Thursday 5 Jun 2014

June 5: 2 John 1:7-11

Key Verse: 2 John 1:9
Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son.

Devotion:
Every now and again we have to be reminded that God is in charge and that His Word is what we all need to read, trust and obey. That does not mean that we have to stop living in this world and shut ourselves away in monasteries where we will have nothing but the word of God to read (though that may not be too bad for some of us!) What it does mean is taking God’s Word seriously and treating it as His Word and not a novel we read part of now and again.

The whole idea of devotionals is that they should encourage you to get into your bible and read more to see what you have missed or to see where God is going to be guiding you today. I know some devotions just make you stop and think, others make you want to run the other direction, others leave you hanging; but it is the consistency with which you take on looking into the bible that will allow you to grow daily.

It is said that you can put on weight quickly but taking it off again is hard work. The same can be said about reading your bibles. The more you put it down and leave it alone the harder it gets to pick it back up again and when you do you struggle to get to grips with it; almost like your heart and mind are out of tune with God and need kick-starting to get back into the swing of things. If you have not done exercise for a long time, starting it slowly is the best course otherwise you will end up flat on your back before long. God will feed you as much as you can take, but you may struggle to take it all in in the beginning, so take it slowly to start with.

God is patient and He will give you the understanding that you need, but you have to be the one to start the ball rolling again, He keeps the momentum going for as long as you keep going. So next time someone comes along just as you want to sit down and get into your bible, tell them to come back later unless they are going to join in! Being able to study God’s Word with someone is always a lot easier because you will be encouraging each other just as God wants us to.

Points to Ponder:
When was the last time you read a whole book?

When was the last time you read the whole bible?