100

That's right... I'm on day 100!  I know it may be silly, but for some reason this number really excites me.  I am so thankful the Lord has put me on this journey and am glad for His faithfulness.  I have done well with keeping up with the Bible reading and praying for the world.  I have also done an OK job with committing to a church- I love the girls I get to hang out with and love seeing growth in our group!  I definitely still need to work on spending my money for a specific purpose.  I have yet to get down to that bottom line of giving up some of my comfort to help those in need.  Lord, show me how to do this!  I also am still looking for opportunities to spend my time in a different context.  Not sure if this needs to be a weekly thing (which I can't fit in my schedule right now), or if it needs to be a summer thing, where I travel a bit and get outside of my normal surroundings.  Either way, I'm excited to see where and when the Lord leads.  So, now that I've taken some inventory, I need to catch up on the reading and praying blog.  It's not going to be organized today... just a jumble of thoughts that have been rolling around in my head.  :)

I'm finally back to praying for countries instead of continents and I'm really excited.  I love learning about the countries and very specific things to pray for.  The first country was Afghanistan.  I recently met a new friend (through Tim) who served in Afghanistan and will be going back pretty soon.  It really helped me to have a connection to the country and I look forward to getting to talk with Daniel about getting to pray for him and the country.  Yesterday and today were Albania and Algeria.  So much has happened in Deuteronomy.  In fact, I'm through with it!  Moses gave lots of final instructions and tried to teach the people to remember all the things God had commanded them to do.  When it was time for Moses to die, he told the people to be strong and courageous.  Then in speaking to Joshua about taking his place, he told Joshua to be strong and courageous.  And when Moses commissioned Joshua in front of all Israel he said to be strong and courageous.  These were the words of the Lord to remind His people that He was going before them into this new land and would drive out all the people.  Then Moses teaches the Israelites a song so that they can remember the Lord's teachings.  (See, I knew music was a valuable teaching tool!)  After he finished the song, he blessed all the tribes and then went up on Mount Nebo to see the land the Israelites would be going into, and then he died.  After 120 years full of seeking after the Lord.  So that means now I'm reading Joshua.  In the first chapter the phrase "be strong and courageous" is used four more times.  One of those times it actually says be strong and very courageous!  I guess God knew the people would need to hear this over and over.  I feel like I need to hear things over and over a lot.  I know I should trust when the Lord speaks the first time, but sometimes it just takes me a while to get it.  I'm glad that there is Biblical evidence that shows I'm not the only one!  So Joshua sends some spies into the land to scout it out and a lady named Rahab (who happened to be a prostitute) took in the men and hid them.  She told them that her people had heard of the mighty things God has done on behalf of the Israelites and that they were afraid because of them.  She helped them escape the city after they made an oath to protect her and her family.  Jesus has been talking quite a lot in Luke and I do not always understand what He is saying.  But, here are some things I have picked up on.  We are valuable! He sees much worth in us as His creation.  He says we are worth more than many sparrows, that He knows the number of hairs of our heads, that we do not need to be anxious about what we will eat or wear because He takes care of the lilies and will take care of us much more than that.  This has been good to read and have on my mind as I face the uncertainty of living situations for the next year.  I can confidently say, "God will provide!"  Jesus also tells us that where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.  It's so important to build up or spend your life searching after the right kind of treasure.  Like a pirate, or Captain Jack Sparrow, who devotes their entire life only to finding treasure.  :)  Then there were several more things that just seem a little hard for me to understand, but I love reading them and knowing that Jesus spoke the words.  I truly believe His word is living and active, and that even though I may not be gleaning anything from these passages right now, I might in the future.  So I have come across a really cool psalm.  In Psalm 78, the author recounts the history of the Israelites.  It was so cool to read because I'm just finishing the time of Moses and the Israelites in the Old Testament.  It was really nice to hear concisely and from another perspective.  There were a couple of verses though, that broke my heart and brought much conviction this week.  "But they flattered him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues.  Their heart was not steadfast toward him; they were not faithful to his covenant."  I pray that I would be steadfast!  That I would not lie!  That my words would not be empty!  Oh God, teach me to be truthful to you and honor you with my heart!  Find me steadfast!  And more wisdom about anxiety from Proverbs.  I love it when the different parts I'm reading fit so nicely together. "Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad."

Oh man!  See?  Lots of thoughts all just spilled out with no organization.  But I'm glad the Lord is working in me regardless of how I present it!