Dutifully I switch the bed lamp on and reach for my little black book. But the words I read are stale. Dry as the sand blown in my face on a windswept day, they hold no life or meaning for me. After five minutes of pained reading I switch off to the world. By sunrise I will have no recollection of the words I read.
I think we've all been there, getting so caught up in being busy that devotional time becomes an afterthought, tacked on to the never-ending, ever-growing, to-do list. It is so easy for quality time studying the Bible to be crowded out with more immediate pressing matters.
I love the word of God, but when I don't make time to read it I find that when I do pick it up I am more thinking about how little I've read lately than the words in front of me. And then I start scrambling to catch up, reading as much as I can in as short a time as possible. 'Cramming' it's called, and inevitably nothing sinks in. You can't rush through the Bible, you need to sit back and let its words soak in.
So I decided to start a determined effort to giving myself daily time to read the bible and really chew on its words. A long time ago I heard the story of a man going to the evangelist R.A.Torrey and complaining how the Bible always seemed dry to him. What could he do to change this? Torrey told him to read 2 Peter twelve times a day for a whole month!
That sounds pretty extreme to me, but by all accounts a month later that man could not help but speak about what he was learning and reading in the book of 2 Peter! The words had soaked in, becoming alive in him and bringing change into his life. I thought that I should try doing a similar thing, so decided to start reading one of my favourite chapters in the Bible, Colossians 3, at least once or more a day for as long as it took for the words to become alive in me.
The Living Word
Let's take a step back though. What do I mean when I talk about 'the words becoming alive in me?' Look at the following verse:
Hebrews 12 verse 4 (NIV) - For the 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.'
When it says the 'Word of God is living and active' I would suggest this carries the idea of having the power to change us. I think this verse is saying that Gods word shows us who we are, and, like a bright light shining, gives us the ability to clearly discern what is truth and lies in our own heart.
But if I am reading the bible just for readings sake, and it is having no effect on the way I live then the words are clearly not alive in me. If they are not changing the way I act and think, my reading is pointless.
I could compare it to someone reading the weather report each morning and then completely ignoring its advice, going by gut feeling instead. The weather report could become 'alive' in him in that it could change the way he acts, but instead he chooses to stifle its power and live by his own instincts instead.
But, as we all know probably too well, weather can change very quickly. Just because it's sunny in the morning doesn't mean it will hold out throughout the day. But the point here is that the words you read in the bible need to become alive in you, changing your behaviour; just reading them will earn you no brownie points.
My Experience
And so it was that, with the above in mind, I started reading Colossians 3 every day, at least once, for just over a month I believe. Honestly, I was amazed at the results. After a couple of weeks I had practically memorised the chapter, and I found myself thinking about it all the time. When I met up with people I talked about what I was reading; at church each week I had endless discussions with different people about the concepts and thoughts I was finding in the chapter.
And yes, I started to notice changes in the way I thought, which led to changes in the way acted. It was an amazing journey, and I am so glad I did it.
So what can I say? There are still times when I don't get much out of the Bible. When I am tired, rushing through it or reading purely out of habitual duty, the words can be dry and meaningless. But there are other times when I come to it with an open heart and allow it to become alive in me, working its power of change in my life.
I have discovered that the Bible is indeed a living word, but that it doesn't intrude where it isn't invited. If I want it to change me, I need to open the door.
Thomas Devenish lives in Hobart, Tasmania. One of nine children, He works as a motion graphics editor and enjoys photography and the creative arts.
Thomas Devenish's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/thomas-devenish.html