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Wednesday, June 28, 2006 Meditation 2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3 Walk into any bookstore, and you’ll likely find shelves and shelves of self-help books. There are books on how to find your dream job, how to attract a mate, how to find fulfillment in your life, and how to win friends and influence people. As many and varied as they are, they all have one thing in common: the claim to be able to help you change. The Bible is not usually advertised as a book that helps people change. But history has shown that whenever God reveals himself through his word, people re-evaluate their lives. A brilliant example of this comes out of Scripture itself. When a neglected draft of the Book of Deuteronomy was discovered in the Temple in Jerusalem and read to King Josiah, he tore his clothes in anguish. Josiah realized that neither his life nor his kingdom was focused on God, and from then on, he worked tirelessly to make whatever changes were necessary to bring the people back to the Lord. When we read the Scriptures, God will reveal himself to us just as he did to Josiah. At times, he may challenge us to serve others or to spend more time with him on a daily basis. Other times, he may point us to words of comfort for us or for a loved one. And more than anything else, God wants us to read his word so that we can draw closer to him and so that he can draw closer to us. Think about how much we all like bargains or “sure deals.” Well, God is making us an incredible offer here, one that we can’t afford to pass up. For our part, all we have to do is sit down and read Scripture prayerfully. For his part, God will open the eyes of our heart and reveal himself to us—and this revelation will fill us with peace and joy. God wants us to know him. He wants us to experience his presence throughout our day. So let’s immerse ourselves in his word so that his wisdom can make its way into our hearts. “Holy Spirit, open my eyes and quiet my heart so that I will be able to discover your guidance and hope in the Scriptures. Let your words move powerfully within me.” Psalm 119:33-37,40; Matthew 7:15-20 |
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