(photo courtesy of: googleimages)
“In fact, though by
this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the
elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone
who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about
righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have
trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”- Heb. 5:12-14 (NIV)
I wasn’t planning on making this a two part experience, but
it is interesting how things can be revealed to you while watching your kid.
The reality is, if we truly focus and open our eyes, God can reveal His truths
to us in and through our everyday life experience.
Oddly enough, this lesson is centered around my son’s eating
habits…again. In my previous post (http://bobbybenavides.blogspot.com/2015/02/a-two-year-olds-lesson-in-bible-study.html) I mentioned the way my kid spits out the skin to his apple and
was missing some nutrients, which brought a comparison to how we might read
scripture incorrectly.
Today, I’m talking about his shoveling way too much food in
at one time, causing a huge mess and him to gag and say “I’m done!”
When I give my son grapes, teddy grahams, cheese puffs, orange
slices, tic-tacs…ok, not tic-tacs…but anything small enough that he can get a
handful of, he tends to do just that. He grabs a handful, makes a “nom nom nom”
sound in a growly sort of way, and proceeds to stuff them into his mouth! I
cannot help but to laugh and sit in amazement. When done accomplishing the feat
of cramming 15 grapes into his mouth, a slight exaggeration… it’s more like 12,
he looks at me grinning with his cheeks puffed out. He is seriously adorable.
Until…
“hack…cough…hack”, he spits out what’s left and says “I’m
done!” Then, my response, “There’s no way you’re done. You need to slow down!”
I’m not going to let my kid be a quitter! He normally wins and I let him down.
Now, as adults or anyone over the age of 10 knows, we need
to slow down when it comes to eating our food. We like to enjoy what we eat, so
we savor the taste and enjoy it one bite at a time.
Perhaps this is how we should be looking at studying the
Bible?
The Bible is amazing. There is so much to it that it can be
overwhelming. However, when we take the time to read it and take it in, we can
gain so much from it.
Unfortunately, many of us try to stuff the Bible into our
brains and enjoy it at first, we might even look up to God with a grin thanking
Him for such an awesome meal with cheeks puffed out, but then we get so
overwhelmed and yell “I’m done!” I can only imagine God saying what I say to my
son: “There’s no way you’re done! You just need to slow down!”
Studying the Bible might seem overwhelming. Some people take
on the challenge of reading the Bible in a year, and some actually complete it.
However, that requires reading several chapters and possibly missing out on
important pieces because you’re so focused on getting the task done instead of
taking in the actual message. That’s not a knock on reading the Bible in a
year, but remember it’s not about the task of reading, but the discipline of
studying.
As you read the Bible, aim to read it for all it is worth.
Slow down. Take it all in. God has a message for everyone, but we need to be
willing to take one bite at a time and savor the flavor of God’s glory within
the pages of His holy scriptures to His creation.
May we all enjoy the taste of His wonderful message.
Next Post: 3 tools on studying the bible
QUESTION: Do you find
joy in reading the Bible? Or is it a task?
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