56. Cloud of Witnesses

56. Cloud of Witnesses: A Treasury of Prayers and Petitions Through the Ages. Jonathan W. Arnold (editor) Zechariah Carter (editor). 2024. 345 pages. [Source: Library] [Prayer, devotional, christian nonfiction, history] [5 stars]

First sentence: He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'"

Cloud of Witnesses is a collection of [historic] prayers. This book of prayer features exactly one hundred prayers covering a wide range of subjects, themes, topics. The book is organized relatively chronological. The first section of the prayer book covers the early church (100-500), the medieval church (600-1500), the reformation church (1500-1700), and finally the modern church (1700-1900). The second section isn't so much a 'prayer book' as a history lesson. It features mini-introductions of all the writers included in the one hundred prayers. Again these mini-biographies are arranged chronologically. They do provide greater context for appreciating the one hundred prayers. The third section is technically the appendix, this section might be the least practical, however it isn't without its charms. This third section features the one hundred prayers in their original languages--or the source material for which these English translations are made. 

If you are looking for a prayer covering a specific topic or subject, there is an index for that.

The prayers vary in length and style. Some are very short, concise, practical. Others are longer--much longer. A few seem a little too wordy to be practical. But overall, I enjoyed reading this devotional prayer book. 

Prayer number 14 (Old Gallican Rite)

Grant holiness to new believers, O Father. Give knowledge to the ignorant. Give aide to those who are running their course. Give sorrow to those who have erred without knowledge. Give passion to those who are lukewarm. To those who are mature, give a good ending. We ask all of this for the sake of Christ Jesus, our Lord, Amen. 

Prayer number 70 (Thomas Cranmer)

Blessed Lord, who has caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning, allow us to hear them, read them, mark them, learn them, and inwardly digest them in such a way that, by the patience and comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and ever hold on to the blessed hope of everlasting life that you have given to us in our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

I am so glad that I read this one! Don't be intimidated. The one hundred prayers make up a small part of this one. They can be read and reread. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

25. ESV Large Print Personal Size

25. ESV Large Print Personal Size. God. 2016 edition text, 2020 publication. 1952 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

ISBN number for the one I'm reviewing: ‎ 978-1433555909

Start date: September 12, 2024

End date: November 26, 2024

I love the Bible. That much should at least be obvious. This is my twenty-fifth time through the Bible in 2024. I love the ESV, aka English Standard Version. I do. Is it the top of the top of the top in my list of translation preferences? No, but it's in my top four or five. 

This is a TEXT ONLY edition. There are a few textual notes, but no cross references. There are not book introductions. This is a very straight-forward, basic, no thrills edition of the ESV.

It is DOUBLE-COLUMN. Words of Christ are in red, not black. This is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. There are people who love black letter and people who love red letter. Red letter ESV bibles are harder to come by. So definitely if you are looking for red letter, this might be the one for you.

The font size. What can I say....It is GLORIOUS, FABULOUS, WONDERFUL. 12 point. It is LINE-MATCHED. 

It is the perfect weight, size. It is not too heavy. It is quite portable. 

Visually this bare-bones, basic bible has EVERYTHING I could ever want. Mostly. It is one of the best purchases I've made in a good while. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

24. NASB (77) Topical Chain Study Bible

24. Topical Chain Study Bible. New American Standard Bible. 1977. 1983 for the Topical Chain Study features. God. Thomas Nelson publisher. 1660 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Start date: September 17, 2024

End date: November 25, 2024

Things you should know about this Bible:

It features the text of the New American Standard Bible, the 1977 text edition. 

It is out of print. It was printed in the early 1980s.

It is NOT a rainbow study bible though it does seem to have some similarities. 

It is single column, black letter. 

It has interconnected references to four major Bible themes, each identified by a capital letter (G,J,H,S) and a color code. Grace is color coded red. Judgement is color coded blue. Holiness is color coded yellow. Sin is color coded gray. 

Verses that touch upon these four themes appear highlighted in that color. (Much like the rainbow study bible would later do)

But the chain references also are coded to 107 different topics. These are separate topics from the main four themes. Most topics try to reference something from each of the four.  

In addition to the chain references on the (left side of page) there are cross references (on the right side of page). 

There are also translation notes.

789 bottom of the page commentary/observations that can "kickstart" devotions. 

There are a handful of charts, maps, indexes, concordances, etc. 

Did I use all the features in my read through? No. I didn't really learn the system and give it full commitment to study using the chain references.

