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