How do you read your Bible? When do you read it? What do you read? 

I've grown up hearing the Bible referred to as a roadmap and God's love letter to us.

But I'm pretty sure that not everyone who reads the Bible will find their way to heaven, and the mauling of 42 teenagers in 2 Kings for making fun of a bald guy isn't exactly the type of love letter I am used to reading (what can I say, my husband has set high expectations for me). 

Of course, I know what they are intending by saying this. I just think sometimes we limit the Bible to trivial and cutesy phrases, when it is so much more than that.

The Bible is all the information I can ever know about God.

The power in that is amazing. It should draw us to want to read more of it every day!

And yet, I neglect my Bible for days at a time. Only to find it sitting in the backseat of my car or buried deep in my couch underneath a pile of laundry. Some pastor's wife I am. 

I do read a devotional with two or three Scriptures at the bottom that pertain to the lesson of the day. But I've always felt a little guilty about that. Like I'm using Scripture as a fortune cookie, instead of reading it in context and understanding the whole powerful story.

But the days of sitting down and studying my Bible with a pen, highlighter and journal have honestly been few and far between. When I was a single gal (seems like centuries ago now) me and Jesus had a lot of quality time together. We took walks, had picnics, just us. I'm so thankful I went to Bible college and had the privilege of being immersed in it. But looking back, I took for granted how blessed I really was to have that opportunity. I learned so much about God during those years.

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My season of life and my relationship with God is quite different now, but I don't ever want to stop learning.

It's like dating someone and getting to know them, and then getting married and never trying to learn anything else about them. How exciting would that relationship be? 

Sometimes I feel like that with God.

I'm the one in the marriage who has quit trying. He has never stopped pursuing me. I am too focused on taking care of the family and too focused on doing things for Him. He is continually seeking time to just sit down and talk.

The longer I am away from Him, the more discontent my heart gets. This relationship is real. And it needs attention like any other one.

We have "date nights" reserved for our hubby and are sure to let everyone know how important it is to make that a priority, especially after having kids.

How much more should our passion be for God? 

We need to advocate for that time with Him. Undisturbed, if possible.

I know it's hard, I'm struggling too! But I'd love to hear from those of you who have found a way to make it a priority. So I'll ask those first three questions again, and feel free to share your answers below!

How do you read your Bible? When do you read it? What do you read? 

This post is part of a series I’m writing for the month of October entitled “31 Days of Being Content.”  See all other posts in this series by clicking here. Or enter your email address in the sidebar on the right to subscribe to this blog and receive posts straight to your inbox!

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One of the places I feel most content in life is leading worship. It's where I know God has called me to serve and use my talents for His glory and honor.

When I perform for weddings or events, I always get nervous. Always. But there is such a peace that comes over me when leading others to worship God that drowns out all the fears of what people think of me. I don't get nervous - I get excited, passionate and filled with a desire for others to truly sing out and praise God for what He has done for us!

Besides being a wife and mom, there is no other place where I feel absolutely fulfilled.

I am so thankful I had the opportunity to help lead our students in worship this past weekend at Decrease! They are some of the most passionate people I have ever met. Seriously, if you haven't spent much time with the teenagers at your church - you're missing out. I know everyone thinks they're up to no good and living carelessly in their youth, and sometimes that's true. But there are a ton of students that are genuinely seeking authentic faith and looking to see it lived out by us "old people" (and at 26, yes I'm old to them).

Live it. Be an example for them. Don't just write them off because they are struggling through this thing called life. They need our godly counsel and wisdom.

Whew, sorry to get off on a tangent there. I guess maybe someone out there needed to hear that today. But God has just really pressed upon me how important it is to influence the younger generations.

So like I said, leading worship and contentment go hand in hand for me. I will talk more later this month on ways that I still struggle with insecurities with my voice and music. But knowing that I'm doing what I'm called to do, gives me so much peace.

I'm sharing a few video snippets below that I gathered from students and leaders of the awesome weekend!

Hope you all had an amazing weekend as well! We're currently taking a time of "rest" and spending a few days in Orlando at Disney! I will be updating the blog every day, and I have a feeling it won't be too hard to find ways to be content while on vacation. Just a guess though. ;)

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This post is part of a series I’m writing for the month of October entitled “31 Days of Being Content.” See all other posts in this series by clicking here. Or enter your email address in the sidebar on the right to subscribe to this blog and receive posts straight to your inbox!

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HEART FULL.

Last night we met with 300 students and adults to kick off the first night of Decrease! It was an absolutely incredible time of worship and drawing close to Jesus. I realized, while sitting down to think about where to begin with this post, that this was the most content day I have had since I began writing.

What was different? 

Just like the name of the weekend alludes, "He must increase, but I must decrease." - John 3:30. Time spent in worship of God, takes away from the worship of self. When this happens, and only when this happens, do I truly find contentment.

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This post is part of a series I’m writing for the month of October entitled “31 Days of Being Content.”  See all other posts in this series by clicking here. Or enter your email address in the sidebar on the right to subscribe to this blog and receive posts straight to your inbox!