I did read [roughly] half the bottom of the page references. Some were excellent. Others got me thinking but not necessarily in agreement. 

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the NASB 77. That is the main reason I thrifted this one. 

My main issue with this one is that the font size is TINY and it is single column. The combination does not work well with my vision. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon #47

Bible reading

NASB 77

• Matthew 9-28
• Mark
• Luke
• John
• Acts
• Romans

NKJV

• Numbers
• Deuteronomy
• Joshua
• Judges
• Ruth

KJV

• Jeremiah
• Lamentations
• Ezekiel 1-30

ESV

• Jeremiah
• Lamentations
• Ezekiel 1-19

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

55. Daily Doctrine

Daily Doctrine: A One Year Guide to Systematic Theology. Kevin DeYoung. 2024. 432 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars] [theology]

First sentence from the introduction: This is going to sound over the top but writing this book has been a dream come true.

First sentence from day one: The aim of Christian theology is to know, enjoy, and walk in the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 

This systematic theology is meant to be digested one day at a time. The book allows for five days a week. So not 365 days of systematic theology. It builds in some grace days each week. It is written from a Reformed perspective.

From the introduction, "I endeavor on every page to be biblical. A big part of systematic theology is learning the proper terms and debates and distinctions. I make no apology for teaching these things. But the overarching goal in all this learning is to understand what the Bible teaches, defend what the Bible teaches, and enjoy the God whom the Bible reveals."

He goes on to say that the book can be enjoyed as a daily devotional, a reference book, or a "mini" systematic theology. 

It is well organized. Each reading is a building block. 

Some entries ARE accessible. Some have a truly must-read aspect to them because the entry is so central, so foundational, so essential to understanding the Christian faith. Because they are so essential, so core, these do have a more practical aspect to them. A certain thrilling aspect to unpack, a HOW CAN IT BE, ISN'T IT WONDERFUL. Entries that lead to gratitude, rejoicing, peace. 

For example, the chapters on the atonement are absolutely WONDERFUL. And that's just one example. There are, of course, many, many more.

Other entries are less accessible. I will say that ALL entries are intellectual in nature. But some are extra scholarly and dry. These daily entries are more difficult to comprehend and unpack, and, on the surface at least they seem to have less of an impact on the day-to-day lives of Christians. There are certainly chapters where the vocabulary is challenging. I have read many theological books through the years, so I thought I would have a fair grasp of the material. I was wrong. This isn't a bad thing. Just to say that there may be entire weeks where a reader is struggling to make sense of the text AND to put the pieces of the puzzle together in terms of so what. Why does knowing this impact me right here, right now. 

Again, there were plenty of days that were impactful and accessible and relevant. But I had imagined in my head a book where every day would be incredibly nourishing and amazing. There are plenty of rewarding days. There are. But this book will require effort. It may require rereading passages. It may require looking up unfamiliar vocabulary. It may require some extra research to see if you can find easier explanations of some concepts. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon #46

Bible reading

NASB 77

• Jeremiah 30-52
• Lamentations
• Ezekiel
• Daniel
• Hosea
• Joel
• Amos
• Obadiah
• Jonah
• Micah
• Nahum
• Habakkuk
• Zephaniah
• Haggai
• Zechariah
• Malachi
• Matthew 1-8

NKJV

• Genesis 25-50
• Exodus
• Leviticus

KJV

• 1 Kings 12-22
• 2 Kings
• Ecclesiastes
• Isaiah
• Jeremiah 1-2

ESV

• Ecclesiastes
• Song of Songs
• Isaiah

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Absolute Bare Minimum Expectations for Pastors

In no particular order since they are all interconnected:


A) The Apostle’s Creed. Or at the very, very, very least 99% of the Apostle’s Creed. Belief in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Not just casual muttering, but genuine belief in the contents—the bare bone basics of the faith. This is what we believe together as a community. To deny the Apostle’s Creed is to deny the faith. To edit/alter who Jesus is—any part of the gospel revelation in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—to conform with “new” ideas is foolish. To deny any part of what the Bible has to say about Jesus is foolish. To pick and choose which elements of the gospel story to believe and which to reject is foolish.


