My clock says this will be a fast and to the point post.  It really will not take long.  I was up at our school today when one of my members asked me a question.  He comes from a Catholic background and still reads through some of their scripture readings each Sunday.  That is very fine by me regardless of the source.  He noticed that my scripture on last Sunday matched some of his reading that morning.  There was a question about was it by accident or not.  My answer was simple.  I am now using the church lectionary readings for a few weeks after Easter.  My scriptures are being selected from the various readings suggested for any given week.  I also added that he will find this week being based on one of the readings.  Probably no one else would notice but he did pick that up.


The church lectionary contains scripture readings for every day along with suggestions for any given Sunday.  I have no idea who chooses these or on what basis.  Most of our mainline congregations plan the year around this tool.  This does not mean each sermon is the same in every church that follows this plan.  Every minister is free to put his own spin on the selection.  Some will try to weave every scripture reference into a message.  Most opt to major on one text or the other.  There is usually an Old Testament reading, a gospel reading and one from an letter of the New Testament.  The fourth reading comes from the Psalms.  They move along with the church calender with serious emphasis on Christmas and Easter.  Seems like they alternate along three year cycles.  From what I can tell, the goal is to cover most if not all of the Bible in those three years.  Baptists do not usually look to the lectionary for preaching material.  More and more are starting to utilize it but those are still in a serious minority.  I go to the lectionary most often during those holiday occasions.  This is one of those times when it seemed better to study with it than without it.


The weeks that follow Easter can be difficult to handle.  Some years I just moved into another study based on where my own spiritual journey took me.  One year it seemed like God led me to take a look at the ascension of Jesus for several weeks.  That grew out of my personal readings from the lectionary guide.  I like the challenge of studying scripture with a plan.  This year it seemed God was nudging me to take a look at the scriptures suggested by the lectionary.  So far it is an enjoyable ride.  We will spend two weeks in Acts before moving on to some gospel studies.  All of these readings speak to me.  I know they have great application to a wider audience.  Breaking up various messages by series or by the lectionary is my personal approach to preaching.  God speaks to us in many diverse ways.  We just need the sensitivity to listen.


Bro. Trey