I am surrounded by the Word of God.
My Bible goes with me, tucked into my purse.
My MP3 player is loaded with sermons and podcasts to listen to as I drive.
My bookshelves are full of books expositing the Word of God.
My Google Reader fills every day. Homemakers reflecting on how the word of God impacts their lives. Mothers praying the word of God over their children. Men discussing the nuances of one doctrine or another.
The Word of God. My life is saturated with it.
And it is beautiful.
But the Word of God is not merely a song to be heard and applauded.
Last night, I read these words–and they cut me to the heart:
“Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them.”
~Ezekiel 33:32
Surrounded by the Word of God, I revel in its beauty. I delight to hear how the gospel has impacted others. I delight to read of the intricacies of the gospel. It is a lovely song. The speakers, the bloggers, the writers play their instruments well with pleasant voices.
But it is not enough to consider the Word of God a lovely song.
I must do it.
The Word of God must enter my soul and transform me.
I pray that Jeremiah’s cry might become mine.
“Your words were found, and I ate them,
And Your word was to me
the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O Lord God of hosts.”
~Jeremiah 15:16
Oh that the Word of God might become for me more than just a lovely song. Oh that it would become as the very sustenance of my soul. That I might eat the Word of God–and that by it I might be transformed.
This is my prayer.
Collect more quotes from throughout the week with Barbara H’s meme “The Week in Words”.
This is convicting as I have just been wrestling with being willing to do a certain thing rather than just acknowledging that it is a good idea.
Wow, Rebekah, this is powerful. One of your best posts ever perhaps?
Thank you for sharing what you’re learning from the Word. I’m convicted and inspired…and really, really grateful that I read this today.
Aren’t we blessed to be able to have the Word of God with us in so many ways? We really have no excuse for not knowing what He’s saying to us. Yet, knowing it still isn’t enough. As you said, we must eat it, do it. Praying for courage to do so better…
Mmmm.Very thought-provoking. How easy it is to ‘know’ the Word, but we are told to be ‘doers of the Word’ also. Not so easy.
We are good also at excusing ourselves, aren’t we? (I shouldn’t say ‘we’…. I mean ME)
Thanks for posting.