19 / Sun – Overview | Read 2 Timothy 3:14-17 / Psalm 111:2 / Psalm 19:1-2
Do faith and science conflict? Do I have to pick one over the other? Science seeks to understand the universe God has given us. To dismiss science is to dismiss God’s creation. Faith without science is to reject God’s work. But science without faith is to miss the point. Without faith there is no purpose to life and the universe. To read the bible is not to reject science but to put it in its proper context.
20 / Mon – A science book? | Read Genesis 1:1 / Psalm 111:2
Science is a body of knowledge about the natural world based on facts learned through experiments and observation. Some people believe there is a conflict between science and the Bible. That may be true if a person is attempting to use the Bible to prove scientific facts or conversely trying to use scientific information to disprove the Bible. The Bible is not a science book but a book proclaiming God as the creator of all things. How might this understanding affect your perspective as you look at the world around you?
21 / Tue – The scientific method | Read Proverbs 1:7 / Proverbs 9:10 / Proverbs 2:1-6
Are you familiar with the scientific method? You might be using it in everyday life when you can’t decide which tomatoes are the best kind to grow in your garden or you want to know where to get the best coffee in town. The process goes like this: ask the question, make some observations, gather data, formulate a possible theory, and test it. If the results don’t confirm your theory, then you do more research and retest. How might this apply to a person’s spiritual life?
22 / Wed – Before written records | Read Psalm 19:1-4a / Romans 1:20
Have you ever wondered how people knew about God before the Bible was written? Abraham was born into a culture that worshipped many gods. He had no Bible to read, yet he somehow came to know the true God and left home to follow Him. These verses clearly show that God is not limited to words printed in a book when revealing Himself to a seeker. How have you experienced God’s reality outside of reading the Bible? Scripture is not an end in itself; it is a means to an end.
23 / Thu – Sometimes science has no answer | Read Colossians 1:15-17
The body of scientific knowledge is constantly growing but there are some things it cannot explain. Like what Jesus did with storms or with empty wine jars at a wedding, with a small lunch at a huge gathering or at a funeral procession, and when he met lepers or demon-possessed madmen. Each event had a purpose – to show people what the invisible God was like, that He truly loved them and that He could be known. What unexplainable things in your life have shown you this truth?
24 / Fri – Check your focus | Read Romans 1:21-25
Whether it is miracles or visions or spiritual dreams or even a godly person you admire, something is very wrong if those do not ultimately lead you to God. Notice what can happen when you focus on the wrong thing (v. 21, 25). And it is a choice. Has this ever happened to you? What helped you see the danger? What did you do to make a course correction? How can you prevent something like this from happening in the future?
25 / Sat – The Author of it all | Read Psalm 46:10 / Hebrews 11:1-3, 6
Faith and science – are they mutually exclusive? Not according to scripture. If you believe God is the creator of all things, known and not-yet known, then you can be excited every time something new has been discovered. And when things don’t seem to add up, it is an opportunity to recognize that God is God and you are not. It is your faith in this all-powerful, all-knowing and everywhere present Person which keeps you steady when things happen that you don’t understand. Do you trust Him?
