Reading the Testimonies

[B/W Photodude]

I wrote somewhere here at Adventistan that my reading this year includes the entire 9 volumes of the Testimonies this year. But to know if I was on schedule, I created a table to know if I was lagging or even getting ahead. (Getting ahead is OK!) So, here is the  schedule table I created. However, we are at February 24 and no need to wait until next year to start your reading of them. So, I made another table with which you can start at anytime you wish.

 

Testimonies Reading Plan
Vol.	Pages	Days	Day of Year*	Date to Begin
I	712	54	1	1/1
2	711	54	54	2/24
3	575	44	108	4/18
4	667	50	152	6/1
5	754	57	202	7/21
6	482	37	259	9/16
7	298	22	296	10/23
8	335	25	319	11/15
9	288	22	344	12/10
End	--	--	365	12/31
Approximately 4800 pages total for nine volumes.
Read 13 pages a day
* This is a year count of the days 1-365 Today's Day of the Year

[B/W Photodude]

This table has the day of year and date to begin each volume deleted, but you will have to fill them in relative to your start date:

 

Testimonies Reading Plan
Vol.	Pages	Days	Day of Your Year*	Date to Begin
I	712	54	1
2	711	54
3	575	44
4	667	50
5	754	57
6	482	37
7	298	22
8	335	25
9	288	22
End	--	--	365
Approximately 4800 pages total for nine volumes.
Read 13 pages a day
* This is a year count of the days 1-365 Today's Day of the Year

[B/W Photodude]

This may help in calculating the day of the year:

Day of the year Calendar

[JoeMo]

I am currently on my 4th or 5th time reading through the entire Bible.  It is a challenge for me to "thoughtfully" read the Bible (rather than skim it like a novel) in a year!  If you can read the Testimonies in a year, more power to you! It seems like an ambitious challenge.

[B/W Photodude]

I am going thru my bible for about the 4th or 5th time in the last five years. I like to have a goal for each time going thru it as to what I am trying to see. This time I have the Academy Enterprises study Bible with Ellen Whites quotes. So, I am also reading all of the accompanying quotes. My Bible I usually read is heavily underlined and I am also matching this new Bible to my "regular" Bible as far as the underlining. 

In 2016, I also did the Conflict series. One chapter a day will get you thru by November. I finished in February! 

So, I do a lot of reading. I frequently go to a fast food restaurant in my town. There are other people in my town who also come in and have Bible study. The manager told me I was very welcome to come in and study. He feels that all the people studying creates a nice atmosphere for their restaurant! One person there is a retired teacher of computers, math, and religion. I gave a copy of Christ Object Lessons to him and he was even using it to teach his Sunday school class, which is also the same church my mother "graduated" from cradle roll in 1927! How small does this world get sometimes. However, he says I have my doctrines and he has his. 

[B/W Photodude]

One of my favorite Bible websites is Blue Letter Bible.

https://www.blueletterbible.org

They have a number of study plans for your Bible:

https://www.blueletterbible.org/study.cfm

My current study is one where when you are done, you have read the Old Testament once and the New testament twice. And they are merged together so you are not always reading through genealogies or temple service stuff, as important as it may be.

https://www.blueletterbible.org/assets/pdf/dbrp/1Yr_LifeJournalPlan.pdf

My last study was a chronological plan which gtried to present the Bible in chronological order. (No need to buy one of those chronological Bibles!)

[B/W Photodude]

Gems from the Testimonies:

Full and entire consecration to God is required of us. While the Redeemer of sinful mortals was laboring and suffering for us, He denied Himself, and His whole life was one continued scene of toil and privation. Had He chosen to do so, He could have passed His days on earth in ease and plenty, and appropriated to Himself all the pleasures and enjoyments of this life. But He did not; He considered not His own convenience. He lived not to gratify Himself, but to do good and to save others from suffering, to help those who most needed help. He endured to the end. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and He hath borne the iniquity of us all. The bitter cup was apportioned to us to drink. Our sins mingled it. But our dear Saviour took the cup from our lips and drank it Himself, and in its stead He presents to us a cup of mercy, blessing, and salvation. Oh, what an immense sacrifice was this for the fallen race! What love, what wondrous and matchless love! After all this manifestation of suffering to show His love, shall we shrink from the small trials we have to bear? 2T73

[thx4mercy]

On 2/24/2019 at 1:14 PM, B/W Photodude said:

I like to have a goal for each time going thru it as to what I am trying to see.

