BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

JULY Read Through the Bible Old Testament/New Testament Fri 1 2 Chr. 14-15 / Heb. 4 Sat 2 2 Chr. 16-18 / Heb. 5-6 Sun 3 2 Chr. 19-20 / Heb. 7 Mon 4 2 Chr. 21-22 / Heb. 8 Tue 5 2 Chr. 23-24 / Heb. 9 Wed 6 2 Chr. 25-26 / Heb. 10 Thu 7 2 Chr. 27-28 / Heb. 11 Fri 8 2 Chr. 29-30 / Heb. 12 Sat 9 2 Chr. 31-33 / Heb. 13; Jas. 1 Sun 10 2 Chr. 34-35 / Jas. 2 Mon 11 2 Chr. 36; Ezr. 1 / Jas. 3 Tue 12 Ezr. 2-3 / Jas. 4 Wed 13 Ezr. 4-5 / Jas. 5 Thu 14 Ezr. 6-7 / 1 Pet. 1 Fri 15 Ezr. 8-9 / 1 Pet. 2 Sat 16 Ezr. 10; Neh. 1-2 / 1 Pet. 3-4 Sun 17 Neh. 3-4 / 1 Pet. 5 Mon 18 Neh. 5-6 / 2 Pet. 1 Tue 19 Neh. 7-8 / 2 Pet. 2 Wed 20 Neh. 9-10 / 2 Pet. 3 Thu 21 Neh. 11-12 / 1 Jn. 1 Fri 22 Neh. 13; Est. 1 / 1 Jn. 2 Sat 23 Est. 2-4 / 1 Jn. 3-4 Sun 24 Est. 5-6 / 1 Jn. 5 Mon 25 Est. 7-8 / 2 Jn. Tue 26 Est. 9-10 / 3 Jn. Wed 27 Job 1-2 / Jude Thu 28 Job 3-4 / Rev. 1 Fri 29 Job 5-6 / Rev. 2 Sat 30 Job 7-9 / Rev. 3 Sun 31 Job 10-11 / Rev. 4 “Read Through the Bible in a Year Plan” written by Marilyn Hickey, and used by permission. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * From that time on, Shirley got up early and met Jesus at the breakfast table. She prayed and read the Bible, making index cards on verses that stood out to her. She watched the daily "Believer’s Voice of Victory" broadcast and incorporated the Copelands’ literature in her home schooling. Since she and Barry loved reading the "Pursuit of His Presence" and "From Faith to Faith" devotionals, Shirley included them in her curriculum as well. Once a month when the "BVOV" magazine arrived, Shirley would confess that she and Barry would someday be featured in the magazine and that “our story won’t be a tragedy. It will be, ‘We heard the Word, believed the Word, obeyed and were really blessed.’” Shirley endeavored to hear the voice of the Lord and obey. At the grocery store one day, she made her selections with care, hoping she wouldn’t have to put anything back at the checkout. The quiet voice of the Lord interrupted her shopping: 'Pay for what’s in the basket in front of you.' The Goodness of God Approaching the checkout, Shirley noticed that the last woman in line had a huge basket of groceries. She swallowed hard, knowing she’d have to put her food back, but she would obey. At the last moment, an older woman slipped her basket in front of Shirley’s. All she had were two cans of green beans. “I want to pay for those,” Shirley said when the woman was about to pay. “I need those beans!” the woman argued. “I don’t want your beans. I just want to pay for them,” Shirley said, handing the cashier the money. When Shirley left the grocery store, the lady was waiting. “Why did you do that?” she asked. Shirley explained that the Lord had told her to pay for what was in her basket. “My husband died,” the woman said with tears streaming down her face. “This morning I told the Lord, ‘You’re going to have to show up today and let me know You love me if You want me to go on living.’” Both women rejoiced at God’s goodness. “When we first started attending the conventions, three of our four children were too young for Superkid Academy,” Shirley recalls. “We sat in the nosebleed section [in the main auditorium] with pillows, blankets and snacks. We stayed in cheap motels, eating bologna sandwiches and cantaloupe. “When the children were old enough to attend Superkid Academy, they were excited to go. When they got too old, they volunteered as counselors, getting up at 6 a.m. to stand in line at the convention center.” One Exception “The Word was changing everything in our lives, except our finances. Creditors called day and night. My parents never had any debt, so it wasn’t something I’d considered discussing before we married. When we came home after our honeymoon, Barry joked that he only had $20 left in his pocket. I was shocked to discover that was ALL the money we had! There was no money in the bank, no savings. “When creditors started hounding us, I realized we were in debt. But the worst part was Barry’s secrecy. He wouldn’t tell me what was going on. I felt unloved, and it put a strain on our marriage.” In 2004, when Barry realized they were on the brink of bankruptcy, their oldest son, Ben, was applying to colleges. There was no money to send him, so Barry applied for a loan. Sitting in his office one day, Barry read Romans 13:8: “Owe no man any thing but to love....” Then he read Proverbs 22:7 which said, “The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” Suddenly, Barry felt like a slave to debt. A few minutes later his banker called. “Barry, you’re not going to believe this! I actually got your loan approved with your credit record!” Conviction washed over Barry in waves. “Thanks,” he said, “but I’m not going to take the loan.” The banker, who knew the Sharp’s financial situation, sighed. “Your son won’t go to college,” he said. It looked that way. 12 : BVOV

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