What Is Your Excuse?

"I want people to fill their minds with passages of Scripture while they are well and strong,
that they may have sure help in the day of need.
I want them to be diligent in studying their Bibles,
and becoming familiar with their contents,
in order that the grand old Book may stand by them
and talk with them when all earthly friends fail.
From the bottom of my heart,
I pity that person who never reads their Bible.
I wonder how they expect to draw their consolation in their time of need."

~ J.C. Ryle

The Bible excites me :) (Jeremiah 15:16). This may sound funny but I don't want to miss anything that God wants to tell me. The more I know about God, the more I want to know Him! God's Word is a treasure to me. I want to read "His Love Letter" over and over again. I enjoy reading the Bible in different versions, too :). I would like to encourage you all to take time to read, study, and memorize the Scriptures which is powerful fuel for energizing our soul and renewing our mind. In the future, we may not always have religious freedom in this country. If the Bible were to be taken away from you, the verses you have read and memorized would be there to remind you of God's love, mercy, and faithfulness, assure you of God's power and providence, encourage you, comfort you, guide you, and feed/nourish you (spiritually).

"I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You." Psalm 119: 10-11

"How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! I gain understanding from Your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path. Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." Psalm 119:103-105

"Too difficult," you say?
"Not an excuse," I say! How many movie lines can you quote? How many song lyrics do you know by heart? How many ad slogans are stuck in your head permanently? You get the point. You can memorize Bible verses; it may take longer time and it may take some tools to help such as Scripture memory CDs/DVDs and index cards, but it can be done. Sadly, some parents/teachers make their students memorize poems, famous political speeches and documents, etc. but never or hardly encourage them to memorize the Scriptures. It gives me great joy to see my kids delight in the Lord and His Word.

"Too busy," you say?
"Not an excuse," I say! Do you still eat your meals even on the days you are busy? If you take care of your body by taking in nutrients through eating your food everyday, why would you ignore feeding yourself with God's Word and be willing to starve yourself spiritually? Without taking in God's Word daily, you will get weaker and weaker spiritually. It's easier to get discouraged, tempted, and deceived when you don't constantly consult with God-given life's manual/instruction guide. People seem to have time to gain knowledge from books and the internet yet have no time to search for wisdom from God's Word? Reading/ studying the Bible each day is very important. Now...think of memorizing Bible verses as eating snacks throughout the day. Snacks give us an extra boost of energy and sustain/fulfill us until our next meal. Bible memorization is similar but even better :)...keeping us energized throughout our lifetime (once in a while, we may need to review what we've already memorized because forgetfulness does happen to some of us :)).

"How to increase your faith: Expose your mind to God's Word, more & more, more & more, more & more." ~James MacDonald


This post is linked up with In 'Other' Words @Sunflower Faith, Faith-Filled Friday @Beholding Glory, Spiritual Sundays, Sharing His Beauty @The Beauty in His Grip, Playdates with God at The Wellspring, and "Hear It, Use It" @Graceful.