Thursday, March 22, 2012

Continual Study

A while ago I wrote about the first Bible verse I ever (recall having) memorized -- Joshua 1:9, about being strong and courageous and God being with you wherever you go. Here's an interesting pretext for that. The Lord told Joshua,

"Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do." (Joshua 1:8)


Increasingly I find myself wanting to fill my mind with God['s instructions, because the things I have to say about my situation, my reflections, etc., either aren't comforting, or just simply aren't enough to feel filed. So I come to God's instructions continually to fill that hole. The command to meditate on it constantly, day and night, in this light (ha! pun!), is actually no drag at all; it's a relief from otherwise disconcerting, dead-ending, anxiety-ridden, circular thought processes, those thoughts that rise up to the surface through sleep and that I wake up with, or the thoughts that seep in when I am trying to read for class. This verse also illuminates what prosperity truly is. This is no guarantee for riches if you do this or that (painting God as some kind of formulaic vending machine god). Rather, I think God is redefining success and prosperity here. It kind of goes with the proverbial "wisdom is better than rubies" argument.

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