Month: January 2017

Program Your Brain With Divine Data

Image ~ ~ Pat Vick ~ 1 Comment

“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”

(Psalm 119:11)

Did you know that the computer inside your smart phone would barely fit in a room a few decades ago? This generation literally holds in their hands more computer power than it took to send a man to the moon. Is the “smart” phone truly smart? No. Someone had to program it, and that initial data came from the depths of the human brain.

The human brain is an amazing organ. A super computer, really. Think, right now, of all the things you know. Let me get you started. Begin by thinking of every person’s birthday that you can recall. Husband, children, grandchildren, parents, siblings, friends, church family, co-workers, childhood playmates, teammates, celebrities, historical figures, a few beloved pets. How many would you say that you can remember? Between thirty and fifty is reasonable to assume.

Now think about all the addresses and telephone numbers you know. I’ll admit the number of telephone numbers is most likely significantly lower than a decade ago because we all have them programmed into our “smart” phones. This doesn’t reflect our lack of recall ability, but the agenda of “dumbing down” our generation. What about all the sports statistics filed away in your head? Or recipes? Or song lyrics? We are capable of learning, cataloging and recalling vast amounts of information, but that data must first be put into our brains.

I remind myself of this when I am tempted to pass on reading the Word of God. Our brains don’t come preprogrammed with scripture. If it’s not put in, it can’t be recalled. We have the Bible available to us in so many forms that it’s easy to take it for granted. We think that it will always be available when we decide to read it.

Throughout our lives, we will find ourselves in situations that we desperately need a scripture for comfort, for courage, for protection, for wisdom, for healing, for faith. In that moment of need, what will we be able to remember from the Word of God? Bits and pieces of scriptures that a dear old saint use to quote? A line from an old hymn or a catchy phrase from a praise chorus? The echo of a grandparent’s prayer?

While all of these are encouraging for a while, personal need requires personal knowledge. There’s nothing like facing a situation, praying for the Lord’s help and having scriptures begin to flood your mind. Scriptures that you have personally read at some point in your life that you thought you could never remember and would never need. What assurance! What power!

This is why I read three to four chapters of the Word of God every day. Day after day, month after month, year after year. I’m simply programming my super computer brain with Divine Data. If you do this, you will be amazed over and over at how much of the Word you have filed away to be recalled when you need it. Don’t wait. Start programming your super computer today!

POINTS TO PONDER

Do you read the Word of God every day?

How do you feel if you miss a day?

Share a situation when a scripture came to your mind and brought you comfort or direction.

~~~~~

As always, feel free to leave a comment, share to social media, and email me at pat@patvick.com.

Warm Regards,

~Pat~

THE WORD OF GOD: Is It In You?

~ Pat Vick ~ Leave a comment

The world and satan would have you believe that the Word of God cannot be understood -that it’s a mystery. While it’s true that the Bible does contain many mysteries, God wants you to understand His Word. Why would He speak it in the first place if He didn’t want you to hear it? Why would He commission it to be written if He didn’t want you to read it? Why would He allow it to be protected through millennia of time, bound and reproduced if He didn’t want you to study it?

The true mystery might be why does satan NOT want you to understand God’s Word? Why indeed? Could it be because God and His Word are inseparable? Could it be that to know God’s Word is to know God Himself? Could it be that to know God is to know His Plan? Could it be that to know God’s Plan is to know that satan will be defeated and that God’s people will be victorious in the end? Mystery solved.

So you want to draw closer to God? If so, you must get His Word in you. There have been generations of people who have lived and died, never having the opportunity to study God’s Word for themselves. That’s certainly not the case for our generation, at least generally speaking. There are Bibles in every bookstore, library, and hotel room. They are collecting dust on family coffee tables and office bookshelves. There are Bible apps for every device and multiple devices at once. There are video and audio Bibles for the non readers, and Braille Bibles for the seeing impaired. They are uploadable, downloadable, programmable, digital, and my personal favorite, the old school, leather bound, paper edition. Truly, we have no excuse not to read God’s Word.

I have decided that I’m going to get God’s Word in me in as many ways possible. I’m also going to make it a number one priority each day. First thing each morning, usually at 6:00 a.m., I sit down in my library with my coffee. I have my old school King James Bible and my GoBible Traveler. I listen and read three to four chapters, picking up where I left off the day before. In this way, I can read/listen through the whole Bible in a year. Listening and reading simultaneously helps me to focus more clearly and retain more of what I read.

This way of ingesting the Word is not sufficient for in-depth study, however. I also have a system of study that I follow most days where I choose a book of the Bible and work my way through each chapter verse by verse. Currently, I am in the Book of Acts. I usually cover about a chapter a week, using a concordance to break down the meanings of each word and taking notes with multi-colored pens in a spiral notebook as I go. It’s not uncommon to collect four to five pages of supporting notes on one or two verses as I spin off studying various subtopics and running references.

These handwritten notes are tangible proof that I have been in God’s Word, and are the seedbed for many teaching points. This is a slooow process, but that’s okay. I don’t have to be in any rush. Unlike the previous year-long Bible reading method, this verse by verse study will take me a lifetime. Coincidentally, that is exactly how long I have.

I also take opportunities when I am walking on the treadmill, riding in a car or flying on a plane to listen to scripture. No moment is ever wasted if it’s used to ingest God’s Word.

Is it in you?

POINTS TO PONDER

How do YOU get the Word of God in you?

As always, feel free to leave a comment, share to social media, and email me at pat@patvick.com.

Warm Regards,

-Pat