Stuck in the mud
I saw an open Bible lying on the muddy ground; it sank deeper into the muck. And then, to my horror, someone stepped on it. It was stuck in the mud. I couldn’t help but ask, how could this happen?
He answered, “The Bible was completely disregarded when the person had not made a place for it.”
In contrast, I saw an open Bible up on a pedestal. As I watched oil streamed from the Bible and was caught in a cylindrical container that flared out as it went. I did not see the end of this collecting device. This person had created a place of honor for the Bible and saw the importance of creating space for it and its teaching.
As I sat contemplating this, He explained, “No one can make another person create a space of honor in their home or in their hearts for the Lord. They must do that on their own. When the second person created space and time for the Word. Then the ability to collect and distribute the oil was created. Without the hunger for Me, there is no place for the oil. Remember, the oil represents the Holy Spirit and His presence, and His anointing. Without His presence, then you wouldn’t have the ability to minister to and help those I’ve put into your life. In short, you would miss your purpose.”
“But you must remember.”
“There is a price to pay for the oil. The price is time and devotion in order to listen and obey. Your desires must be for Me above all other things.”
***
From last week, you might remember that the Lord is having me remove TV that isn’t Christ-centered. And this has created a space for more time with Him. When my children watch one of their shows, I now sit in the farthest corner of our living room and read a Christ-centered book. The unexpected thing has been, not only do I have those little places of more time, those places aren’t filled with junk. I don’t get stuck with time stealers. So my brain isn’t having to process garbage that only bogs down my already tired mind. It’s now only using energy to process good things that can add light and life to my reality.
This bonus shouldn’t surprise me. (Yet, I am) I should know by now how He operates because every obedience I have ever carried out with the Lord has always resulted in unexpected blessings. Not because I did an act of obedience correctly, but simply because His nature is to bless and He delights in it.
Every act of obedience, even when it is not expertly completed brings God joy. He rewards our desire to follow Him more than the outcomes of our work. He doesn’t want us to get stuck in thinking of our relationship with Him as performance driven.
I needed to search my own heart and see where I stood. Had I ever stepped on my Bible in a pile of mud? Not literally, thank goodness. But looking deeper, there have been times I have let the mud, junk, and worries of this world push down the Bible. Covering the life-giving message with the cares of the world. Some were real, and some only imagined.
So what happens if we create a sacred space for the Bible in our lives? What does that look like?
I think it looks like a designated time daily when we set aside a specific amount of time to read the Bible. For me, it’s the first fifteen minutes after I wake up. For my family, we read a chapter at roughly the same time each night before we put the youngest to bed. We take turns reading. Because reading the Word out loud brings a blessing. Not only for the reader but for the hearer.
“So faith comes from hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ.” (Rom. 10:17, AMP)
When we read out loud. We get a double blessing. One from the reading, but also as we read, we are hearing our own voice speak the Word.
Prayer for you and me: Help us create a sacred space and place in our hearts and homes for Your Word. Let us clear out those things that steal from our life in order to create more space and time for those things that bring life. We need Your presence and love in our lives so that we might love the people that You have given us to be in relationship with. Help us not get stuck in our own reasoning.Thank You, Jesus. Amen.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm, 139:23-24, ESV)
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