I don't live by bread alone......And you?

I've found myself both excited and sad about the Bible lately.

EXCITED because the more I am reading it, listening to it on CD, studying it, meditating on it, and doing all of these things while asking God's Spirit to teach me and make it alive to me, the more encouraged I am. I get to know God through it, which I enjoy the most! It helps me live life...it fills my mind with truth and helps me to recognize the many lies that satan constantly tells me and us through the "world". It gives me hope when I've felt down lately. It's just SO GOOD...truly food. It gives me weapons to fight against the enemy, who lately I've just felt attacked by....

I'm just SO THANKFUL that God chose to give us a book directly from HIM...full of TRUTH! I can't imagine how life would be without it. When I get bored with it or don't feel like reading it, I find that God often asks me, "do you REALLY believe that these are MY VERY WORDS?"...i think about it and then have to answer "YES"...and then how can i NOT read it! I'm holding the VERY WORDS OF GOD...FROM HIM...ABOUT HIM!! I'm finding myself craving them more than music, and for me that is strange.

The sad thing to me about the Bible is that so many people don't value it anymore. I am consistently shocked at how many people I talk to who don't read it-speaking of believers...and many really don't seem to CARE that they don't read it. And then I see the percentage of how much of "the world" they are listening to...though music, movies, billboards, people,etc. No wonder it's SO HARD these days for people to walk in the Abundant LIFE that Jesus Promised. No wonder so many of us find ourselves defeated, stressed, frustrated, angry, selfish, rude, prideful...(kind of sounds like a verse in the Bible...pretty sad that that verse reflects us much of the time). No wonder so many don't even realize that they are missing so much that God has for them...how could they know they are missing it if they don't even know what God promised for those who walk with Him? that's extremely sad to me.

I wonder if people don't read it because they really don't think it's from God Himself? Not that they would actually consciously THINK or say that but I really believe that our ACTIONS, or lack of actions, reflect more what we believe than what we say. When I PERSONALLY stop and ask myself what I TRULY believe, and remember that I DO believe it's God's actual Word for men, then I've GOT to pick it up and spend time in it. It doesn't make sense not to...and being busy just doesn't seem to matter when I face this reality...it's GOD'S WORD for heaven's sake!!!:) WHAT?!?! That's crazy!! I think we're just so used to having a thousand Bibles around the house that we've forgotten what it really is!

I quit reading it for quite some time because I felt it had become a legalistic ritual to check off my Christian "to do" list. Now I don't just see it as the RIGHT thing to do but the SMART and wise thing to do.

I know several people who just don't know what to read, or don't like to read it cuz they don't understand it. THIS is what's making me excited about just talking more about the Bible with people, and hopefully starting a group soon to just let people ask questions that I might be able to help answer...or if I don't know, then what a great way to teach people how to study it and where to go for answers! Or maybe we'll just do a read-thru together and spur each other on as we read! ANYTHING to get people in the LIVING and ACTIVE WORDS of GOD!! THAT is exciting to me!!

I'll stop there.This just keeps coming up with people so it was on my mind.I just want to do anything to help people gain the love for God's Word that He's been putting in my heart. He's such a GREAT GOD!! I just think that lives will change as we know TRUTH as much as we know what the world says about life....as we know truth to make satan leave when he lies to us or twists the truth- like Jesus knew it!

I hope that YOU will find HIM in His Words this week...and alive in your life as He IS!!!

Psalm 119
..."Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in Thy law"....