Hey all! Been a while since I wrote. Sorry about that. Anywho, I'd like to pick up with a few thoughts about personal devotions in the Bible. It's something I've always wanted to do since my family did devotions together when I was little. Last summer, lots of Staff members at The Boardwalk Chapel mentioned how helpful their devotion times were for them, so this past spring I tried it for myself.
It was hard. Sounds crazy, but it was very very difficult to decide every single day that I was going to read a chapter of the Bible. I wanted to go all the way through, and that was easy back in Genesis and Exodus. But by the time I got to Leviticus and Numbers? I'll be honest, they are boring. Tons of Levitical rules and, well, numbers. I'm not a math genius or even minorly interested in which animals were used for which sacrifices. That said, I was determined to keep going, no matter how boring it was.
This is where I need to pull you aside and whisper in your ear: It was the best decision I made all year.
God gave us His Word for a reason. Lots of reasons, in fact, but one reason in particular: that we may know Him.
Know a Spirit? Know the force that created the universe? Know the Almighty God who sits in Heaven and judges the quick and the dead?
Yes.
Because He's personal and He made you and He loves you. He inspired the writing of the Bible so that we can know who He is and why He loves pathetic, hairy creatures like you and me.
When I was first told that Jesus loved me and died on the cross to save me, I read only the gospels. I thought that because that's where Jesus was in person, that that was the only place I could learn about Him. Don't really know where I got that idea...
The truth is, you can find out who God is from books like Deuteronomy and Joshua as well as in Matthew and Mark! He performed miracles all throughout the Bible, all throughout time! He made laws, saved His people from enemies, caused them to have victory over their enemies, and cared for each individual, family, and tribe in Israel. He even cared for people in the other nations, like Rahab in Jericho and Ruth in Moab! God was saving Gentiles way before the book of Romans.
Sorry, tangent.
Anyways!
I've now been reading through the Bible for my devotions for six months or so. I'm two chapters away from the book of Judges and I have learned so much about God.
It's really difficult. There's a spiritual battle going on every time you go to read the Bible because Satan doesn't want you to fall more in love with God. Every night, I have to make a conscious decision to open my Bible and read... or decide I'm tired and go straight to sleep. It can be pretty tough on some nights more than others.
One of my personal inspirations for choosing to read the Bible is its impact on me the next day. I can honestly say that I am more ready to face the day if I have read my Bible the previous night. (btw, devotions at night is my personal preference. They can take place at any point in the day and the effect is the same: sustenance.) I am sustained and nourished by Scripture just like I am by food. Super cool.
I'd like to close with a nerdy thought about the etymology of the word "devotion". It's a Latin word that means to consecrate. Consecration or profound dedication is meant to be more than patting myself on the back because I read a chapter of the Bible. It's a hunger, a yearning, a deep-seated, driven plunging of my whole self into the Word of God.
I need it. I need to know more about my Savior, Redeemer, and Friend.
"With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your
commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not
sin against you." -Psalm 119:10-11
Read the Bible. It was written for you.
