Podcasts about read this first

“The way I think about trying to anticipate and shape the AI future requires us to take a step back and ask ourselves first, ‘What does this technology do? What does it enable?'” reflects Amir Goldberg, a professor of organizational behavior at Stanford Graduate School of Business. “That's very different from asking ourselves, ‘How is the technology implemented?'” From locating the origins of innovation to identifying hidden barriers blocking new ideas, Goldberg presents a framework for harnessing novel technological capabilities like AI — capabilities that are essential for staying ahead of the competition. “The data/AI train is leaving the station,” he says. “The problem is, there are many trains — and some are going off a cliff.” Is your organization exploring how to transform its experience into data? Tell us your story at ifthenpod@stanford.edu.This episode was recorded on February 5, 2025.Related Content:Amir Goldberg faculty profileTo Discover Breakthrough Ideas, Look to the OutsidersIs Your Business Ready to Jump Into A.I.? Read This First.Why Investors Throw Money at Eccentric CEOIf/Then is a podcast from Stanford Graduate School of Business that examines research findings that can help us navigate the complex issues we face in business, leadership, and society. Each episode features an interview with a Stanford GSB faculty member.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 140: Leadership, Self Energy, & the Internal Family Systems Model with Rachel Bentley As therapists, business owners, and leaders, we often feel pressure to have all the answers. But what if the most impactful leadership doesn't come from perfection—but from embracing our humanity and ongoing growth? That's exactly what I explored in my conversation with Rachel Bentley on The Innovative Therapist Podcast (Episode 140). Rachel is an Internal Family Systems (IFS) Level 2 trained therapist, group practice owner, and business consultant. She leads a 40-clinician practice with locations in Michigan and helps therapists navigate leadership, self-energy, and sustainable business growth. In this episode, we dive into: How Internal Family Systems (IFS) can transform therapist leadership The role of self-energy in decision-making and leadership Overcoming imposter syndrome & self-doubt Why creativity and the Zone of Genius matter for therapists How to build a leadership team without burning out The Power of IFS in Therapist Leadership Rachel shared how IFS has revolutionized her leadership as a group practice owner. Instead of leading from a place of control or fear, she now understands how her internal parts—the ones managing decision-making, leadership stress, and self-doubt—can work together. Why Self-Energy is the Key to Effective Leadership IFS isn't just a clinical tool—it's a leadership framework. Rachel discussed how recognizing and working with her own parts has helped her: ✅ Lead with more confidence and clarity ✅ Trust her intuition in making business decisions ✅ Navigate the challenges of growing a large team ✅ Avoid burnout by recognizing protective parts before they take over Many therapists struggle with imposter syndrome, especially when running a business. Rachel's insights show that leading with self-energy—rather than fear-based parts—creates a more sustainable and authentic business. Creativity & the Zone of Genius for Therapists One of the most exciting parts of our conversation was Rachel's journey with creativity. Like many therapists, she didn't initially consider herself creative. However, she's discovered that creativity isn't just about art or music—it's about problem-solving, visioning, and innovation. What is the Zone of Genius? The Zone of Genius is the space where your natural talents and passions intersect. It's where work feels energizing instead of draining. Rachel and I explored how therapists can identify their Zone of Genius and lean into work that truly excites them. Ask Yourself: What part of your work lights you up the most? Where do you feel the most “flow” and self-energy? Creating Spaces Where We Don't Have to Prove Ourselves Therapists often feel pressure to appear “perfect”—as if we should always have it all together. But true leadership comes from embracing vulnerability and authenticity. Rachel and I discussed the importance of creating spaces where therapists can show up without unrealistic expectations. Whether it's within group practices, consulting, or therapist communities, we need places where: ✔️ We can ask questions without judgment ✔️ We don't have to prove our worth ✔️ We can be real about struggles and challenges Thinking About Starting a Group Practice? Read This First. A key topic we covered was how therapists can decide whether group practice ownership is right for them. Rachel often works with therapists navigating the solo-to-group transition, helping them consider: ❓ What is your why for starting a group practice? (Curiosity vs. Judgmental Why) ❓ Are you comfortable with leadership & delegation? ❓ Do you understand the realities of scaling a business? ❓ Are you willing to work through your own parts and fears? Join the Conversation & Build a Meaningful Practice This episode is packed with insights for therapists looking to lead with self-energy,

Artificial intelligence's surge in power and accessibility has inspired polarized reactions. Some people are flocking to the technology with feverish excitement. Others can't stay far enough away. Yet according to Kuang Xu, both of these responses might be the wrong ones."When people hear ‘AI,' their brain kind of shuts down,” says Kuang, an associate professor of operations, information, and technology at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Whether someone feels exhilarated by the possibilities of AI or terrified by its uncertain impact, Kuang says these emotionally charged reactions are like “a fight or flight response,” inhibiting our ability to make good decisions. Yet when implemented in strategic ways, AI can enable leaders to make decisions that are driven by data. With just a few simple lines of code, data becomes a powerful tool for businesses to leverage. “What decision can you change if you had the information?” Kuang asks. “Remember, at the moment, AI or data science is all about information. At the end of the day, even in the best case, you have to take that information and do something about it.” It's clear that artificial intelligence will integrate into every industry. Yet to harness its power, leaders need to make an emotional shift. They must, as this episode of If/Then: Business, Leadership, Society explores, move away from the fear of the change AI will bring, and instead see AI for the job it can do: provide data so leaders can make more informed decisions.Key Takeaways:Effects of emotional stress: Emotional stress clouds our decision making about how we can best implement this tool. AI is a Tool, not a god: Organizations need to rise above the narrative that AI is an all-knowing oracle and reframe it as a tool for targeted decision-making.Think of AI as an intern: The tool can carry out tasks, but we still want to double check its work. More Resources: Kuang Xu, Associate Professor of Operations, Information & TechnologyStanford GSB stories featuring Kuang Xu:Class Takeaways - Data Science and AI StrategyIs Your Business Ready to Jump Into A.I.? Read This First.Kuang Xu VoicesIf/Then is a podcast from Stanford Graduate School of Business that examines research findings that can help us navigate the complex issues we face in business, leadership, and society. Each episode features an interview with a Stanford GSB faculty member.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Meet Sara Rodrigues, the Executive Director of Balanced Learning Center in Fall River, Massachusetts. The Balanced Learning Center is a collaborative, integrative, non-profit that combines mental health treatment with various other services as they focus on strength-building, teaching new skills and relying on individuals as the experts on their own lives. She shares how her own experience with her second son led her to create the place she had been searching for combining both affordability and access to everything under one roof. Sara is also in the midst of writing a neurodiversity affirming guide for families titled Read This First.  Key Takeaways:  - Your best work happens when you show up as your true authentic self - Build a really solid support team - both personally and professionally - Be a lifelong learner and learn as much as you can from the people around you https://balancedlearningcenter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/balancedlearningcenter/ https://www.facebook.com/joaniesplace https://www.instagram.com/balancedlearningcenter/ https://www.instagram.com/joanies.place https://twitter.com/BalancedLrnCt --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/compassionate-climb/message

“Doing the thing that scared me most, giving away my secrets, led to the biggest breakthrough in my life.” In this episode, Alex (@AlexHormozi) discusses the importance of leads and advertising in business success, sharing his personal experience of going from $100M to $1B in net worth through these methods. The episode covers the basics of advertising and lead generation, and offers practical tips for business owners looking to grow their customer base.Welcome to The Game w/Alex Hormozi, hosted by entrepreneur, founder, investor, author, public speaker, and content creator Alex Hormozi. On this podcast you'll hear how to get more customers, make more profit per customer, how to keep them longer, and the many failures and lessons Alex has learned on his path from $100M to $1B in net worth.Get your own copy of the book at acquisition.com/booksTimestamps:(0:00) - Opening Credits & Guiding Principles(2:06) - Read This First(6:39) - How I Got Here(24:05) - The Problem This Book SolvesFollow Alex Hormozi's Socials:LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | Twitter | Acquisition

Hey there! It seems like we are off to a good start this year in the Daily Bible Reading Podcast. In this extra podcast, I am trying to give answers to frequent questions. First I want to ask you to share the DBRP NOW with your friends. If you started listening to the podcasts just a few days ago, then perhaps it has occurred to you, “Hey, this podcast would be perfect for …” this or that friend. If so, please share with them right away. This first week of the yearly plan is a great time to start listening, and if your friend wants to, he/she can easily catch up with you. Then you can discuss the readings together. I invite you to contact me if you hear mistakes in my podcasts or if you would like to send a comment. My favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. It's in the upper right hand corner of the screen. If you write about a problem in accessing a certain podcast, please tell me what device you are using and what podcast player. But hey, before writing to me, please check out the Read This First pages linked in the banner bar at dailybiblereading.info. That's the place to go for information about Bible apps, podcast apps, Bible sites useful for digging deeper. and also information about me (Phil) and Gale.[a] After a break in listening to my own podcasts, in 2022 I came back to listen to them again in a concentrated way, looking for things to improve. I ended up making improvements to 154 out of the 365 episodes among the NLT podcasts, and I will continue making improvements to the GNT series in 2023. But now I am afraid that I may have introduced new errors in the NLT series. So for you listening to the NLT series in 2023, please let me know if you hear mistakes or if a certain episode has inferior recording quality compared to the others. YouVersion now has an audio play button at the bottom of every page in the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. Because that reading plan is sponsored by the Daily Bible Reading Podcast, some people will think that the play button is giving them the recordings for the podcasts. It does NOT. If you hit the play button, you get a Siri/Alexa-like voice that reads the devotional content page, and after that page, the app will play whatever voice is bundled with the translation you have selected. If any of the people who have recently subscribed to the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan in the YouVersion app are confused like that, then they won't get the message about their mistake, since they will never see the extra podcast that I release like this one. However, when the voice pronounces the name of Job as job, I hope that they will figure out that they are not listening to a podcast. Actually following the 3D reading plan that way is not too bad. I'm just sorry that those who do this will miss out on the extra information that I sometimes give in the podcasts, and also they will miss the prayers at the end of each podcast. For more information about my two full-Bible reading plans in the YouVersion app, please visit the Read This First pages linked at dailybiblereading.info, and look for the page that is about Listening to podcasts. Now let me give you a selection of quick tips.  If you have any questions about why I have recorded the NLT and the GNT for the DBRP, please see the Read This First pages. Those two are the most understandable English translations for those consuming Scripture in audio form. If you started listening to episode 1 podcast on January 1st, if you don't want to install a podcast app, you can simply go to dailybiblereading.info or dailygntbiblereading.info. Your daily episode will be near the top. Using that website is also a great way to listen if you are using a computer instead of a smaller device. If you are somewhere in the middle of the year or are irregular in your listening, a good podcast app will make it easy to select the next episode without having to remember the day number or search for it. If my reading is too slow for you, a good podcast app will let you choose to speed up the audio. My favorite speed is 1.20. I don't recommend listening to Scripture at 1.5 speed if your aim is to understand it and think about it. Two years ago, when I was reading the 3D plan and not listening to the audio[b], I enjoyed using the MyBible app, which works on both Apple and Android devices. It has MANY options for customization. A simpler app that allows you to follow the 3D plan is called Quick Bibles. The Indonesian version of that program is the most popular Bible app in Indonesia. You can download and follow the Digging Deeper Reading plan in both of these two apps instead of using the more popular YouVersion/Bible.com app. Please, if you are listening to the DBRP on your commute to work, have things set up with your podcast app so you do not need to touch your phone. If you commute to work with an Android device, I recommend that you check out using the Podbean app. If you sort the DBRP podcasts in ascending order (low to higher numbers), then the app will automatically move from one episode to the next without a touch. One of the easiest ways to listen to the 3D plan using smart speakers. Please see the Read This First pages at dailybiblereading.info for instructions about using smart speakers, and also for more information about podcast apps. At the first of each year, I frequently have received email questions asking me to explain what I said about the Orya people in the introductions to Genesis 1 and 2. I said this: I have seen first-hand in my work in Indonesia that when a people group misunderstands and twists the story in Genesis 1-3, it will have far-reaching consequences for their lives. In the case of the Orya people, twisting the story of the fall caused much suffering and misery among families. ============== It was about 1986 when Isaak Sasbe made a special trip to see me. At that time I and several Orya men were about to finish translating the Gospel of Mark. While I knew how to say lots of things in the Orya language, I usually couldn't follow everything in an extended narrative in that language. So, on the day Isaak visited me, I am so thankful that I thought to turn on my little tape recorder. In the following months, I would carefully transcribe everything that Isaak told me. Isaak was the governmental head (or the mayor) of the village of Santosa. This is the story that he told, and that which the people there learned from his uncle, Daud. In the beginning, Adam and Eve and other Orya people lived on Jadam mountain. They lived by the power of God. They even had glass in their windows. And they could just think about it, and food would appear on their tables. And they could just think about it, and all the dishes would be washed and put away. (They lived by the magical power of God and didn't have to work.) But it all was ruined when Adam had sex with Eve. Until that time people lived without sex. So God got angry and told Noah to build a big boat. When the boat was finished and the flood waters started coming up, everyone who helped build the boat could get on. Those that got on included Jesus. As the flood got deeper, other people tried to climb up, but Noah hit them over the head with a hammer and they fell back into the water. Jadam mountain was the only mountain peak left above water, and the remaining Orya people stayed there until the water receded. But Noah and Jesus took the power of God with them in the boat, and they sailed away with it and landed in America. That's why you Americans live with the power of God. Then Isaak said something most significant: “I came here to ask you: How can we get the power of God back?” (The anthropology article that I wrote on this is published with the title Of Paradise Lost.) Of course I tried to explain to Isaak that all this was twisted and wrong! I remember his disappointed look upon hearing my explanations. Years later I gained insight as to why he would have been disappointed. According to his belief, if I really had the secret of the power of God, I wouldn't share it with anyone, because that would let others in on the secret. If I told other people how to share the power, the result would be less power and wealth for me. Eventually this story and another told by Isaak's uncle resulted in what anthropologists call a ‘cargo cult'. Such movements are common in the Papua province of Indonesia (formerly called Irian Jaya), and the other side of the island in Papua New Guinea, and in the Solomon Islands. A cargo cult starts when a charismatic leader arises (like Isaak's uncle Daud), and tells people, “Hey, we're doing things wrong. If you do what I tell you, we'll be blessed with cargo (health, wealth, and prosperity) from our departed ancestors.” Daud's twist on this was that the thing the Orya people needed to do to unlock garden-of-Eden-like prosperity was to trade wives. That idea actually had almost nothing to do with Adam and Eve falling into sin in the garden, but with Moses and Joshua and the raising of the walking stick at the crossing of the Red Sea. A little note about Isaak's uncle's background: Daud was one of the few men of his age that went into town and learned the Malay language. So when the first Malay-speaking evangelists came into the Orya area, he was one who was often called upon to translate what the preacher said. That's where he learned Bible stories. How I wish I had recordings of those Maylay sermons and Daud's translations! Another point worth mentioning: Spontaneous sermon translations are not a good way to present the Gospel. There is a little interesting thing here also from a Bible translation perspective: The false teaching of Isaak's uncle involved taking literal happenings in Bible stories and taking them figuratively. Orya people still struggle with this: “Adam and Eve surely didn't sin by just eating a fruit. How silly! It's no big deal if I take a papaya from someone else's garden. They had sex.” Now, a figure of speech in Orya is ‘to pick a flower with someone', and it means to commit adultery with that person. So it was very logical for them to think that picking a fruit was a euphemism for forbidden sex. And Daud's false teaching was that Moses didn't literally raise a walking stick over the Red Sea. Orya men always go to war in pairs. The junior goes first and strikes the first blow, and the junior warrior follows and dispatches the victims. The less senior warrior is called (using figurative language) the other man's ‘walking stick'. So Daud said, “Instead of Moses raising his literal walking stick, he and Joshua (who were war partners) exchanged wives. God was so pleased with that that He opened the Red Sea for them to escape.”   When Daud first started promoting this teaching about wife-swapping, the Orya people didn't just start having free sex. No, Daud and the other leaders regulated which pairs of men would trade wives. I said before that this led to misery. Imagine this: Among two couples, there might be 2-3 of them who were happy with making the trade, but 1-2 were not thrilled with having sex with their new partner. When I first heard of all this, I imagined that it might be all the guys who would be happy, and all the women who would not be. But, in fact, I heard stories of misery from both sexes. One could not run away from this. Where could you run to? And would you leave the children behind? Women were beaten. People of both sexes were trapped. And sexual sin is sticky, in the sense that it inescapably brings more sin and shame with it. Plus it all has to be kept hush-hush, and you can't tell anyone about your problems. Trying to regain a Lost Paradise using human ideas results in misery. I'll probably tell you in another podcast how, years later, the Lord used his Word to defeat the cargo cult. One terrible effect of the cult was to distrust anyone teaching differently from the cult teaching. That is one thing the Lord defeated. Before the occasion that brought the defeat of the cult, people would hint to me about their cult activities saying, “We're doing our traditional cultural practices to bless this land (meaning to bring prosperity).” Note that after only 30-40 years after the start of the cult, they called the wife swapping their ‘traditional cultural practice'. That was not their true tradition! I, the newcomer and foreigner, had to remind them! In the olden days before Daud Sasbe, adultery was severely punished. The punishment was to have your thigh shot at close range with an arrow. The thigh would be pierced with a big spear-like arrow— the kind used in killing pigs. Not many committed adultery back then. God, our creator, has every right to tell us humans how to live. People who live as God instructs us in the Scripture are actually the happiest people in the world. God knows what is best for us. And He has been kind enough to not hide this knowledge from us. He made us male and female to harmonize together in a beautiful way. A couple is so harmonized that two become one, one body. Any time we humans say, “Oh God didn't really mean what he said about __x__ in the Bible!” (you fill in the blank) — we are headed for trouble and misery. My stories about how the Orya people were led into degrading sexual sin probably sound so strange to you that you can hardly believe it. Well, when I tell the Orya what is happening now in the sexual revolution in America and other first-world nations, they can hardly believe it! The sexual revolution will not lead our society to Paradise, happiness, or prosperity, but to shame and misery. ============= I want to repeat my appeal from the top of this episode: Please share with your friends about the 3D reading plan and the Daily Bible Reading Podcasts. Any day of the year is a good day to start listening to the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never tell you not to read the Bible. That message comes from someone else. Expect the Holy Spirit to speak to you each time you read or listen to the Bible. Please forget about me and listen to Him. Gale and I send you our New Year's greetings, and as always, I say, May the Lord bless you ‘real good'.      

