Got friends?

Our Daily Bread
One of the most successful advertising campaigns in the past few decades is the simple question "Got Milk?"  There is usually a picture of a famous person with a "milk mustache".  Simple.  Direct. Effective.  It makes you think everybody needs milk!

I thought of this campaign while reading the devotional, substituting the phrase "Got friends?"  Having friends usually means that you are being a friend, too!  We sometimes forget that.  We also forget that we need to allow our friends to give to us like we give to them.  OK, maybe that is just me!  ha!  The most special friends to me are the Christian ones.  I am very thankful for my roommate who is a close Christian friend in addition to being my helpful roommate.  God brings new folks into our lives when we least expect it, especially when we lose someone else.  Be open.  Be a friend.  Got friends?

Lord, thank you for being our most special friend, a friend who will never leave us alone.

Teaching Tuesday
I am so excited about the "big book" for EFM this year!  It is Introduction to the New Testament by Mark Allan Powell.  Click on the link to find the book on Amazon.com.  We read the Preface and Chapters 1 and 2 for this week.

Chapter 1 gave us an introduction to the New Testament world, meaning a brief history of the period.  It was very interesting having that history in one concise chapter. It explained the people, places, things and culture of that era.  Very interesting.

Chapter 2 talked about the New Testament writings.  Who wrote what?  What is the structure of the Old Testament?  How were the books chosen and arranged in the traditional Bible?  It explained how the "canonical" version of the Bible came about.  The canonical version is the generally accepted list of the books that should be included in the Bible.  There were many other writings that may or may not have been authentic.  This chapter also talked about the many different methods to study the Bible.  Some examples are text criticism, archaeology, sociological criticism, cultural anthropology, and historical criticism to name a few.  The author encouraged us to use several methods of study while reading passages so we learn a more accurate interpretation of the scriptures.

I am very excited!  If you feel so lead, buy the book and read along with me!

I hope to finish the Mere Christianity book this week.  I am not as busy this week as I was last week.

********************************************
You are a success in God’s kingdom if you are faithful where He has placed you. - Our Daily Bread