Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.Psalms 1:1-2
Busy, Busy, Busy
I know we’re all busy with our daily lives. There are clothes to clean, food to buy, things to plan, family members to care for, and you never know when some emergency situation happens. Before you know it, the day is gone. It’s not bad to be busy, in fact, I kind of prefer it over having nothing to do. But as Christians, even in our daily lives, we should still put God and His Word first. Sometimes it is difficult for me to find time to read my Bible or even pray during the day (or the week). How about yourself?
If you do find it difficult to find time for daily Scripture reading and meditation, here are some simple steps to help you begin a new and spiritually beneficial habit.
Step 1: Pray
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.
Romans 12:12
I know it might seem “basic”, but we’ve got to start somewhere. As Christians, we should be reading the Bible daily and learning to understand it, but sometimes we just don’t have the mindset for it. That’s where prayer comes in. In Buddhism, meditation is a practice many followers do to help them focus their minds and clear their thoughts. It’s now practiced by people of all walks of life, religious or not. For us as believers, praying to God helps us focus our minds and hearts. God wants us to pray to Him. He wants to hear our thoughts and feelings. So, what should we pray for? In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus reminds us of what we should pray for. We shouldn’t pray for our daily needs, but to seek God’s kingdom and righteousness.
For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:32-33
And in James 1, we are also told to pray to God for wisdom and understanding, but also without doubt – having the full assurance of faith.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
James 1:5-6
So, let’s begin each day with a prayer for God to help us find time to study His Word daily.
Step 2: Take Five
Oftentimes, people may think of reading the Bible as a “chore” or boring because there’s a lot of history, it’s long, they don’t know where to begin, or they don’t see how it’s relevant for our lives of faith today. Again, what’s Step 1? It’s to pray.
Now the next step is to take five – five minutes – to read a passage. I find it good to begin with the book of Psalms or Proverbs. Like how babies drink milk and slowly work their way up to eating solid food, if you don’t know where to begin when reading the Bible, begin with books like Psalms or Proverbs which can be read in short bits here and there. Those books are full of wisdom, prayers, and praise to God. Many of the Psalms also reflect the emotions we may feel at times whether it’s joy, frustration, pain, sadness, or thanksgiving.
But don’t think you have to read an entire book like Genesis or Revelation in one sitting. Take some time each day to read your Bible and meditate on it.
Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.
1 Timothy 4:13
Whether you read in public at a café or in the quietness of your home, let us begin to make these changes and little by little new will habits form. As you start with five minutes of Scripture reading one day, try to read for five more minutes the next day, and keep increasing the time a little bit each day. It’s like with weight training or running. You start with a small amount of weight or short distance and slowly build up to those heavier weights and longer distances as you train daily. We should treat reading the Bible and understanding it like a form of spiritual weight training.
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Step 3: Read, Understand, Do
It’s good to read Scripture daily as it helps us understand His heart and desire to reconnect with believers. But what good is it to read the Bible if we don’t remember what God and Jesus said? James reminds us to be doers of the Word.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
James 1:22-24
Have you ever forgotten what you looked like after you looked away from your mirror? I doubt it. We all know what we look like physically. James isn’t talking about our physical appearance here, though, but our spiritual appearance. If we read the Bible – the Gospels, Psalms, Proverbs, etc. – and say we believe in God and Jesus, but then live contrary to what the Word says, what good is our faith? What good is reading the Bible if we don’t practice it? James reminds us of this as well.
So also, faith by itself if it does not have works, is dead.
James 2:17
If we read the Bible but don’t put it into practice, then we are no different from unbelievers. But if we do meditate on the Word and practice what it says, we will be blessed. What does this mean? I encourage you to join a Bible study and find out for yourself.
But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
James 1:25
Step 4: Don’t Give Up
Even though we are busy, we should still find time for God and His Word. As we begin to learn and understand God’s Word and change our lives to become the people God desires us to be, people He can come down to like it says in Revelation 21:3, we must not give up when it becomes difficult. One thing to remember is that the devil will do anything and everything he can to keep us from learning God’s Word. When that happens, let us hold tightly to God and Jesus and their words of promise. In the passage above (in James), it says that “he will be blessed in his doing”. What, exactly, is that blessing? In Revelation 21:1-4, God and the kingdom of Heaven come down to the new heaven and new earth – a new people so to speak – and the place they are gathered at and live together eternally. In verse 4 it says there is no more death, crying, or pain. The true blessing is eternal life with God and Jesus in heaven. Let us hold on to that hope as it will surely be fulfilled as it was promised.
Let’s remember this hope as we read and meditate on God’s Word daily. Little by little, piece by piece, the whole house is built. Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, let us take time to study God’s Word.
Written by Kenny
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