Hey there! It seems like we are off to a good start this year in the Daily Bible Reading Podcast. In this extra podcast, I am trying to give answers to frequent questions. First I want to ask you to share the DBRP NOW with your friends. If you started listening to the podcasts just a few days ago, then perhaps it has occurred to you, “Hey, this podcast would be perfect for …” this or that friend. If so, please share with them right away. This first week of the yearly plan is a great time to start listening, and if your friend wants to, he/she can easily catch up with you. Then you can discuss the readings together. I invite you to contact me if you hear mistakes in my podcasts or if you would like to send a comment. My favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. It's in the upper right hand corner of the screen. If you write about a problem in accessing a certain podcast, please tell me what device you are using and what podcast player. But hey, before writing to me, please check out the Read This First pages linked in the banner bar at dailybiblereading.info. That's the place to go for information about Bible apps, podcast apps, Bible sites useful for digging deeper. and also information about me (Phil) and Gale.[a] After a break in listening to my own podcasts, in 2022 I came back to listen to them again in a concentrated way, looking for things to improve. I ended up making improvements to 154 out of the 365 episodes among the NLT podcasts, and I will continue making improvements to the GNT series in 2023. But now I am afraid that I may have introduced new errors in the NLT series. So for you listening to the NLT series in 2023, please let me know if you hear mistakes or if a certain episode has inferior recording quality compared to the others. YouVersion now has an audio play button at the bottom of every page in the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. Because that reading plan is sponsored by the Daily Bible Reading Podcast, some people will think that the play button is giving them the recordings for the podcasts. It does NOT. If you hit the play button, you get a Siri/Alexa-like voice that reads the devotional content page, and after that page, the app will play whatever voice is bundled with the translation you have selected. If any of the people who have recently subscribed to the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan in the YouVersion app are confused like that, then they won't get the message about their mistake, since they will never see the extra podcast that I release like this one. However, when the voice pronounces the name of Job as job, I hope that they will figure out that they are not listening to a podcast. Actually following the 3D reading plan that way is not too bad. I'm just sorry that those who do this will miss out on the extra information that I sometimes give in the podcasts, and also they will miss the prayers at the end of each podcast. For more information about my two full-Bible reading plans in the YouVersion app, please visit the Read This First pages linked at dailybiblereading.info, and look for the page that is about Listening to podcasts. Now let me give you a selection of quick tips.  If you have any questions about why I have recorded the NLT and the GNT for the DBRP, please see the Read This First pages. Those two are the most understandable English translations for those consuming Scripture in audio form. If you started listening to episode 1 podcast on January 1st, if you don't want to install a podcast app, you can simply go to dailybiblereading.info or dailygntbiblereading.info. Your daily episode will be near the top. Using that website is also a great way to listen if you are using a computer instead of a smaller device. If you are somewhere in the middle of the year or are irregular in your listening, a good podcast app will make it easy to select the next episode without having to remember the day number or search for it. If my reading is too slow for you, a good podcast app will let you choose to speed up the audio. My favorite speed is 1.20. I don't recommend listening to Scripture at 1.5 speed if your aim is to understand it and think about it. Two years ago, when I was reading the 3D plan and not listening to the audio[b], I enjoyed using the MyBible app, which works on both Apple and Android devices. It has MANY options for customization. A simpler app that allows you to follow the 3D plan is called Quick Bibles. The Indonesian version of that program is the most popular Bible app in Indonesia. You can download and follow the Digging Deeper Reading plan in both of these two apps instead of using the more popular YouVersion/Bible.com app. Please, if you are listening to the DBRP on your commute to work, have things set up with your podcast app so you do not need to touch your phone. If you commute to work with an Android device, I recommend that you check out using the Podbean app. If you sort the DBRP podcasts in ascending order (low to higher numbers), then the app will automatically move from one episode to the next without a touch. One of the easiest ways to listen to the 3D plan using smart speakers. Please see the Read This First pages at dailybiblereading.info for instructions about using smart speakers, and also for more information about podcast apps. At the first of each year, I frequently have received email questions asking me to explain what I said about the Orya people in the introductions to Genesis 1 and 2. I said this: I have seen first-hand in my work in Indonesia that when a people group misunderstands and twists the story in Genesis 1-3, it will have far-reaching consequences for their lives. In the case of the Orya people, twisting the story of the fall caused much suffering and misery among families. ============== It was about 1986 when Isaak Sasbe made a special trip to see me. At that time I and several Orya men were about to finish translating the Gospel of Mark. While I knew how to say lots of things in the Orya language, I usually couldn't follow everything in an extended narrative in that language. So, on the day Isaak visited me, I am so thankful that I thought to turn on my little tape recorder. In the following months, I would carefully transcribe everything that Isaak told me. Isaak was the governmental head (or the mayor) of the village of Santosa. This is the story that he told, and that which the people there learned from his uncle, Daud. In the beginning, Adam and Eve and other Orya people lived on Jadam mountain. They lived by the power of God. They even had glass in their windows. And they could just think about it, and food would appear on their tables. And they could just think about it, and all the dishes would be washed and put away. (They lived by the magical power of God and didn't have to work.) But it all was ruined when Adam had sex with Eve. Until that time people lived without sex. So God got angry and told Noah to build a big boat. When the boat was finished and the flood waters started coming up, everyone who helped build the boat could get on. Those that got on included Jesus. As the flood got deeper, other people tried to climb up, but Noah hit them over the head with a hammer and they fell back into the water. Jadam mountain was the only mountain peak left above water, and the remaining Orya people stayed there until the water receded. But Noah and Jesus took the power of God with them in the boat, and they sailed away with it and landed in America. That's why you Americans live with the power of God. Then Isaak said something most significant: “I came here to ask you: How can we get the power of God back?” (The anthropology article that I wrote on this is published with the title Of Paradise Lost.) Of course I tried to explain to Isaak that all this was twisted and wrong! I remember his disappointed look upon hearing my explanations. Years later I gained insight as to why he would have been disappointed. According to his belief, if I really had the secret of the power of God, I wouldn't share it with anyone, because that would let others in on the secret. If I told other people how to share the power, the result would be less power and wealth for me. Eventually this story and another told by Isaak's uncle resulted in what anthropologists call a ‘cargo cult'. Such movements are common in the Papua province of Indonesia (formerly called Irian Jaya), and the other side of the island in Papua New Guinea, and in the Solomon Islands. A cargo cult starts when a charismatic leader arises (like Isaak's uncle Daud), and tells people, “Hey, we're doing things wrong. If you do what I tell you, we'll be blessed with cargo (health, wealth, and prosperity) from our departed ancestors.” Daud's twist on this was that the thing the Orya people needed to do to unlock garden-of-Eden-like prosperity was to trade wives. That idea actually had almost nothing to do with Adam and Eve falling into sin in the garden, but with Moses and Joshua and the raising of the walking stick at the crossing of the Red Sea. A little note about Isaak's uncle's background: Daud was one of the few men of his age that went into town and learned the Malay language. So when the first Malay-speaking evangelists came into the Orya area, he was one who was often called upon to translate what the preacher said. That's where he learned Bible stories. How I wish I had recordings of those Maylay sermons and Daud's translations! Another point worth mentioning: Spontaneous sermon translations are not a good way to present the Gospel. There is a little interesting thing here also from a Bible translation perspective: The false teaching of Isaak's uncle involved taking literal happenings in Bible stories and taking them figuratively. Orya people still struggle with this: “Adam and Eve surely didn't sin by just eating a fruit. How silly! It's no big deal if I take a papaya from someone else's garden. They had sex.” Now, a figure of speech in Orya is ‘to pick a flower with someone', and it means to commit adultery with that person. So it was very logical for them to think that picking a fruit was a euphemism for forbidden sex. And Daud's false teaching was that Moses didn't literally raise a walking stick over the Red Sea. Orya men always go to war in pairs. The junior goes first and strikes the first blow, and the junior warrior follows and dispatches the victims. The less senior warrior is called (using figurative language) the other man's ‘walking stick'. So Daud said, “Instead of Moses raising his literal walking stick, he and Joshua (who were war partners) exchanged wives. God was so pleased with that that He opened the Red Sea for them to escape.”   When Daud first started promoting this teaching about wife-swapping, the Orya people didn't just start having free sex. No, Daud and the other leaders regulated which pairs of men would trade wives. I said before that this led to misery. Imagine this: Among two couples, there might be 2-3 of them who were happy with making the trade, but 1-2 were not thrilled with having sex with their new partner. When I first heard of all this, I imagined that it might be all the guys who would be happy, and all the women who would not be. But, in fact, I heard stories of misery from both sexes. One could not run away from this. Where could you run to? And would you leave the children behind? Women were beaten. People of both sexes were trapped. And sexual sin is sticky, in the sense that it inescapably brings more sin and shame with it. Plus it all has to be kept hush-hush, and you can't tell anyone about your problems. Trying to regain a Lost Paradise using human ideas results in misery. I'll probably tell you in another podcast how, years later, the Lord used his Word to defeat the cargo cult. One terrible effect of the cult was to distrust anyone teaching differently from the cult teaching. That is one thing the Lord defeated. Before the occasion that brought the defeat of the cult, people would hint to me about their cult activities saying, “We're doing our traditional cultural practices to bless this land (meaning to bring prosperity).” Note that after only 30-40 years after the start of the cult, they called the wife swapping their ‘traditional cultural practice'. That was not their true tradition! I, the newcomer and foreigner, had to remind them! In the olden days before Daud Sasbe, adultery was severely punished. The punishment was to have your thigh shot at close range with an arrow. The thigh would be pierced with a big spear-like arrow— the kind used in killing pigs. Not many committed adultery back then. God, our creator, has every right to tell us humans how to live. People who live as God instructs us in the Scripture are actually the happiest people in the world. God knows what is best for us. And He has been kind enough to not hide this knowledge from us. He made us male and female to harmonize together in a beautiful way. A couple is so harmonized that two become one, one body. Any time we humans say, “Oh God didn't really mean what he said about __x__ in the Bible!” (you fill in the blank) — we are headed for trouble and misery. My stories about how the Orya people were led into degrading sexual sin probably sound so strange to you that you can hardly believe it. Well, when I tell the Orya what is happening now in the sexual revolution in America and other first-world nations, they can hardly believe it! The sexual revolution will not lead our society to Paradise, happiness, or prosperity, but to shame and misery. ============= I want to repeat my appeal from the top of this episode: Please share with your friends about the 3D reading plan and the Daily Bible Reading Podcasts. Any day of the year is a good day to start listening to the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never tell you not to read the Bible. That message comes from someone else. Expect the Holy Spirit to speak to you each time you read or listen to the Bible. Please forget about me and listen to Him. Gale and I send you our New Year's greetings, and as always, I say, May the Lord bless you ‘real good'.  