B) The gospel. Closely related to the Creed, but worth mentioning on its own. Sin may not be popular to believe in these days, but, except for FOUR chapters of the Bible, SIN is very much front and center as humanity’s biggest problem. Jesus came to SAVE sinners from their sin. He didn’t come to bring “enlightenment” or to share his wisdom. He came to save SINNERS from SIN. To deny that sin exists, that all humans have a sin problem, that believers and unbelievers have a sin problem, to deny the need for a Savior, to CHANGE the reason—to make up new reasons—for Jesus to have come is wrong. Plain and simple. To say that there was NO NEED for the blood atonement and that the idea of atonement is OUTDATED is blasphemous. To say that we have misunderstood why Jesus came for thousands of years is outrageous and shows pride.


C) Confession of Sin and repentance. It is important to acknowledge that even those who profess the name of Christ, who follow Christ, ARE sinners still in need of ongoing, daily repentance. We are to confess our sins and praise God for his mercy because there is forgiveness to be found. To deny sin, to deny the need for repentance, to deny the need for confession is to welcome pride and vanity in with open arms. We need to walk HUMBLY with our God, to hate what God hates, to love what God loves. Our view of sin should be the same as God’s view of sin. To call evil good and good evil is wrong. To remove CONFESSION OF SIN from the Lord’s Supper or communion is misguided.


D) the Bible is the Word of God. God’s Special Revelation to humanity. It is God-breathed, inspired, infallible, inerrant, authoritative. Perhaps a pastor does not want to teach, to preach the WHOLE counsel of God. Perhaps a pastor wants to pick and choose what is taught, what is preached. To stay silent is one thing. To admit that it is difficult to wrap one’s mind around, to admit struggles is one thing. However, to DENY vast chunks and portions of Scripture, to openly preach from the pulpit that the Bible is NOT the Word of God, is NOT inspired, is NOT God-breathed, is NOT true, is blasphemy. To openly teach others to disregard whole books of the Bible or whole doctrines of the Bible is dangerous ground. To promote the idea of picking and choosing what is true and what is relevant is again shaky ground for a pastor IF that pastor values what the Bible has to say about a pastor’s responsibilities to his flock.


E) The existence of hell. Death in and of itself is not a ticket to heaven. Hell exists. All roads do NOT lead to heaven. Jesus is THE way, THE truth, THE life. The ONLY way, the ONLY truth, the ONLY life. This life—no matter how long or short—is the only time people have the opportunity to put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. There are not an infinite number of chances AFTER death. Hell is not a time-out for naughty people. Hell is REAL and it’s forever. To teach that all ways lead to heaven OR to teach that hell is not real OR to teach that hell is just a temporary resting place and that ALL will eventually end up in heaven is wrong.

If pastors struggle with areas of the Bible, then silence about those areas is BETTER than teaching falsely. Going against face value, common sense, obvious reading of the text. To teach FALSELY is to actively work against God.

F) To care about the congregation, to walk alongside and provide what they need—spiritually. To pray for them. To listen to their concerns.


This might be slightly elevating from “bare minimum” to something slightly higher but….

G) Clear presentation of the cross and what it means. The flock suffers when truth is not clearly communicated. Imputation. Justification. Sanctification. These doctrines matter even if these words are never used. ALL of our sin was placed on Jesus at the cross. ALL. All of Christ’s righteousness was placed on US at the cross. God sees CHRIST’S RIGHTEOUSNESS in us. Jesus paid the price for our sin. It can no longer be reckoned to US. We have been saved and delivered. SLAVE TO SIN no longer. We are free at last. Free to be sons and daughters of the King. Free to walk humbly with the LORD. The burden of sin has been lifted. Grace is amazing indeed. We are called to be obedient, to walk in the Spirit. But we are SAVED indeed. GOD loves us.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Just to let you know...

I have fixed the Bible in 90 days three ribbon plan which I posted originally in 2021. It now includes the gospel of John. I can't believe I never caught this mistake. I am very appreciative of the commenter who mentioned this. 

The post is Bible in 90 Days Three Ribbon Plan. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon #45

Bible reading

NASB 77 (Topical Chain Reference):

• Isaiah
• Jeremiah 1-29

KJV 

• Judges
• Ruth
• 1 Samuel
• 2 Samuel
• 1 Kings 1-11

NKJV

• Jeremiah 40-52
• Lamentations
• Ezekiel
• Daniel
• Genesis 1-24

ESV

• 1 Kings
• 2 Kings
• 1 Chronicles
• 2 Chronicles
• Ezra

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

54. The Coming Golden Age

54. The Coming Golden Age: 31 Ways To Be Kingdom Ready. David Jeremiah. 2024. 240 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars] [christian nonfiction]

First sentence from the introduction: I've been fascinated by biblical prophecy all my life, and nothing encourages me more than God's predictions about the future. But I don't make many predictions myself. The Bible is infallible; I'm not. 

