Random Thoughts

Now that's a great opening! Who would be interested in my random thoughts? But it just seems that everything in the news is so random lately. I keep hearing one objection to the stimulus plans - that the plan has no plan. That's just too random. I can't imagine giving Congress control of almost a trillion dollars and they don't have a written plan outlining what they intend to do with it. Are we crazy?

Enough of that. I have to change my TV channel every once in a while, just to keep some sanity.

So, changing channels, my ladies Bible study just completed a study on the Psalms of Ascent. Those are the psalms, from 121 to 134, that centered on the pilgrimage of the children of Israel to Jerusalem for the great feasts. These are very personal songs between God and His child. Our study with Beth Moore was excellent. Now we are embarking on her study of Esther. It's sub-titled "It's Tough Being a Woman." I'm looking forward to this one as well.

I was first introduced to Beth Moore Bible studies over ten years ago. I had previously done Precepts studies which were done with large groups of women. Like Bible Study Fellowship, the "small group" classes consisted of 15 to 20 women. My preference for intimate study has been along the lines of five to eight per class. So the Beth Moore groups I have led have been independent of church sponsorship and can stay small. My group has grown to seven for this spring, a number I can be quite comfortable with.

Coinciding with the start of Esther is our Sunday school class beginning the study on Revelation. That is the curriculum we just put the finishing touches on - over 300 pages of commentary, questions and charts. That brings our inventory of Bible study curricula to nine. As soon as the final corrections are made to the Acts study, it will go up on the ministry website. All of our curricula is "class-tested" and proofed, then corrected before it is available for sale.

One final thought... It seems like this winter has been exceptionally brutal. I have cyber friends who live in the north and northeast and they have been inundated with sub-freezing temps and piles of snow and ice. Down here in the balmy south Texas winter, we have had mild temps but rampant sickness. Schools have closed just to keep the germs from spreading. The pews at church are half-filled. Makes me wonder about biological warfare. Think how easy it would be to wipe out an army with a stomach virus!