Week Eighteen

This past week was our gospels class. This has been hands down the best class that I have ever taken. Led by Dr. Wes Olmstead, we dove headfirst into the book of Matthew and ripped it to shreds...not literally. I truly have never dug deeper into a book in the bible than what we did this week. Reading Matthew with new eyes now has such a richness to it that I have never had before as I read the bible. I am definitely so thankful for the solid teaching that I experienced this week.

There are so many things that I have taken from this class and from listening to the knowledge of a scholar. To be honest, I am still digesting all that I have taken in. It's a lot! Matthew has really challenged me by my need for righteousness greater than that of the Pharisees, pure on the inside and the outside. Forgiveness is another large theme in Matthew that I am still chewing on to follow this digestive analogy.

To be honest, other than class for seven hours each day, there is not too much to report on. Apart from the many lessons learned in class, the greatest part of each day would be the mornings. Every morning, Justin and I and James would spend some quality time getting our daily bread, times of listening, prayer, worship and encouragement. I don't think I realize how much this truth in the mornings sustains me. The past two days I did not take any time to read my bible since I was studying it in school, and I have already noticed my own life peeking through and taking hold of me again. I need to get connected with the vine again.

This must be the shortest blog that I have ever written! It seems as though right now I am filled with many thoughts but very few words.

I will look forward to sharing with you more of what I have been digesting next week.