I have thought of this kind of thing before.  Give some examples of this, what kinds of things you might be trying to see.

[thx4mercy]

On 2/24/2019 at 1:14 PM, B/W Photodude said:

In 2016, I also did the Conflict series. One chapter a day will get you thru by November. I finished in February!

You read the whole Conflict series in two months?!!  Wow!

[B/W Photodude]

4 hours ago, thx4mercy said:

You read the whole Conflict series in two months?!!  Wow!

I believe I said if you read a chapter a day you will be done in November. This would be by starting at Jan 1 as many people do with big projects. I was late and finished in February, a little more than 13 months in the read.

[B/W Photodude]

4 hours ago, The Wanderer said:

EDIT: This EGW APP also has two or three Bible versions included so you dont need a separate Bible APP.

I have the EGW app on my phone and it is awesome to have the entire EGW library on a little smart phone. However, they have gone to EGW2 and you have to download each book as you want it. Really annoying, especially if you are out of cell range. So, I keep my EGW1 app and ignore the freq prompts to upgrade (even though I have the upgrade).

[thx4mercy]

3 hours ago, B/W Photodude said:

I was late and finished in February, a little more than 13 months in the read.

Oh, OK.....well, I'm still quite impressed!

[B/W Photodude]

9 hours ago, thx4mercy said:

I have thought of this kind of thing before.  Give some examples of
this, what kinds of things you might be trying to see.

One example was to read chonologically to see things in order. That is sort of good, except different Chrono Bibles put things in different order. I read by the Blue Letter Bible chrono plan. It was strange to stop in the middle of Genesis and before Abraham and read the book of Job. But undoubtedly he was before or right around that time. When you consider that one of Job's visitors was Eliphaz and one of the sons of Esau was Eliphaz, ... makes you wonder and there has been some suggestion that they were the same. (I tend to think Esau also was "converted" like the sons of Jacob were and was a believer.)

Another time I was halfway thru and think to myself, I should be noting the verses that seem to stand out. But then when done I had to start all over again, because I was missing the first half of the Bible. When done, the whole file of verses I saved was over 200 pages via word processer! I may review them all and see if I am as impressed as the first time. Sometimes I will save something and later I look at it and "why did I save that?"

I have also collected the names of many books named in the Bible that no longer seem to exist, although there is an ancient Book of Jasher out there (not the one considered to be a fake written recently as the last 2-3 hundred years.) It makes fascinating reading. I also read pretty much in KJV only and have another collection of archaic sayings that seemed to be quibbled over a bit. Those I contine to collect. Most recent interesting one was "his words fell to the ground." (And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 1 Sam 3:19)

So, every time I start another read, in addition to reading it, I also have another goal.

[B/W Photodude]

I have a growing sense of the value of the Testimonies for the Church. I see much criticism of Sister White and her visions. But one thing kinda stands out. While many are haggling over prophecies and her correctness of them, her letters to individuals seem to be a far greater proof of her ministry. How can anyone peer into the heart of others and spell out for them their private sins and defects of character? The descriptions of the character flaws in many of her letters to individuals are amazing. 

I believe that superficial things of a person's life are the things that we have the least in common with others. The private things and the deepest emotions and ideals can be the things we have most in common with others, although we may not often share them. This provides a basis for publishing these letters because they are situations that are shared by many.

I have to confess that when I started reading some of these letters, I am thinking, "Boy, I know who needs to read this!" and later, " Yeah, this would be very good for that person to read." These are the moments when the Spirit taps you and reminds you that you are reading these for your self. 

