Let the Bible Change Your Life! Pt. 2

Yesterday, I gave the first "P" (Position) in approaching our reading of the Bible, if it's going to change us from the inside out... here are the next two:

#2 - PRAY: Ask God to meet you in the Scriptures. This seems like such an obvious thing, doesn't it? But the truth is that oftentimes we jump right into our devotional time without pausing to ask God to reveal His truth to us. It's not a sin if we don't pray beforehand... but we wouldn't think of driving somewhere we've never been, without at least a contact number for help just in case we got lost, right? Yet, we have the Author of the Scriptures who longs to sit with us and help us to understand what He's written! We don't have to wait until we "get lost" and can't find our way... He's willing to "ride" with us, leading us to where He wants us to go.

What an awesome thought: the God of the universe... who made me and knows all about me... gave me a book so that I can get to know Him. And because He created me, He knows exactly what I need... He's just waiting for me to pray, "Lord, open my eyes, so that I may see the wonderful truths of Your Word" (Ps. 119:18).

#3 - PONDER: Reflect on what I’ve just read or studied. Is there a truth here to learn? What does God want me to know about Him through this passage? Is there a command here to be obeyed? Is God, through this Scripture, prodding me to DO something? Is there a sin to repent from? Is there something I should STOP doing? Does this passage shed light on an area of my life that I need to get straight? How I’m treating my spouse… how I’m working on my job, or doing my schoolwork… how I’m handling my finances… how I’m maintaining my sexual purity… how I’m using my words?

Too often, we read the Bible, then set it down and don’t think anymore about it the rest of the day. But what if we just took one prevailing thought from what we read, and carried it with us throughout the day? What if we took one verse, and made that our memory verse for the week. You know what would happen? We’d fall in love with the Bible... we wouldn’t be able to stay away from it! We’d be like the prophet Jeremiah who said, “When I discovered your words, I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart’s delight” (Jer. 15:16).

Can we really honestly say that God’s Word is our “heart’s delight?” That only comes by meditating over and over on what God says, and allowing Him to burn the truth of His Word on our hearts...

... that only happens when we let the Bible change our life.