Chapter
Six - Scripture Feeding of SELF; Bible Picnic
Picnics
– I love them! The fresh air, beautiful surroundings... it really
does big things to my appetite. Whether it's brats on the barbecue,
corn on the cob, or just peanut butter sandwiches with some zesty
fruit, it makes my mouth water. A picnic outdoors is something to
anticipate, share with friends, and talk about, for days afterward.
Even with a few uninvited ants, or that plastic spork that didn't
last all the way through the pot of bake beans, laced with pineapple
and bacon chunks – we love picnics!
No
one says you can't have a picnic feeding on God's
'sweeter-than-honey' scripture. Lean back against that cool shade
tree and watch that big white sailboat slowly move across the water
in front of you, as you feed on some famous voyages in scripture. And
if your Bible picnic is among dark stormy skies, feed on the handfuls
of verses in the first three gospels of Jesus teaching His disciples
about the calm that faith brings, in the ship covered with waves.
Read the account in each of the first three gospels and see if you
don't voice the same question of admiration, “What manner of man
is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!” (Matt
8:23+; Mark 4:35+; and Luke 8:22+)
For
me, the printed words I feed on, while I am alone in the church
parking lot with no one else around to see, tend to sink deeper and
take root in my mind and heart. I visualize the young pastor Timothy
feeding on the almost sacred letters from the Apostle Paul. His eyes
pour over the writings that were born in a lonely dungeon amid the
penetrating cries of other prisoners and the unsanitary conditions.
Just having those words written to him, in his hands, Timothy summons
a greater zeal to fight the good fight for the hearts of those in
Timothy's church. You and I can (and should) also.
Tags
'n Tears
One
might ask, “Is printed scripture better to feed upon, than
digital?” Asking myself that question, my eyes are drawn to a
couple Bibles that were my mainstay during years gone by. Often, even
now, I savor opening those yellowed ragged pages and read the margin
notes scribbled in a variety of writing tools. I see words and
phrases highlighted in a rainbow of colors. The notes become a
scriptural scrapbook of mental pictures of sunny, stormy, and even
surprising times, which the Lord has carried me through. Some of the
notes invite me to take an even closer look at the page, for evidence
of the tears that were a part of the experience.
My
fingers gently open the curled page corners with each one reminding
me that my body is only a temporary gift from God. I am to spread the
'sweeter than honey' promises, peace, and purpose of those
God-breathed words. The printed pages that have no 'tags' in the
margins seem like a promise that God has even greater surprises in my
future, to share with others.
There
have even been nights so burdened with stress, I placed my Bible on
my pillow next to my head and my hand rested on the book as though
there was a guardian – more powerful than description –
protecting me through the night. Each time, I slept like a baby,
protected by heaven's weapon, sharper than any two-edged sword.
(Hebrews 4:12)
Audio,
or Visual.
Hearing,
seems to be the first among our senses, that begin educating our
minds and souls, even before we take our first breath, or see with
our eyes. While still in the womb, our hearing teaches us the sounds
of our mother's heartbeat, and many of the sounds she hears. There
have been a number of God-fearing families who have begun educating
their children in God's precious word, by reading aloud, scripture in
the close proximity of their unborn child. So when their child takes
its first breath, that little heart already knows the sound of
scripture, whereby the Holy Spirit can begin nurturing the spirit and
meaning of those words.
As
the child begins to grow, spoken words are understood far sooner than
printed words fed upon. Scripture is shared and spreads much faster
than printed words. Hearing God's Word includes the tone and feeling
of the speaker far greater than the alphabet and punctuation can add.
I often think of the verses in Nehemiah chapter 8, in which some say
is the first mention of a pulpit. Verse 8 tells us the people were
made to understand the reading of the law. At the close of verse 9,
we learn all the people wept when they heard the words of the law (of
scripture).
Our
senses are like forks and spoons; hearing or vision, to feed our
spirit and memory, producing maturity in us that becomes leadership
tools in serving the lives of others. Both should be used often, at
the beginning and close of every day and in between. [~]
