Living the Journey

The memorization challenge last January was so much fun that we all unanimously concluded that we just could not let another January pass without having another exciting memorization challenge. And what better way to kick off the New Year than by learning the daily discipline of memorizing God’s Word?

This year, the yet-to-be-announced chapter of the Bible that we will be working on is 25 verses long. So The Challenge is to memorize the whole thing, all 25 verses word for word in only 25 days! We’ll announce exactly which chapter it will be on New Year’s Eve and get started memorizing on January 1, 2010.

Along the way, we will be posting some great commentary, insights, and personal testimonies here on livingthejourney.com every single day of The Challenge, one verse at a time.

So are you ready? Oh, and by the way, those who successfully complete The Challenge will receive a limited edition “Inspiration of Creation” 2010 calendar. The front cover shot is a picture from the Northwoods, with the Conference Center shrouded in morning fog. There will also be other nice rewards, but we’ll keep them a surprise for now. And, of course, the most important rewards are the eternal ones that God promises to those who meditate on His Word.

Stay tuned!

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With hearts full of thanksgiving to the Lord for His great goodness and abounding mercies, we our excited to share with you the next set of beautiful desktop backgrounds from Living the Journey! (following Series I, Series II, Series III, Series IV, Series V, and Series VI).

These were all designed by Emily Schuurmans and highlight the words of various hymns. We hope they encourage you to sing praise to our Lord!

Living the Journey Desktop Backgrounds

Click on a screen size below to open up a desktop background image. Then right-click on the picture and select “Set as Background” or “Set as Desktop Background.”

Do you have an inspiring picture of God’s magnificent creation from the beautiful Northwoods of Michigan? Send it in, along with a fitting verse of Scripture, and we’ll consider sharing it on this website to encourage others who are also living the journey!

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This is the newest venture of the Journey to the Heart office: keeping you updated on a regular basis! Every month we’ll be sending out this colorful email newsletter with updates, testimonies, prayer requests, words of life from some personal perspectives, and even some exciting reviews on things to read and listen to. We pray that this will become an encouragement and a blessing to you!

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Congratulations! Ellen Lawrence, who attended a Journey to the Heart in September of 2007, won 3rd place in the Senior division of first-ever National Bible Bee!

“As Christians, there is nothing more important than studying God’s Word and memorizing it,” Ellen said.

Over 17,000 students from around the nation learned the importance of hiding God’s Word in their hearts as they competed for the prize. In the Senior division, this meant memorizing over 1,500 verses!

It wasn’t easy, and the competition was intense. “I’m very competitive, so I get very, very nervous,” Ellen said. “But I kept remembering Philippians 4:6-7: ‘Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’”

Ellen was educated at home in the ATI program and is looking to attend the Verity Institute next year as she continues to structure her life around the principles of God’s Word.

Daniel Staddon, who captured 1st place in the Senior division, is also a homeschooled student in the ATI program who plans to attend a Journey to the Heart in the near future. Though winning the $100,000 grand prize was pretty incredible, it really only underscored the inestimable value of God’s Word. Daniel wrote, “Studying God’s Word and getting to know Him on a deeper personal level will yield a lifetime of rewards and benefits far more valuable and precious than any amount of money!”

Though memorizing huge portions of Scripture is certainly a formidable undertaking, the biggest challenge for everyone involved in the Bible Bee is only just beginning. “Now my biggest challenge is to just start to apply this to my life,” Ellen shared in an interview with the Huntsville Times Living. “I have to try and take it and really apply it to my life, to make sure it’s heart knowledge, not just head knowledge.”

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God did an amazing work in Stephen’s life on a Journey to the Heart this summer. Following is the abridged version of a speech that he has recently written about competing affections.

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Could you imagine a young teenager spending $8,000 and devoting an average of 8 hours a day for three years on a particular activity? This adds up to 3 months a year, day and night!

Today I would like to talk about what I’ll refer to as competing affections. A competing affection is when your love and desire for anything or anyone is greater than your love and desire for God.

Matthew 6:13 says that “No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

Last summer, money was a competing affection in my life. I was giving out business cards and doing any type of work no matter how hard it was. I made over $1,000 dollars over the summer. This was a competing affection in my life because I was putting so much time into my work that I was neglecting my relationship with the Lord. I was being fearful over having enough money for my future needs. When I realized this, I asked God to help me set my priorities straight. I gave my money to the Lord and He has blessed me and took the burden of my future off my back. I still work because I love to work, but it is not motivated by fear of the future.

My friend Vince who had such an extraordinary devotion to video games explained to me his story. “Back when I was a young teenager I would play about eight hours of video game a day. Believe it or not, I actually spent about eight thousand dollars in video games. The reason why I don’t do this any more is because God has opened my eyes and shown me how much it had become a competing affection. I was putting God on the side and my own will on the throne of my life.”

What freedom there is when you give your affections to God and live for Him instead of money, relationships, idols, or even video games!

~ Stephen
July 2009 Guys Journey

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