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(The following are reflections from the writer’s personal journey through The Bible Recap by Tara-Leigh Cobble – a Bible reading plan to read the Bible chronologically in one year. To learn more about The Bible Recap, visit thebiblerecap.com. Find more posts from this series at lifeword.org/thebiblerecap.)

Day 351: Read Philippians Chapters 1-4

My Takeaways:

To live is Christ, to die is gain. What does it mean ‘to live is Christ’? Christ empowered Paul to face whatever was in front of him. He experienced Jesus’ rescue, help, provision, power, and miracles. But, he also expected suffering, pain, and sorrow. Yet, Paul was surrendered to face whatever the Lord put in his path. He trusted God and followed Him devotedly…even if that led to his death. Paul knew he could do all things through Christ, who strengthened him, because he experienced it time and time again.

That, friends, is “to live is Christ.” It is a beautiful relationship built on love and trust.

Paul encouraged the Philippians to STAND FIRM in their faith and allow God to continue sanctifying them, for God was working in them and through them for His good purpose. Paul urges them to not give way to grumbling and complaining, but to rejoice! To not give way to worry but instead give way to praying each time a worry sneaks up on them. He calls them to focus on the good and godly—the true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable—and the of peace will be with them.

Rejoicing when you want to complain….

Trusting God’s lead in dark valleys….

Standing firm when you want to give up….

Rejoice when you are hurting….

These are all open doors to experiencing God’s joy. Joy shows up in the situations in life we least expect when don’t give way to our flesh, when we live like we believe God.

Joy is far better than happiness or fun. It sustains. It supplies. It strengthens. It saves us from despair. That, friends, is my God Shot from today’s reading.

Day 352: Read 1 Timothy Chapters 1-6

My Takeaways:

Guard what’s been entrusted to you.

Oh friends, Paul’s letter to Timothy, like all of his letters, have so many pearls of godly living in it! Paul began his letter with his testimony. He called himself out by saying he was a “blasphemer,” “persecutor,” and an ”arrogant man.” Then, he makes a point to show the beauty and mercy of God: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—and I am the worst of them.” Friends, you can’t out-sin God. Paul is proof of that.

Paul has been fighting the good fight of faith, preaching and teaching. He has faced the darkest of valleys and experienced those mountaintop moments—he knows it’s a dog fight. He also knows it’s a fight worth having.

He urges all believers to train themselves in godliness—we are to yearn for tranquil and quiet lives, producing good works that reflect our heart for Jesus. He gives guidelines for serving the church and for marriage. He warns against demonic influence that will lead many away with deceitful teachings. Paul encourages respect for the elderly and to approach all in purity. He urges believers to support their widows and those in authority over us. This is how we can guard what as been entrusted to us!

I love how he encourages Timothy to not let anyone stop him from living out his ministry because he is young—but to set the example in speech, conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity. Young people can change the world! Mary, Joseph, and the disciples are proof of it!

My God Shot is the word “fight.” Faith is a fight. It’s not always easy. It’s hard to keep striving for things and believing for things you can’t see. That is why we are to flee from the things that can pull us away from our death and to purpose righteousness.

Fight the good fight, friends. For when we do, something special happens: we experience God. That flame in our hearts gets ignited, and and we get Holy Spirit power to stay in the fight.

Day 353: Read Titus Chapters 1-3

My Takeaways:

Humble submission.

Today, our letter from Paul is short—-what is this?! We aren’t used to that! Normally, he has long letters full of encouragement and rebuke. Though Titus is short, Paul says much! You know our guy—he never minces words!

He warns Titus and those in Crete about those who have deceptive talk and are ruining households. Pauls calls them to rebuke those people sharply so that they may be sound in the faith. Sounds ironic doesn’t it? The whole idea is that they get refined in the rebuking—that it grabs their attention in such a way, it sparks a repentant attitude and a change in behavior. Paul says you will know who to rebuke through their works because, “Their works will show their heart.”

Paul builds up structure for godly living at Crete. Godly older men are to teach younger men. Godly younger women are to teach younger women. Slaves are to obey their masters with faithfulness.

Our faith is about submitting to rulers and authorities, beginning with Christ Jesus first and foremost. After that, submit to earthly rulers. Funny, Jews thought that the Messiah would come and fight Rome and overthrow them, as well as other nations who would enslave them. But, Jesus showed them to trust God and submit to their rulers. That is what Paul is teaching too. He saying, “You may not love your rulers, but submit to them and trust God to meet your needs.”

My God Shot came from Chapter 3:5: God has poured out his Spirit upon us—it washes us and regenerates us. We are new creatures with a new mind. We have to choose to use it! It won’t come naturally—in fact, it will quite possible be the hardest things we can do. But if we choose to live in a godly way, it changes our mind to think God’s way, not the world’s way. His Word has the same impact: it changes us the more we take it in.

