Do you find it easy to be consistent with a Bible reading plan?
I struggle with this at times. I’ve found 6 ways to help myself.
- Keep all my Bible reading “supplies” together and in the same place. This includes my Bible, pencil, commentary, notebook, and timer. When I sit down to read, I also bring my ice pack (from the freezer) for my lower back. I use my notebook for insights and questions from the text. I also jot down any worries or to-do’s that interrupt my mind.
- Find a quiet place to read. The less distractions I have, the better I am able to purposefully read; and the more I want to read.
- Beautify the space. Because this area is beautiful, it is a visual joy to sit here. I have a candle that I light and a pretty pillow that I use. In the winter I snuggle with a lap quilt that a dear friend made.
- Realize that life happens. Some seasons I have a lot of time to read. Sometimes not. For those “not” times, I choose a plan this is shorter or tweak one to make the readings shorter. Since I have a lifetime to read the Bible, I don’t have to read it everyday, every season, like a Ph.D scholar.
- Mix it up. Sometimes I follow a devotional and read/ponder the Scriptures listed. Sometimes I hop-scotch through the books. Sometimes I feel “led” to read certain portions. Mainly I use a reading plan.
- Pray. I ask God to help me to have a hunger for His Word and to help me carve out the time on a daily basis. I also ask Him to guide me and show me what He wants me to see.
Did you know that there is a WIDE VARIETY of reading plans available online? Into They Word Ministries lists 12 plans.
Below are some of my favorites.
This works for me. What tips do you have to share?
Go to Works-For-Me Wednesday (WFMW) to see what works for other folks in ALL kinds of areas. So far today there are 245 entries.
Below are some of my past WFMW posts that might be helpful.
June 18, 2008
Sometimes I get overwhelmed by all the house cleaning. And sometimes I can’t figure out what to do first.
This is when I go to Flylady.Com.
- Then I click on the Fly Zone which is on the left hand side bar.
- The zones are the same for each week of each month.
- For instance this is week 2 so the zone to clean this week is the kitchen.
Flylady encourages us to declutter 15 minutes a day in that zone. There is also a detailed cleaning list for each zone. Go here for the kitchen details.
Last night I decided to make this week’s project the kitchen cabinets - which are a greasy mess. I didn’t want to use chemical cleaners on them so I used dish detergent on a scrubby sponge. This did not work out too well. A little Google research this morning turned up some great ideas.
- Yahoo Answers suggested: Combine 1/2 Cup Borax, 2 Tablespoons laundry detergent soap flakes, 1 Tablespoon ammonia, with 1 Gallon water. Use full strength in a spray bottle. (submitted by fishineasy)
- Many places say straight vinegar is a great degreaser. It will be smelly for awhile.
- Baking soda is another common suggestion. Make of paste by mixing 3 Tablespoons of baking soda with up to 1 Cup of water. You’ll need to experiment to see which works best for your cabinets. Be sure to rinse thoroughly and then dry with a clean cloth.
- Tipnut.com has 2 ideas. Idea 1: Half fill an empty dish detergent bottle with ammonia. Fill the other half with hot water. Drop in several squirts of Dawn dish detergent. Replace the cap and shake.
- Idea 2: To one Gallon of water add the following: 1 Cup ammonia, 1/2 Cup vinegar, and 1/4 Cup baking soda. Mix well in a bucket making sure that the baking soda is well dissolved.
Since I have an empty dish detergent bottle, I’ll be trying #4. I’ll let you know how this works out. Do you have any degreaser tips?
For other ideas that work, check out Works-For-Me-Wednesday. So far there are 243 great ideas.
Past Works-For-Me Cleaning Ideas:
June 11, 2008
*Spoiler Alert* If you are going to Women’s Retreat 2008 do NOT read any further. Otherwise you will read about Friday night’s Bingo icebreaker game.
Everyone else may continue reading . . .
(more…)
June 4, 2008
The weather is warm and the ceiling fan helps move the air around the house. Since the fan blades are dirty, it also moves dust around the house. So today, I’ll clean it in 3 easy steps.
- Gather supplies: drop cloth, ladder/stool, spray cleaner, feather duster, and the secret weapon - a sock. You might need two, if the fan is very dirty.
- Spread drop cloth under fan. Set stool/ladder on top of cloth, under the fan. Get on ladder.
- Dust fan blades. Put sock on dominant hand.
- Spray fan blades. (Sometimes I uses vinegar, if I don’t have any regular cleaning sprays.) Wipe off with socked hand. Repeat until done.
- Pick up drop cloth. Shake outside. Put away all your supplies.
This cleaning project is great for using up odd socks. And I always seem to have odd socks. Even though they go into the dryer as a pair, they come out as singles. Go here to read a poem about missing socks I wrote one distraught day.
Go here to read other Works-For-Me-Wednesday posts.
Related Posts Works-For-ME Wednesday:
Cleaning
Edited to Add These Tips from Commenters:
April 29, 2008
Lemon Tree, the song by Peter, Paul and Mary says,
Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet
but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat.
(Click here for the YouTube rendition of Lemon Tree.)
