Power of the Word

## Guarding myself with the Word

I attended the Word hand workshop and one of the key lessons I learned was having a clear understanding of why reading God's Word is important. I always knew that reading God's Word is important, but if you asked me why it was important to me I would probably need a moment to think about why it is so. However a reason that resonated with me from the workshop was that reading God'sWord is essential to guarding my thoughts and my heart. In Hebrews 4:12, it is said that word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double--edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

I am reminded that the Word is a powerful weapon against sin and is essentialdaily to purify us. There are times when I think I am doing ok, but just going back to the Word allows me to realize that I was getting complacent. I experienced this in the quiet time on 1 Timothy 5, it is said that some were getting into the habit of being idle, and not only becoming idlers, but also gossips and busybodies. I learned that idling has no place in God's Kingdom, that we should be busy in our responsibilities so that we can remain focused on how we can serve and not be led away by distractions.

If I do indeed have spare time, which I sometimes find myself with nowadays, my discipline does become more lax and I spend less time with God. The Word has made me realize the dangers of how I'm living, and to make changes to guard myself by scheduling time better.

## Attitude

Another lesson from the Word Hand workshop is having the right attitude when reading the Word. I do find myself reading but not being able to recall lessons after reading. I realized that I was approaching the Word like a narrative of events, with little changed after closing the Bible after reading.

In 1 Thessalonians, Paul thanks God for the Thessalonians receiving the Word of as it actually is, the Word of God. I had to receive the Word as God's actual Word. That means praying before reading, and giving thanks for what I've just read. This allows me to approach the Word not as a narrative of events, but actual words that God is telling me today.

In Acts 17, the Bereans were not only commended for examining the Scriptures every day, but also commended for receiving the message with great eagerness. Brothers were urging me to start to approach the Word with a goal of enjoying God's Word. I saw that I needed to approach the Word with great eagerness like the Bereans. Though I cannot muster up this eagerness immediately, I saw that if I am thankful for the Word each day, that this eagerness will come.

## The Blessing of spending time with God

Finally, I also learned a lesson in the Prayer Hand workshop by looking at how some of the great figures prayed to God, and in this case it is Paul and how spending time with God in His word allows me to better pray for others. In Ephesians 3, Paul knew what to pray for the Ephesians because He knew the great riches that he has personally experienced. He also desires for the people to know how big God's love is, because he himself experienced God's love. I saw that reading the Word equips me to pray for others with things greater than what I can imagine by myself. If I am able to experience great things in my own reading, I can not only share these great things, but also desire to share these things from the joy of what I have gained.

7 November 2021