The Coming Golden Age by its very topic may prove to be decisive. It is about the millennial reign of Jesus Christ. Now there are dozens if not hundreds of positions on how to interpret the book of Revelation. All have a different view or take on the millennial reign. Some would argue that those thousand years are anything but literal. Some see the LITERAL reign of Christ on earth as the key to make sense of all the many, many, many loose ends of the Old Testament. Read the major and minor prophets, reading with the millennial perspective does bring clarity in many ways. Some choose not to engage in the battle exactly--to not argue about the details of prophecy and just focus on the glory of the coming kingdom, to focus on all the kingdom promises. So many rich promises are to be found in the book of Revelation. 

So from the get go, the perspectives you bring with you to the text might influence whether you enjoy this devotional book. Some people will automatically reject the theology--end of story. This isn't the one for you.

I don't engage in every battle regarding the details of Revelation. I see strengths and weaknesses to many of the different overall positions. Some I agree with more than others. I have my own leanings. But I also see them as more speculative than certain-certain. End of story GREAT confidence. How we get there--the details are fuzzier. But I do strongly lean towards a LITERAL interpretation of the millennial reign. [That being said, a LOT of authors I read hold different positions. It is not a deal breaker for me.]

I love the idea of this one. Thirty-one readings with the topic of the end days and millennial reign of Christ. Each reading is accessible enough and engaging. I do wish that each reading focuses a tiny bit more on Scripture itself. I wish that the book took a more methodical approach and walked readers through all the passages, the prophecies, the relevant texts. The book does value Scripture--no doubt about that. It just values stories--past and present--little factoids here and there. For example, I read the newspaper the other day and read about [fill in the blank] and then several paragraphs later drop in some verses. It makes for a casual, conversational read. Nothing unpleasant about it. I just wanted a little bit more meat. Because I DO agree with the literal reign and was hoping to learn about all the Old Testament bits in a more organized, focused, easy-to-follow way. 

I did enjoy it. I didn't necessarily love, love, love it. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

53. In the Lord I Take Refuge

53. In the Lord I Take Refuge: 150 Daily Devotions Through the Psalms. Dane C. Ortlund. 2021. 416 pages. [Source: Borrowed]

First sentence: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the ways of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

The Psalter uses the English Standard Version. Each psalm is followed by a devotion by Dane C. Ortlund. 

Definitely this is a case of what you see is what you get. Love the psalms? Definitely worth it for getting the psalms on such nice paper. Love devotions? Great. The devotions go with the psalms--so no extra steps for reading more Scripture.

I divided the psalms into daily portions according to the arrangement of the Book of Common Prayer. Readers could read one per day, five per day, ten per day, whatever. Definitely this is a a book that you can take at your own pace. There is no need to feel pressured to read it in one month. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

52. The Seaside Homecoming

 52. The Seaside Homecoming (On Devonshire Shores #3) Julie Klassen. 2024. 400 pages. [Source: Review copy] [5 stars]

First sentence: Bleak. The weather, her mood, her life.

Claire Summers, the oldest sister (I believe), stars in the third book in the series. The series has been absolutely fantastic. I have LOVED all three books. They are all similar YET also each is unique. You do get a chance to reconnect (briefly) with previous characters and see how their stories are progressing. 

Claire has been shunned--cast out--by her parents for eloping with a fellow who was less than honest. The marriage did not happen, and she fled to her Scottish aunt or great-aunt. She's been her companion--for better or worse--since the failed elopement. She has no idea if her sisters will ever be a part of her life again or not. (Same with her mother). 

After her great-aunt dies, Claire is left without a place to go and only a small allowance to allow her to make a new start. (Not a genteel start, but a start). Claire sees an opportunity that just so happens to be near where her family has resettled....will her new beginning be a happy one? Can she make amends with her family? 

As I mentioned before, I really do love the series so much. I think I may love the first two a tiny bit more than this third book. HOWEVER, all the books have been SO wonderful and just a joy to read. I do hope the series continues since there are more sisters who haven't had their own books. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon #44

Bible reading

NASB 77

• Psalms 73-150
• Proverbs
• Ecclesiastes
• Song of Solomon

KJV

• 2 Chronicles 10-36
• Ezra
• Nehemiah
• Esther
• Job
• Joshua

NKJV

• Isaiah 40-66
• Hebrews
• Jeremiah 1-39

ESV

• Psalm 18-150

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible