GPS Series – Recap – #3 Have a Plan for Your Time with God

“…What do we need? #3…”
3. Plan.
– God’s greatest desire is that we become Self-Feeders.
– BEING HUNGRY ON THE COUCH ILL.
– Wives, suppose your husband is watching a game on TV, & wants something to eat…
– Get up and get it yourself!!! (Have fun…)
– The same is true with God!
– He desires for us to be Self-Feeders.
– This is the easiest reading plan I’ve ever seen…
– It’s Guilt Free! That’s so huge for me! – No Gullt! – No Condemnation!

S =Scripture.
1) Get a Translation of the Bible that you understand.
– There’s no bonus points for “Thee’s” and “thou’s”.
– 3 Recommendations:
TNIV
NLT
The Message
2) Pray a simple prayer going in to focus your heart.
“God, speak to my heart today as I read your word. Help me to see what’s for me today. Amen.”

3) Read 1 chapter, or in our case 2 chapters.
– Underline things that stick out at you.
– I look for words that jump off the page at me.
a) Try to envision the author speaking right to you.
– Insert your name from time to time if you want.
b) Remember who the author is originally writing to!

4) Then… Pick 1 verse.
– Don’t try and be a theologian.
– Write the Entire verse down in your journal.
– No abbreviations.
– The discipline will slow you down enough that God can speak to you.
– Don’t title the journal entry going in.

O = Observation.
1) Don’t focus on what you don’t understand, but on what you do.
– It doesn’t mean you take things out of context, it simply means that we key in on those passages where God is speaking to our heart specifically.
– Our daily times should spring board us into Bible Study of deeper things.
– But again, no guilt, no pressure!!!
2) Write out the observations you make from the text.
– LOOK AT THE SAMPLE RIGHT HERE
3) Remember it doesn’t have to be long, or deep.
– Simply write what you see in the verse.

A = Application.
1) Big Question: How does this apply to my life???
– or In Other Words, “So What???”
2) Write out how what that verse means in your life.

P = Prayer.
1) Turn your Observation & Application into a Dedication.
– This is where we make a commitment to God.
2) There is no pre-conceived right or wrong!
– Remember, no pressure, no judgment, no guilt.
3) You don’t have to write out a big huge theological prayer.
– Just capture your thoughts and your heart of how you are going to take a step toward God today!

* Remember, this is Guilt Free!
– GOING FROM 0 TO 50 THIS YEAR ILL.
– If you Never Read your Bible now, or read it and don’t get anything out of it, & you start doing it 1 day a week,
– you’ll move from 0 personal encounters with Jesus, to 50 in the next year!!!
– & if you do it twice a week, you’ll have over 100 Personal Encounters with Jesus next year!!!
– HAVING 100, 15 MINUTE CONVERSATIONS WITH JOHN MAXWELL ILL.
– Think of how my leadership would grow in the next year!
– How much more will we grow in our relationship with Jesus!!!