Ryan is Grant

It has been very difficult, but I’m halfway there!

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. -Hebrews 11:1 KJV Two names:  Michael Butterfield and Greg Koukl. Mike and I became best friends during our first week of orientation at BIOLA. Throughout college, Mike daily went on and on about someone named "Koukl" (pronounced like “coke” + “ull”). What's a Koukl?? Well, it wasn't until a couple years after graduating -- during my year-long stay in Australia, where I listened almost daily to Stand to Reason lessons Mike shared with me -- that I truly appreciated the knowledge and wisdom of this Mr. Koukl. Throughout the lessons, one of the things Koukl pointed out to his audience was to have a correct understanding of the word "faith." I present how I would define it (using a bit of his words and a little bit of my own): FAITH is reasonably believing and trusting in something; it is NOT hopeful wishing; it is NOT a blind running to something; it is a solid belief and trust. ...

 Leviticus 7-14. Laws and regulations. How-to guide for sacrifices and health standards. Food and safety. Skin ailments. Atonement. Handling uncleanness.

 Exodus 35-Leviticus 6. Yep. Read Day 7 and some of Day 8.

Late the other night, I caught a glimpse of an Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode called “Poison.” I didn’t watch the whole episode, but I was amazed at the photography. There was one particular scene where two characters were discussing something important, and I was mesmerized by the composition and lighting, not to mention the performance of the two actors. I found  another blog   that delved into the details on that episode. Interesting. I didn’t realize it was a Roald Dahl story.

I read the required plan reading for today and halfway through tomorrow’s (Day 7). Thus, why this entry is titled with 6 1/2. Exodus 16-34. “4 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no. “15 When the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat. “31 The house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.” ‭‭Exodus‬ ‭16‬:‭4‬, ‭15‬, ‭& 31‬ ‭KJV‬‬ “And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi: for he said, Because...

I haven't seen really good cinematography in a long time. I love what's happening in Three Pines (TV Series 2022). Ronald Plante and Yves Bélanger, I appreciate the work you are doing. Thank you.  

01/05/23 – Day 5. Exodus 1-15. Israel (tribe/people) are numerous, Egyptians enslave them for generations. Moses is born, put in a basket down the Nile, Pharaoh’s daughter pulls him out, adopts him, but his own sister and mother raise him, when he’s a young man, he kills an Egyptian in secret – so he thought – but Hebrews knew about it – so Moses fled. Gets a wife, has kids. He saw a burning bush and God spoke to him telling him he would be the one to lead His People (Israel) out of slavery. 10 plagues. Passover. Pharaoh says, “No way!” He finally concedes. What I learned? 1) I knew that Pharaoh’s magicians were able to turn their staffs into snakes and that Aaron’s staff turned into a snake that ate the magician’s snakes, but I did not remember Pharaoh’s magicians contributing to the plague of frogs (Ex. 8:6-7). 2) Miriam the prophetess (sister of Aaron and Moses) played a timbrel, all the women followed her in playing and dancing (Ex. 15:20-21). 3) Nothing new I learned, bu...

01/04/23 – Day 4: Genesis 40-50.   God interprets dreams through Joseph, Joseph becomes a ruler of Egypt, Pharaoh names him Zaphenath-paneah and given his daughter, Asenath, has children, people came to Egypt to buy grain because of the famine, Joseph’s brothers come to him, Joseph is emotional, plays a few tricks on his brothers, before revealing himself to them, the brothers go back to their father, Jacob (Israel), God speaks to Jacob in visions of the night saying to move to Egypt, Joseph’s family settles in Goshen, Israel (Jacob) blesses Joseph’s second born son, Ephraim, instead of the firstborn, Manasseh, Israel (Jacob) prophecies about his sons and dies, Joseph and others go to Canaan to bury Jacob (Israel), and returns to Egypt, Joseph assures his brothers they are forgiven and that God had plans despite their evil intentions. Joseph dies as 110 years old and put in a coffin in Egypt. What I learned? 1) Ask God for wisdom. Positions in which we are placed are part of ...

01/03/23 – Day 3: Genesis 28-40.   Jacob gets two wives (Rachel, Leah) and their servants, and has lots of kids, stands up to his uncle (Laban), wrestles with the Lord and renamed Israel, becomes friends again with his brother (Esau), his sons defend the honor of their sister (Dinah) (by using circumcision against their enemies!), buries Rachel (who dies giving birth to their twelfth son, Ben), gives an flashy garment to his favorite son, Joseph (who apparently inherited his father’s ability to dream and see visions from the Lord), his grandsons were evil and the Lord killed them, his son, Judah, has relations with his daughter-in-law, and his son, Joseph, is being used by God in Egypt. What I learned? 1) Abraham’s descendants were very strong-willed. 2) Intercourse: Do it rightly, morally, or not at all.

01/02/23 – Day Two: Genesis 17-28. Wow, that was intense (…like camping). A lot of traveling from one place to another. Name changes and circumcisions (!?). Family drama (Abraham/Sarah/Hagar/Lot/Isaac/Rebekah/Esau/Jacob). Sodom is destroyed. Abimelech is deceived. Esau sells his birthright for a meal. Jacob takes the blessing, goes on the run, sleeps on a rock, and witnesses a ladder to heaven!   What I learned?   1) Humans are corrupt, and God directly deals with the corruption. By blessing or destroying, but always interacting. 2) Humans are inclined toward quarreling, and God has to step in to fix things. 3) Humans, why create the drama in the first place? Oh, that's right… because we aren't perfect.

To kick-off the new year, I decided to read the entire Bible in 90 days. I'm using a plan developed through the Bible app, YouVersion . To be clear, I am speed-reading .  In my 30+ years of following Christ — and having attended Bible college ( Go Eagles ) — I am already highly familiar with the Bible.  Therefore, I am approaching this 90-day challenge as a comprehensive review of the text in order to quickly & intensely strengthen my knowledge and my walk with the Lord. Sunday 01/01/23 — I completed day one very early this morning. Genesis 1-16: a hefty review of Creation, the Fall, the Flood, Babel, Abraham, and the birth of Ishmael. What are some of your 2023 goals? Maybe there’s something you’ve been wanting to accomplish and 90 days is the right amount of time you need to achieve it?   Plus, if you start now, you’ll be done by the end of March . You know, just in time to celebrate the birthdays of a young Jedi master, the Hogwarts gamekeeper, an Acad...