Greetings everyone and welcome to this last extra podcast this year. Merry Christmas and may you have a very blessed new year. If you are one who started around January 1 listening to the DBRP and are about to finish the plan on December 31, congratulations to you! I hope you celebrate that achievement! As always, I invite you to come back some year in the future and listen again, but suggest that after a full year with me, it is time to find another Bible reader to listen to in the new year. Don't forget your own voice. Reading Scripture out loud is tremendously helpful, even if the audience is just you alone. If you have listened to the NLT this year, for some future year remember that I have also recorded the GNT. One of my projects during 2022 was to critically listen to the NLT series and fix poor recording quality and mistakes. I re-recorded a few episodes entirely, and made smaller improvements to others. I am continuing to do the same thing now in the GNT series. For those not on our email list, Gale and I recently shared pictures from my recent trip to Indonesia. If you would like to see that letter and a few extra pictures, please click the link here in the episode notes. Before January 1st, I will revise the dailybiblereading.info website and the Read This First pages, which contain all my advice about Bible reading and listening to the DBRP. (The link to the Read This First pages is found in the banner of dailybiblerading.info.) If you have any question you would like me to answer in those pages, please use the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. I would like to update the information I shared about podcast players. If you have a favorite podcast app that works well for managing your podcast listening, please tell me about it. I will need the app's name, what platform it runs on, and why you recommend it. In my October extra podcast, I gave the second lesson in the series I call Buckling the Belt of Truth. That lesson gives my advice about how to understand spiritual realities found in the Bible, which are spiritual things about you that cannot be seen with human eyes. In particular, I dealt with the biblical teaching that you have been united with Christ in his death (being crucified with Him), you died and were buried, and now have been raised with Him to new life. Since you and I never actually experienced death, the Holy Spirit has been so kind as to give us multiple metaphors to help us grasp the reality of our spiritual resurrection. I think a key to grasping this concept is understanding our being one with Christ. At first I thought of giving you an allegorical treasure map, to walk you through the different ways Scripture repeats the same powerful idea. But in the end I had to recognize that I don't have the literary gifts of John Bunyan. (But don't miss reading his book, Pilgrim's Progress.) I started that Buckling the Belt series by saying how I struggled to find the promises that Peter mentioned in 2nd Peter 1, the promises needed for ‘living a godly life', the ones “that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires.” I am thinking now that not all God's promises need to be expressed in the future with statements like, “He who started a good work in you WILL …” (I'm referring there to a beautiful promise found in Phl. 1:6.) Promises can also be stated in the present, such as when Jesus utters 7-8 ‘I am' statements in John, and when He proclaims ‘you are'. One of those ‘I am' statements is found in John 15, where Jesus said, “I am the true grapevine, and my father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” The statement, “I am the vine; you are the branches,” is actually a promise. It is a right-now promise. It is true of you now. But like many promises, there are conditions to fulfill. Some of the conditions are stated with the word ‘will', like we expect for promises: Remain in me, and I will remain in you. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. As a Bible translator, I don't like the way our being united to Christ is expressed with the word ‘in', as in “Remain in me, and I will remain in you.” Greek talked like that. But we English speakers don't normally talk of branches ‘remaining in' a tree. Instead, branches are simply part of the tree. I would translate “Remain in me,” as “Stay joined as one with me.” We are organically one with our Vine, Jesus. There is a constellation of ‘treasures' found in staying joined to Jesus which He explains in John 15: 9 “I have loved you as the Father has loved me.” Then later he commands us to love one another. 13-15 This is the passage where Jesus calls us his ‘friends'. 16 Then Jesus tells us, “I chose you.” Those three are on my list of the things that most Christians find hard to believe. 11 “I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my Joy.” What a wonderful promise! 7-8 Let me give you my paraphrase: Jesus is saying,  “If you continue clinging to Me in oneness, and if you internalize my teachings, then I invite you to pray asking for anything you want, and it will be given to you. 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.” This is another amazing promise: Answered prayers! Wow, how come we aren't spending more time in prayer!   Let's keep on clinging to Christ. Meditate on being Jesus' branch. Ask God to help you internalize this new identity. Because then you will be able to reach out and touch God's other promises, like the harder one I mentioned: Being crucified with Christ and raised with Him. There is one more crowning jem of oneness with Christ in Ephesians that I didn't mention in the last episode. Since we are joined as one with Christ Jesus, we ‘are seated with Him in the heavenly realms' (Eph. 2:6). That verse doesn't say that we ‘have a future position with Christ', although promises to that effect are found elsewhere in the Bible. Instead Eph. 2:6 says we ‘are seated' with Him right now. Where is Christ seated? At God's right hand. (If you were standing directly in front of God, Jesus would be to your left.) The verse is a bit unclear as to how we could be seated with Christ. We might be seated circling God's throne. I like to say, “There are no folding chairs in heaven.” None of heaven's chairs are made of plastic. Your name is engraved at your place. There is a place reserved for you alone, and it is certain and permanent. But capitalizing on the picture of vine-and-branch oneness with Christ, let's imagine sitting on Jesus' lap, while He is sitting on his throne next to God. You are right there with the King of the Universe. Lean back and whisper in his ear! “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” Mat. 7:7 John 15:7 “If you remain joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted.” Think of it: Jesus actually is inviting you to take advantage of your close position! From this place of acceptance and privilege, you are invited to tell the King what You need Him to do for you. But when you sit there, filled with reverence and awe, you will suddenly realize that some things you thought about asking Him are not really what is needed or important. However when the Holy Spirit helps you find your voice to ask, the things you wind up asking will be ‘for His glory' (that is to say, ‘in his name'). Such prayers are powerful! Then our passage promised ‘you will be filled with joy.' Why will we receive such joy? Because we will ask big things of God, and He will grant our requests, and God will be glorified. First of all, He will be glorified because we will sing his praises more thankfully. This is where I am right now. I am working to understand and internalize all that I just shared, because I am asking God to do some amazingly big things.   Messages from my Think Cabinet:Our church remodeled the worship center a few years ago. A heavy black metal audio cabinet, six feet tall containing a big rack of amplifiers was left abandoned. Eventually I asked if I might take all the outdated stuff from that cabinet and use it for something in my office. I didn't have a clear idea of what I would do with it. I have enjoyed it mainly as my Idea Incubation Box. It has light of seven colors seeping out of the cracks from the string of LED lights I installed. For a little more than a year I have been posting Bible verses inside the box that grabbed my attention. I'm going to share those verses with you now. (The verse references are given in the episode notes.)   Quote from Dr. Bob Utley, Introduction to Habakkuk: “It is acceptable to question God. However, often it is God's presence, not rational answers, that satisfy (as in Job's case).”     (This note is posted folded and very low. You have to kneel to open it and read it.) “Whenever you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father in secret.”  Matt. 6:6   The LORD is near to all who cry out to Him to all who cry out to Him sincerely.  Ps. 145:18     Keep on praying with the help of the Holy Spirit. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. (Two translations of Jude 20)   Entrust your efforts to the LORD, and your plans will succeed. Prov. 16:3   A heart that turns from God becomes bored with its own ways. But a good person is satisfied with God's ways. Prov. 14:14     This is how our translation of Eccl. 12:11 sounds when translated into English: The teaching of a wise advisor is like a shepherd's stick that is used to guide and direct his sheep. May every saying given by this advisor and shepherd be nailed into the mind of every learner and guide them in living rightly. Eccl. 12:11 PET     Without [fully believing//faith] it is impossible to please God, for the one who approaches Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Heb. 11:6     Through suffering our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the LIFE of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. 2Cor. 4:10   You love Him even though you've never seen Him. And even though you don't see Him, you believe in Him, and celebrate with glorified joy that goes beyond anything words can say, since you are receiving the proper goal of your faith, namely, the rescue of your souls.  1Pet. 1:8-9     The people of an evil and unfaithful era look for a miraculous sign. Mat. 12:39   Which of you wanting to build a tower doesn't sit down first and compute the cost?  Luke 14:28     Remember Uzziah: When he became powerful his pride destroyed him.  2Chr. 26:16     Do not envy sinners in your heart. Instead continue to fear the Lord. There is indeed a future for you, and your hope will not be crushed.  Prov. 23:17-18   One dead fly can make a whole bottle of perfume stink. Even so, a little foolishness can outweigh great wisdom and honor.  Ecc. 10:1     Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Christ Jesus. And don't think about ways to indulge your evil desires.  Romans 13:14     If you, though you are sinful, know how to give good gifts to your children, just think how much more your Father in heaven will give good gifts to those who ask Him.  Mat. 7:11     The LORD of armies has planned it. Who can stop it? He is ready to use his power. Who can turn it back?  Is. 14:27     It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.  2Cor. 1:21-22   This note is my comment based on Weymouth's translation of 2Cor. 5:14. “His death was my death.”     Therefore, we who have fled to Him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God's inner sanctuary. Heb. 6:18b-19   There is a 8 year old boy who visits my office weekly and asks if I have put up a new note. I had to put up a special note inside the box telling how to get out of the box if you shut yourself in.   My sister or brother, have a wonderful time celebrating our Savior's birth. Gale and I send you our love and together say May the Lord bless you ‘real good'. Phil & Gale

Greetings everyone and welcome to this last extra podcast this year. Merry Christmas and may you have a very blessed new year. If you are one who started around January 1 listening to the DBRP and are about to finish the plan on December 31, congratulations to you! I hope you celebrate that achievement! As always, I invite you to come back some year in the future and listen again, but suggest that after a full year with me, it is time to find another Bible reader to listen to in the new year. Don't forget your own voice. Reading Scripture out loud is tremendously helpful, even if the audience is just you alone. If you have listened to the NLT this year, for some future year remember that I have also recorded the GNT. One of my projects during 2022 was to critically listen to the NLT series and fix poor recording quality and mistakes. I re-recorded a few episodes entirely, and made smaller improvements to others. I am continuing to do the same thing now in the GNT series. For those not on our email list, Gale and I recently shared pictures from my recent trip to Indonesia. If you would like to see that letter and a few extra pictures, please click the link here in the episode notes. Before January 1st, I will revise the dailybiblereading.info website and the Read This First pages, which contain all my advice about Bible reading and listening to the DBRP. (The link to the Read This First pages is found in the banner of dailybiblerading.info.) If you have any question you would like me to answer in those pages, please use the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. I would like to update the information I shared about podcast players. If you have a favorite podcast app that works well for managing your podcast listening, please tell me about it. I will need the app's name, what platform it runs on, and why you recommend it. In my October extra podcast, I gave the second lesson in the series I call Buckling the Belt of Truth. That lesson gives my advice about how to understand spiritual realities found in the Bible, which are spiritual things about you that cannot be seen with human eyes. In particular, I dealt with the biblical teaching that you have been united with Christ in his death (being crucified with Him), you died and were buried, and now have been raised with Him to new life. Since you and I never actually experienced death, the Holy Spirit has been so kind as to give us multiple metaphors to help us grasp the reality of our spiritual resurrection. I think a key to grasping this concept is understanding our being one with Christ. At first I thought of giving you an allegorical treasure map, to walk you through the different ways Scripture repeats the same powerful idea. But in the end I had to recognize that I don't have the literary gifts of John Bunyan. (But don't miss reading his book, Pilgrim's Progress.) I started that Buckling the Belt series by saying how I struggled to find the promises that Peter mentioned in 2nd Peter 1, the promises needed for ‘living a godly life', the ones “that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires.” I am thinking now that not all God's promises need to be expressed in the future with statements like, “He who started a good work in you WILL …” (I'm referring there to a beautiful promise found in Phl. 1:6.) Promises can also be stated in the present, such as when Jesus utters 7-8 ‘I am' statements in John, and when He proclaims ‘you are'. One of those ‘I am' statements is found in John 15, where Jesus said, “I am the true grapevine, and my father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” The statement, “I am the vine; you are the branches,” is actually a promise. It is a right-now promise. It is true of you now. But like many promises, there are conditions to fulfill. Some of the conditions are stated with the word ‘will', like we expect for promises: Remain in me, and I will remain in you. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. As a Bible translator, I don't like the way our being united to Christ is expressed with the word ‘in', as in “Remain in me, and I will remain in you.” Greek talked like that. But we English speakers don't normally talk of branches ‘remaining in' a tree. Instead, branches are simply part of the tree. I would translate “Remain in me,” as “Stay joined as one with me.” We are organically one with our Vine, Jesus. There is a constellation of ‘treasures' found in staying joined to Jesus which He explains in John 15: 9 “I have loved you as the Father has loved me.” Then later he commands us to love one another. 13-15 This is the passage where Jesus calls us his ‘friends'. 16 Then Jesus tells us, “I chose you.” Those three are on my list of the things that most Christians find hard to believe. 11 “I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my Joy.” What a wonderful promise! 7-8 Let me give you my paraphrase: Jesus is saying,  “If you continue clinging to Me in oneness, and if you internalize my teachings, then I invite you to pray asking for anything you want, and it will be given to you. 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.” This is another amazing promise: Answered prayers! Wow, how come we aren't spending more time in prayer!   Let's keep on clinging to Christ. Meditate on being Jesus' branch. Ask God to help you internalize this new identity. Because then you will be able to reach out and touch God's other promises, like the harder one I mentioned: Being crucified with Christ and raised with Him. There is one more crowning jem of oneness with Christ in Ephesians that I didn't mention in the last episode. Since we are joined as one with Christ Jesus, we ‘are seated with Him in the heavenly realms' (Eph. 2:6). That verse doesn't say that we ‘have a future position with Christ', although promises to that effect are found elsewhere in the Bible. Instead Eph. 2:6 says we ‘are seated' with Him right now. Where is Christ seated? At God's right hand. (If you were standing directly in front of God, Jesus would be to your left.) The verse is a bit unclear as to how we could be seated with Christ. We might be seated circling God's throne. I like to say, “There are no folding chairs in heaven.” None of heaven's chairs are made of plastic. Your name is engraved at your place. There is a place reserved for you alone, and it is certain and permanent. But capitalizing on the picture of vine-and-branch oneness with Christ, let's imagine sitting on Jesus' lap, while He is sitting on his throne next to God. You are right there with the King of the Universe. Lean back and whisper in his ear! “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” Mat. 7:7 John 15:7 “If you remain joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted.” Think of it: Jesus actually is inviting you to take advantage of your close position! From this place of acceptance and privilege, you are invited to tell the King what You need Him to do for you. But when you sit there, filled with reverence and awe, you will suddenly realize that some things you thought about asking Him are not really what is needed or important. However when the Holy Spirit helps you find your voice to ask, the things you wind up asking will be ‘for His glory' (that is to say, ‘in his name'). Such prayers are powerful! Then our passage promised ‘you will be filled with joy.' Why will we receive such joy? Because we will ask big things of God, and He will grant our requests, and God will be glorified. First of all, He will be glorified because we will sing his praises more thankfully. This is where I am right now. I am working to understand and internalize all that I just shared, because I am asking God to do some amazingly big things.   Messages from my Think Cabinet:Our church remodeled the worship center a few years ago. A heavy black metal audio cabinet, six feet tall containing a big rack of amplifiers was left abandoned. Eventually I asked if I might take all the outdated stuff from that cabinet and use it for something in my office. I didn't have a clear idea of what I would do with it. I have enjoyed it mainly as my Idea Incubation Box. It has light of seven colors seeping out of the cracks from the string of LED lights I installed. For a little more than a year I have been posting Bible verses inside the box that grabbed my attention. I'm going to share those verses with you now. (The verse references are given in the episode notes.)   Quote from Dr. Bob Utley, Introduction to Habakkuk: “It is acceptable to question God. However, often it is God's presence, not rational answers, that satisfy (as in Job's case).”     (This note is posted folded and very low. You have to kneel to open it and read it.) “Whenever you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father in secret.”  Matt. 6:6   The LORD is near to all who cry out to Him to all who cry out to Him sincerely.  Ps. 145:18     Keep on praying with the help of the Holy Spirit. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. (Two translations of Jude 20)   Entrust your efforts to the LORD, and your plans will succeed. Prov. 16:3   A heart that turns from God becomes bored with its own ways. But a good person is satisfied with God's ways. Prov. 14:14     This is how our translation of Eccl. 12:11 sounds when translated into English: The teaching of a wise advisor is like a shepherd's stick that is used to guide and direct his sheep. May every saying given by this advisor and shepherd be nailed into the mind of every learner and guide them in living rightly. Eccl. 12:11 PET     Without [fully believing//faith] it is impossible to please God, for the one who approaches Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Heb. 11:6     Through suffering our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the LIFE of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. 2Cor. 4:10   You love Him even though you've never seen Him. And even though you don't see Him, you believe in Him, and celebrate with glorified joy that goes beyond anything words can say, since you are receiving the proper goal of your faith, namely, the rescue of your souls.  1Pet. 1:8-9     The people of an evil and unfaithful era look for a miraculous sign. Mat. 12:39   Which of you wanting to build a tower doesn't sit down first and compute the cost?  Luke 14:28     Remember Uzziah: When he became powerful his pride destroyed him.  2Chr. 26:16     Do not envy sinners in your heart. Instead continue to fear the Lord. There is indeed a future for you, and your hope will not be crushed.  Prov. 23:17-18   One dead fly can make a whole bottle of perfume stink. Even so, a little foolishness can outweigh great wisdom and honor.  Ecc. 10:1     Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Christ Jesus. And don't think about ways to indulge your evil desires.  Romans 13:14     If you, though you are sinful, know how to give good gifts to your children, just think how much more your Father in heaven will give good gifts to those who ask Him.  Mat. 7:11     The LORD of armies has planned it. Who can stop it? He is ready to use his power. Who can turn it back?  Is. 14:27     It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.  2Cor. 1:21-22   This note is my comment based on Weymouth's translation of 2Cor. 5:14. “His death was my death.”     Therefore, we who have fled to Him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God's inner sanctuary. Heb. 6:18b-19   There is a 8 year old boy who visits my office weekly and asks if I have put up a new note. I had to put up a special note inside the box telling how to get out of the box if you shut yourself in.   My sister or brother, have a wonderful time celebrating our Savior's birth. Gale and I send you our love and together say May the Lord bless you ‘real good'. Phil & Gale

We all know we need to read the Bible. But we do need a little help getting into it for ourselves. Gary Millar’s book, Read This First really helps with this in a clear concise way. Learn More: Meet Gary Millar Read This First: A Simple Guide to Getting the Most from the Bible by Gary Millar Jesus Betrayed and Crucified: A Message from Gary Millar

Have you ever thought about purchasing stocks for purpose of generating dividend income? If that is part of your retirement plan, then you won't want to miss this episode. Today we're taking a look at a retirement headline from MarketWatch that highlights three considerations to be aware of before jumping into this strategy.  Stick around for the listener questions segment to hear the answer to Jerry's question about increasing his retirement spending until it's time to collect Social Security. Outline of This Episode [1:22] 3 tips for buying stocks to produce dividends in retirement [5:01] Use a Swiss Army Knife portfolio [7:25] On increasing retirement spending before Social Security Resources & People Mentioned The Nerd's Eye View blog @DerekTharp on Twitter Connect with Benjamin Brandt Get the Retire-Ready Toolkit: http://retirementstartstodayradio.com/ Follow Ben on Twitter: https://twitter.com/retiremeasap Subscribe to the newsletter: https://retirementstartstodayradio.com/newsletter Subscribe to Retirement Starts Today on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Podbean, Player FM, iHeart, or Spotify

RVs come in a wide variety of styles and dimensions. You must have a battery charging system whether you purchase an RV from an RV manufacturer or convert one from an old bus or van. Batteries in an RV may overheat. Why is the battery ... Read more. View detail https://www.rvingbeginner.com/rv-battery-overheating

Are you looking for the right crypto course to take your first steps into blockchain investing? Is Dan Hollings' The Plan worth your time and money? Read Celrbug.com's first-hand report of their experience to find out. Visit https://celrbug.com/how-to-invest-in-crypto-course-for-beginners-to-experts-dan-hollings-the-plan-user-review-2022/ (https://celrbug.com/how-to-invest-in-crypto-course-for-beginners-to-experts-dan-hollings-the-plan-user-review-2022/) for more information.

