60IN60 Day 12 - Fri Jul 17

It's Day 12 and we're in Psalm 37.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 7 - Wait quietly on the Lord - that's hard to do.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have questions or comments, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 11 - Thurs Jul 16

It's Day 11 and we're in Psalm 36.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 5 - Nice phrase.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have questions or comments, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 10 - Wed Jul 15

It's Day 10 and we're in Psalm 35.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 17 - How long will you wait, Lord?

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have questions or comments, email me at butcher@ymail.com. 

60IN60 Day 9 - Tues Jul 14

It's Day 9 and we're in Psalm 34.

Where God Spoke To Me: 

- Verse 18 - A word we need when we can barely make it forward.

Help:
- Verse 20 - This is a prophecy that was fulfilled at Jesus' death.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 8 - Mon Jul 13

It's Day 8 and we're in Mark 8.

A little reminder from James 1:22 - "Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says!"

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 2-3 - These people had such a hunger to hear what Jesus had to say.  They were willing to go a great distance and go without eating for three days!

Help:
- Verses 16-21 - The "yeast" was the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.  The disciples couldn't see past the physical in what Jesus was saying.
- Verses 22-26 - Why did Jesus heal the man in this unusual way?  We don't know why He chose this particular way in this particular situation.  As you look at the fact that Jesus healed in different ways in different situations, one reason was as a reminder to us that there is no one way that God moves in every situation.  Depending on the circumstances and our needs the way that God moves varies.
- Verses 34-35 - "deny himself" - I need to put aside what I want to do and instead follow the teaching of Christ, believing that is the path to abundant life.  "lose his life" - In pursuing this path, there will be times where we feel like we're losing things that matter deeply to us and that we're therefore "losing our life," but this is also part of the path to abundant life.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 7 - Sun Jul 12

It's Day 7 and we're in Mark 7.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 7 - I want to make sure I don't get caught up following what people teach, but that I discover the things that God wants from me.  It's so easy to run around just looking religious.

Help:
- Verse 27 - This is harsh.  The larger context is that Jesus' specific mission was to the Jewish people.  He was focused on trying to point them to God.  In order to stay focused, you have to say "No" a lot.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com. 

60IN60 Day 6 - Sat Jul 11

It's Day 6 and we're in Mark 6.

We have lots of excuses for why we don't read the Bible: "I'm too busy," "I don't know where to start," "I tried it once and got confused," "I just never got around to it." I hope "60IN60" helps you to be able to overcome those excuses and experience a rewarding time in the Word. 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 34 - That's what so many congregations need: a shepherd to care for them and love them. They are sheep without a shepherd.

Help:
- Verses 2-3 - Before He began His ministry, apparently He was not someone who people looked at thought, "He's going to do amazing miracles some day." He blended in well.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

Your Questions and Comments:

- Mark 5. "I’ve always wondered about this passage for a couple of reasons. 1. Why would Jesus cast the demons into the pigs- that was someone’s livelihood. 2. Did the demons drown with the pigs? Is that why he didn’t simply cast them out?  Why would Jesus respond to their request?" - Good questions on a difficult passage. I don't feel like I have full answers that satisfy me on several details in this story, but I'll offer what I've got. First, why cast the demons into the pigs that were someone's livelihood? It does seem an odd thing to do. The one thought I have (and this doesn't fully satisfy me) is this. The pigs drown and those tending the pigs go to tell the town what happened. They all come out and see a miracle: a man they all knew to be demon possessed now in his right mind. What would be the right response to that? To praise God, to find out who had the power to perform that miracle, and then follow Him. But they didn't. They begged Jesus to go away. Part of the reason was fear of something they didn't understand and part of the reason was (this is the answer to your question) that they valued material prosperity more than spiritual breakthrough. The loss of the pigs does create a moment when these people emphatically choose the material over the spiritual. Second, did the demons drown with the pigs? No, they did not. They are spiritual beings. Before being sent into the pigs, they begged Jesus not to "send them out of the area" (v. 10). It's a little clearer in Luke's version of this story the larger thing the demons were afraid of. There the demons beg Jesus not to send them "into the abyss" (Luke 8:31). (This agrees with Mark because it's also out of the area but tells us more specifically where it would be.) This speaks to the demons being cast into hell, from which they would not be able to return. This tells us that the demons were aware of the power Jesus possessed over them. They are begging Him not to cast them into hell in this moment. Third, why would Jesus respond to their request? Why did Jesus grant their request? It is a bit of mystery to me. The closest I can get echoes an earlier point. Perhaps He allowed it because He wanted to create the moment when the true priorities of all these people would be revealed: material prosperity over spiritual victory. If that's the reason, He was using the demons to cause the result He wanted.

- A comment from one of our 60IN60 participants. Mark 5. "In regard to the little girl whom Christ raised from the dead: 'and they laughed at him.' Christ immediately puts the scoffers out of the room and proceeds to raise the dead. I'm sure the ones who scoffed, proceeded to marvel.  So much for the opinion of man."