Hitting the Book(s)

Study, study, study.  It seems like that's all I do these days.  Or rather, avoid studying and spend that time of not studying fretting over the fact that I should be studying.  It's a nasty circle of events that I never seem to learn from.  I guess I'm just a last-minute kind of gal--a fact I might as well accept (or something that I could work on...nah.)  Anyway, I was kind of annoyed at the prospect of this week's discipline being study.  I spend enough time in the books as it is.  Besides, many of my assignments include the study of the Bible and theology already, so really, isn't that enough to cover the assignment?

Not really.  Like every discipline before this one, I did not really understand what it actually meant.  When I study the word for academic reasons, though I can be and often am blessed by it, it is easy to get caught up and consumed by just the academic part of it.  The discipline of study is meant, not to finish an assignment or get a good grade, but to reflect on God's word, apply it to our daily lives, and to grow closer to God.  This discipline includes four steps, according to Foster: Repetition, Concentration, Comprehension, and Reflection.  We also discussed the importance of humility in study--to acknowledge the need we have for a deeper knowledge of God through His word.  And so, keeping these steps in mind, my plan was to take a suggested passage, 1 Corinthians 13, and read it on multiple occasions throughout the week.  It is easy to write off familiar passages, such as 1 Corinthians 13, with the knowledge that we know everything there is to know about this passage.  This is, in fact, completely false.  There is always something new to see, a different  phrase that sticks out, a reminder we had forgotten, that can be taken away from rereading a familiar passage.  

So, with my plan set in place I was ready to finally nail one of these disciplines.  In reality, it went much worse than any of the rest of them did.  I read the passage a total of two, measly times.  It's one thing to set out a perfect plan, but it's another to actually follow it.  So I don't really have much to share or say beyond the fact that I really do intend to follow through with this execution in the days, and maybe weeks to come.  Maybe at a later date I'll be better prepared to share my insights on the love chapter.  

Until next time!