READ THIS FIRST. Listening in to this AMA is completely optional. It's a great way to get to know the cast, our motivations, our hopes and dreams... But, if that's not your thing, feel free to skip right to Episode 1.  For those of you who enjoy this content and want more, check out our Patreon: www.patreon.com/slaythestars. At the  VIP tier, you'll get a monthly, private AMA session.  Enough talk! Onto the... Well... Talking. Enjoy!

The Bible is the most extraordinary book you’ll ever read; it’s how God speaks directly to us and how his Spirit works to change us. But it can seem intimidating, confusing, and even a little bit boring. Our guest will show you that the skills you need to read the Bible are not beyond your grasp. Join us as he gives you the tools to read and understand the Bible for yourself, helping you move from confusion to confidence as you enjoy refreshment in God’s word. As you read the Bible, you will hear God speak, and you will be changed to be more like Jesus.

The Bible is the most extraordinary book you’ll ever read; it’s how God speaks directly to us and how his Spirit works to change us. But it can seem intimidating, confusing, and even a little bit boring. Our guest will show you that the skills you need to read the Bible are not beyond your grasp. Join us as he gives you the tools to read and understand the Bible for yourself, helping you move from confusion to confidence as you enjoy refreshment in God’s word. As you read the Bible, you will hear God speak, and you will be changed to be more like Jesus.

Unit 11-2 Heading Out to Hike? Read This First! 天氣漸漸不再那麼寒冷了，可以帶上簡易的裝備，一同出發去爬山。這次 4 月的運動專題，要介紹給大家簡易的登山配備以及兩條備受健行客喜愛的路線──眠月線以及抹茶山。聽完之後是不是想更了解這兩個健行路線的資訊呢？趕緊跟著我們一起去健行吧！

Unit 11-1 Heading Out to Hike? Read This First! 天氣漸漸不再那麼寒冷了，可以帶上簡易的裝備，一同出發去爬山。這次 4 月的運動專題，要介紹給大家簡易的登山配備以及兩條備受健行客喜愛的路線──眠月線以及抹茶山。聽完之後是不是想更了解這兩個健行路線的資訊呢？趕緊跟著我們一起去健行吧！

The Bible is the most extraordinary book you’ll ever read; it’s how God speaks directly to us and how his Spirit works to change us. But it can seem intimidating, confusing, and even a little bit boring. Our guest will show you that the skills you need to read the Bible are not beyond your grasp. Join us as he gives you the tools to read and understand the Bible for yourself, helping you move from confusion to confidence as you enjoy refreshment in God’s word. As you read the Bible, you will hear God speak, and you will be changed to be more like Jesus.

Gary Millar, author of "Read This First," shares how we can work past the intimidation of reading the Bible and let the Spirit do the work to change us. Theolatte's Dan DeWitt talks about how all of our human values are a faith commitment and what influences our conventional ways of thinking.

Gary Millar, author of "Read This First," shares how we can work past the intimidation of reading the Bible and let the Spirit do the work to change us. Theolatte's Dan DeWitt talks about how all of our human values are a faith commitment and what influences our conventional ways of thinking.

Today's episode is with Arielle Jackson. For the past 7 years, she's helped hundreds of companies build their positioning and brands from the ground up, both as our Marketing Expert in Residence here at First Round and in her own consulting work. Before helping early-stage startups, Arielle started her career in Product Marketing at Google, where she helped launch and grow Google Books and AdWords before leading marketing for Gmail. She then joined Square, where she led the launch of the Square Stand. She then headed up marketing & communications at Cover, an Android app that was acquired by Twitter. Given that she's worked with so many companies, Arielle is a pro at spotting common patterns when it comes to early marketing, so today we spend our time digging into the challenges and missteps she's seen so many founders run into. From category creation and company purpose, to messaging, brand personality and launch strategy, Arielle details both common pitfalls to avoid and the exercises and frameworks that she shares with founders in her consulting work. Whether it's about not falling into the trap of focusing too much on other startup competitors, relying on emotional instead of functional benefits, or coming with unrealistic PR expectations, Arielle has tons of examples to bring these concepts to life.  If you are looking to learn more, Arielle has turned the brand strategy work she does at First Round into a cohort-based course, powered by Maven. The course runs in February and applications close on Jan 28th – find out more and apply here. Additionally, here are the resources we talked about in the episode Arielle's First Round Review articles: - Positioning Your Startup is Vital — Here's How to Nail It - ​​Three Moves Every Startup Founder Must Make to Build a Brand That Matters - So You Think You're Ready to Hire a Marketer? Read This First. The books on the subject that Arielle recommends: - Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind - Play Bigger: How Rebels and Innovators Create New Categories and Dominate Markets - Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life - Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions You can follow Arielle on Twitter at @hiiamArielle. You can email us questions directly at review@firstround.com or follow us on Twitter @firstround and @brettberson.

Hey there! It seems like we are off to a good start this year in the Daily Bible Reading Podcast. I have already gotten one email indicating some confusion on the part of one listener, so I will explain about that in just a few moments. First I want to ask you to share the DBRP NOW with your friends. If you started listening to the podcasts just a few days ago, then perhaps it has occured to you, “Hey, this podcast would be perfect for” this or that friend. If so, please share with them right away. This first week of the yearly plan is a great time to start listening, and if your friend wants to, he/she can easily catch up with you. Then you can discuss the readings together. If you visit the Read This First pages linked in the header of dailybiblereading.info, you can find the Sharing page, which has images that you can use for sharing on social media posts. I will give you some reasons for contacting me below, so let me share now that my favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. It's in the upper right hand corner of the screen. I have recently revised much of the information found in the Read This First pages linked in the banner of dailybiblereading.info. That's the place to go for information about Bible apps, podcast apps, Bible sites useful for digging deeper. and also information about me. Last year, I followed the 3D reading plan again, but did not listen to any of the podcasts. This year, I am going to listen to all of them again in a concentrated way, looking for things to improve. And already I have made improvements to some podcasts from episode 1 through 26. I always want to know if you find a mistake in something I have said in one of the recordings. Here is the item of confusion mentioned above that I wanted to share with you: YouVersion now has an audio play button at the bottom of the page for the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. Because that reading plan is sponsored by the Daily Bible Reading Podcast, some people will think that the play button is giving them the recordings for the podcasts. It does NOT. If you hit the play button, you get a Siri/Alexa-like voice that reads the devotional content page, and after that page, the app will play whatever voice is bundled with the translation you have selected. If any of the people who have recently subscribed to the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan in the YouVersion app are confused like that, then they won't get the message about their mistake, since they will never see the extra podcast that I release like this one. However, when the voice pronounces the name of Job as job, I hope that they will figure out that they are not listening to a podcast. Actually following the 3D reading plan that way is not too bad. I'm just sorry that those who do this will miss out on some of the extra information that I can give in podcasts and also the prayers at the end of each podcast. For more information about my two full-Bible reading plans in the YouVersion app, please visit the Read This First pages linked at dailybiblereading.info, and look for the page that is about Listening to podcasts. I want to close this podcast with a selection of quick tips. For all of these items, you can find more complete information in the Read This First pages. If you have any questions about why I have recorded the NLT and the GNT for the DBRP, please see the Read This First pages. Those two are the most understandable English translations for those consuming Scripture in audio form. If you started listening to episode 1 podcast on January 1st, if you don't want to install a podcast app, you can simply go to dailybiblereading.info or dailygntbiblereading.info. Your daily episode will be near the top. This is also a great method if you want to use a computer instead of a smaller device. If you are somewhere in the middle of the year or are irregular in your listening, a good podcast app will make it easy to select the next episode without having to remember the day number or search for it. If my reading is too slow for you, a good podcast app will let you choose to speed up the audio. My favorite speed is 1.25. I don't recommend listening to Scripture at 1.5 speed if your aim is to understand it and think about it. When I was reading the 3D plan last year and not listening to the audio, I enjoyed using the MyBible app, which works on both Apple and Android devices. It has MANY options for customization. A simpler app that allows you to follow the 3D plan is called Quick Bibles. The Indonesian version of that program is the most popular Bible app in Indonesia. For listening to the 3D plan using smart speakers, please see the Read This First pages at dailybiblereading.info. Please, if you are listening to the DBRP on your commute to work, have things set up with your podcast app so you do not need to touch your phone. I want to repeat my appeal from the top of this episode: Please share with your friends about the 3D reading plan and the Daily Bible Reading Podcasts. Any day of the year is a good day to start listening to the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never tell you not to read the Bible. That message comes from someone else. Expect the Holy Spirit to speak to you each time you read or listen to the Bible. Please forget about me and listen to Him. Gale and I send you our New Year's greetings, and as always, I say, May the Lord bless you ‘real good'.

Hey there! It seems like we are off to a good start this year in the Daily Bible Reading Podcast. I have already gotten one email indicating some confusion on the part of one listener, so I will explain about that in just a few moments. First I want to ask you to share the DBRP NOW with your friends. If you started listening to the podcasts just a few days ago, then perhaps it has occured to you, “Hey, this podcast would be perfect for” this or that friend. If so, please share with them right away. This first week of the yearly plan is a great time to start listening, and if your friend wants to, he/she can easily catch up with you. Then you can discuss the readings together. If you visit the Read This First pages linked in the header of dailybiblereading.info, you can find the Sharing page, which has images that you can use for sharing on social media posts. I will give you some reasons for contacting me below, so let me share now that my favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact button at dailybiblereading.info. It's in the upper right hand corner of the screen. I have recently revised much of the information found in the Read This First pages linked in the banner of dailybiblereading.info. That's the place to go for information about Bible apps, podcast apps, Bible sites useful for digging deeper. and also information about me. Last year, I followed the 3D reading plan again, but did not listen to any of the podcasts. This year, I am going to listen to all of them again in a concentrated way, looking for things to improve. And already I have made improvements to some podcasts from episode 1 through 26. I always want to know if you find a mistake in something I have said in one of the recordings. Here is the item of confusion mentioned above that I wanted to share with you: YouVersion now has an audio play button at the bottom of the page for the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. Because that reading plan is sponsored by the Daily Bible Reading Podcast, some people will think that the play button is giving them the recordings for the podcasts. It does NOT. If you hit the play button, you get a Siri/Alexa-like voice that reads the devotional content page, and after that page, the app will play whatever voice is bundled with the translation you have selected. If any of the people who have recently subscribed to the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan in the YouVersion app are confused like that, then they won't get the message about their mistake, since they will never see the extra podcast that I release like this one. However, when the voice pronounces the name of Job as job, I hope that they will figure out that they are not listening to a podcast. Actually following the 3D reading plan that way is not too bad. I'm just sorry that those who do this will miss out on some of the extra information that I can give in podcasts and also the prayers at the end of each podcast. For more information about my two full-Bible reading plans in the YouVersion app, please visit the Read This First pages linked at dailybiblereading.info, and look for the page that is about Listening to podcasts. I want to close this podcast with a selection of quick tips. For all of these items, you can find more complete information in the Read This First pages. If you have any questions about why I have recorded the NLT and the GNT for the DBRP, please see the Read This First pages. Those two are the most understandable English translations for those consuming Scripture in audio form. If you started listening to episode 1 podcast on January 1st, if you don't want to install a podcast app, you can simply go to dailybiblereading.info or dailygntbiblereading.info. Your daily episode will be near the top. This is also a great method if you want to use a computer instead of a smaller device. If you are somewhere in the middle of the year or are irregular in your listening, a good podcast app will make it easy to select the next episode without having to remember the day number or search for it. If my reading is too slow for you, a good podcast app will let you choose to speed up the audio. My favorite speed is 1.25. I don't recommend listening to Scripture at 1.5 speed if your aim is to understand it and think about it. When I was reading the 3D plan last year and not listening to the audio, I enjoyed using the MyBible app, which works on both Apple and Android devices. It has MANY options for customization. A simpler app that allows you to follow the 3D plan is called Quick Bibles. The Indonesian version of that program is the most popular Bible app in Indonesia. For listening to the 3D plan using smart speakers, please see the Read This First pages at dailybiblereading.info. Please, if you are listening to the DBRP on your commute to work, have things set up with your podcast app so you do not need to touch your phone. I want to repeat my appeal from the top of this episode: Please share with your friends about the 3D reading plan and the Daily Bible Reading Podcasts. Any day of the year is a good day to start listening to the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never tell you not to read the Bible. That message comes from someone else. Expect the Holy Spirit to speak to you each time you read or listen to the Bible. Please forget about me and listen to Him. Gale and I send you our New Year's greetings, and as always, I say, May the Lord bless you ‘real good'.

Hey, happy New Year to you all! If you happen to be one who started the DBRP at the beginning of 2021, you have surely noticed that our readings have contained one prophetic figure of speech or metaphor after another that all say that, “In the end, Jesus, the Son of God and Lion of Judah WINS. Blessed are you if you faithfully endure as a believer and follower of Him. The times that we are living through will be increasingly tough. Stand firm in holy living and in doing good works that glorify God. You will not be disappointed in the results!” In 2022 my prayer is that we believers become better ambassadors of the basic beliefs taught in the Bible. How can we help our friends, family, or casual acquaintances to see the errors in the pagan worldview that is being promoted in the media today? I recommend the videos, podcasts, and books by Greg Koukl. His organization is called Stands to Reason, and his website is str.org. In particular, I recommend his book called Tactics. Be sure to get the 10th Anniversary Edition, which is available also as a Kindle book/audio book. The great thing that Koukl teaches is how to use questions in discussions with people holding different views, so that your conversations don't turn into arguments. (All the links for things I mention today are found in the episode notes.) At this time every year I give suggestions for other audio Bible podcasts, so that after listening to me for a year, you can listen to another voice. The great granddaddy of daily Bible reading podcasts is the Daily Audio Bible. Another good one is the Daily Radio Bible. As you choose a reading program for next year, I urge you to remember the basics that I give in my How to Study the Bible video, https://youtu.be/sPyAp8ZxDBE. Be sure to pick a plan that will have you reading some of the NT every day, not zipping through the NT starting in September or October. Some of you who listened to the NLT podcasts this year may want to listen to my GNT podcast series next year. If so, the site is dailyGNTBiblereading.info. If you want to use the YouVersion Bible app for your daily Bible readings, my 365-day plan is called ‘Digging Deeper Daily'. You can search in the YouVersion plans for Digging Deeper Daily, or find the direct link in the episode notes. Digging Deeper Daily: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/1314-digging-deeper-daily If you would like to listen to David Suche reading the NIV Bible (as I did in 2020), I suggest that you follow the YouVersion plan named ‘Read to Me Daily'. If you select the NIV UK edition as your Bible, then David Suche is the reader. You can search in the YouVersion plans for ‘Read to me daily'. Read to Me Daily: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/13707-read-to-me-daily This 365-day reading plan is presented in four semesters. For information about other apps you can use for Bible reading or listening to the Daily Bible Reading podcasts, please see the Read This First pages that are linked in the top bar of the dailybiblereading.info site. If the app you are using does not show you the episode notes with clickable links and paragraph formatting, there are many other apps that will do a better job of that. For people following the Daily Bible Reading podcasts in 2022, I will not be starting a new Facebook group or sending our special emails next year. But if any of you will be starting groups on some social media platform for a small group following the Digging Deeper Reading plan, I would like to offer my help and encouragement. If your group has questions that I might answer from a Bible translator's viewpoint, you can invite me to join your group. I won't have time to be active in multiple groups, but I would be glad to answer questions and encourage your group. I will continue sending out news or informational podcasts at random times, like this one. Finally, I want to remind you that these 4-5 days are the peak times when people make resolutions to read the Bible. Please share with your friends about the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan and the DBRPs. Please give them the link: dailybiblereading.info. Gale and I wish you a joyous year in 2022. May the Lord bless you ‘real good'!

