so i just finished reading a part of the bible i never really thought about before and WOW was it ever worth the read! the intro to "the message remix" talks about an ancient practice called "lectio divina" or spiritual reading. it caught my attention so i kept reading ...
there are four components that make up lectio:
*read * think * pray * live*
there's a couple pages about all this and it's actually really good, meaty (yet easy to read) stuff. i was reading along, nice & relaxed and then i got to the LIVE part. it challenged me. what if i do the reading, thinking & praying and never allow all that to change my life? then i miss the whole point - ugh!! here's the part that really kicked me in the belly ...
"not only is the sin that you leave in place ugly & damaging, but it stands in the way of your relationship with God - in a much bigger way than something hanging off your face. for God to share His mind and His heart with you, only to have you do nothing about it, implies more than a self-destructive choice. instead of doing what God says, you have chosen yourself as master, as God."
YIKES! i soooo do not wanna do that but i do - every day - and it's only with God that i can stop. (philippians 2) so reading God's word means that He becomes more and more and more a part of me. just like every human relationship forever changes us & impacts me, my relationship with God does that same thing on a much grander scale. WOO HOO!!!
"Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." (Matthew 11:30)
oh how that statement just feels refreshing. like my load is lighter already. like someone cares.
today, i'm thankful for The Message translation and the fact that God pointed me to that little thing called "Intro".