Not true! The fruit of the poor lemon can be eaten and used. Tomorrow I’ll share 13 ways to use a lemon.
But Today I’ll share 6 ways you can store the lemons for future use.
- Put lemons in a jar in the refrigerator. Make sure the jar has a tight-fitting lid to prevent loss of moisture. They’ll keep for many weeks this way. (I couldn’t find out how many weeks.)
- Put the lemons in a plastic bag and put into the refrigerator. Sources say they’ll keep up to six weeks this way.
- Keep the lemons on the counter. They’ll keep juicy at most two weeks. The humidity and temperature will determine its length of freshness.
- Squeeze the lemons. Put the juice in ice trays. Once frozen, put the lemon cubes in a freezer bag.
- Make candied lemon peel. Put this into a sealed jar in the refrigerator. It will keep up to 6 months.
- Make preserved lemons. The lemons are marinated at least 3 weeks in their juice and salt. Preserved lemons are used in many Moroccan and Middle Eastern dishes.
Do you have another way that you store your lemons? Do tell!
For more Works-For-Me Wednesday Tips, click here. At last count there were 257 tips.
April 23, 2008
I take a lot of notes between seminary classes and church. I have developed a few shorthand icons that you might like to use.
I draw the following pictures in the margin of my notes. . . .
- Outline a book - I use this anytime a book is mentioned. I also write the name of the book and underline the name.
- Smiley face - I use this whenever a person’s name is mentioned.
- Lightbulb - I use this whenever I want to think more about a certain concept.
- Tear drop - I use this whenever I am emotionally moved and need to come back to think about why.
- Hand outline - I use this to denote a prayer item.
Do you have any shorthand icons that you use? Please share.
Go to Works-For-Me-Wednesday to read tips on all sorts of topics. So far there are 295 submissions!
Edited to add: AI - This means Action Item. Whenever I think of something I need to do, I write the something on the top of the page with AI next to it. The AI might or might not relate to the class.
April 9, 2008
This week’s Works-For-Me Wednesday is theme day: republish one of our favorite WFMW posts. I wasn’t sure which one was my fav, so I did a little looksee through my archives.
The following post might not be one of my favorites, but I definitely needed to reread it today. I FOUND one of those hairs. I’ve been amiss on my hair duty. Oh, I’ve updated any mentions of age. Read on for more. . . .
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Easy Beauty Tip for the 40+ Crowd (Not 4 The Faint Hearted)
I don’t mind being 50 - most of the time.
But I do mind the indignities of sprouting hair on my face.
In the morning I’m fine. Then I’ll be out in public, pat my cheek or stroke my chin and discover a 2 inch disaster!
Then I got smart. I keep a pair of tweezers in my car and by my computer. Now when I’m waiting in traffic or waiting for my (dial up) computer to get moving, I check my chin and cheeks.
I haven’t had a wayward hair embarrass me for months now. Don’t buy those cheepie silver tweezers. You don’t have to buy the most expensive ones either. Mine are the turquoise slanted kind.
That’s my Works-for-Me Wednesday tip and I’m sticking by it. Go on over to Rocks In My Dryer for more of the Greatest WFMW Hits.
April 2, 2008
“$10.00 for a bouquet of daisies! Oh, dear. And I need at least 8 bouquets.”
“What did you say, Jessie?”
“I can get 3 bouquets for $8.00 dollars? Where?”
”My WalMart doesn’t sell bouquets of flowers.”
“Oh! Buy a daisy plant and cut the flowers off the plant?!” Each pot has three nice stems of flowers?”
“Brilliant! WalMart has a bunch of those plants right now because of Easter. Some of the pots even have two colors of flowers, purple and yellow.”
“Thanks for the tip, Jessie.”
For other Works-for-me-Wednesday tips click here.
March 25, 2008
My favorite place to shop online is Amazon.com. But Phyllis wrote a great post about this.
So then my next suggestion is Jessica’s Biscuit. I’ve been looking for cookbooks with recipes for one or two people. This site has at least 18 such cookbooks. And all at great prices.
I ordered two books from Jessica’s Biscuit. They arrived quickly and and I couldn’t find them cheaper at Amazon. :-)
Go visit Rocks-in-my-Dryer for more online shopping sources.
February 6, 2008
Are you overrun with oranges, mandarins, or grapefruit?
Want to take advantage of good supermarket deals on these fruit but don’t know how to store them?
Well, since today is Works-for-Me-Wednesday, I’ve got a tip for you.
Wrapping paper!
Yes, wrapping paper. For years my parents had a tree full of ripe oranges just after Christmas. Instead of throwing the used Christmas paper away, they would wrap the fruit in it.
Once wrapped, the fruit was put into a box and stored in the garage. The wrapping paper kept the fruit from moisture and kept them good for months.
I did a quick check on the internet and found that fruit wrapped like this can last from 2 weeks to 5 months. Ours lasted in the months category.
Knock knock.
Who’s there?
Orange.
Orange who?
Orange you glad I shared this tip?
Go on over to Rock’s–In-My-Dryer for more tips.
January 23, 2008
Do you find it easy to be consistent with a Bible reading plan?
