Hey guys!  Welcome to August 15th!  I wanted to share this system with you - my dear friend Shannon shared it with me.  It can be used on an Android, Kindle, Web based, iPhone or iPad.  There is a free version of the app KJV only, but it is very limited in the other options.  The Pro version did cost money ($9.99 one time)  to use from an App basis - I don't know if it cost on the web.  If you get the free, wait a day and it sends a 20% coupon to upgrade to (you have to do it on the web).  I can honestly say... it is INCREDIBLE and TOTALLY worth it if you are wanting to truly master Scripture Memorization.  If you want to know more about it... call me.

On another note, last week I started an deep study by David Platt called Counter Culture - it's soooo good.  Deeply challenging because when we are done going through the workbook - there is NO excuse NOT to speak into cultural issues.  One of the first challenges was identifying how we are Christ followers are engaging culture (or not) - from page 24 of the workbook I want to share this - It should make you THINK

​A Compassionate Call to Counter Culture, David Platt, LifeWay Press, 2015
1. WE CONFORM |  We start compromising what we believe and the way we act in order to appeal to and appease the surrounding culture.  We may even genuinely believe that doing so is both loving and strategic, hoping somehow people will be attracted to Jesus through a less offensive form of Christianity and will ultimately be saved.  However, we have to realize that our goal isn't to make following Jesus easier. 

2.  WE CHECK OUT | The opposite extreme is to secede from culture, distancing ourselves so completely that we never have any interaction with the world around us.  Again, the intent may seem honorable and sincere because we want to remove even an appearance of evil and the temptation of sin. But Jesus specifically prayed that His Father wouldn't take His followers out of the world but protect them while they were sent into it.  The world around us desperately needs the life-changing power of the gospel.

3.  WE COMBAT | This approach is antagonistic and defensive.  While the intent begins moving in the right direction, refusing to give in to or give up on the world around us, it misses the heart of Jesus.  This response sees culture as an enemy to be defeated instead of people to be saved.  Our desire mustn't be to prove ourselves right or to force our way on the world around us, Instead, our goal is to show Christ to be true and worthy.

4.  WE COUNTER | Countering culture means engaging culture with conviction and compassion.  We stand firmly on the truth of God, empowered by the Spirit, to extend the love of Christ to a lost and dying world.  Our desire isn't to conquer but to redeem.  It matters what we do, how we do it, and why we do it.  

He made a version of this statement in his first video, "How much do I have to hate people to not tell them about Christ - If I truly believe the gospel." -- Think about it.  Powerful stuff.  Which is why I believe God gave me this Scripture from Titus

Cheryl M, Peoria, AZ  Titus 2:7-8 AMP, And in all things show yourself to be an example of good works, with purity in doctrine [having the strictest regard for integrity and truth], dignified,  sound and beyond reproach in instruction, so that the opponent [of the faith] will be shamed, having nothing bad to say about us.

How did it get to be August?  I know, one day at a time.  How's the memorization coming?  So, I began flipping through my picture cards at night before bed and that has really been a game changer as well as the fill-in-the-blank test I am giving myself.  I was consistently missing 8-10 words but today I officially was able to do them all!  Praise God!

It wasn't until 6:48PM that I had my Scripture - God has seriously had me in 2 Timothy lately - lot's of challenging but good stuff.  My verse this time feels LONG - but spot on to the times of this age we live in.

8/1/18, Cheryl M, Peoria, AZ
2 Timothy 4:2 "preach the word [as an official messenger]; be ready when the time is right and even when it is not [keep our sense of urgency, whether the opportunity seems favorable or unfavorable, whether convenient or inconvenient, whether welcome or unwelcome]; correct [those who err in doctrine or behavior], warn [those who sin], exhort and encourage [those who are growing toward spiritual maturity], with inexhaustible patience and [faithful] teaching."

Excited to see what you post!!!
love & hugs,
​Cheryl