Hey, happy New Year to you all! If you happen to be one who started the DBRP at the beginning of 2021, you have surely noticed that our readings have contained one prophetic figure of speech or metaphor after another that all say that, “In the end, Jesus, the Son of God and Lion of Judah WINS. Blessed are you if you faithfully endure as a believer and follower of Him. The times that we are living through will be increasingly tough. Stand firm in holy living and in doing good works that glorify God. You will not be disappointed in the results!” In 2022 my prayer is that we believers become better ambassadors of the basic beliefs taught in the Bible. How can we help our friends, family, or casual acquaintances to see the errors in the pagan worldview that is being promoted in the media today? I recommend the videos, podcasts, and books by Greg Koukl. His organization is called Stands to Reason, and his website is str.org. In particular, I recommend his book called Tactics. Be sure to get the 10th Anniversary Edition, which is available also as a Kindle book/audio book. The great thing that Koukl teaches is how to use questions in discussions with people holding different views, so that your conversations don't turn into arguments. (All the links for things I mention today are found in the episode notes.) At this time every year I give suggestions for other audio Bible podcasts, so that after listening to me for a year, you can listen to another voice. The great granddaddy of daily Bible reading podcasts is the Daily Audio Bible. Another good one is the Daily Radio Bible. As you choose a reading program for next year, I urge you to remember the basics that I give in my How to Study the Bible video, https://youtu.be/sPyAp8ZxDBE. Be sure to pick a plan that will have you reading some of the NT every day, not zipping through the NT starting in September or October. Some of you who listened to the NLT podcasts this year may want to listen to my GNT podcast series next year. If so, the site is dailyGNTBiblereading.info. If you want to use the YouVersion Bible app for your daily Bible readings, my 365-day plan is called ‘Digging Deeper Daily'. You can search in the YouVersion plans for Digging Deeper Daily, or find the direct link in the episode notes. Digging Deeper Daily: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/1314-digging-deeper-daily If you would like to listen to David Suche reading the NIV Bible (as I did in 2020), I suggest that you follow the YouVersion plan named ‘Read to Me Daily'. If you select the NIV UK edition as your Bible, then David Suche is the reader. You can search in the YouVersion plans for ‘Read to me daily'. Read to Me Daily: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/13707-read-to-me-daily This 365-day reading plan is presented in four semesters. For information about other apps you can use for Bible reading or listening to the Daily Bible Reading podcasts, please see the Read This First pages that are linked in the top bar of the dailybiblereading.info site. If the app you are using does not show you the episode notes with clickable links and paragraph formatting, there are many other apps that will do a better job of that. For people following the Daily Bible Reading podcasts in 2022, I will not be starting a new Facebook group or sending our special emails next year. But if any of you will be starting groups on some social media platform for a small group following the Digging Deeper Reading plan, I would like to offer my help and encouragement. If your group has questions that I might answer from a Bible translator's viewpoint, you can invite me to join your group. I won't have time to be active in multiple groups, but I would be glad to answer questions and encourage your group. I will continue sending out news or informational podcasts at random times, like this one. Finally, I want to remind you that these 4-5 days are the peak times when people make resolutions to read the Bible. Please share with your friends about the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan and the DBRPs. Please give them the link: dailybiblereading.info. Gale and I wish you a joyous year in 2022. May the Lord bless you ‘real good'!

Episode 113 - AYOTF Thank goodness for the salary cap!  Are you listening, Major League Baseball? In this episode, I discuss why Major League Baseball has made my transition to footy easy, and I go back to March of 2020 to look at how the NBA (and NFL) helped save the VFL.   New podcast website Guest Intake Form - link Want to help out the podcast? Buy me a coffee, Podcast fundraiser Podcast "merch" storefront Club of the episode -  No Club of the week this episode. MLB 2021 Payroll Tracker MLB owners reportedly propose a salary floor, but there's a big catch Competitive Balance Tax | Glossary Know What Is The New MLB Salary Cap And Luxury Tax Proposal Made By MLB For 2022 And The Threshold Why Doesn't The MLB Have A Salary Cap? Read This First! A link to my new Youtube Page.  Here is where you can also find my podcasts. If you've got a footy sticker that you'd like to share with the podcast host, the mailing address is 1124 McKinley St. Sandusky Ohio 44870 USA MAILING LIST signup:  Email form for creating email list - I hope you'll consider signing up for the mailing list, so you'll be the first to have the new episode dropped off right into your inbox.  You can also sign up for the mailing list that is on ayankonthefooty.com For crisis support, please contact: Lifeline http://lifeline.org.au 13 11 14  Beyond Blue http://beyondblue.org.au 1300 22 4636 In the U.S. contact: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ 1-800-273-8255 I humbly thank you for taking the time to listen to my show.  I truly appreciate it.  Don't forget that you can reach me on Twitter @Yank_on or at ayankonthefooty@gmail.com.  You can also find me at A Yank on the Footy on Instagram and Facebook.   I ask that you consider sharing this episode, and this podcast with your family and friends.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://tvanswerman.com/2021/09/08/directv-subs-thinking-of-switching-to-directv-stream-read-this-first/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/phillip-swann/support

Discussion Questions (Week commencing Sunday 11th July 2021) Revelation 1:9-20 1.Share what you imagine it might be like to be separated from family, friends, and Believers, and to be imprisoned on a rocky island with other prisoners? How did John view his imprisonment in verse 9? 2.What did John's isolation give him time to do (v.10)? How did God use John's terrible situation for His divine purposes? Can you think of a time in your life when God used a horrible situation for His glory? 3.Why do you think John reacted to the vision the way he did in verse 17? How was this vision of Christ different from what John had experience as a disciple of Christ? 4.How would the words of the Lord Jesus in verses 17-18 be a comfort to John? What was the Lord Jesus implying? 5.What “extraordinary assignment” did the Lord Jesus give to John (v.19)? Explain the possible outline of Revelation in verse 19. 6.What assignment might the Lord Jesus be giving us this week in light of what we are learning?

Discussion Questions (Week commencing Sunday 27th June 2021) Revelation 1:4-8 1. Why is it so important to read the “Read This First” instructions before using a new purchase? Can you relay a story of what happened when you didn't follow the instructions before using a new purchase? 2. In what ways is Revelation 1 a “Read This First” chapter? In relation to the larger context of Revelation, why would this have been so comforting to the early church? 3. Verses 4 – 5a give a benediction. What was it and who was it from? Why would this have been so encouraging for the persecuted church? 4. Read aloud verse 7. Who is it who will see Jesus coming? Why will they mourn? 5. Why does the Lord Jesus call Himself the “Alpha and Omega”? What does this mean, and how comforting is that for today? 6. What do verses 5a – 6 say, and what do they mean? How does this relate to us today?

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://tvanswerman.com/2021/01/15/did-netflix-offer-you-a-free-year-read-this-first/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/phillip-swann/support

Greetings friends to this end of the year podcast! Before I share my own stories, I want to give you our last two Listener Stories for 2020, one from Tom and another from Tammy. I think Tammy’s story is especially interesting because the Coronavirus pandemic had a big impact on her. I think her story will resonate with many of you.  Hello, my name is Tammy.  I recently retired from being a principal and before that a school teacher, a job I had done and loved for over 30 years.  I had oodles of plans for what I was going to do, places I was going to go and things I was really looking forward to doing-  like working with children at our church this summer.  When COVID hit and closed down school as we knew it on March 13, 2020, my life really changed.  I didn’t get to say goodbye to my students, parents and staff, it just all ended that Friday in March.  I was really struggling with what to me felt like a major loss. (This is in no way to disrespect those that have had greater losses due to COVID.) I was talking to my husband explaining how I was feeling such an absence of being needed and like I was just wandering looking for what I was supposed to be doing with my life at this time.  My sweet husband said some very wise words to me.  He said, “Tammy, I believe God is just giving you this down time to recharge you and prepare you for what He has planned next for you to do for Him.  Take this time and use it to its best.”  While I knew he was right, I have to say I DON’T  do down time well.  When you work 60 hours a week for oodles of years and have people consistently needing things from you, to have that come to a screeching halt, really put me off kilter.   I was struggling trying to figure out what God wanted me to do.  Then one morning in my devotion time God put on my heart that I have been wanting to complete a read through the Bible in a year program for a long time.  Even though it was August, I thought, this doesn’t have to wait until January to be a New Year’s Resolution, it can be my New Life Resolution. What a blessing this decision has been!  I looked at all different types of programs.  I found Digging Deeper Daily and liked the explanation of how this program was laid out. I wanted to learn about the “threads that unify the message of the Old and New Testaments”. I also like the fact that there were brief devotional notes that I thought would help me see the connections clearer.   I started this journey on August 20th and upon hearing the first reading, I fell in love with this journey.  Phil’s voice was so calming and yet assured in what he was saying and reading.  The brief stories he shares of his work as a Bible translator make me feel like I have a new friend.  This adventure has helped me grow daily in my understanding of God’s word.   Being a Christian since a child, I had heard many stories from the bible, now I understand more deeply what was happening before, during and after those isolated events.  It has really helped make the Bible come to life for me.   Phil explains how he started this project as a gift to leave his grandchildren.  He wanted to read the entire bible to them.  I feel his love each morning as I listen to him read and explain the daily passage, its as if for those brief moments I have been adopted into his family.  This has not only been a way for me to learn more about the Bible, grow closer to God, but also to feel like I am being gathered into the fold each morning.   The brief explanations at the end of the readings are so helpful.  I always look forward to the prayer Phil delivers to close the devotional time.  Often, I will replay the prayer a time or two more.  At the end of “our time together” I try to conclude with a prayer for Phil and all those doing God’s work to bring His word to the nations that don’t have the Bible yet.  This reminder of what a gift the Bible is to us, that I often take for granted because I haven’t known a time without it, has made my daily time with God even more precious.   Early on in the program, Phil was reading to us from Matthew.  When He read Matthew 11:28 which says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” I cried.  This to me reiterated what my husband told me.    I was in need of this passage.  When Phil read this verse, with such love in his voice, I felt as if it was God speaking it to me.  I needed rest, yet I wouldn’t let myself admit it.  Now, each morning I consider my time listening to Phil read God’s word as a time of rest, connection and recharging.   I can’t wait to find out what great adventure God has in store for me next, or where He needs me in this stage of life, what I do know though is that Phil Fields and Digging Deeper Daily will be on that amazing ride with me.   Thanks so much, Tammy, for your story! And with a sincere blush, I also say thanks for your kind words. I am so pleased— more than that— filled with joy, when people are able to look through the kind of one-way mirror that podcasting is, to become my friends and even adopted family.  Thanks to Tom giving me this next story. Tom is mainly a reader (not a regular podcast listener). The 3D YouVersion plan he has followed for 2020 is called Read To Me Daily. (Link given in the episode notes.) Tom is a long time friend, dating back to my music teaching days. There is one odd, totally unplanned, similarity between his story and Tammy’s. I think you will catch it. My name is Tom and I am a sixty-year-old Arkansan.  I have read through the Bible several times using different plans.  The last few times, using electronic media, such as Digging Deeper Daily, has aided me greatly through ease of access.  Reading the Bible entirely in one year gives one little time for Bible study, but I value the discipline of daily reading which stirs my thoughts and continually whets my appetite to, what else, dig deeper. I read through the Bible this year using the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition.  In the past I have used various translations and even some paraphrases and I may have been wiser to use the recommended New Living Translation or Good News Translation.  Instead, however, I wanted to use the AMPC this year to slow me down.  The many bracketed words and phrases in the AMPC which are used to further describe a translated word or passage, forced me to ponder over a word or passage and think about how an idea was being explained.  I did enjoy the New Living Translation as well as the Good News Translation versions referenced most often in the devotionals.  I found multiple translations of the same verses to be quite helpful. Most years when using a daily reading plan I plowed right past the devotional passages and read only the scripture.  This year I was determined to include reading the devotionals, again, to slow me down and to help me think about what I was reading.  I enjoyed reading the Digging Deeper Daily devotionals which often gave the translator’s perspective of a passage, citing examples of difficult passages to translate and including real-life examples of working with an indigenous people group to help them understand the Bible.  In addition to translation notes, I appreciated the occasional summaries from prior days, reminding me of an important passage, even to the point of repeating some passages over consecutive days for emphasis.  I also appreciated being prodded by the devotional to live up to its title to, here it is again, dig deeper into particular passages. I appreciated how the daily readings were divided up between Old and New Testaments, particularly saving Isaiah for the end of the calendar year with so many relevant passages for the advent season.  My favorite passage, personally, occurred late in the calendar year on September 21.  Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you.  Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (NLT)  I am never more at peace than when I surrender to Christ’s yoke. Finally, while I spent the year in the daily reading plan rather than listening to the daily podcasts, I did enjoy utilizing the audio podcasts through the Old Testament genealogies.

Greetings friends to this end of the year podcast! Before I share my own stories, I want to give you our last two Listener Stories for 2020, one from Tom and another from Tammy. I think Tammy’s story is especially interesting because the Coronavirus pandemic had a big impact on her. I think her story will resonate with many of you.  Hello, my name is Tammy.  I recently retired from being a principal and before that a school teacher, a job I had done and loved for over 30 years.  I had oodles of plans for what I was going to do, places I was going to go and things I was really looking forward to doing-  like working with children at our church this summer.  When COVID hit and closed down school as we knew it on March 13, 2020, my life really changed.  I didn’t get to say goodbye to my students, parents and staff, it just all ended that Friday in March.  I was really struggling with what to me felt like a major loss. (This is in no way to disrespect those that have had greater losses due to COVID.) I was talking to my husband explaining how I was feeling such an absence of being needed and like I was just wandering looking for what I was supposed to be doing with my life at this time.  My sweet husband said some very wise words to me.  He said, “Tammy, I believe God is just giving you this down time to recharge you and prepare you for what He has planned next for you to do for Him.  Take this time and use it to its best.”  While I knew he was right, I have to say I DON’T  do down time well.  When you work 60 hours a week for oodles of years and have people consistently needing things from you, to have that come to a screeching halt, really put me off kilter.   I was struggling trying to figure out what God wanted me to do.  Then one morning in my devotion time God put on my heart that I have been wanting to complete a read through the Bible in a year program for a long time.  Even though it was August, I thought, this doesn’t have to wait until January to be a New Year’s Resolution, it can be my New Life Resolution. What a blessing this decision has been!  I looked at all different types of programs.  I found Digging Deeper Daily and liked the explanation of how this program was laid out. I wanted to learn about the “threads that unify the message of the Old and New Testaments”. I also like the fact that there were brief devotional notes that I thought would help me see the connections clearer.   I started this journey on August 20th and upon hearing the first reading, I fell in love with this journey.  Phil’s voice was so calming and yet assured in what he was saying and reading.  The brief stories he shares of his work as a Bible translator make me feel like I have a new friend.  This adventure has helped me grow daily in my understanding of God’s word.   Being a Christian since a child, I had heard many stories from the bible, now I understand more deeply what was happening before, during and after those isolated events.  It has really helped make the Bible come to life for me.   Phil explains how he started this project as a gift to leave his grandchildren.  He wanted to read the entire bible to them.  I feel his love each morning as I listen to him read and explain the daily passage, its as if for those brief moments I have been adopted into his family.  This has not only been a way for me to learn more about the Bible, grow closer to God, but also to feel like I am being gathered into the fold each morning.   The brief explanations at the end of the readings are so helpful.  I always look forward to the prayer Phil delivers to close the devotional time.  Often, I will replay the prayer a time or two more.  At the end of “our time together” I try to conclude with a prayer for Phil and all those doing God’s work to bring His word to the nations that don’t have the Bible yet.  This reminder of what a gift the Bible is to us, that I often take for granted because I haven’t known a time without it, has made my daily time with God even more precious.   Early on in the program, Phil was reading to us from Matthew.  When He read Matthew 11:28 which says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” I cried.  This to me reiterated what my husband told me.    I was in need of this passage.  When Phil read this verse, with such love in his voice, I felt as if it was God speaking it to me.  I needed rest, yet I wouldn’t let myself admit it.  Now, each morning I consider my time listening to Phil read God’s word as a time of rest, connection and recharging.   I can’t wait to find out what great adventure God has in store for me next, or where He needs me in this stage of life, what I do know though is that Phil Fields and Digging Deeper Daily will be on that amazing ride with me.   Thanks so much, Tammy, for your story! And with a sincere blush, I also say thanks for your kind words. I am so pleased— more than that— filled with joy, when people are able to look through the kind of one-way mirror that podcasting is, to become my friends and even adopted family.  Thanks to Tom giving me this next story. Tom is mainly a reader (not a regular podcast listener). The 3D YouVersion plan he has followed for 2020 is called Read To Me Daily. (Link given in the episode notes.) Tom is a long time friend, dating back to my music teaching days. There is one odd, totally unplanned, similarity between his story and Tammy’s. I think you will catch it. My name is Tom and I am a sixty-year-old Arkansan.  I have read through the Bible several times using different plans.  The last few times, using electronic media, such as Digging Deeper Daily, has aided me greatly through ease of access.  Reading the Bible entirely in one year gives one little time for Bible study, but I value the discipline of daily reading which stirs my thoughts and continually whets my appetite to, what else, dig deeper. I read through the Bible this year using the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition.  In the past I have used various translations and even some paraphrases and I may have been wiser to use the recommended New Living Translation or Good News Translation.  Instead, however, I wanted to use the AMPC this year to slow me down.  The many bracketed words and phrases in the AMPC which are used to further describe a translated word or passage, forced me to ponder over a word or passage and think about how an idea was being explained.  I did enjoy the New Living Translation as well as the Good News Translation versions referenced most often in the devotionals.  I found multiple translations of the same verses to be quite helpful. Most years when using a daily reading plan I plowed right past the devotional passages and read only the scripture.  This year I was determined to include reading the devotionals, again, to slow me down and to help me think about what I was reading.  I enjoyed reading the Digging Deeper Daily devotionals which often gave the translator’s perspective of a passage, citing examples of difficult passages to translate and including real-life examples of working with an indigenous people group to help them understand the Bible.  In addition to translation notes, I appreciated the occasional summaries from prior days, reminding me of an important passage, even to the point of repeating some passages over consecutive days for emphasis.  I also appreciated being prodded by the devotional to live up to its title to, here it is again, dig deeper into particular passages. I appreciated how the daily readings were divided up between Old and New Testaments, particularly saving Isaiah for the end of the calendar year with so many relevant passages for the advent season.  My favorite passage, personally, occurred late in the calendar year on September 21.  Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you.  Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (NLT)  I am never more at peace than when I surrender to Christ’s yoke. Finally, while I spent the year in the daily reading plan rather than listening to the daily podcasts, I did enjoy utilizing the audio podcasts through the Old Testament genealogies.

