Reading, lunch, CJ, Romans and Ezra

When you are sick - you've got a lot of time to think.
John Grisham may be a Christian (by his own words) but he doesn't write Christian fiction. I've been trying to teach my girls that whenever they read - whatever they read - read it in light of the gospel. This even goes for The Broker. What would you do with 6 years of solitary confinement? Would you have memorized the Word enough to be able to recite it - would you have memorized hymns so you could sing them (even if off key)? What would you do when you got out? What would freedom taste like? Being in bondage in misery is what life is without Christ.
I took lunch today and just chilled (because nothing I ate tasted good to me). So, I read a couple of chapters in CJ's book - The Cross Centered Life. This is a quote I underlined:
"Whenever the periphery is in danger of displacing the center, we are not far removed from idolatry."
He was talking about having our lives either being centered on the gospel of the cross, or having it be centered on other things (even good things like ministry and teaching, etc). What is your life centered around?
Finishing Romans 14-16
14.3 - Help me not to pass judgment on the things that I abstain from when that abstaining is not in Scripture.
14.34 - WHATEVER does not proceed from faith is sin...Boy that is a strong statement. Help faith to be so IN my life that I do not sin because of a lack thereof.
16.10 - Who has ever heard of Apelles - not me, but the one thing the Word says about him is that he was approved in Christ. What better thing would you want said of you?
16.17 - "avoid those who create obstacles contrary to the doctrine you have been taught" There is an answer for me.
16.26 - These writings (the WORD) has been made known to all the nations to bring about obedience of faith - all because of the command of God.

Now for Ezra
1.1 - So Ezra and Jeremiah (one of my faves) were contemps
2.41 - Asaph (writer of Psalms) had sons who were singers. Imagine a choir director having sons who sang!