I hope that in a few days, those of you who read along with the DBRP using the Youversion Bible app will see a difference in the formatting of the Digging Deeper reading plan. There will be either one or two direct links to the podcast audio in the upper right hand corner of the Devotional Content section. If you are listening in the first 200 days of the reading plan, you will see a link for listening to either GNT or NLT. If you are listening in the last part of the year, you will just see the NLT link, because I am still recording the GNT podcasts. I have also made improvements to the devotional text in the first 200 days of the plan.
The listening links should open whatever is your default MP3 player and you will be able to return to the Bible app to read along. And here is where I ask for your help: Please try out the links, and let me know if there are problems. I may need to change the way the audio files are linked within the Devotional Content text.
My work to encourage the understanding of God’s Word in Indonesia is vigorously moving ahead even though I am in Arkansas. Two women in Jakarta finished our online Bible translation course and have joined our translation team on a part-time basis. They are producing high quality drafts of Exodus. Our team in Papua has had difficulties saving their work because of a broken undersea fiber optic cable that served the province, and because of other technical issues. I don’t think the cable issue is fixed, but the other issues were solved, and their drafts are slowly getting to our out-of-country server. I have been much more engaged in managing the total team since coming back to the states, and working hard on longer range planning. Planning has never been my strong suit, but through the mentoring of an Indonesian businessman and friend, I am getting better at it. I never thought it would happen: The Lord has given me pleasure and joy in doing this kind of planning work.
Who of us is not disturbed by the events that have been happening all over the world?! What can we see in God’s Word that will help us at this time? As I prepare podcasts several days before they are released, I have been reading in Jeremiah, and you probably realize already that the Digging Deeper reading calendar is weighted heavily toward the prophetic writings from now to the end of the year. Jeremiah was living in a time of God’s judgment on Judah. His being a righteous man in God’s sight could not save him from the events of his day. He was given the heavy responsibility of preaching to the people of Judah, even though God told him they would not listen. Because they refused to repent, we will read of the terrible events Jeremiah had to witness. More than just the historical facts, we will read his poems telling how all this caused him to suffer. We’ll also hear God telling us exactly why he sent that terrible time of judgment upon Judah. It won’t be hard for you to see correspondences to our modern times. So, what if we are caught in a time of judgment like Jeremiah? No matter what happens in our lifetime, we can be encouraged by God’s promises. As we keep on reading, we will see amazing prophecies fulfilled. Others are being fulfilled right now before our eyes. Even though this may be scary, it also ought to encourage us. We’ve read the end of the story, and know who wins in the end!
I encourage you to pass on the blessing any time the Lord blesses you through a through his Word— whether or not that happens through the DBRP. If anything will help our troubled world, it is God’s Word. If you share on Facebook, after sharing with your friends, please also share your encouragement with the Digging Deeper Facebook group.
Thanks for listening. If you would like to comment to me about anything, please use our Digging Deeper Facebook group, or send a Facebook message to me.
May the Lord bless you ‘real good’.
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