"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15
If you have been around me for even a little while, it is likely you have heard me quote the verse above, at least to some degree. Most often I quote it by saying, "study to show yourself approved unto God", as this is how I memorized the verse while growing up.
Study. School was not an enjoyable thing for me, and if you relate to those words then you probably also relate to checking out when you hear or see the word study. However, studying the Word of God is precisely what we must be doing as Christians. In order to be Christians, we must study the Word that teaches us how to be a Christian. We cannot define the Christian life by cultural norms or standards, that's impossible. The Christian life must be defined by the Word of God. Our speech and actions must be guided by the Word of God as the Holy Spirit, living in us, leads us into all truth. I like the words of the ESV: "do your best". Do your best! Don't try to be like someone else. Don't try to be perfect. Simply, do your best. Maybe your best is 5 devoted minutes to reading the Bible this week and 5 devoted minutes to prayer every day. Awesome! Maybe next week or next month it will be 20 minutes.
We are called to add knowledge to our faith and we should be growing in our life with Christ. Over the next few weeks, I'm going to offer some challenges for you to establish more of your life with Christ. For this week's challenge, here is something simple: How much time will you commit each day to God's Word? To help hold you accountable in this, tell someone in our church family the answer to that question. Be prepared for me, and I hope others, to ask you! I'll be prepared for you to ask me! If you aren't sure what to read, please reach out and ask for help! The Bible is big and can be daunting, but there are so many helps and people willing to help. You won't be unsure for long! We're not all at the same point in our walk, but we can all be growing together. I'll see you Sunday!
Grace & Peace,
John
(You can reach Pastor John at jwhite@thevillagemi.com)