so have caught up this morning by reading three chapters in each section. Since I didn't plan from the first to read every single day I don't feel guilty or anything. My only goal is to get through the Bible in a year, whether that means reading every day or reading the whole thing in 3 days :). Audio versions of the Bible proves that you can read the entire thing in 72 hours. However, having done it both ways, a little every day and a lot on a few days...I can see the pros in either approach. A little bit every day is a little more time-friendly, and it is easier to absorb the information. But doing a lot, (like today when I read three chapters in each section equaling nine chapters total), gives context for the reading. Especially in Job, when it's a conversational layout.

From my journal:

For some reason this morning I am totally struck by this beautiful passage in Job, "You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews. You have granted me life and steadfast love, and Your care has preserved my spirit."

I cannot say exactly why this grabs me so tightly. Perhaps because I wonder how someone who lived before Jesus came, and before life and forgiveness through Jesus' death and resurrection were even possible, how someone like Job could grasp Your majesty and compassion and intimacy. This passage is so personal, it demonstrates how well Job understood the relational aspect of Your presence and power.

When Job says, "Your care has preserved my spirit", I think of You tending our hearts as someone would tend a garden. We can be so easily crushed and trampled, yet Your care preserves us. What a beautiful thought.

I also noticed in Matthew 9:1-2 that Jesus heals someone based on the faith of others. It gives me hope that my prayers for others may not go unanswered. Sometimes when I pray for someone who has a hard heart and stubborn spirit I think, "how can God work with someone who is not willing to change?" But perhaps this passage means that the strength of my faith could ultimately make a difference in that person's life.