Looking for an effective hand sanitiser to protect your loved ones? Here're some handy tips on what to look out for by social enterprise UglyGood! UglyGood was concerned about the most vulnerable in the community when news first broke about Covid-19, and pivoted their resources to create a sanitiser for them. The 2017 DBS Foundation Grant Awardee continues to inspire us with their mettle as a business for good. Article: https://www.dbs.com/livemore/life-hacks/shopping-for-hand-sanitisers-you-might-want-to-read-this-first.html See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today I am sharing four listener stories.  Before I do that, I want to respond to Sunny and Nate, who commented on my pronunciation of Bible names in the podcasts. Surely others have wondered about this, so let me explain. Some may, like Sunny, assume that I am saying the names right. (Well after all, one would think a Bible translator ought to know the right pronunciation!) So here’s my (somewhat embarrassed) explanation of what I have done. After studying a few other languages, I consider the standard English pronunciations of the letters a, i, and e, in many Bible names to be ugly. I really wish I could start a trend to pronounce Bible names differently! Basically, what I have done is to take the English spellings and pronounce them with the pure phonetic vowels of the Indonesian language. I don’t like pronouncing the letter a or e in multiple ways like English, so instead of pronouncing the two a’s differently in ‘Ray-h@b’s name, I say her name ‘Rahab’. And instead of Heze’kEYEya, I pronounce his name He’ZEKya when reading the Bible text. When reading my introductions, I try to give the correct English pronunciation. So my pronunciations cannot be called ‘right’ or even consistent, but pronouncing names with the pure vowels of the Indonesian language happens to make some names more like the Hebrew or Greek pronunciation. I strived to be more consistent in my pronunciation choices in the GNT podcast series. I send my thanks to Catherine and Luisa, who have given us our first two listener stories. Here they are: Before I play the next two listener stories, I have some listener feedback from Joy. She had a story like Julie from my last podcast with listener stories, but she added this little PS: Along with following another whole reading plan this year, she also read the YouVersion plan named Day by Day with Billy Graham. This is a 366 day reading plan, which often gives a reading of only one verse and a very short and interesting and pointed devotional thought. This has got to be a good one, because it has 50,000 completions. The link to this reading plan is in the episode notes. Our next story is from Iryna. I couldn’t place her accent, and when I took a guess, I was way wrong. She is from Crimea, which became a Russian territory in 2014. She writes that her name (Iryna) derives from Greek, which is true for many names in Russia and the Ukraine. Her name means peace. Iryna is married to an Australian and they live in Australia. Many thanks to Iryna. She sent pictures of two of the verses she has illustrated for the walls of their home. These can be seen at the bottom of the home page of the Read This First site. The link for that site is in the program notes, and it is the first link found at dailybiblereading.info. Next I want to send my thanks to Nicole for this last listener story today. Her testimony wins the prize for being the best recommendation the Daily Bible Reading Podcast has ever received. So thanks, Nicole, for your very kind words.  If you have questions or comments, my favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact link at dailybiblereading.info.    As I said in the podcast a couple of days ago (Three 3D Stories from Listeners), I will publish a podcast on December 31 which will contain my personal story including insights from my own Bible reading and Bible translation work.  1Ths 5:23-24: GNT “May the God who gives us peace make you holy in every way and keep your whole being — spirit, soul, and body — free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you will do it, because he is faithful.” May the Lord bless you ‘Read Good’!

Today I am sharing four listener stories.  Before I do that, I want to respond to Sunny and Nate, who commented on my pronunciation of Bible names in the podcasts. Surely others have wondered about this, so let me explain. Some may, like Sunny, assume that I am saying the names right. (Well after all, one would think a Bible translator ought to know the right pronunciation!) So here’s my (somewhat embarrassed) explanation of what I have done. After studying a few other languages, I consider the standard English pronunciations of the letters a, i, and e, in many Bible names to be ugly. I really wish I could start a trend to pronounce Bible names differently! Basically, what I have done is to take the English spellings and pronounce them with the pure phonetic vowels of the Indonesian language. I don’t like pronouncing the letter a or e in multiple ways like English, so instead of pronouncing the two a’s differently in ‘Ray-h@b’s name, I say her name ‘Rahab’. And instead of Heze’kEYEya, I pronounce his name He’ZEKya when reading the Bible text. When reading my introductions, I try to give the correct English pronunciation. So my pronunciations cannot be called ‘right’ or even consistent, but pronouncing names with the pure vowels of the Indonesian language happens to make some names more like the Hebrew or Greek pronunciation. I strived to be more consistent in my pronunciation choices in the GNT podcast series. I send my thanks to Catherine and Luisa, who have given us our first two listener stories. Here they are: Before I play the next two listener stories, I have some listener feedback from Joy. She had a story like Julie from my last podcast with listener stories, but she added this little PS: Along with following another whole reading plan this year, she also read the YouVersion plan named Day by Day with Billy Graham. This is a 366 day reading plan, which often gives a reading of only one verse and a very short and interesting and pointed devotional thought. This has got to be a good one, because it has 50,000 completions. The link to this reading plan is in the episode notes. Our next story is from Iryna. I couldn’t place her accent, and when I took a guess, I was way wrong. She is from Crimea, which became a Russian territory in 2014. She writes that her name (Iryna) derives from Greek, which is true for many names in Russia and the Ukraine. Her name means peace. Iryna is married to an Australian and they live in Australia. Many thanks to Iryna. She sent pictures of two of the verses she has illustrated for the walls of their home. These can be seen at the bottom of the home page of the Read This First site. The link for that site is in the program notes, and it is the first link found at dailybiblereading.info. Next I want to send my thanks to Nicole for this last listener story today. Her testimony wins the prize for being the best recommendation the Daily Bible Reading Podcast has ever received. So thanks, Nicole, for your very kind words.  If you have questions or comments, my favorite way for you to contact me is via the Contact link at dailybiblereading.info.  As I said in the podcast a couple of days ago (Three 3D Stories from Listeners), I will publish a podcast on December 31 which will contain my personal story including insights from my own Bible reading and Bible translation work.  1Ths 5:23-24: GNT “May the God who gives us peace make you holy in every way and keep your whole being — spirit, soul, and body — free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you will do it, because he is faithful.” May the Lord bless you ‘Read Good’!

I am sharing three audio listener stories in this podcast in preparation for a Special Podcast that will be released on December 31. If you started the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan on January 1st this year, I hope you have remembered that this is a leap year. Some of you heard a Christmas day greeting today, that was one day early. Because of leap year, there would be no podcast released for December 31st, so I will release a special edition for that day. I have received 8 encouraging listener and reader testimonies that I will share in the next days, and these will all be linked on the Read This First site that is linked at dailybiblereading.info. You can easily share these stories by using the share buttons, or all of them will be available all year on the home page of the Read This First site. Before playing the first listener story, I would like to tell you that my YouTube video entitled How to Study the Bible — for beginners is back on the same page, the home page of the Read This First site. It is also linked in the episode notes for this podcast: https://youtu.be/sPyAp8ZxDBE Beth started listening to the Daily Bible Reading podcast this year, and she contacted me early in the year. I later enjoyed a video call with Beth and her husband Steve, as they are interested in Beth getting involved in Bible translation. She sent me this message: Our next listener story is from Julie. I will expand on some of the things Julie mentions. First let’s listen to her message: Julie is correct, even though some people seem to listen to me for more than one year at a time, I don’t encourage anyone to do this. (Hey, you can always come back after a few years, like Julie will.) I am listing links to the three Bible reading plans I usually mention: Daily Audio Bible with Brian Hardin Bible in One Year 2021 by Nicky Gumbel Daily Radio Bible by Hunter (and I don’t easily find his last name). If you decide to still follow the Digging Deeper Reading plan, but would like to listen to a different voice for the Bible readings, Julie was right. My favorite option for the audio for the plan is to sign up for the Read To Me Daily YouVersion reading plan, listen to the NIVUK version, which is read by the famous actor David Suche. Then Julie gives me the opportunity to say this also: There are two meaning-based translations that I hope every Christian reads all the way through at least in their lifetime. They are the New Living Translation (NLT) and the Good News Translation (GNT or GNB, also previously known as the Today’s English Version TEV). Many people fail in their plans to read the Bible in a year if they use a literal translation. Literal translations are great for study, especially when paired with a meaning-based translation. But literal translations are not friendly especially in audio form. That is why I have recorded the Digging Deeper Daily Bible reading plan in two translations: the NLT and the GNT. If you go to dailybiblereading.info, the GNT podcast site is right in the top bar. Here is the link: dailygntbiblereading.info. Our last listener story is from Laura. I want to say a big Thank You to Beth, Julie, and Laura. The podcast on December 31 will contain my own story of things that have been meaningful to me this year, both in my reading and Bible translation work. I also have five more listener stories that I will publish like this in the next few days.

I am sharing three audio listener stories in this podcast in preparation for a Special Podcast that will be released on December 31. If you started the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan on January 1st this year, I hope you have remembered that this is a leap year. Some of you heard a Christmas day greeting today, that was one day early. Because of leap year, there would be no podcast released for December 31st, so I will release a special edition for that day. I have received 8 encouraging listener and reader testimonies that I will share in the next days, and these will all be linked on the Read This First site that is linked at dailybiblereading.info. You can easily share these stories by using the share buttons, or all of them will be available all year on the home page of the Read This First site. Before playing the first listener story, I would like to tell you that my YouTube video entitled How to Study the Bible — for beginners is back on the same page, the home page of the Read This First site. It is also linked in the episode notes for this podcast: https://youtu.be/sPyAp8ZxDBE Beth started listening to the Daily Bible Reading podcast this year, and she contacted me early in the year. I later enjoyed a video call with Beth and her husband Steve, as they are interested in Beth getting involved in Bible translation. She sent me this message: Our next listener story is from Julie. I will expand on some of the things Julie mentions. First let’s listen to her message: Julie is correct, even though some people seem to listen to me for more than one year at a time, I don’t encourage anyone to do this. (Hey, you can always come back after a few years, like Julie will.) I am listing links to the three Bible reading plans I usually mention: Daily Audio Bible with Brian Hardin Bible in One Year 2021 by Nicky Gumbel Daily Radio Bible by Hunter (and I don’t easily find his last name). If you decide to still follow the Digging Deeper Reading plan, but would like to listen to a different voice for the Bible readings, Julie was right. My favorite option for the audio for the plan is to sign up for the Read To Me Daily YouVersion reading plan, listen to the NIVUK version, which is read by the famous actor David Suche. Then Julie gives me the opportunity to say this also: There are two meaning-based translations that I hope every Christian reads all the way through at least in their lifetime. They are the New Living Translation (NLT) and the Good News Translation (GNT or GNB, also previously known as the Today’s English Version TEV). Many people fail in their plans to read the Bible in a year if they use a literal translation. Literal translations are great for study, especially when paired with a meaning-based translation. But literal translations are not friendly especially in audio form. That is why I have recorded the Digging Deeper Daily Bible reading plan in two translations: the NLT and the GNT. If you go to dailybiblereading.info, the GNT podcast site is right in the top bar. Here is the link: dailygntbiblereading.info. Our last listener story is from Laura. I want to say a big Thank You to Beth, Julie, and Laura. The podcast on December 31 will contain my own story of things that have been meaningful to me this year, both in my reading and Bible translation work. I also have five more listener stories that I will publish like this in the next few days.

I encourage you to Dig Deeper in your Bible study this year. I have linked several powerful on-line Bible study tools in the Shovels blog post at http://dailybiblereading.info. The same information can be found in the Read This First pages under the menu entry Links and Shovels. And when you find an especially precious insight or a question, please share it with us via our Facebook group. Our Facebook group and other ways to stay connected with other Bible readers will change each year. Please see the links in the site header of http://dailybiblereading.info. GENESIS 25-26: Yesterday in Genesis 24 we read the charming story of how Rebecca became Isaac's wife. JOB 14: In chapter 13, Job challenged Zophar and his other two friends with these words, 6 Listen while I state my case. 7 Why are you lying? Do you think your lies will benefit God? 8 Are you trying to defend him? Are you going to argue his case in court? 9 If God looks at you closely, will he find anything good? Do you think you can fool God the way you fool others? … 14 I am ready to risk my life. 15 I've lost all hope, so what if God kills me? I am going to state my case to him. 16 It may even be that my boldness will save me, since no wicked person would dare to face God. Job said in 13:15 that he would present his case to God, and that is exactly what he does, starting in verse 19 (in the GNT) or 20 (in the NLT). And Job continues to speak to God through all of chapter 14. MARK 9: Yesterday at the end of Mark 8, Jesus gave this requirement for all his followers: “Everyone who wants to follow Me must leave his own self interests, and follow Me continually with this resolve, ‘No matter if I die— even if that be by crucifixion, I will keep following the Lord!’” (PET) (The PET stands for the Plain English Translation. That is an English translation of our Plain Indonesian Translation (TSI).) The rest of the chapter has other important verses including this one: If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. GNT Translation note: Job 14:18 [A time comes//There comes a time] when mountains fall and solid cliffs are moved away. 19 Water will wear down rocks, and heavy rain will wash away the soil; [even] so you destroy our hope for life. ==== Mrk. 9:1 And he went on to say, “I tell you, there are some here who will not die until they [have seen God coming and setting up his Kingdom to reign on earth in great power!//have seen the Kingdom of God come with power.”] [In most languages (and I really think we need to include English) kingdoms don't ‘come’ or ‘arrive’. Similarly, cabbages don't read books. Such things are collocational clashes. The kingdom of North America doesn't move to South America. The Lord's prayer is a famous example. Instead of ‘May your kingdom come’ it is better in most of the world's languages to say, “May You come and reign here as our king.”] 23 [Jesus said, “Ha! ‘…if you can’!//“Yes,” said Jesus, “if you yourself can!] Everything is possible for the person who [believes//has faith].” [There are two different interpretations of Jesus’ exclamation in 23a.] 24 The father at once cried out, “I do [believe in you//have faith], but not enough. Help me [believe more fully//have more]!” (Literally, “help my unbelief.”) [Note that it is helpful for seeing the cohesion that is found in the Greek if we use the same word— ‘believe’ to translate the four different forms of ‘pistew’ found in this passage. Both Jesus (v19) and the father use the word ‘unbelief’. Translating ‘faith’ in some places and believe in others makes it appear that the two mean different things. In the Bible, ‘faith’ is simply the noun form of ‘believe’.] NLT Translation notes: Mrk. 9:1 Jesus went on to  say, “I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see [God coming and setting up his Kingdom on earth to reign in great power!//the Kingdom of God arrive in great power!]” [In most languages (and I really think we need to include English) kingdoms don't 'come' or 'arrive'. Similarly, cabbages don't read books. Such things are collocational clashes. The kingdom of North America doesn't move to South America! The Lord's prayer is a famous example. Instead of 'May your kingdom come' it is better in most of the world's languages to say, “May You come and reign here as king.”] 9 As they went back down the mountain, he told them not to tell anyone what they had seen until [He,/0] the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 12 Jesus responded, “[That's right.//0] Elijah is [0/indeed] coming to come first to get everything ready. Yet why do the Scriptures say that [I,/0] the Son of Man, must suffer greatly and be treated with utter contempt? 25 When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil f spirit. “Listen, you [demon/spirit] [who/that] makes this boy unable to hear and speak,” he said. “I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!” 26 Then the [evil/0] spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.” 29 Jesus replied, “[That/This] kind can be cast out only by prayer. ”

