I love people. I am a people-person. I love connecting with people. I love reading about people and what they are up to, discussing thoughts people are having about all sorts of subjects. Agree or disagree, let’s talk about it. Let’s connect. Let me see your cute vacay pics, and let me validate your newly decorated mantle with a click of a button! “LIKE.” I love the whole social scene. I just jumped into the twitter pool this week. Trying to wrap my mind around that one. There may be less counter space in my kitchen for a few months (years) because this girl has no time for doing dishes.

So, I was sitting around this week, and by sitting, I mean checking my phone. Facebook, texting, checking the weather, Pinterest, Facebook, texting, e-mail, Facebook, email. But here is what I realized. There is a lot of fun connecting with people, but my soul is not flourishing. My soul is being neglected. I have all of the time in the world to scroll through Facebook posts, and maybe even read a blog about God or spiritual things. But here is what I know. I need to give a profound jumpstart to my soul. A lazar focus needs to be made on how I am pouring into the eternal part of myself. HOW DO WE FEED OUR SOULS? LOVE OUR SOULS?

We can do this by seeking after wisdom.

Proverbs 19:8 teaches this: “He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers.”

Do you love your soul?

Have you ever thought about that?

If I could offer you a refreshed soul, would you take it?

Sit with me for a while as I challenge you to love your soul. This is what the Soul30 Challenge is all about. Join me as we seek to love our souls, pour wisdom into our souls.

Many of you have heard of Whole30, an inspiring philosophy of making clean food choices. Paleo, clean, whole food choices. No Wheat, dairy or sugar for 30 days, to be followed by a lifetime of similar food choices. After the 30 days, there are exceptions to the rules (aka, give me cake, it’s my birthday), but the first 30 days of strict rules is meant to give a profound jumpstart to a healthier life, a lazar focus on good choices, a denial of putting harmful chemicals into your body. I have been a Whole30 groupie for almost 6 months and it has revolutionized the way I eat and the way I feel physically. I may even have days when I feel like a morning person (applause).

Instead of a lazar focus on food, let’s put a lazar focus on wisdom, truth, God’s Word. If you are feeling like I do, like you’re carrying around a weary, neglected soul, let’s seek after wisdom in an intentional way for the next 30 days! Soul30.

In Psalm 19:7-11 it teaches:

“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.

The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous,                                                                                                                             

They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.
By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

Do you want a refreshed soul? 

Wisdom? Joy? Light in your eyes?

God’s precious, infallible, glorious Word, scripture, the Holy Bible, is God’s revelation to a restless world searching for unfailing Love, searching for a way to pour rest into our weary souls. God’s Word is like honey from a honeycomb.

Let’s be dripping with God’s Word this month. Let it be seen by those watching that we are a MESS with His goodness. Let’s let His wisdom drip off of our chins.

How would my soul feel if I carried my Bible around like I carry my phone? I take my phone everywhere. EV-ER-Y-WHERE. I’ll admit (apologies to Chicagoland) that at a red light, I tend to look at my phone. I’m the one you guys are all honking at when the light turns green. Like, GO LADY!! Facebook can wait!! I’m so sorry. Seriously working on it.

But what if I dove into my Bible like I dive into my latest text messages?

Woah, red light? Okay, let’s see what Isaiah has to teach me right now. Or Hebrews. Or Ephesians.

I’m not advocating unsafe driving. Not a great habit. I get it. But it’s the mindset that needs to get transferred to my Bible. I need to transfer that urgency to God’s Word. My eternal soul needs love, aka wisdom, more than I need to connect to people. I love people. But there is an imbalance in my life right now when it comes to taking care of my soul. Let’s pour wisdom into our lives by reading God’s Word.