I don’t know about you girls, but I bought in to a lot of faulty thinking growing up. Reading God’s Word has been a slow process of changing my mind over time to think God’s way, not my way. It’s a beautiful change that may not be instant, just at some point, you will react to something in different way—a godly way, a submissive way, and think, “ What was that?!?! That isn’t me!”

That’s right. It’s God in me.

Day 354: Read 1 Peter Chapters 1-5

My Takeaways:

Suffer well.

I know—this sounds terrible doesn’t it? Almost like a slap on the face terrible?! And yet, that is the message Peter is giving believers in Rome. Under severe persecution, these believers are called to suffer well. They are to REJOICE that they are suffering in various trials for it was refining not only their character, but also their faith—which is more valuable than gold. It produces a fiery faith.

Peter reminds these believers that suffering is going to be a part of life. That we aren’t to be surprised when fiery ordeals come our way—it’s a part of life, especially if we are living as Christians. I have to be honest, at the peak of my suffering, this verse antagonized me and encouraged me. I simply could not rejoice because I was immersed in turmoil and pain. It was opposite of how I felt! And yet, I knew it was driving me to the mercy seat, causing me to pray more, memorize Scripture more, and believe more. It was refining me in my suffering. That whole rejoicing part is still hard…but it comforts me because I know it’s headed somewhere good.

And here’s the deeper point: Christ suffered the unimaginable for me. I can suffer well for Him.

God called believers then and now to be holy, in our words and actions, so that others don’t see us—they see God in us.

They will see that God meets us in our suffering.

They will see that, when we are persecuted, we pray for those who hurt us.

They will see that when our pride wants to flare up, we are humble and submit to authority.

They will see that when we are bothered or annoyed or angered, we are to show love to one another from a pure heart. That when we want revenge, we are called to give a blessing.

This, friends, is a paradoxical life. We are called to act and speak opposite of how our flesh wants to act and speak. This is humility. This is being holy. This is submitting those feelings to God and letting Him sort it all out.

This is living out 1 Peter 5:6: Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God so that He may exalt you at the proper time.

He meets us in our suffering. He strengthens us to face it. And if we submit to Him, He comes out through our words and actions. We live out the Gospel in a brilliant shining light to a dark and suffering world.

Friends, our suffering has a purpose. Our suffering has eternal impact. Our suffering impacts others around us. Our suffering might be the BEST thing that happens to us. For when we are weak, we are strong in Christ. Those refining fires burn off all the fake in us.

Persecution can produce a fiery faith.

So, friends, submit well….and suffer well. It’s going somewhere good, for a righteous person is saved with difficulty. As we have learned the past 354 days, God can be trusted. God is faithful.

Day 355: Read Hebrews Chapters 1-6

My Takeaways:

Christians, let’s eat some meat!

Funny title, right? In a way, I feel like this is one of the many themes of Hebrews. Funny, this was a lesson I paid dearly to learn. Nine years ago, I had a dream. In this dream, I was urged to stop living off of milk and to eat meat—steak, especially. I was served steak and as I started to eat it, someone said, “Don’t eat that! It’s raw.” I looked down and saw it was pink. I woke up so disturbed from that dream. What did it mean?

Soon after this, a dark season had descended upon me, one that lasted seven years. Yes, friends, seven long years. It was a spiritual warfare like no other I had experienced. I thought I was going to lose my mind. Looking back, I now know God was telling me it was time to grow up in my faith and start taking in some serious meat (for me, it was trusting God) to survive, but I had to use discernment and know what was of God and what was of the enemy. You would think that was simple, right? Can I tell you how sinister and sly the enemy is? He weaved in his lies in such a sly, crafty way, I couldn’t tell truth from lie. Good from evil.

I have come out of that season, but it wasn’t at once. It was a daily decision to trust God over my own fears. One day led to another and another and here I am, over a year later, free from those shackles that bound me for years. I started recognizing the raw meat of Satan and started eating some steak of God.

That is what the writer of Hebrews is urging believers to do: eat meat, grow up in our faith so that we can stand firm against evil. Friends, knowing God’s Word can help us stand firm—but more than anything, it’s believing God’s Word and living like we believe it.

I would be lying in saying the book of Hebrews wasn’t a hard read for me, but I definitely felt the passion and intensity of the writer (who has very long sentences) from the very get-go when he establishes exactly who Jesus is: Jesus is the radiance and the expression of God. His death put a stop to the one holding the power of death—the devil. After He made purification for our sins, He now sits at the right hand of God. Everything is subject to Him.

The writer warns his readers to not have an unbelieving heart that turns away from God, a heart that is hardened by sin’s deception. We are called to hold firmly to our faith in Christ.