So, now, letters that have a "strange" resemblance to myself, I am jotting down the  list. Perhaps thru saving the list of articles and other computer magic, I will end up with one large file (book) called "Testimonies for B/W Photodude"! This will be a private edition, you understand!

Quote

Object of Personal Testimonies (Testimony #16)

In this last vision I was shown that which fully justifies my course in publishing personal testimonies.

When the Lord singles out individual cases and specifies their wrongs, others, who have not been shown in vision, frequently take it for granted that they are right, or nearly so. 

Perhaps some are jealous that they were not singled out!

Quote

If one is reproved for a special wrong, brethren and sisters should carefully examine themselves to see wherein they have failed and wherein they have been guilty of the same sin. They should possess the spirit of humble confession. 

I am picking up in my reading that self examination is far more important than what the king of the north or whereever is doing. 

Quote

God looks at the heart. He is proving and testing souls in this manner. In rebuking the wrongs of one, He designs to correct many. But if they fail to take the reproof to themselves, and flatter themselves that God passes over their errors because He does not especially single them out, they deceive their own souls and will be shut up in darkness and be left to their own ways to follow the imagination of their own hearts.

These letters were not meant for voyeuristic peering into the lives of others. They are for "our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come."

Quote

Many are dealing falsely with their own souls and are in a great deception in regard to their true condition before God. ... By self-examination they may find that they are doing the same things which God condemns in others. 

Again, learn from others. 

[thx4mercy]

15 hours ago, B/W Photodude said:

I have to confess that when I started reading some of these letters, I am thinking, "Boy, I know who needs to read this!" and later, " Yeah, this would be very good for that person to read."

Yes, frequently when I'm reading in her writings and thinking similar thoughts that you have expressed, I stop and say to myself "No!!"  Then I pray and say, "What about me?  Show me what I need to see for myself."

[phkrause]

On 3/13/2019 at 12:36 AM, B/W Photodude said:

I see much criticism of Sister White and her visions. But one thing kinda stands out. While many are haggling over prophecies and her correctness of them, her letters to individuals seem to be a far greater proof of her ministry. How can anyone peer into the heart of others and spell out for them their private sins and defects of character? The descriptions of the character flaws in many of her letters to individuals are amazing. 

Have to agree 100% B/W!!

[B/W Photodude]

On 3/13/2019 at 12:36 AM, B/W Photodude said:

Again, learn from others. 

On 3/13/2019 at 5:38 PM, The Wanderer said:

THAT is exactly what she would say! (EGW)

Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. Proverbs 9:8-10

Sometimes, you can't see yourself as well as you are seen. It helps to have a friend that will show you the correct paths.

[B/W Photodude]

20 minutes ago, The Wanderer said:

are you saying you took my comment as "rebuking" you? I hope not. 

Not at all! I am saying by the verses quoted that "wise men" appreciate instruction. If you read these different letters from the testimonies and perhaps see yourself and what needs correction in your life, you can with the right spirit profit immensely by them. As noted, sometimes a person cannot see their faults well, but pointed out, they may become very plainly evident. We have been blessed to have these testimonies to assist in our preparation for adoption into "the society of angels."

[B/W Photodude]

2 hours ago, The Wanderer said:

Not sure where you are at right now in your reading, but I came across this paragraph today in my readings:

My current location in the Testimonies is in my sig line, I am within a day of my "timeline." I update it every couple of days or so.

Thanks for the preview of a comment to come. I really believe this day to be in the last warning times. But much of the world seems to be very asleep ... even those who talk about the end. Talk is cheap, actions speak volumes. Sister White talks about how few will be ready for that day.

[GHansen]

I read the Testimonies in their entirety years ago, at the rate of 30 pages a day. I also copied down special statements on 3x5 cards, which I filed topically. Took me about an hour a day. Did the same thing with many other books, including 3.5 volumes of the R+H articles. It was in the midst of the R+H articles that I decided my time would be better spent studying Scripture. I came to wonder about the "inspiration" of EGW at that time. Voluminous reading of her books turned me "soft" on her but I still consider Education and Ministry of Healing essential reading.

