Mercy like Morning

Johnson Jane

Description

Dig Your WellI could simply share with you the treasures I've discovered. The ones I've dug out from the depths of God's Word. But I'd rather give you the treasure map.This is a story about reading the Bible, and it can be your story too. We all know we're supposed to be spending time with God through daily prayer and studying His Word. But we don't always know how to make that happenor how to be truly refreshed and changed by the experience. Born in a season of waiting, this comprehensive guide, provides step-by-step instructions to...study Scripture intentionally instead of picking a verse at randomturn a trickle of insight into a rushing stream of understandingdig wells of knowledge to store up and draw from in all seasonsGet ready to drink in living water. Discover how exploring God's Word in fresh, full-to-the-brim ways can fill your life to overflowing. Because His mercies are new. Every single morning.

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers
• Date de parution: 02 octobre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736973168
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version . Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Verses marked ESV are taken from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Verses marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version , NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Verses marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Verses marked AMP are taken from the Amplified Bible, copyright 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked AMPC are taken from the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition . Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Verses marked ASV are taken from the American Standard Version of the Bible.
Verses marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible copyright 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Verses marked NET are quoted by permission. Quotations designated ( NET ) are from the NET Bible copyright 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Published in association with the literary agency of D.C. Jacobson Associates LLC, an Author Management Company. www.dcjacobson.com
Cover design by Emily Weigel Design
Back cover author photo by Jenna Strubhar
Hand lettering by Jane Johnson
Photography by Jane Johnson
MERCY LIKE MORNING
Copyright 2018 Jane Johnson
Published by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97408
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
ISBN 978-0-7369-7315-1 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-7369-7316-8 (eBook)
All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The authorized purchaser has been granted a nontransferable, nonexclusive, and noncommercial right to access and view this electronic publication, and purchaser agrees to do so only in accordance with the terms of use under which it was purchased or transmitted. Participation in or encouragement of piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of author s and publisher s rights is strictly prohibited.
Dedication
FOR SHAWNA
Contents

Dedication

Introduction

1. Desert, Discipleship, and Well-Digging

2. White-Knuckle Faith

3. Prone to Wander

4. The Learning Gift

5. Deep-Vein Mining

6. Deep Sea Singing

7. The Resources

Sample Study 1: A Day in the Life

Sample Study 2: Verse by Verse

Sample Study 3: Rest: A Word Study

Epilogue

Notes

Acknowledgments

About the Author
Introduction

Through the L ORD s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
The L ORD is my portion, says my soul,
Therefore I hope in Him!
The L ORD is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.
It is good that one should hope and wait quietly
For the salvation of the L ORD .
L AMENTATIONS 3:22-26
I was reading in 1 Chronicles 17 one fall Friday morning, eavesdropping on an intimate conversation between David and God. Life had finally gotten good for David again. Gone were the days of running for his life and hiding in caves from a previous king of Israel, who was bound and determined to kill him simply because God had handpicked the young shepherd to be the new king. It wasn t until five long years later that David finally took over the role. And his fame spread far and wide. And the people worshipped God. And there was joy and thanksgiving and a 1-Chronicles-16 party.
Late that night, as the worship party wound down, David made his way home. He likely took off his shoes and settled into a chair, letting out a deep 1-Chronicles-17 sigh-the way we all do at the end of a long day. As he sat there, he looked around his stately cedar palace, thinking of the transitory tabernacle-tent not far away. The one where the ark of God, and the presence of God, rested. And David suddenly got a big dream for a big God. He shared it right then and there with his prophet friend who was keeping him company.
David wanted to build a house for God. One that outshone his own. Because after everything God had done for him-the favor and protection and clout and provision-it was the very least he could do for God.
But a surprising thing happened: God said no .
He had other plans. And that night, as David laid it out honest-a king before his King-God quietly placed a holy finger over his well-intentioned lips and whisper-revealed the beginning of David s next chapter.
In response, King David sat before the Lord, acknowledging that he, in fact, had heard God s instead-plan. He prayed that the whisper-revelation would be established. For You, O my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build him a house, David said in 1 Chronicles 17:25 (emphasis mine). But the Hebrew word he chose to describe that whispered revelation is much more vivid. The literal translation is, You have uncovered the ear of Your servant.
As David sat there, God reached over and tucked every piece of stray hair behind the king s ear to make sure that nothing of His emphasis, content, or context was missed. He uncovered David s ear the way people do when they are about to share a secret.
But uncovering the ear is not the only interesting translation of that Hebrew word. That same word also means to unfold a book. Much like this book you ve unfolded today-a book of the lessons and whispered revelations that God has shared with me after tucking back my own hair. A book about how a combination of Bible curiosity and white-knuckle faith led to a cultivated quiet time of studying Scripture.
If I met you on the street and we began discussing the bare-bones basics of who we are, I would tell you this: I am a woman who is caught in a passionate love affair with the Word of God. One that began with digging. And led to that tucked-back hair and, eventually, prayer-journaling every insight because I couldn t possibly remember it all.
You re there, with this unfolded book, having taken the first steps in digging up brand-new revelations of God s Word. Ones that are revealed to you by God Himself. And I m here, standing on top of Psalm 96, singing a new song and teaching you the lyrics so you can sing with me and we can declare His glory together.
But that word declare in the psalm isn t only referring to spoken declarations. It also describes writing letters. Or, more specifically, it declares the role of the king s scribe-the one who is also a personal friend of the king, whose job is solely to write his letters, word for divinely-narrated word.
This book will teach you how to be intentional in your quiet times. It will teach you how to dig deeper into God s Word so that He can tuck back your hair for whispered revelations of your own. Ones you can write down and declare confidently as a personal friend of the King.
It s what Habakkuk did as he climbed his watchtower in the dark of night in chapter two of his book. He set himself on the rampart and stood his watch and strained his eyes to see what God would say to him. And the first thing God said after he climbed up that watchtower? Write. Write it all down. Every single word I am about to tell you, write it down . Write it plain and clear and large and bold so that anyone running by can read it all in a cursory glance (Habakkuk 2:1-2, my paraphrase).
When Habakkuk wrote plainly, the Hebrew language uses the word ba ar to describe engraving letters onto a stone. It describes writing meticulously by digging out the sense and meaning of God s dictated words and then putting those dug-out words on public display. That same ba ar word is used in Deuteronomy 1:5 when Moses explained the engraved-law-letters to the children of Israel-the law God Himself had carved into those two stone tablets. Moses took those engraved-words and explained them to God s people in more detail. Because ba ar not only means to engrave . It also means to explain, to declare, to dig out the sense, and to set it forth when dug out . Which is how we find ourselves together here today, as I lay out all these Truth-treasures that I ve dug up and dug out over the years.
Using the vast variety of Bible-digging tools available today, you can take any part of Scripture, roll it over in your mind, and discover something you haven t seen before-even if you ve read it a hundred times. Throughout generations, God has given divine inspiration to Bible scholars who were hungry to learn more about His Word. And there are countless new insights yet to be discovered.
Because the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God are unsearchable, unfathomable, and untraceable (Romans 11:33, my paraphrase), you will never be able to dig deep enough. There will still be more treasures and wisdom and knowledge waiting to be found.
I could simply share with you the treasures I ve discovered, the ones I ve dug out from the depths of Him.
But I d rather give you the treasure map.
These are the things I learned the hard way.
Or maybe I learned them the easy way. The natural way. After digging in deep when life got hard.
This book will teach you how to be a scribe. An engraver. A treasure hunter. It will teach you to dig