Read to your children!

My darling daughter called me out of the blue last night. “We just went to the movies and saw The Hobbit movie.” Her voice sounded syrupy sweet. “I remember how you read that to us when I was little. Such great memories! What other books did you read to us?” I could recall very few. The normal children’s books, all of the Narnia books and Tolkien, Bibles stories but nothing in particular. I remember I went to the Narnia movie, I think the Dawn Treader, with my 30 something son visiting. I just exploded with joy as he yelled out “reepicheep!” like he recognized a familiar friend when he saw the mouse in the movie. Wow. Can’t say it enough – read to your children. It opens up new worlds for them and creates great bonds and memories for everyone. 

 

It Came to Pass . . .

It’s been a few years since I conceded to a new Bible so when I recently came across my old, well worn King James Bible I had to brush it off and spend some time, as if with an old friend. It’s so hard for my old brain to make the change to the “new” versions I now use. I think I memorized half the Bible as a youth, entire books at a time!  But when they come to mind, it’s the King James Version I recall. Maybe it’s the formality of the language that was easier to remember – not your everyday speech.

Since it was that holiday time of year, I opened to Luke 2 and that weird thing happened when words jump off the page – “and it came to pass . . . “. I always in my head thought of those five words as one word such as “then” or “next” and breezed over them. I found this phrase 463 times in a Bible search. Unexpectedly, those words hit me very differently today. It came – TO PASS!!!!  This too shall pass! I will get through this, it will pass away, all things will become new, nothing is forever except eternity.

It gave me a whole new look on life. Like Paul, I try to live for Him and know that to die is gain. And He will be with me as these things pass by. And it came to pass . . .

