Not really, but I thought that it was a funny reference to the old commercial “I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV”. I don’t claim to be a professional, I am just a guy who likes to share thoughts about reading the Bible. I got a fondness for an Old Testament prophet tonight, Amos, who while being drilled by Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, says:

But Amos replied, “I’m not a professional prophet, and I was never trained to be one. I’m just a shepherd, and I take care of sycamore-fig trees. But the Lord called me away from my flock and told me, ‘Go and prophesy to my people in Israel.’ Amos 7:14-15 (NLT)

I will be completely honest here, I never, ever thought in my wildest dreams that I would get through the entire Bible, let alone blog about it. But, it has been incredible and I am just getting started. There is some really cool stuff coming that I am excited to share, but I just need the time to get it done. Your prayers are appreciated.

And, it is my prayer that a non-professional blogging guy who tends to websites can help others like me to hear the Good News. Thanks God for giving me the inspiration in Amos tonight. More to come…

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Let me start off by saying that I do not mean to be super political, but I had an interesting observation during today’s read that I felt really had relevance with the current state of the world economy. Allow me to also say that I am not relating the economy to the destruction of Israel by God. But, I really thought this spoke of the people involved in money matters today:

You push away every thought of coming disaster, but your actions only bring the day of judgement closer. Amos 6:3 (NLT)

Hello, does this sound like the boom times of the last 15-20 years? “Oh, this real estate market is never going to go down!” Look, you have to plan. What goes up must come down. And the higher it goes, the harder the fall. I am not trying to be glass half empty, but you have to prepare. Have the banking and auto industries done this? Guess not, they are getting bailed out. So it was ironic to read the following verses:

You drink wine by the bowlful and perfume yourselves with fragrant lotions, You care nothing about the ruin of your nation. Therefore, you will be the first to be led away as captives. Suddenly, all your parties will end. Amos 6:6-7 (NLT)

It could just as easily say “You fly your private jets to Washington and take retreats to the St. Regis…” Very ironic. Who says that the Bible is not applicable today?

Don’t get me wrong, I am not about not making money. Far from it. But when it becomes what you worship, what you live for, there’s a problem. And the thing is, they should have seen it coming! But, they pushed away every thought of coming disaster…

Hopefully I wasn’t too much on the soapbox here. I really am not angry about it. In fact, I pray for these business leaders and the people who work for them. And I pray that we can all learn from this experience as the Israelites learned from the wrath of God. Interesting stuff. 

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As I mentioned before, I am keeping the title posts consistent with the read. With that being said, I decided that I will read just two passages a night until I catch up. I could try to read more, but then I won’t be able to meditate and think about what I have read. With that being said…

Previously in the Daily Read, Amos finished his book by continuing to remind the people that think their status will save them will always have to answer to God. He was even threatened for letting these people know this, but he continued on because of his faith in the Lord. One thing that I found interesting from this book was that Amos had visions from God that outlined destruction for his land, but he prayed for forgiveness and the Lord did not follow through with the visions. This is something that we have not seen from the other prophets. Why didn’t God follow through when he did with other prophets? My guess is that Amos was a shepherd and God allowed him to lead the flock, but that’s just my best guess.

As for Obadiah, he gets to tell the people of Edom that they will pay for letting the bad things happen to Israel. He holds them accountable for what they did to their neighbors. A great point is taken here because even when you are down and perhaps you are blaming somebody, if that person is truly responsible, know that it is always in God’s hands and he will make sure that justice is served. Follow Him and it will fall into place. While it was a short book, it has plenty to chew on. Read on…

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Alright, we have already established that this was not read on Sept. 23, but to keep consistency of the reading calendar, I will still post the days that it should be read. With that being said…

Previously in the Daily Read, this book is written by Amos, a shepherd from the town of Tekoa in Judah. He is prophecies about the downfall of many of the countries of the Holy Land at the start, but focuses in on Israel and Judah. Most of his visions are for those that are well off and ignorant to the fact that God is ticked. They think that nothing bad will happen while they are fat and happy. But the Lord has other plans and he is not pleased with their idol worship. In fact, Amos speaks out to those that are superficially worshiping Him. Those that have not surrendered themselves to God are not exempt.

This holds true today. I had a boss once who said “Give me a rock band and power point, and I am good”. He was not doing it for the right reason. He thought if he went to church and joined in the singing he was right with the Lord. I can’t tell you if he had surrendered himself to God, but by that comment, I am thinking that he was just going to absolve himself of all the bad stuff that he did. That is what Amos is talking about in this book. Read on…

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Previously in the Daily Read, we get Joel’s take on the destruction of Israel. While the time frame is uncertain, I believe he was one of the last Israelites left. No major events are specified, but he focuses on the locusts coming in and clearing everything out. His concern is about the land and the animals. He hears from the Lord and he is telling everybody about the restoration of their home if they find redemption in God. He sums it all up very well and it was actually a pleasant read, as evidenced by:

“Then after I have poured out my rains again, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.” Joel 2:28a

Read on…

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