I’m determined to squeeze in one more post for the year.
A friend of mine and I were quasi-lamenting over Christmas cards this year–the lack of, yes, but also the faint sorrow detected because of it.
She told me of one card received from an older woman who wrote in the mass letter that this year has been so awful, there was nothing worth writing about. In fact, there was no reason to take a happy picture with her family (it would have been impossible anyhow, due to Covid) or send it to anyone, so instead she included photocopies of pictures of years past and happier times. A photo of her as a toddler under the Christmas tree. One of her grown children when they were small. Christmases past, happier times.
Oh, it made me sad for this lady. And I think there must be many in this same despair.
It reminds me of Malachi, the last book in the Old Testament, right before God took a 400 year sabbatical (He didn’t really, He was just gearing up for an incredible entrance–)
“I have loved you,” says the Lord.
“But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’”
Malachi 1:2
Nothing for which to feel grateful? Friend, you have much. Let me help remind you.
People like to reflect and look forward sometime around the end/beginning of a year. Once many years ago, I prayed God would make my love for His word grow.
As a twenty-something, I was overwhelmed by the wisdom therein. I felt like a failure for not applying myself to studying it, not digesting it as I should. But how to digest in huge doses? How to savor if only biting off big hunks and swallowing whole books? I needed wisdom, and I needed a practical view of it.
If any of you lacks wisdom, ask God! He gives it to all liberally, without reproach, and it will be given to you.
James 1:5
I’m happy to say every promise in Him is yes (a resounding one, 2 Corinthians 1 tells me–this means Yes! Yes! Yes!). Not only does my love for it grow, but it grows exponentially.
It changes everything.
I could tell you, but I’ve already told you. The only counsel, the only assurance, the only forgiveness and right living comes from knowing God’s Word.
Want to know how to succeed in business? How to handle dealing with fools? How to not be a fool? Read Proverbs.
Want a quick lesson in chasing dreams? Care to understand the emptiness in following your heart? Read Ecclesiastes.
Need help expressing the deepest aches and longings of your heart? Psalms.
I am convinced we sometimes feel the sorriest for ourselves because we have tuned out every form of hope. We’ve dialed that radio into white noise and can’t for the life of us find the energy to crank it back.
A sluggard buries his hand in the dish but is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth (Proverbs 19:24).
I have been the sluggard. Lord, sometimes we believe, but help us with our unbelief! Help us with our laziness, our ambivalence toward your Word!
The Bible uncovers every soft, tender spot in us and shines a spotlight there. It heals us. It grinds down our bitterness and pride.
Tonight we had our oldest read us Psalm 73 aloud–King James Version, just for kicks.
I was envious when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. (v.3)
Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish. They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily. (v.7-8)
Slow down, child!
I had to tell him to pause so I could scribble it in my notebook. Absolutely, I have envied the prosperity of the wicked! Amen, they are fat with good things, they have more than they could wish. I have seen it this very year–how they are corrupt! How much people are struggling while being told it is for their health and safety!
They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth. (v.9)
How the wicked talk and talk! How many words! Walking, wagging tongues. Lofty talk concerning oppression–this whole year was filled with phony social justice talk!
My mind flew to Jeremiah, the time when the people made a covenant to free their slaves.
But afterward they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again. (34:11)
This is what the Lord says,
You have not obeyed me; you have not proclaimed freedom to your own people. So now I proclaim ‘freedom’ for you, declares the Lord–
‘Freedom’ to fall by the sword, plague and famine. (34:17)
God throws down air quotes. Here’s some “freedom” for ya. My heart burns when I read it. Justice from the true Judge, not pretense from pretenders.
Racism? Classism?–He addresses it. No tolerance for the wicked, the double-tongued.
But also, no tolerance for the lazy: The one who is not willing to work should not eat (2 Thess. 3:10).
This is the Book that answers all my questions. It speaks to my here and now. It aligns my soul and rights my motives.
Chances are, you have it sitting on a shelf nearby.
How has He loved us? He gave us the Magnum Opus of love declarations. It is displayed in His creation, engraved on our hearts, and written in a tidy 800,000 word Book wooing us back to Him.
My four year old has been reciting the first chapter of Psalm since she could talk. It’s the cutest thing ever to get a two year old to say Bible verses, and if you do it every night at bedtime, they will whisper it back like a silly game. Add hand motions, clap the beat, sing it to the tune of a Disney song. I guarantee there is nothing sweeter, and they will memorize whole chapters if you put in the effort.
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, (stay away from fools and foolish talk!)
Or stands in the way of sinners, or sits in the seat of scoffers (don’t hang around their path, don’t give them the time of day!)
But his delight is in the Law of the Lord
And on this Law he meditates day and night.
(this is THE Book, the one worth reading and studying and thinking about)
He is like a tree planted by streams of water
Which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither,
Whatever He does prospers.
The wise person is planted. Their tree has fruit.
How has He loved you? Maybe you can think of many ways this year has let you down.
But He has given us His word. It never fails. It will make you wise, and if you let it sink in, it will benefit every area of your life.
He can make your desire to know Him grow–the promise is Yes.
Yes! Yes! Yes!
If you need help getting started reading your Bible and/or understanding the parts you don’t understand, there are many resources! There are apps you can put on your phone and podcasts you can listen to, like Bible Recap. You can do an easy Google search and find a printable checklist to read the Bible in a year. Personally, I read a One Year Bible that I picked up for a dollar at a thrift store. I can mark it up as much as I want, dog-ear it, etc., and it keeps me on track, reading-wise. Other than that, I listen daily to Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee. I cannot tell you how much I have learned from this man. His 5 year study is fantastic and I’ve been doing it for over ten years now. Each daily study is 20 minutes.
If your are an auditory learner, invest in an audio version of the Bible and keep it on your phone or in your car. I have this dramatized version. There is one called The Bible Experience that I’ve been wanting to try out (you can get it free right now with an Audible trial period)–it includes real actors’ voices, like Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Levar Burton.
Begin with Judges or 1 Samuel, something fast-paced and fascinating. I promise you’ll want to stick with it just to find out what happens next.
If this is all still very new to you or overwhelming, don’t worry!
Begin with a kids’ version, like the comic-style Action Bible. I have the audio recording on my phone so even non-reading kids can follow along. I love it because it is chronological and includes many details that other children’s Bibles leave out. Yes, your kids can understand Ezekiel! You can, too!
The Jesus Storybook Bible is another precious little kids’ version that hits the big stories and the overall theme of the Bible.
