via TJC
I grew up in church. I’m a Bible Belt southern boy who has heard the scripture quoted, preached, weaponized, used to show off in a church crowd, etc. Rarely did any of these approaches help me feel closer to God or make any real impact in how I lived my life.
It wasn’t until I was in my forties that I began to change, but only after I learned how personal the Word of God was meant to be for me. A 75 year old man, a pillar of the church, told me that for over 50 years he had been involved in church and had even faithfully read a devotional (a book someone else wrote to tell him about God - even referencing scripture) every morning of those years. He told me when he was finally taught that God intended for His Word, the Bible, to be personal for him, it was like a miracle. He no longer just read other people’s thoughts on God's Word, he found a deep relationship with a father who loves him. That had a big impact on me and I began to follow his new example of getting into the Bible myself.
Over the last few years I have been amazed to see all the church guys whose story is like mine and my 75 year old friend. They might know some words of the Bible, have some familiarity with the stories, and even have memorized parts of it. Others have never picked up a Bible and read it for themselves, instead expecting “trained professionals” to do that for them. What they miss is the intimate relationship with God that he offers us through His Word.
There is so much more than just the ink on the page for us but it takes work and investment of time to begin to hear from God when reading the Bible. Some of what he left us in scripture is weird (just being honest), some feels like a fairy tale. Don’t give up though, the power of God is hidden in those words if we take the time to truly KNOW them.
Daily Battle Order:
Ask your family how often they see you spending time with God in his Word? If they don’t see it happening often, ask yourself how God might feel about that. After all, He left this big old book to teach you, train you, and equip you to live life in relationship with Him.
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