Month: September 2017

Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book. Jeremiah 30:2 

Where would we be today if people hadn’t taken the time to write out the Scriptures? Where would we be today if our favorite Christian authors hadn’t taken the time to meditate, study, and then capture their findings on paper?

And what would I have missed if I hadn’t journaled over these many years? While I haven’t been perfectly disciplined, I do have journal books that are stored by date. Each entry reminds me of what I struggled with at the time and the way God spoke to me about it through scripture and prayer. I expressed that day’s experience on paper and by reviewing it down the road, I was able to enter into the strength and beauty all over again. God’s voice was heard again in my spirit and it benefitted me yet again.

Meditation Skill #5:  Journal before you forget it.

As you write down your meditation experience, you may have questions as well. Make note of them and commit them to prayer. Meditations are rarely just for one day. The mystery of God and His ways are unwrapped over time.

How can I review if I don’t capture the memory? Help me make the most of your personalized instruction. Amen

 

How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!  Psalm 119:103

Years ago, someone I considered a mentor made a comment to me about what faith is like. Her description consisted only of four words and they have lived with me for over thirty years. Words, especially wisdom from God, have a life of their own and live forever.

How does God feel about His own Word? Can you even imagine? When I feel numb and casual about a scripture, God is anything but that. How is the gap bridged between how I may feel about it and how He feels? How does ‘casual’ meet ‘passionate’? How can ‘casual’ become ‘passionate’? There is a way.

The Spirit of God lives inside each of His children. When I read the scriptures, the Holy Spirit is aware of it and is feeling something. He is willing and eager to communicate that to me if I ask.

Meditation skill #4: Ask God to help me feel what He feels about that passage.

When I’m reading an Old Testament story, God remembers it all in vivid detail like it was yesterday. He remembers the sin of the people and the victories of the saints. Excitement is in His memory. When I’m reading a warning about the consequences of sin, God feels the high stakes. He’s praying I’ll believe what I’m reading and avoid the painful consequences. When I’m reading verses of comfort and promises He’s made, He’s feeling passionately about my encouragement. He’s hoping I’m latching on to His words as lifelines.

I have experienced feeling little one moment while meditating on a scripture, but then asking God to help me feel what He feels about it. Words that failed to move me will often end up causing me TO weep over their beauty. What made the difference? Asking the Spirit to stir my heart emotionally and make me as alive to the content as He is alive to it. If I’m not experience God in His very words, there is a real disconnect.

You are never numb. I am often numb. Help me move out of stoicism into experiential unity with You. Amen

All Judah rejoiced concerning the oath, for they had sworn with their whole heart and had sought Him earnestly, and He let them find Him. So the LORD gave them rest on every side. II Chronicles 15:15

When I receive an important letter, I don’t read it just once. I read it over and over to make sure I am reading between the lines. The higher the importance of a letter, the higher the number of readings. I remember receiving love letters from Ron when we were dating. He attended a boarding school in Florida and I was in New York. He wrote once a week and it was always on light blue stationery. Once I found the letter in the mailbox, it never made it to the house. I opened and read it in the driveway. I read it again while eating my after school snack. I took it upstairs to my bedroom and read it several more times before dinner. I wanted to make sure I tucked every nuance away in my heart.

If human words have many layers, it’s no surprise that God’s Word does too. In fact, it’s manna that never runs out. It’s multi-layered and with each reading, there’s a new golden nugget. If the book of John were all I had available to me as a believer, it would have enough spiritual food for a lifetime. In fact, one chapter would be enough. If I can’t plumb the depths of God, why would I believe that I can plumb the depths of His Words?

Meditation skill #3: Take time to read your passage over and over again. 

Many of our church fathers practiced a spiritual discipline called lectio divina. They were made up of Reformers, Puritans, Revivalists, and others. They read scripture repeatedly to discern, through the work of the Spirit of God, the full meaning of a passage. Martin Luther urged meditation and used the Lord’s prayer as a model to teach it to those he taught.

How about this from Charles Spurgeon ~ “The more you read the Bible; and the more you meditate on it, the more you will be astonished with it.”

Astonish each one who will open your Word today, and who then settles in on it to read Your words like a love letter. Amen

“I am writing these things to you so that . . .” I John

If I went and grabbed an old journal and decided to share a page with you, after reading it, you would probably ask this question. “When did you write this? And what was happening in your life at the time?” You’d ask because context is everything.

While the whole bible is inspired and infallible, God used the pens of men to compose it. They are from different places, different times, and possess different personalities and stories. To fully appreciate and connect with what they are writing, it helps to know each one better.

Meditation skill #2: Investigate the author and know his story.

I am to wonder who authored my meditation.  Was he a type-A personality or a contemplative? Was he in a good period of his life or under great duress? Was he young or old? Knowing the answers (if they are available) means that I can feel comforted when I am experiencing the same circumstances as the author. His words will mean more because of shared experiences ~ even though we are many centuries apart. I won’t consider the Bible just a history book. The authors can be embraced as spiritual family members. Their lives and stories are my personal history.

Oftentimes, hints are given in the very passage I’m reading. John, in his epistles, tells his readers why he is writing. I get an instant picture of motive, of passion, and why he felt the words were imperative. Application is much simpler when intent is revealed and love is the driving force.

Truth is always meant to be a heart thing. Meditation feeds the mind but fortifies the heart. Over time, I feel a bond with the one who wrote the words. When reading the Psalms, for example, I often ask God to tell David how grateful I am for his songs and laments.

Scripture is not abstract poetry and historical storytelling. Personalize it with the breath of Your Spirit. Amen