Genesis 4:3, Genesis 4:8, Genesis 6:1, Genesis 7:10, Genesis 8:6, Genesis 8:13, Genesis 11:2, Genesis 12:11, Genesis 12:14, Genesis 14:1, Genesis 15:17, Genesis 19:17, Genesis 19:29, Genesis 19:34, Genesis 20:13, Genesis 21:22, Genesis 22:1, Genesis 22:20, Genesis 24:14, Genesis 24:15, Genesis 24:22, Genesis 24:30, Genesis 24:52, Genesis 25:11, Genesis 26:8, Genesis 26:32, Genesis 27:1, Genesis 27:30, Genesis 29:10, Genesis 29:13, Genesis 29:23, Genesis 29:25, Genesis 30:25, Genesis 30:41, Genesis 31:10, Genesis 34:25, Genesis 35:17, Genesis 35:18, Genesis 35:22, Genesis 37:23, Genesis 38:1, Genesis 38:9, Genesis 38:24, Genesis 38:27, Genesis 38:28, Genesis 38:29, Genesis 39:5, Genesis 39:7, Genesis 39:10, Genesis 39:11, Genesis 39:13, Genesis 39:15, Genesis 39:18, Genesis 39:19, Genesis 40:1, Genesis 40:20, Genesis 41:1, Genesis 41:8, Genesis 41:13, Genesis 42:35, Genesis 43:2, Genesis 43:21, Genesis 44:24, Genesis 48:1, Exodus 1:21, Exodus 2:11, Exodus 2:23, Exodus 4:24, Exodus 6:28, Exodus 12:29, Exodus 12:41, Exodus 12:51, Exodus 13:15,  Exodus 13:17, Exodus 14:24, Exodus 16:10, Exodus 16:13, Exodus 16:22, Exodus 16:27, Exodus 17:11, Exodus 18:13, Exodus 19:16, Exodus 32:19, Exodus 32:30, Exodus 33:7, Exodus 33:8, Exodus 33:9, Exodus 34:29, Exodus 40:17, Leviticus 9:1, Numbers 7:1, Numbers 10:11, Numbers 10:35, Numbers 11:25, Numbers 16:31, Numbers 16:42, Numbers 17:8, Numbers 21:9, Numbers 22:41, Numbers 26:1, Deuteronomy 1:3, Deuteronomy 2:16, Deuteronomy 5:23, Deuteronomy 9:11, Deuteronomy 31:24, Joshua 1:1, Joshua 2:5, Joshua 3:2, Joshua 3:14, Joshua 4:1, Joshua 4:11, Joshua 4:18, Joshua 5:1, Joshua 5:8, Joshua 5:13, Joshua 6:8, Joshua 6:15, Joshua 6:16, Joshua 6:20, Joshua 8:14, Joshua 8:24, Joshua 9:1, Joshua 9:16, Joshua 10:1, Joshua 10:11, Joshua 10:20, Joshua 10:24, Joshua 10:27, Joshua 11:1, Joshua 15:18, Joshua 17:13, Joshua 18:9, Joshua 23:1, Joshua 24:29, Judges 1:1, Judges 1:14, Judges 1:28, Judges 2:4, Judges 2:19, Judges 3:27, Judges 6:7, Judges 6:25, Judges 7:9, Judges 8:33, Judges 9:42, Judges 11:4, Judges 11:35, Judges 11:39, Judges 13:20, Judges 14:11, Judges 14:15, Judges 14:17, Judges 15:1, Judges 15:17, Judges 16:4, Judges 16:16, Judges 16:25, Judges 19:1, Judges 19:5, Judges 21:4, Ruth 1:1, Ruth 1:19, Ruth 3:8, 1 Samuel 1:12, 1 Samuel 1:20, 1 Samuel 3:2, 1 Samuel 4:18, 1 Samuel 5:10, 1 Samuel 7:2, 1 Samuel 8:1, 1 Samuel 9:26, 1 Samuel 10:9, 1 Samuel 10:11, 1 Samuel 11:11, 1 Samuel 13:10, 1 Samuel 13:22, 1 Samuel 14:1, 1 Samuel 14:19, 1 Samuel 15:12, 1 Samuel 16:6, 1 Samuel 16:23, 1 Samuel 17:48, 1 Samuel 18:1, 1 Samuel 18:6, 1 Samuel 18:10, 1 Samuel 18:19, 1 Samuel 18:30, 1 Samuel 20:27, 1 Samuel 20:35, 1 Samuel 23:6, 1 Samuel 24:1. 1 Samuel 24:5, 1 Samuel 24:16, 1 Samuel 25:37, 1 Samuel 25:38, 1 Samuel 28:1, 1 Samuel 30:1, 1 Samuel 31:8, 2 Samuel 1:1, 2 Samuel 1:2, 2 Samuel 2:1, 2 Samuel 2:23, 2 Samuel 3:6, 2 Samuel 4:4, 2 Samuel 7:1, 2 Samuel 7:4, 2 Samuel 8:1, 2 Samuel 10:1, 2 Samuel 10:17, 2 Samuel 11:1, 2 Samuel 11:2, 2 Samuel 11:14, 2 Samuel 11:16, 2 Samuel 12:18, 2 Samuel 13:1, 2 Samuel 13:23, 2 Samuel 13:30, 2 Samuel 13:36, 2 Samuel 15:1, 2 Samuel 15:7, 2 Samuel 15:32, 2 Samuel 16:16, 2 Samuel 17:21, 2 Samuel 17:27, 2 Samuel 19:25, 2 Samuel 21:18, 1 Kings 2:39, 1 Kings 3:18, 1 Kings 5:7, 1 Kings 6:1, 1 Kings 