The Family Who Reads Together...

We went to the library today. Summer hours mean that the library is only open after 5 on Tuesday and Thursday. Because I have school on Thursday, Tuesday is the only day we can go. We came home with some real scores! :) Jillian got "Rabbit and the Moon", "The Pigeon has Feelings Too" and my personal favorite, "Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed". Chloe got a Magic Treehouse book as well as "The Nine Lives of Rotten Ralph" and (because she said 'It will be good for school, Mom!') "George Washington, Father of the Nation". Nathan got "High-Altitude Spy Planes", "Attack Helicopters: Apache" and "Writen in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland". These are the books that my kids choose for themselves. And I LOVE it because they want to learn!!!!
I got a couple of John Sanford novels too but I don't know if I'll be able to read them. I spend so much of my free time on the computer and when I'm reading, I try to read my Bible. I've gotten a whole lot better at reading The Word every day and honestly, on the days I don't, I really miss it. It feels like my relationship with Christ gets... distant. It really is like missing a friend - like going a few days without talking to your best friend. I never appreciated it when other Christians talked about how much they enjoy spending time in the Word until just recently. And now I don't want to spend a day without giving God a chance to talk to me through His Word!! I don't want to miss out on what He has to say to me!!
Today I read 1 Corinthians 4. This passage begins with the idea of how God is the judge; it is not for man to judge. I've read this passage before and heard it preached on... Today however something new struck me. Paul says, "I care very little if I am judged by your or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself ... It is the Lord who judges me." (4:3-4) The rest of the paragraph encourages believers to remember that whatever we've been blessed with and whatever we've achieved, we are no different from anyone else. All that we are and all that we have is a gift from Him - a merciful gift from our Almight Savior so it is impossible to boast in our own strengths and accomplishments! "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power." (verse 20) We have been given much because we are called to make a difference for Him - not with our lips, but with our lives. And through Him we have power. So thankful am I!