So, blog readers, friends, join me! Join me for 30 days. Here is my challenge to us:

• Carry your Bible around like it’s your phone.
• Let’s only read God’s Word. For 30 days, put down the magazines, the Tolkien, the blogs, the latest quiz to find out what animal you would be based on your personality. As much as it is possible, only read scripture. You will have to use your judgment on this. Like, if you’re a student, read your assignments! But devote yourself to God’s Word whenever you would normally be social-media-ing or whatever you spend most of your free-time doing. Maybe it’s video games, watching movies, reading blogs. Whatever communicates information to your brain, go exclusively to God’s Word. The Spurgeon book is awesome. It can wait 30 days.
• Every time you have the thought to check your phone for twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or whatever you can identify as your go-to social media habit, read a Bible instead. Read a verse, a paragraph, a whole chapter, a whole book. But read that God-breathed goodness and refresh your weary soul. I find that reading a non-digital, actual Bible is better because my phone Bible app allows me to see when I get new messages from social media. So I turn off the sound on my phone or laptop and read real pages of scripture.
• Come to this blog for tips on what to read. Are you at a loss for what to read for 30 whole days? Every day, I will post ideas of what to read. Hopefully this will help give you direction on how to get through the 30 days without feeling lost in a book of such vast selection. If you have your own plan for what to read, do that!
• Also, come to this blog to post comments on how God is using Soul30 in your life! I know we’re trying to lean away from any non-scripture uses of our downtime, so use your judgment in this as well. If you want to go to exclusive Bible reading, why would you read THIS blog during that time? Because we’re journeying together and spurring on one another in this great race of pursuing God. Hebrews 10:24 says “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Tell all of us how this 30 day journey is feeding your soul. Share your experience. Encourage others with your story. Even if you’re not going to read the blog, share your story.

Have you never really been a Bible reader? Now is the time, my friend!! What is the worst that could happen? Chances are, your soul is hungry, tired, unloved. Might as well give it a try. Give God a new opportunity to wash over you with His truth and transform that weary heart of yours.

The rules can be tailored to your needs, but here is what my 30 days will looks like:

1. PHONE: For the majority of the day, I will only use my phone as a phone. It will function as a phone in the traditional sense. If someone calls me, I will answer (not at nap time, obvi.)
2. SOCIAL MEDIA: I will only check social media during designated times; meal times and bedtime. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Snacks don’t count (p.s. stop snacking). Time will be devoted to responding or sending messages. Status updates, posts, tweets, etc. are okay with an emphasis on brevity & discernment. No scrolling through Facebook statuses, no reading of the latest update on the break up of Bennifer, no reading outside of God’s Word as much as it is possible. Not even a good post about C.S. Lewis or 10 ways to love my kids. These can be good things. But they are not the Living Word of God Almighty. They are not what my soul CRAVES.
3. TEXT & EMAIL: If I get a text or e-mail, yes, I will read and respond. I run my own home-based business and need to communicate to people usually a few times a day. Plus, I don’t want to lose all connection to humanity. I need y’all. But with discernment, I will limit my time with messaging as much as it is possible.

I will miss my Jane Austen. I’m actually 3/4 of the way done with Emma! Ugh. It will have to wait until the end of August.

Nothing wrong with Austen. Nothing wrong with great blogs on many various topics. But I am going to commit my time to drenching my brain in God’s Word. I will check in every day with an update on how God is working in my life through this soul-loving experiment. Hopefully these updates will SPUR YOU ON as you seek this God who loves you. I hope you will join me in sharing how God is working in your life!

What should you do if you’re in??

1. Dust off that Bible!
2. Comment and tell us you’re on this path with us!
3. Follow this blog so you automatically get notified when I post daily updates!

I look forward to journeying together with other like-minded people who want to pour wisdom into their hearts and minds, and by doing so, will show love to their souls.  Not in a self-empowered kind of way, but in a way that allows God some room to move in our lives, allows Him more moments to teach us, guide us, speak to us and revive us, for His glory.

I’ve already started doing this Bible challenge, which is why I am so fired up about it. I wish I had time to share what God has taught me JUST TODAY. But the official Soul30 challenge will start this Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Let me know you’re with me! Share this with your friends who may need a soul jump-start! If you miss the official start date, S T A R T   A N Y T I M E!!  Did you hear me? July 21 is not a magical date. Jump in with us.

I’d love to have you be a part of this journey!

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14