Excited about the imminent return of the Lord, several people in Thessalonica stopped working and started waiting. Which sounds pretty spiritual, except that they got hungry, and with no money for food, simply sponged off of everyone else in the church.

I can see how this quickly became annoying. Able-bodied, formerly employed people now showing up daily to partake of my good graces. The working church members grumbled, and their non-believing neighbors looked on with amusement. Strange religion where some work and others just quit and take advantage of their friends.

Paul clarified matters. The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat (3:10).

By turning away these busybodies (Paul’s description), their ensuing hunger helped motivate them back to their old jobs.

I knew of a man once who sold most everything he had, because he heard the Lord tell him to sell it all and give to the poor. Problem was he had a family, and they immediately joined the ranks of the poor and suffered as a result, falling into dependance upon family and church members. I’m not sure that’s the proper application of Jesus’s words to a rich young man.

Similar thought with Paul’s instructions. If you’re fit and able, go to work. Earn your keep and then share with others. Better for you, better for your family, better for your fellow church members, and better for those looking on and still deciding about following the way of Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 3 in week twenty-five of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Adrian Swancar

Solomon launched the nation of Israel on a building spree. Most famously, he built the temple dedicated to the Lord, a wonder of the ancient world. He also built himself a palace, and later a palace for the daughter of Pharaoh, one of his queens.

Solomon built whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled (2 Chronicles 8:6).

So when Solomon looks back on life of construction projects, his thoughts cause me to turn my head. Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain (Psalm 127:1).

Solomon speaks to more than just putting up temples and palaces as he reminds us to remember the Lord as we build our lives. Solomon learned by experience, and failed at times to practice what he preached. Remember, this is the same man who wrote vanity of vanities, all is vanity! (Ecclesiastes 1:1).

From the mouth of experience. As I build in life, as I develop and grow and seek new opportunities, it’s good to keep the words of the wise king in my ears, and trust the Lord to build the house.

Psalm 127 in week twenty-five in reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Sneaky Elbow

As a boy in junior high school, the youth pastor at our church warned us not to read Song of Solomon (or Song of Songs) until we were engaged to be married. Filled with sexual imagery and innuendo, junior high boys best stay away.

Of course, I and all my friends immediately read Song of Solomon when we got home. Over and over. Actually a great ploy—how much better if forbidden to read Romans? Junior high boys maintain short attention spans, but being told not to read a specific book in the Bible because it talked about sex certainly focused mine.

The descriptions of the beautiful woman stood out to me then, as well as today, especially the use of metaphor strange to my ears. Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from the hills of Gilead (4:1). Not a line I blurt out when my wife asks me what I think of her hair, but I can picture it if I think hard enough.

I also love this image—Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn, coming up from the washing. Each has its twin; not one of them is alone (4:2).

Growing up in the Ozarks, a girl with all her teeth certainly counted as a prize. But seriously, in the era Solomon wrote, dental hygiene lagged way behind today. People experimented with various remedies to clean their teeth and freshen their breath, but it proved difficult to keep a mouth full of healthy teeth into adulthood.

So, the beautiful, white, perfect teeth of his lover impressed Solomon. Makes me thankful for my parents who sent me to brush my teeth every night, and for the dental professionals scolding me over the years for my lack of attention.

I got the message—I now work to keep my teeth like that flock of newly shorn sheep. My hair, however, might be a lost cause.

Song of Songs 4 in week twenty-five of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Hans Heiner Buhr

Pulling into the garage with a van load of sleepy kids, I unstrapped the boys as my wife carried our youngest into the house. She immediately stepped back out and whispered, “something’s wrong.” I tip-toed into a confusing scene. Every cabinet door wide open, a television on the floor, and a cold wind blowing through the busted-in back door.

We hurried next door to call the police. Not one to wait, my neighbor grabbed a baseball bat, handed me another, and headed out. “Let’s go check out your house.” Sometimes crazy emerges in a crisis.

Empty. The sound of the garage door scared the thieves off, scurrying away with what they carried. They stole several items, including cash, a video cassette player, and a brand new pair of running shoes—my “preaching shoes.” I paid for those Nikes with an honorarium from speaking at a local church. I prayed a curse of blisters on the thief.

That night shocked me in a bad way. Our home invasion left me scared and frustrated and without restful sleep for weeks. Thieves invaded our home, putting my family at risk. I never anticipated such a breach in our quiet neighborhood.

So when Paul says, the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night, I get his drift. I won’t see it coming.

While the day of the Lord might surprise me like a thief, a joyous result actually follows—a new life in eternity. Paul tells us to encourage one another with these words.

No need to moan about my preaching shoes any more.

I Thessalonians 5 in week twenty-five of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Jilbert Ebrahimi