The month of July sure did fly by, and so did these last days in the devotional, Settle My Soul. We will pick up with using the devotional in October. For now, I’ll share these few thoughts from the past week.
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“Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.” (Romans 15:4, NLT)
The author shares a story about a hard working man who didn’t know his land sat on a field of crude oil. He was wealthy and didn’t know it.
The Bible hold rich treasures for each one of us but we must tap into it, digging deep and grasping hold of the richness of His Word. And we need to apply it to our daily lives.
Yes, it was written long ago, but as our verse today points out – it was written to teach us, to give us hope and encourage our souls.
This devotional aligned with another Scripture:
“How sweet your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey.†(Psalm 119:103, NLT)
In what areas of your life are you reading God’s Word, taking in its knowledge, but not actually allowing it to change your actions?
Are His words sweet to your soul? Do you let them teach and change you?
Today I am reminded of this song. May it bless you as you listen …
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We closed our month long challenge with reading several passages – Ephesians 4:22-24; Luke 12:6-7; 1 Peter 3:9-11; Philippians 2:3-5; and Ephesians 5:10.
These passages are examples of ways we can find and replace the lies which may have lodged themselves in our thought processes.
Now if I may be honest, while sparing you the details, a stupid exchange of words with someone raised a lie in my thoughts and put me in a sour mood. Oh sure, I worked it out after a bit but the truth is, I should have known better than to let the lie begin to fester in my thoughts at all.
I am grateful for the reminder to be quicker in recognizing the lies. Not to let a lie sit in my thoughts at all – even if it only took an hour to uproot it.
This is a wonderful way to close the month long challenge. I challenge you to read the passages. Examine your heart. What is the one passage you can apply to your life and replace a lie?
For me, it is Luke 12:6-7: “What is the price of five sparrows – two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows” (NLT).
I need to constantly remind myself that I am valued by our God.
And so are each of you!
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His sweet and ancient words,
will teach and change us,
as we let them renew our thoughts and attitudes.
Photo by Yuliya Ginzburg on Unsplash
Today I am joining … Tell His Story and Grace Full Tuesday and InstaEncouragements and Purposeful Faith .
Oh, the lies I tell myself, too, Joanne. Thanks for this cautionary story from your own life. Let’s stick close to the truth about ourselves and about the world in general: We are great sinners, AND we are greatly loved!
Joanne, how I long to not only gain knowledge of God’s Word, but for it to also change my actions. And I pray God’s words are sweet to my soul. For then, just like a physical craving for sweet delights, my souls craves the Word of God!
God’s word feels so fresh and new to me at times. I love that about it. Visiting you today from the abounding grace link up. laurensparks.net
Joanne,
It’s kind of ironic that “ancient” words can “renew” our minds. Like you, sometimes some junk and lies get stuck in my brain and I need the renewing words of scripture to go in and scrub out the junk and replace lies with truth!
Blessings,
Bev xx
Our words certainly do have an impact—even the words we speak to ourselves. Thanks for the link to the Michael W. Smith song. Love worship music and believe it or not, I had not heard this one.
Thanks for linking up at InstaEncouragements!
I love – and need – to be reminded I’m valued by God. Life seems to only point out when I’m de-valued! Being in the Word is definitely the antidote to that kind of thinking!