Friday Free Fifteen

I popped out of bed at 6:15 am, and I thought, "I want to immerse myself in Bible Book Club this morning!" I am still going to do that, but I wanted to do a book review (I am within 70 pages of the end so I always allow myself to write the review when I am within 100 pages of the end as it motivates me to FINISH!). Then I got intrigued that I could not write a comment on the 52 books in 52 weeks blog page. So, I am now "clearing cookies," and we will see if that helps. All that to say is that I have not gotten to the Bible Book Club, but I have . . . 

1. Fully loaded the dishwasher and started it (Paul and I only have 1 1/2 loads during the five days that George is gone, and sometimes the dishes get really smelly! I guess I can maybe just run "half loads" some dishwashers have that capacity, and I need to read up on that. To have our dishes reduced by at least half has just changed everything!)
2. Made a double recipe of Chai tea! (It is a "Friday Fast" day, but I drink tea before the sun rises)
3. Checked Facebook and am praying for the Kurds in Iraq and Syria as my two Kurd friends posted how they felt about the US involvement
4. Listened to 24 minutes of Jon Thurlow "Soothing Worship" which is so free flow, and it is not a published recording but a nice girl sent it to me because she recorded it while in the iHOP prayer room in Kansas City
5. Posted my review of my book and tried to post a comment on that website about four times and NO GO. What gives?

So here I sit doing a Friday Freewrite. I do not know how I got out of the habit of doing these things, but I miss them! I want to become a better writer, but I have not put much effort into it as I am just editing the Bible Book Club these days rather than writing fresh things. 

How I have loved this Bible Book Club project! I started writing on since December of 2007! That is almost seven years of this wonder odyssey. It really is not a "project" because it is part of my time with God! I have made it an abiding time rather than a work time, but it is also work time, but I am always amazed at how no matter where I am in the Bible that it speaks to me for that day! It is uncanny, but we serve an UNCANNY God!

Jon Thurlow is saying, "When you are by yourself, when you are in your car, when you are waking up in the morning light, I am waiting for you to dial down and talk to Me."  God wants us to talk to Him. 

It is interesting because I met with one of the TOAG girls, and she was saying how it was hard for her to have abiding time when she had homework, but we talked about abiding 24/7/365. It was really good. It is hard to believe that your work time and your abiding time can be integrated at her age. I remember when I was her age and crying out to God to have a 24/7/365 kind of life, but it was SO HARD back then.

It is not hard now. But how many years have I been putting abiding into practice. I don't even think about "putting it into practice" because it is like breathing now. When did the change occur? I am not really sure. It just happened. 

I think The Game of Minutes and Letters of a Modern Mystic and The Practice of the Presence of God were all really valuable in this process. Thank You Lord for the example of those who have gone before me!

Well, that was an easy fifteen minutes. Now I am off to explore Zephaniah! I am so looking forward to getting to Jesus! :) I always have "judgment fatigue" when I get to this point in my Bible reading! I still have to get through Jeremiah and Ezekiel first (I am reading chronologically, by the way), but I am up for the challenge! 

Bye!