[R. G. White]

4 minutes ago, GHansen said:

I read the Testimonies in their entirety years ago, at the rate of 30 pages a day. I also copied down special statements on 3x5 cards, which I filed topically. Took me about an hour a day. Did the same thing with many other books, including 3.5 volumes of the R+H articles. It was in the midst of the R+H articles that I decided my time would be better spent studying Scripture. I came to wonder about the "inspiration" of EGW at that time. Voluminous reading of her books turned me "soft" on her but I still consider Education and Ministry of Healing essential reading.

That's interesting. I've been reading the Bible through every year for over ten years now, and I am 100% convinced of Ellen White's inspiration -- more strongly, all the time, if that's possible.

[GHansen]

2 hours ago, R. G. White said:

That's interesting. I've been reading the Bible through every year for over ten years now, and I am 100% convinced of Ellen White's inspiration -- more strongly, all the time, if that's possible.

People have to do what is right for them. EGW, [in my opinion] has actually done a lot of damage to Bible study among Adventists. Her special emphasis was the doctrine of sanctification, which helps to explain how SDA became so confused about justification and perfectionism. In her autobiography, she says that she was, as a young person, confused about justification and sanctification. Later, she said ~we shouldn't get too involved in clarifying the difference, hence the mess that the denomination is in on these topics

[R. G. White]

11 hours ago, GHansen said:

People have to do what is right for them. EGW, [in my opinion] has actually done a lot of damage to Bible study among Adventists. Her special emphasis was the doctrine of sanctification, which helps to explain how SDA became so confused about justification and perfectionism. In her autobiography, she says that she was, as a young person, confused about justification and sanctification. Later, she said ~we shouldn't get too involved in clarifying the difference, hence the mess that the denomination is in on these topics

People have to do what is right for others as well, and I think it would be more helpful to our readers if you were to find the true cause of the evils that you mention, and to change your opinion about God's special messenger. She either spoke for God, or she didn't. Those marked supernatural manifestations were from either a good or an evil source. "You will know them by their fruits."

If I look at the state of Christendom today, I can see the need for an emphasis on the Law of God and on sanctification. There is no cause for confusion, if we know our Bibles, and if our hearts are willing and obedient. There is a balance to be sought, in our teaching and beliefs. Of course we need to know the difference between justification and sanctification. No one has ever stated more clearly than Ellen White that we need to take God at His naked word. We also need to understand that the absence of holiness indicates the absence of true justification. Today's Christianity is a mile wide, and an inch deep. Myriads claim justification by a kind of "faith" that has no practical value. Those who show no regard for the Law of God do not have His Spirit, and they are not His.

I recently saw an episode of Paternity Court where the potential father was a pastor and a bishop. By any moral standard, he was obviously reprehensible in his attitude and in his conduct. He showed zero awareness that, as a "man of God," he should have been upholding a higher standard. Now I fully understand why most young people today want nothing whatsoever to do with organised religion.

[GHansen]

1 hour ago, R. G. White said:

"People have to do what is right for others as well, and I think it would be more helpful to our readers if you were to find the true cause of the evils that you mention,...."

I can certainly agree with that. Of course, I can only speak for myself, but I have seen very little connection between what I believe and how I behave. Good breeding  is probably much more important than good religion. The very special hope that Scripture offers us is that faith is counted for righteousness.

[R. G. White]

7 minutes ago, GHansen said:

I can certainly agree with that. Of course, I can only speak for myself, but I have seen very little connection between what I believe and how I behave. Good breeding  is probably much more important than good religion. The very special hope that Scripture offers us is that faith is counted for righteousness.

I love that last sentence. My concept of true religion includes a vital connection with Christ through our faith and the working of the Holy Spirit. This creates a miraculous heart change. That means it works from the inside out, but it will inevitably affect our behaviour in a noticeable way. Others will see it, but our hope remains in the righteousness of Christ alone, imputed (counted) to those who believe.