Congratulations! You’ve (hopefully!) made it through 10 days of reading the bible together. Already in Jesus’ teaching, you might have noticed how vital God’s Word is to us.
Jesus told a (kind of) terrifying story about it…
46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you? 47 I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them. 48 That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.” (Luke 6)
Then he told a challenging parable about it…
11 “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. … … … 15 But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.” (Luke 8)
We need God’s Word (Jesus’ words) to “sink into your ears” (Luke 9:44). That happens as we continue to read, and re-read. It happens when we hear it on Sundays, hear it in music, hear it from one another. It also happens in an amazing way when God implants His Word into our hearts in a way that we can’t quite understand…but we can ask for.
So moving forward, we challenge you: before you open your bible (or your bible app), take 30 seconds to pray.
Ask God to speak to you what you need to hear. Ask God to show you what you need to see. Ask God to implant something in your heart and mind that you’ll need when you don’t expect it. Think about the thing that lays heaviest on your heart, the thing that you’re most hoping for, the thing that causes you pain: ask God to speak into those things through what you’re about to read. Then read it.