There's probably some wisdom in spending a month with every single verse in here, praying for the wisdom to understand how to live it more fully, trying to courageously follow just that verse for a month, then moving on to the next. You could spend a year in these 11 verses, then likely start all over, with still more ground to cover.
The Bible is like that -- deeper than we can imagine, a bottomless ocean that is always challenging yet comforting us at the same time. If we don't read the Bible and get uncomfortable at times, we need to read a little closer -- Scripture is always pushing us out of our comfort zone. Liberals, conservatives, those caught in the middle -- there's something here to challenge us all. I once heard someone say that when you find out that Jesus dislikes all the same people you do, you probably need to rethink some things in your life.
And yet while Scripture challenges us, it comforts us, because it's continuously reminding us of the grace of God. I read that verse about abstaining from every form of evil (wouldn't it be great if the worldwide church focused on that, rather than just cherry-picking particular types of evil and ignoring others?), and I know that I don't do that.
But Scripture consoles, too -- the sweetness of the Gospel is that in my weakness, I discover the strength of God, and in doing so, I am restored in my hope, for my future depends on God's generous and gracious love!
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