I encourage you to Dig Deeper in your Bible study this year. I have linked several powerful on-line Bible study tools in the Shovels blog post at http://dailybiblereading.info. The same information can be found in the Read This First pages under the menu entry Links and Shovels. And when you find an especially precious insight or a question, please share it with us via our Facebook group. Our Facebook group and other ways to stay connected with other Bible readers will change each year. Please see the links in the site header of http://dailybiblereading.info. GENESIS 25-26:Yesterday in Genesis 24 we read the charming story of how Rebecca became Isaac's wife. JOB 14:In Job chapter 13, Job challenged Zophar and his other two friends with these words, 6 GNT Listen while I state my case.7 Why are you lying?Do you think your lies will benefit God?8 Are you trying to defend him?Are you going to argue his case in court?9 If God looks at you closely, will he find anything good?Do you think you can fool God the way you fool others? …14 I am ready to risk my life.15 I've lost all hope, so what if God kills me?I am going to state my case to him.16 It may even be that my boldness will save me,since no wicked person would dare to face God. Job said in 13:15 that he would present his case to God, and that is exactly what he does, starting in verse 19 (in the GNT) or 20 (in the NLT). And Job continues to speak to God through all of chapter 14. MARK 9:Yesterday at the end of Mark 8, Jesus gave this requirement for all his followers: “Everyone who wants to follow Me must leave his own self-interests, and follow Me continually with this resolve, ‘No matter if I die— even if that be by crucifixion, I will keep following the Lord!’” [That translation sounds different because it is from what I call the Plain English Translation. That is an English translation of our Plain Indonesian Translation (TSI).] The rest of Mark chapter 8 has other important verses including this one: If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.

Hi Friend! Here’s my news: First, I have attached a little image which I hope you will download from the episode notes to this podcast, our Facebook page, or the BibleReaders.info forum. I hope that you will share this image in whatever social media platform you use. Let’s pray that the simple message of this picture will cause someone to stop mindlessly scrolling and stop to read the message: “Read the Bible this year.” Let’s pray that the Lord will plant this message in the minds of those whom He is calling. Let’s pray for lives to be transformed in 2020 because of your sharing this simple message. Secondly, if you happen to be good at making share-able pictures, please make any kind of imaginative graphic that we can use to promote the Daily Bible Reading Podcast or our YouVersion Bible reading plans. Please send them to me via the contact link found in this episode’s notes. An easy way to make such a graphic would be to make a verse picture inside of the YouVersion Bible app. When you share your picture with your friends, please include our web address (dailybiblereading.info) in your message. And I hope you will share a personal recommendation also. Any new graphics I receive will be posted at our forum, BibleReaders.info. If you visit that site by manually typing in the address, click on the portal link in the site menu to see the newest posts.  In the last two weeks, I have revised the 365-day Digging Deeper Daily YouVersion reading plan. Lots of improvements have been made in the devotional pages. This is the best YouVersion plan to use if you want to read the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan while listening to the podcasts for each day. I have also revised one half of the first semester of the Read To Me Daily reading plan. I have also revised the Read This First pages at our website that are for new readers or listeners using the 3D reading plan. In my last news update of each year, I always try to share information about the best one-year full-Bible reading podcasts out there. I am surprised NOT to find more good ones to choose from! I don’t recommend listening to my voice for multiple years in a row. Here are some great options to consider for your next year of Bible reading: The first one, Dailyaudiobible.com with Brian Hardin is the oldest and biggest in this genre. They have a very active on-line community that shares in mission projects and prays for one another, and this makes it so people keep following his daily podcasts year after year. Unlike my podcasts, Brian and his family produce the Daily Audio Bible series new and fresh every year! This collection of podcasts includes products for children and in different languages. I consider the dailyaudiobible to be— in an odd way— an online church. If you cannot attend a local church, you might find the online interaction and the sharing of prayer requests a wonderful thing. I listened to the dailyaudiobible throughout 2012 on the advice of a friend in Jakarta. This is the audio Bible that gave me the idea to do my own podcast.  The second one is Daily Radio Bible with Hunter Barnes. Hunter’s podcasts are in many ways like Brian Hardin’s. I think that he also is recording the Bible afresh each year. I have only listened to 1-2 of Hunter’s podcasts. They seem good.  And THIS is a new one for me to recommend this year: I think some of you might really like the YouVersion audio reading plan named Bible in One Year 2020 by Nicky Gumbel, who is a pastor in London, England. There are also dedicated apps for this plan for Android, Apple, and even Amazon devices. The web site for this is http://www.bibleinoneyear.org/. I note with a little bemusement that Pastor Nicky and his wife Pippa were able to get past YouVersion’s length limit for devotional content. Their first day’s devotional has 4 times the normal YouVersion limit for devotional content. So if you choose to listen to the audio content for this reading plan, it will probably take you 35 to 45 minutes per day. (My podcasts average 24 minutes per day.) Pastor Gumbel has the advantage of having a staff of people who can help with all the production work of creating a wonderful podcast with great devotional content. You will also enjoy their British accent.  I started my no-frills Daily Bible Reading podcast reading the NLT in 2014, then I added the GNT in 2016. Each day’s podcast was done with the hope that my children and grandchildren would one day be blessed by them. We praise the Lord that our five grandchildren are doing fine spiritually at this point. Luke is the oldest, at 18 years old, and our youngest, Devin, is 3. I still hope that my podcasts will be remembered by them just when they need spiritual input, and that might be when grampa is no longer around to talk to. The motivation I have for asking YOU to share word about website, podcast, or reading plan is similar. Send out the news about the DBRP or the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan with a prayer that it will be noticed by those whom God is calling. I bet that not everyone of your Facebook or Instagram friends has their life perfectly together, spiritually speaking. They need God’s Word to be living and active in their lives. And they know you and will trust your recommendation, and God will use what you share! May the Lord bless you ‘real good’ this Christmas and in 2020! Phil & Gale

Hi Friend! Here’s my news: First, I have attached a little image which I hope you will download from the episode notes to this podcast, our Facebook page, or the BibleReaders.info forum. I hope that you will share this image in whatever social media platform you use. Let’s pray that the simple message of this picture will cause someone to stop mindlessly scrolling and stop to read the message: “Read the Bible this year.” Let’s pray that the Lord will plant this message in the minds of those whom He is calling. Let’s pray for lives to be transformed in 2020 because of your sharing this simple message. Secondly, if you happen to be good at making share-able pictures, please make any kind of imaginative graphic that we can use to promote the Daily Bible Reading Podcast or our YouVersion Bible reading plans. Please send them to me via the contact link found in this episode’s notes. An easy way to make such a graphic would be to make a verse picture inside of the YouVersion Bible app. When you share your picture with your friends, please include our web address (dailybiblereading.info) in your message. And I hope you will share a personal recommendation also. Any new graphics I receive will be posted at our forum, BibleReaders.info. If you visit that site by manually typing in the address, click on the portal link in the site menu to see the newest posts.  In the last two weeks, I have revised the 365-day Digging Deeper Daily YouVersion reading plan. Lots of improvements have been made in the devotional pages. This is the best YouVersion plan to use if you want to read the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan while listening to the podcasts for each day. I have also revised one half of the first semester of the Read To Me Daily reading plan. I have also revised the Read This First pages at our website that are for new readers or listeners using the 3D reading plan. In my last news update of each year, I always try to share information about the best one-year full-Bible reading podcasts out there. I am surprised NOT to find more good ones to choose from! I don’t recommend listening to my voice for multiple years in a row. Here are some great options to consider for your next year of Bible reading: The first one, Dailyaudiobible.com with Brian Hardin is the oldest and biggest in this genre. They have a very active on-line community that shares in mission projects and prays for one another, and this makes it so people keep following his daily podcasts year after year. Unlike my podcasts, Brian and his family produce the Daily Audio Bible series new and fresh every year! This collection of podcasts includes products for children and in different languages. I consider the dailyaudiobible to be— in an odd way— an online church. If you cannot attend a local church, you might find the online interaction and the sharing of prayer requests a wonderful thing. I listened to the dailyaudiobible throughout 2012 on the advice of a friend in Jakarta. This is the audio Bible that gave me the idea to do my own podcast.  The second one is Daily Radio Bible with Hunter Barnes. Hunter’s podcasts are in many ways like Brian Hardin’s. I think that he also is recording the Bible afresh each year. I have only listened to 1-2 of Hunter’s podcasts. They seem good.  And THIS is a new one for me to recommend this year: I think some of you might really like the YouVersion audio reading plan named Bible in One Year 2020 by Nicky Gumbel, who is a pastor in London, England. There are also dedicated apps for this plan for Android, Apple, and even Amazon devices. The web site for this is http://www.bibleinoneyear.org/. I note with a little bemusement that Pastor Nicky and his wife Pippa were able to get past YouVersion’s length limit for devotional content. Their first day’s devotional has 4 times the normal YouVersion limit for devotional content. So if you choose to listen to the audio content for this reading plan, it will probably take you 35 to 45 minutes per day. (My podcasts average 24 minutes per day.) Pastor Gumbel has the advantage of having a staff of people who can help with all the production work of creating a wonderful podcast with great devotional content. You will also enjoy their British accent.  I started my no-frills Daily Bible Reading podcast reading the NLT in 2014, then I added the GNT in 2016. Each day’s podcast was done with the hope that my children and grandchildren would one day be blessed by them. We praise the Lord that our five grandchildren are doing fine spiritually at this point. Luke is the oldest, at 18 years old, and our youngest, Devin, is 3. I still hope that my podcasts will be remembered by them just when they need spiritual input, and that might be when grampa is no longer around to talk to. The motivation I have for asking YOU to share word about website, podcast, or reading plan is similar. Send out the news about the DBRP or the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan with a prayer that it will be noticed by those whom God is calling. I bet that not everyone of your Facebook or Instagram friends has their life perfectly together, spiritually speaking. They need God’s Word to be living and active in their lives. And they know you and will trust your recommendation, and God will use what you share! May the Lord bless you ‘real good’ this Christmas and in 2020! Phil & Gale

Alex Borstein joins BloodStream from the promo tour of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Patrick covers highlights from a recent PEN article on gene therapy and clinical trials, and Natalie presents a piece on managing depression during the holidays. All that, plus a teaser from BloodStream Media’s latest pod BloodStream Journeys, and more, coming up on Episode 43 of The BloodStream Podcast.   Subscribe to and rate The BloodStream Podcast Subscribe to and rate The Ask The Expert Podcast Subscribe to and rate BloodStream Journeys Subscribe to and rate Cheat Codes: A Sickle Cell Podcast   Presenting Sponsor:  Takeda:  http://bleedingdisorders.com   Segment Sponsor: Like Segment made possible by Genentech: https://www.youtube.com/challengeacceptedshow Learn more about Genentech’s mental health workshops by calling 1-866-436-5427   Like Segment Crazy Talk: I’m Afraid My Depression Will Ruin Everyone’s Holiday   Comment Segment Volunteering for a Gene Therapy Clinical Trial?  Read This First.   Interview Segment: Alex Borstein on NPR’s Fresh Air Watch: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 3 on Amazon    Subscribe to and rate The BloodStream Podcast Subscribe to and rate The Ask The Expert Podcast Subscribe to and rate BloodStream Journeys Subscribe to and rate Cheat Codes: A Sickle Cell Podcast   Connect with BloodStream Media: Find all of our bleeding disorders podcasts on BloodStreamMedia.com BloodStream on Facebook BloodStream on Twitter   Check out Believe Limited’s Other Work: BloodFeed: bloodfeed.com Bombardier Blood: bombardierblood.com Hemophilia: The Musical: breakingthroughhemophilia.com My Beautiful Stutter: mybeautifulstutter.com/ Stop The Bleeding!: stbhemo.com Teen Impact Awards: teenimpactawards.com The Science Fair: thesciencefair.org

Greetings Friends! Thanks for listening or reading this news update, which is for everyone reading the Bible— but especially to all who are following the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. As always, you can find all sorts of information about this reading plan at dailybiblereading.info. That’s where to look for helpful tips to make it easy listen or read the Bible in a year. In particular, see the Read This First information linked in the site header. I praise God that the 3rd semester of the Read To Me Daily reading plan is live now in your YouVersion Bible reading app. The link for subscribing is in the episode notes. If you don’t know, this reading plan follows the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan (like my podcasts) but this is an audio plan within YouVersion. In the third semester, I read the devotional page, then the internally bundled YouVersion recordings are played for the Bible readings. Please pray for me in preparing the 4th semester, so that it will be published before people complete the 3rd semester. I haven't been posting the videos from TheBibleProject.com like I planned in email updates and at our Facebook group. But I do at least want to remind you of them. The overview videos for each Bible book that they have done are Way Better than my short comments in the podcasts. They are especially helpful for more difficult books of the Bible, like the Old Testament prophetic books. Our Facebook group is now replaced by our forum at http://biblereaders.info. Right after this news podcast goes live, I will do another podcast on What Greek text of the New Testament that I recommend. That is the Byzantine text. In my opinion, the Nestle-Aland text no longer holds up under academic scrutiny as the best text for Bible translation or serious Bible study. In my podcast notes, I will link to readable articles that support what I am saying. For me as a Bible translator, this is not a decision I have made lightly. This will mean a lot of work for me and my team in Indonesia, because we will  revise our published New Testament to match the Byzantine text by 2022. Some have asked and will ask if I will redo all my daily Bible reading podcasts. I’m sorry, I certainly won’t have time for that. But here’s what I want to do, LORD willing: I would like to make a new series of podcasts of the New Testament that will be based on a new translation of the best Greek text. These won’t be daily podcasts, and I can’t do this alone. I need some volunteers who have time to help me. If you can use online Bible study tools effectively, and think you might have a flair for expressing Bible concepts in everyday language, please use the contact link at dailybiblereading.info to email me. Here is the MOST IMPORTANT thing I want to share with you in this News update: I want to highly recommend that EVERYONE who will read this letter or listen to this podcast to see the documentary movie called American Gospel. If you don’t want to spring immediately for the two hour movie (which is well worth the $5 price), please view the free one hour video linked here. This is a very clear presentation of the TRUTH about the false gospel that is being taught in so many churches in America. Even if you feel that your church is teaching what the Bible teaches, I still urge you to see the one hour version of American Gospel. I think every Christian needs to be able to identify the false message, because someone you know is listening to it, and you will want to be able to help them. If you live in another country, I also urge you view to this video, because this false gospel has been exported all around the globe. Let me also share another little tidbit on this topic, showing Francis Chan’s perspective. In family news, I am thrilled that my grandson Luke (16) will be going with me for 18 days to Papua, Indonesia, starting on the 22nd of June. Four college age people in an internship program with Pioneer Bible Translators will meet us there, and I will take them for a five-day adventure living in an Orya village. The goal of this time is to find out what village life in a tropical rainforest is like. They will help catch, butcher, harvest, and prepare the food we eat. I hope that they leave feeling like they have truly made a few good friends among the Orya people. And I know that whenever I go out there, the people will ask me about Luke and the four interns. Please pray in the first week of July! We hope that this experience will prepare all five of them for whatever service God has in mind for them in the future. Lord bless you all. We send our love in Christ to you. Phil & Gale