My God Shot lies in these words: “let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ and go on to maturity.” Friends, we know more than we did a year ago. We have grown more than where we were a year ago. We are held accountable more because we know more. May we continue living off of the “meat” of God through His word and believing His word, trusting Him who has led Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to begin a new legacy in faith. The One who poured into Moses and Joshua, Joseph and Gideon, the One whom Daniel trusted. If their trust in God changed their lives, so can ours. May we continue to grow stronger and stronger for those deep and dark seasons of life, for they will come.

May we sit at our Father’s table and eat His meat, come mountain, valley, or deep waters. We were made to thrive in such times.

Day 356: Read Hebrews Chapters 7-10

My Takeaways:

Whoa, Nellie! You gotta saddle up here for this reading—it is chock full of theology on Jesus being not only the perfect sacrifice but also being THE priest for all times. That He entered that holy place, tearing down that curtain that separates man and God, and sprinkled His blood on the altar, becoming the mediator of the new covenant, once and for all. That the old law existed using blood—the life force—from animals to set man up for the ultimate sacrifice: Jesus. The blood of bulls and goats wouldn’t ever truly take away sin—that only Jesus’ blood could do this. God set the law up around blood—that everything is purified with blood—without the shedding of it, there is no forgiveness.

It’s always been about the blood and about Jesus. The old covenant was a picture of what God has in store for mankind when He sent His Son to earth as a baby.

There is a common saying going around today that says this: “I am enough.” It sounds so good, doesn’t it? But how many people actually believe it? I daresay not many. It’s hard to look yourself every day in the mirror and believe that. But, with Jesus, He truly is enough—His death and sacrifice were enough. The moment we accept Him as Savior, we become enough, not by anything we have done, but by His perfect sacrifice for us. He makes us enough.

But those who reject God have a terrifying judgment waiting on them since there is no sacrifice for their sins. The writer of Hebrews even says this very real and very scary statement: “It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” I don’t even want to imagine, friends!

I love how the writer wraps up this heavy theology up with this holy encouragement: draw near to God with hearts of faith, hearts and consciences sprinkled clean from our old selves, and our bodies washed in water. The moment we accepted Jesus, we got a new mind and a new heart. Our old selves are washed away. But here’s the key: we must choose to walk in our new lives. We must have faith and hope without wavering. Let us hold tight to our faith and confidence in Him.

God can be trusted. What promises He makes, He keeps.

Haven’t we seen this in the Bible? Haven’t we seen His faithfulness in His kids’ lives?

My God Shot is something we have seen all throughout our journey: the righteous will live by faith. Faith activates God. Without faith, it is impossible to please Him. We must walk by faith and endure hardships knowing God is present and in the details of your life. He who calls us, is faithful.

Day 357: Read Hebrews Chapters 11-13

My Takeaways:

By faith, Noah built an ark…even when it hadn’t rained.

By faith, Abraham set out for his Promised Land, where he would be the father of many nations.

By faith, Abraham offered his son as a sacrifice.

By faith, Moses parted the Red Sea.

By faith, the walls of Jericho came tumbling down.

By faith, Rahab welcomed the spies.

I would even add these…

By faith, Daniel continued to pray three times a day, breaking the king’s edict.

By faith, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to worship an idol.

By faith, Peter walked on water.

By faith, lepers were healed.

By faith, a woman was cured from 12 years of bleeding.

By faith, Esther saved a nation.

Faith is the key, friends! It always has been—it always will be! Faith is the confidence in what we hope for and the assurance of what we do not see.

It is impossible to please God without faith! This is a bold statement—we can’t please our God if we don’t live our lives in a way that shows we put our hope in Him, knowing that even though we can’t see Him, He is there working all things together for our good.

Faith activates everything in our Christian lives. It activates salvation and after that, it opens the door to experiencing God. It is the game changer! It is the difference maker!

We are called to lay aside every weight and every hindrance and every sin that can easily ensnare us and to run our race with endurance, keeping our eyes on Jesus.

At times, we walk by faith, not by sight. At times, we run by faith, not by sight.

Any discipline we get from God comes because He loves us and knows we can do better in this race. Any discipline He allows is an opportunity to free ourselves from that weight that ensnares us.

Endurance is the key. It’s not a sprint—it’s a marathon of life. Any bumps, obstacles, mountains, or valleys in our way can give us the lasting power we need to finish when we approach them with faith.

Let’s end today with a look at your lives. By faith, what have you done? Add in your own “By faith…” statement, along with any God Shots you may have!

Here’s mine:

“By faith, Amber overcame her fear of the dark.”

“By faith, Amber realized that God was enough and because of that SHE was enough. That come what may, He was with her and would sustain her.”

Copyright © 2022 by Amber Spencer @ Lioness Legacy Facebook Page No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org