8:10, 1 Kings 9:1, 1 Kings 9:10, 1 Kings 11:4, 1 Kings 11:15, 1 Kings 11:29, 1 Kings 12:2, 1 Kings 12:20, 1 Kings 13:4, 1 Kings 13:20, 1 Kings 13:23, 1 Kings 13:25, 1 Kings 13:31, 1 Kings 14:25, 1 Kings 15:21, 1 Kings 15:29, 1 Kings 16:11, 1 Kings 16:18, 1 Kings 16:31, 1 Kings 17:7, 1 Kings 17:17, 1 Kings 18:1, 1 Kings 18:17, 1 Kings 18:27, 1 Kings 18:29, 1 Kings 18:36, 1 Kings 18:44, 1 Kings 18:45, 1 Kings 20:12, 1 Kings 20:26, 1 Kings 21:1, 1 Kings 21:15, 1 Kings 21:16, 1 Kings 21:27, 1 Kings 22:2, 1 Kings 22:32, 1 Kings 22:33, 2 Kings 2:1, 2 Kings 2:9, 2 Kings 2:11, 2 Kings 3:5, 2 Kings 3:15, 2 Kings 3:20, 2 Kings 4:6, 2 Kings 4:25, 2 Kings 4:40, 2 Kings 5:7, 2 Kings 6:20, 2 Kings 6:24, 2 Kings 6:30, 2 Kings 7:18, 2 Kings 8:3, 2 Kings 8:5, 2 Kings 8:15, 2 Kings 9:22, 2 Kings 10:7, 2 Kings 10:9, 2 Kings 10:25, 2 Kings 13:21, 2 Kings 14:5, 2 Kings 15:12, 2 Kings 18:1, 2 Kings 18:9, 2 Kings 19:1, 2 Kings 19:35, 2 Kings 19:37, 2 Kings 20:4, 2 Kings 22:3, 2 Kings 22:11, 2 Kings 24:20, 2 Kings 25:1, 2 Kings 25:25, 2 Kings 25:27, 1 Chronicles 10:8, 1 Chronicles 15:26, 1 Chronicles 15:29, 1 Chronicles 17:1, 1 Chronicles 17:3, 1 Chronicles 18:1, 1 Chronicles 19:1, 1 Chronicles 19:17, 1 Chronicles 20:1, 1 Chronicles 20:4, 2 Chronicles 5:11, 2 Chronicles 5:13, 2 Chronicles 8:1, 2 Chronicles 10:2, 2 Chronicles 12:1, 2 Chronicles 12:2, 2 Chronicles 13:15, 2 Chronicles 16:5, 2 Chronicles 18:31, 2 Chronicles 18:32, 2 Chronicles 20:1, 2 Chronicles 21:19, 2 Chronicles 22:8, 2 Chronicles 24:4, 2 Chronicles 24:11, 2 Chronicles 24:23, 2 Chronicles 25:3, 2 Chronicles 25:14, 2 Chronicles 25:16, 2 Chronicles 34:19, Nehemiah 1:1, Nehemiah 1:4, Nehemiah 2:1, Nehemiah 4:1, Nehemiah 4:7, Nehemiah 4:12, Nehemiah 4:15, Nehemiah 4:16, Nehemiah 6:1, Nehemiah 6:16, Nehemiah 7:1, Nehemiah 13:3, Nehemiah 13:19, Esther 1:1, Esther 2:8, Esther 3:4, Esther 5:1, Isaiah 7:1, Isaiah 36:1, Isaiah 37:1, Isaiah 37:38, Isaiah 48:5, Jeremiah 3:9, Jeremiah 13:6, Jeremiah 20:3, Jeremiah 26:8, Jeremiah 28:1, Jeremiah 32:35, Jeremiah 35:11, Jeremiah 36:1, Jeremiah 36:9, Jeremiah 36:16, Jeremiah 36:23, Jeremiah 37:11, Jeremiah 39:4, Jeremiah 41:1, Jeremiah 41:4, Jeremiah 41:6, Jeremiah 41:13, Jeremiah 42:7, Jeremiah 43:1, Jeremiah 52:3, Jeremiah 52:4, Jeremiah 52:31, Ezekiel 1:1, Ezekiel 3:16, Ezekiel 8:1, Ezekiel 9:8, Ezekiel 10:6, Ezekiel 11:13, Ezekiel 16:23, Ezekiel 20:1, Ezekiel 26:1, Ezekiel 29:17, Ezekiel 30:20, Ezekiel 31:1, Ezekiel 32:1, Ezekiel 32:17, Ezekiel 33:21, Daniel 8:2, Daniel 8:15, Amos 7:2, Jonah 4:8, Zechariah 7:1, Zechariah 14:16, Matthew 7:28, Matthew 9:10, Matthew 11:1,  Matthew 13:53, Matthew 19:1, Matthew 26:1, Mark 1:9, Mark 2:15, Mark 2:23, Mark 4:4, Luke 1:8, Luke 1:23, Luke 1:41, Luke 1:59, Luke 2:1, Luke 2:15, Luke 2:46, Luke 3:21, Luke 5:1, Luke 5:12, Luke 5:17, Luke 6:1, Luke 6:6, Luke 6:12, Luke 7:11, Luke 8:1, Luke 8:22, Luke 8:40, Luke 9:18, Luke 9:28, Luke 9:33, Luke 9:37, Luke 9:51, Luke 9:57, Luke 10:38, Luke 11:1, Luke 11:14, Luke 11:27, Luke 14:1, Luke 16:22, Luke 17:11, Luke 17:14, Luke 18:35, Luke 19:15, Luke 19:29, Luke 20:1, Luke 24:4, Luke 24:15, Luke 24:30, Luke 24:51, Acts 4:5, Acts 9:32, Acts 9:37, Acts 9:43, Acts 11:26, Acts 14:1, Acts 16:16, Acts 19:1, Acts 21:1, Acts 22:6, Acts 22:17, Acts 27:44, Acts 28:8, Acts 28:17, 1 Thessalonians 3:4