The Word

One of the most amazing descriptions of the Bible that I've ever read.
From the Spring Harvest website:

"It’s time we stopped seeing the Bible as a book. It’s 66 volumes by more than three-dozen authors to make a little library. It’s a repository of reference; a Treasure-chest of truth; a library of lives. 
The Bible holds together with remarkable consistency and strength. Core themes run like rivers through the texts. Questions asked in ages past are answered in dreams of the future. Promises made in times of need are fulfilled in times of grace."

And why it's so important to read:

"Biblical direction for the road we travel, will equip you to better understand the Bible, to better apply its teachings and to better live out the powerful call of the Spirit who broods and breathes within its pages."

So true! And so inspiring! (Normally, I would not consider myself an exclamation mark user, however 'the Spirirt who broods and breathes within its pages' is so ridiculously exciting!)

I love my bible.
This video on 'Why the bible?' also sums things up really well, as to why we should trust it.

Ravi Zacharias- if you haven't heard of this guy, look him up. His wisdom is phenomenal. 

 p.s. (skip to 2:24, the stuff before that is about philosophy and can be confusing) 

Oh. Wow.

Redefining Righteousness

Proverbs 24:16 says, “The righteous man falls down seven times, but seven times, he rises again.”
That’s not what comes to our minds when most of us think of a righteous person. We think they’re someone who never or rarely falls. But that’s because our idea of righteousness is rooted in self-righteousness. The real righteous person is the one who has been made righteous by Jesus and then can let Jesus pick him back up when up when he falls.   

This extract is taken from the blog of Steven Furtick, and was, to me, like a giant slap in the face. Although that image of punishment completely negates what this is saying. Perhaps it would be better to say it was a great dousing of grace, because my notion of righteousness is all wrong.
Being righteous, it's all about who can get to the point where they make the least mistakes, right? I can't believe I was believing that. A subconscious trick was telling me these lies.

The truth: a righteous person is a person whose righteousness comes from Christ.
Sounds basic, but it redefines our images of what it means to be righteous and holy. The world says this is a holy person:

Look how clean and shiny he is. But God isn't concerned with what the world labels as holy. I could never drink, attend church every sunday, tithe my money, spend my time volunteering, and the world might think I was 'righteous'. But God looks at the heart. And his definition of righteous is the one who trusts in God for their righteousness. Who has the humility to ask time and time again for his grace to be able to get back on their feet. It's so simple, and so beautiful. It's so much easier than trying to please the world, and live up to their expectation of 'righteousness'.

And what is even more astounding, is that when we lift our eyes off ourselves and concern for our own holiness, and fix them upon Jesus, the perfect example of righteousness, when we kneel before him, dwell in his love and search for him in his Word, he does it all for us anyway. The light of God shapes us inside first, then outside next, the way it's supposed to be.

It's time to stop the striving, and to stop believing the lies. 

You have not loved (and cannot love) your neighbor enough to please God, therefore, in order to stand righteous before God, you must trust in and glorify the Righteous One who loves his neighbor perfectly.

Various things stolen from:  http://www.stevenfurtick.com/ and http://dangitbill.wordpress.com/2010/04/29/who-may-stand-before-god/