"Call to me and I will answer you, and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. " Jeremiah 33:3

Thursday, May 3, 2012

All Scripture Is Both Milk And Meat, What You Get Out Of It Depends On How Hungry You Are!

Today's title came to me at the end of a small group, verse by verse Bible study that I belong to. We meet every week and today the question came up, are there times that the Bible just seems dry? The group consensus was that yes there are. What do we do in those times?  Do we just quit for awhile or do we faithfully continue on in prayer and reading the Word? 
 
I shared that one time I was struggling in the Word, it just wasn't speaking to me and I didn't feel the presence of the Lord.  I couldn't think of any sin that was causing this sense of separation so I called my pastor.  He reassured me that there are times in our lives when the Lord takes away the sense of His presence, He is still with us but He is testing us to see if we will remain faithful even in the dry seasons.  There is an example of this in scripture regarding King Hezekiah, it says that God left him alone only to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart.  2 Chronicles 32:31 NASB.
 
We know from Scripture that God never leaves His children, so if we feel alone we can rest in the truth that God is working within us, He orchestrated this dry time and most important of all He has a purpose for everything He does with a believer in Christ, not the least of which is He is testing us, revealing our hearts to Him.  
 
Waiting on the Lord is perhaps one of the most difficult things a believer does, but waiting is not that we are fruitless, mindless and motionless. God forbid! We are trusting in our Father, we are continuing to do what we know we are supposed to do, namely daily quiet time with Him. But even more it is that soulful, quiet, earnest expectation that when God has finished the particular work within us we will be changed and we will be stronger and most important of all we will know Jesus in a way that we never have before, for He will reveal Himself to us.  "Wait and hope for and expect the LORD; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the LORD."  Psalm 27:14 AMP.
 
The Psalms are so beautiful, so comforting, the psalmist many times gives words to the hurts that are deep within us, a psalm will give us a voice when we don't know what to say.  The Psalms encourage and facilitate our worship of the Lord, the Psalms provide the pathway to repentance for the prodigal sinner, the Psalms provide the strong refuge we need when we feel alone or afraid, The Psalms introduce us to our Lord the Shepherd, to our Mighty Fortress, and to our Almighty dwelling place!  When you feel you have lost the song within you, sing the Psalms!  "I set Your instructions to music and sing them as I walk this pilgrim way." Psalm 119:54 MSG.

The greatest gift you will ever give yourself is to become a student of the Word of God. The Bible has been described as God's love letter to a lost and dying world!  The Word is everything to me, it is my insight into my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, it is my rock, my compass, my guiding star, it is my light, and the delight of my life!  The more  God reveals to me in His Word, the more I realize that I have yet to learn, what other book can ever cause you to say that? None! For there never has been nor will there ever be another book like the Bible.

"God means what He says. What He says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon's scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God's Word. We can't get away from it, no matter what." Hebrews 4:12-13 MSG
 

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