Greetings Friends! Thanks for listening or reading this news update, which is for everyone reading the Bible— but especially to all who are following the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan. As always, you can find all sorts of information about this reading plan at dailybiblereading.info. That’s where to look for helpful tips to make it easy listen or read the Bible in a year. In particular, see the Read This First information linked in the site header. I praise God that the 3rd semester of the Read To Me Daily reading plan is live now in your YouVersion Bible reading app. The link for subscribing is in the episode notes. If you don’t know, this reading plan follows the Digging Deeper Daily reading plan (like my podcasts) but this is an audio plan within YouVersion. In the third semester, I read the devotional page, then the internally bundled YouVersion recordings are played for the Bible readings. Please pray for me in preparing the 4th semester, so that it will be published before people complete the 3rd semester. I haven't been posting the videos from TheBibleProject.com like I planned in email updates and at our Facebook group. But I do at least want to remind you of them. The overview videos for each Bible book that they have done are Way Better than my short comments in the podcasts. They are especially helpful for more difficult books of the Bible, like the Old Testament prophetic books. Our Facebook group is now replaced by our forum at http://biblereaders.info. Right after this news podcast goes live, I will do another podcast on What Greek text of the New Testament that I recommend. That is the Byzantine text. In my opinion, the Nestle-Aland text no longer holds up under academic scrutiny as the best text for Bible translation or serious Bible study. In my podcast notes, I will link to readable articles that support what I am saying. For me as a Bible translator, this is not a decision I have made lightly. This will mean a lot of work for me and my team in Indonesia, because we will  revise our published New Testament to match the Byzantine text by 2022. Some have asked and will ask if I will redo all my daily Bible reading podcasts. I’m sorry, I certainly won’t have time for that. But here’s what I want to do, LORD willing: I would like to make a new series of podcasts of the New Testament that will be based on a new translation of the best Greek text. These won’t be daily podcasts, and I can’t do this alone. I need some volunteers who have time to help me. If you can use online Bible study tools effectively, and think you might have a flair for expressing Bible concepts in everyday language, please use the contact link at dailybiblereading.info to email me. Here is the MOST IMPORTANT thing I want to share with you in this News update: I want to highly recommend that EVERYONE who will read this letter or listen to this podcast to see the documentary movie called American Gospel. If you don’t want to spring immediately for the two hour movie (which is well worth the $5 price), please view the free one hour video linked here. This is a very clear presentation of the TRUTH about the false gospel that is being taught in so many churches in America. Even if you feel that your church is teaching what the Bible teaches, I still urge you to see the one hour version of American Gospel. I think every Christian needs to be able to identify the false message, because someone you know is listening to it, and you will want to be able to help them. If you live in another country, I also urge you view to this video, because this false gospel has been exported all around the globe. Let me also share another little tidbit on this topic, showing Francis Chan’s perspective. In family news, I am thrilled that my grandson Luke (16) will be going with me for 18 days to Papua, Indonesia, starting on the 22nd of June. Four college age people in an internship program with Pioneer Bible Translators will meet us there, and I will take them for a five-day adventure living in an Orya village. The goal of this time is to find out what village life in a tropical rainforest is like. They will help catch, butcher, harvest, and prepare the food we eat. I hope that they leave feeling like they have truly made a few good friends among the Orya people. And I know that whenever I go out there, the people will ask me about Luke and the four interns. Please pray in the first week of July! We hope that this experience will prepare all five of them for whatever service God has in mind for them in the future. Lord bless you all. We send our love in Christ to you. Phil & Gale

We’re doing something different today! This episode features my very first on-air coaching guest, Jasmine Saab. Jasmine is a second-year fourth-grade teacher at Marrington Elementary School near Charleston, South Carolina. She loves integrating movement and technology from her classroom. Originally from California, Jasmine fills her time with a wide array of hobbies ranging from tandem bike riding to volunteering to singing in foreign languages. Jasmine’s awards and accomplishments list is so long that I need to include it separately, so check it out below! As you can probably guess from that impressive list, Jasmine is an excellent teacher who’s doing some truly amazing things in her classroom. As you’ll hear today, she also has some struggles, specifically around technology. She’s inspired by technology without always thinking things through to the end in terms of planning and her learning goals. And that’s why she’s on the show today! I’ll coach her through this struggle and help her think of some new ways to think of her lesson design. One of Jasmine’s coolest projects is her robotic water cycle lesson, which involves all kinds of skills from her students. As she’ll explain, though, the lesson didn’t go perfectly. In our conversation today, we’ll focus specifically on this lesson, and I’ll ask her a series of questions that will help guide her through ways to make it better. We also talk about Jasmine’s new classroom toy, a 3D printer and how she can design meaningful learning experiences for her students using this device. These questions should help her (and you!) figure out how to improve various other lessons too. Listen in for some advice on how to make sure that tech fits your learning goals, and to hear about why it’s so important not to get distracted by the fun, shiny objects in technology. [ctt template="1" link="N6Rh2" via="yes" ]How to Stay Focused on the Learning Goals, NOT the technology! #edtech[/ctt] In This Episode: [00:28] - Kasey welcomes listeners to today’s episode and explains what it will be all about. [02:11] - Before we dive into this episode, Kasey gives a shout out to the Shake Up Learning podcast launch team! [03:38] - Jasmine introduces herself and talks about the students and parent involvement at her school. [08:58] - We hear about what Jasmine’s class looks like on a day-to-day basis, specifically in terms of technology. [16:54] - Kasey shares her response to all of the awesome things that Jasmine is doing in her classroom. [17:44] - Does Jasmine have any videos of the projects she’s been talking about? [18:35] - Jasmine explains why she wants Kasey’s help. [20:14] - Kasey starts off her coaching by asking Jasmine some questions specifically about the water cycle lessons. [21:48] - On a scale of 1-10, how would Jasmine rank her water cycle lesson? [24:57] - Kasey responds to Jasmine’s rating of her lesson, as well as the issues that she struggled with in her classroom [26:05] - How much time did Jasmine originally plan for this lesson? [27:44] - We hear about what would have made Jasmine’s lesson a 10 instead of a 9. [30:50] - Kasey points out the importance of having an end goal in mind. [32:31] - Jasmine talks about the 3D printer project that she’s working on right now. [34:50] - Kasey takes a step back and offers Jasmine a piece of advice: always start with the learning goal! [37:03] - Was there a learning goal that Kasey had in mind with all of this? [41:38] - We hear Kasey’s advice on adding in tech only when it will lead directly to learning goals. [43:25] - Jasmine replies to Kasey’s advice and talks about where her thoughts are now and what she is realizing from this conversation. [45:48] - Kasey makes a suggestion for Jasmine. [47:31] - What Kasey has been saying is related to the fail-forward concept, Jasmine points out. [48:29] - We learn more about Genius Hour and how it works. [51:40] - What are Jasmine’s next steps, and what does she think she’ll work on next? [54:51] - Here’s this week’s podcast question: have you ever tried to integrate too much at once, like Jasmine? How do you ensure that your enthusiasm doesn’t distract from the purpose of the lesson? Share your answers on your favorite social media platform using the #shakeuplearning hashtag, or post it in the Shake Up Learning Community on Facebook! [56:06] - Kasey has three Google Certification courses, for which enrollment is opening on May 21st for a limited time! These are: The Google Certified Educator Level 1 Academy The Google Certified Educator Level 2 Academy Become a Google Certified Trainer Online Course If you want to take all of the courses, you can save by buying the bundle! And if you’re interested, don’t hesitate, because enrollment won’t open again until November. Head to this link to learn more about the courses! [58:34] - Thanks for listening in! Don’t miss next week’s episode, where I’ll chat with Richard Byrne from Free Tech 4 Teachers. Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you get notified when that episode comes out, and please leave a review of the podcast! (Bonus points if you use the word “y’all” in your review.) [ctt template="1" link="5U3d6" via="yes" ]When it comes to using tech in the classroom, always start with your learning goal in mind. Kasey Bell explores this concept in episode 5 of #ShakeUpLearning.[/ctt] Podcast Question of the Week: Have you ever tried to integrate too much at once like Jasmine? How do you ensure that your enthusiasm doesn’t distract from the purpose of the lesson? Post your answers in the Shake Up Learning community or on your favorite social platform. Google Certification Courses Open May 21 If you have ever thought about getting Google Certified, but are unsure where to start, or overwhelmed with the content, I can help! I have three online courses to help you reach your Google Certification goals. (1) The Google Certified Educator Level 1 Academy (2) The Google Certified Educator Level 2 Academy (3) Become a Google Certified Trainer Online Course These courses are designed to walk you through the process and give you everything you need to know to pass the exam. I have helped THOUSANDS get Google Certified, and I want to help YOU! But don't miss this opportunity! These courses only open twice a year. Enrollment opens on May 21st for a limited time. If you miss this window, you have to wait until November! But wait...there's more! SAVE BIG WITH BUNDLES! Opening all of these courses at once also gives you another advantage–bundling! If you want to purchase multiple courses at once, you can save BIG TIME! Learn more at http://GetGoogleCertified.com Jasmine’s awards and accomplishments: Marrington Elementary School Rookie Teacher of the Year 2018 College of Charleston Education Health and Human Performance Outstanding Student 2017 Faculty Honors List College of Charleston Teacher Leader Alumnae CofC Merit Based Scholar Delta Kappa Gamma Alpha Rho Scholarship Recipient CERRA Teaching Fellow Student Director of Project Playground Women's Golf Captain First Tee Golf Winner 2018 [ctt template="1" link="H4M3G" via="no" ]Technology can be a fun, shiny object, but it can distract teachers and students from the goal. - @ShakeUpLearning[/ctt] Links and Resources Mentioned in the Episode The Shake Up Learning Show The Shake Up Learning Community on Facebook Join the Shake Up Learning Book Study! Shake Up Learning: Practical Ideas to Move Learning from Static to Dynamic by Kasey Bell Jasmine Saab on Twitter Jasmine Saab on YouTube Jasmine’s teacher website Education Podcast Network DonorsChoose.org Dash robot Dot robot Cue robot Genius Hour Shake Up Learning: Google Certification courses The Google Certified Educator Level 1 Academy The Google Certified Educator Level 2 Academy Become a Google Certified Trainer Online Course Get Google Certified Questions & Comments Do you have a question you would like me to answer on the show? I’d love to hear from you! I also love to hear from students! Leave me a voicemail and your message could be played on the podcast! Do You Want to Be on the Podcast?  READ THIS FIRST! NO SOLICITING! The Shake Up Learning Show hosts a variety of guests including inspiring educators, on-air coaching calls with classroom teachers, and student interviews. Inspiring Educators Many inspiring educators are regular guests of the show. Currently, this type of guest is INVITE ONLY. Please do not ask to be on the podcast. On-Air Coaching with Kasey Bell I love to help teachers with one-on-one coaching on the podcast, called, “On-Air Coaching.” Are you struggling with one particular lesson? One piece of content or skill that’s just hard to teach or doesn’t seem to work well with technology? Let me help! Using this On-Air Coaching Application, tell me about yourself, your students, and your struggle. You may get to be on the podcast!!! Do you know a teacher that is a good candidate? Feel free to send them the link to the form. Student Interviews We will also feature some student interviews on the podcast. Students are windows to the reality of school. Do you have a student who would be open to talking about learning and school? (MUST HAVE PARENT PERMISSION) Use this form to tell me about your student! Other Inquiries If you have other questions or inquiries about the podcast, please use this contact form.  

Selling Your Household Items Online? Read This First! Are you interested in creating extra income by selling some of your household items online? Listing them on the internet can be a creative way to generate money, but it’s important to do it safely. Use these techniques to protect yourself and your family: 1. Research sales […] The post Selling Your Household Items Online? Read This First! appeared first on FinanceTips.ca.

In the second of a three-part series called "Creator's Masterpiece," Jerrmain Clarke, lifestyle consultant and educator, talks to Meet Ellen host Marci Kenon about the effects of processed foods and excitotoxins on the body-- especially the brain.  Today’s text is from the section "Read This First" featuring The Laws Governing Our Being (p. 5) and Basic Principles (pp. 6-7) in the Harvestime Books edition of Ellen G. White's The Ministry of Healing written over 100 years ago. New Jersey-based Clarke is the director of Wilt Thou be Made Whole Ministry.  He consults individuals and conducts health seminars/expos and Medical Missionary training schools. For more information, visit the Meet Ellen website.

READ THIS FIRST!!! (Guys can be demonized by Jezebel also, so if you fit the description, seek deliverance guys.) Please understand that spirits never come in alone. They come in groups. Jezebel is ALWAYS accompanied by other spirits, usually spirits of lust, fornication, perversion, likely spirits of whoredom, control, and manipulation, and if you're married then also a spirit of infidelity. So with that said, deliverance from the Jezebel spirit will take awhile because it's a stronger spirit. Jezebel also usually has what I call blocker demons. As you watch the video you may feel a release where a spirit has left, or you cough, etc. KEEP WATCHING the video. Sometimes you will feel a release 3, 4, or even 5 times before Jezebel actually leaves. You have to get rid of the guardians first before Jezebel is cast out. Just watch the video multiple times until you no longer feel manifestations and only feel peace. You also need deliverance from everything else that's there. Watch my other videos for those spirits listed above. I will be adding to the list of posted videos as I'm able. Once again maintaining deliverance is imperative. Control what your eyes are looking at. BEFORE you watch this video: Get somewhere comfortable where you can focus on being delivered. Preferably lay on your couch or bed when you're alone. 1) PRAY. Believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins and on the third day, God raised Him from the dead. Believe in His saving grace. Ask God to forgive you for all your sins. Confess every known sexual sin in your life individually and ask for forgiveness. Believe that He is faithful to forgive you. Ask Him to cover you in His blood and protect you. 2) Forgive EVERY person who has ever wronged you in any way. Make a conscious choice to give it to God and forgive them. Let it go. 3) Believe in the power of His name. Believe in the Son of God. BELIEVE. 4) Verbally break all curses over your life, whether known or unknown, and break them in the name of Jesus Christ. Verbally break all ungodly soul ties in the name of Jesus Christ. Say, "evil Jezebel spirit, I break all legal rights and authority you have in my life. I renounce and denounce any involvement I have with you in the name of Jesus Christ, and I command you to leave. I break all ungodly souls ties and generational curses linked to Jezebel in the name of Jesus Christ." 5) Pray again and ask God to forgive you for your manipulation, control, and sexual rebellion, and ask Him to deliver you from the spirit of Jezebel. This part is very important! You must ASK TO BE DELIVERED! 6) God WILL set you free if you seek Him. Watch this video multiple times if you need to. 7) Praise Jesus and Him alone for your deliverance. We have no power. God alone has the power and gets all the glory. Believe in HIS strength to set you free.

Kagisho Mahura gives a sneak peek of what he'll share with budding entrepreneurs at next week's Leaderex Workshop by Moneyweb. www.moneyweb.co.za

Moneyweb Radio — Kagisho Mahura gives a sneak peek of what he'll share with budding entrepreneurs at next week’s Leaderex Workshop by Moneyweb.

In this episode, Mike talks with Taylor Pearson, the author of "The End of Jobs" (due out in late June 2015). They discuss the process Taylor used to write the book – including drawing inspiration from Paul Graham's work – as well as what "the end of jobs" can mean for you...if you're willing to shift your mindset. Relevant Links http://taylorpearson.me/the-end-of-jobs (The End of Jobs | Taylor Pearson) http://www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html (Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule | Paul Graham) https://productivityist.simplecast.fm/36 (Efficient Writing with Jim Woods | The Productivityist Podcast) http://fourhourworkweek.com/2011/03/15/copyeditors/ (So, You Want to Be a Writer? Read This First. | The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss) http://lcmike.jarono.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=podcast43/ (Learn Scrivener Fast | Joseph Michael) https://productivityist.simplecast.fm/33 (How to Deliver a "Do Over" with Jon Acuff | The Productivityist Podcast) https://rollercoasterbook.success.com/ (The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster | Darren Hardy) http://www.softwarebyrob.com/ (Lessons Learned by a Solo Entrepreneur | Software by Rob) http://productivityist.com/balance-schmalance/ (Balance Schmalance | Productivityist) http://danariely.com/ (The Website of Dan Ariely) http://taylorpearson.me/winbooks (The End of Jobs Preorder Offer | Taylor Pearson) https://twitter.com/ctaylormpearson (Taylor Pearson (@CTaylorMPearson) | Twitter) Want to send Mike an app, book, or something similar to discuss on the show? Email Productivityist at info@productivityist.com and we'll give it a look. Want to listen on Stitcher? http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=53149&refid=stpr (Click here.) Really like the show and want it to flourish even more? Support The Productivityist Podcast by becoming a patron! http://patreon.com/productivityist (Click here) to visit The Productivityist Podcast's Patreon page and see what perks await those who pitch in a buck or more.