Learning the Word in 2012

One of my spiritual struggles is not knowing the Word of God.  I’ve never read the Bible and to be quite honest, always felt overwhelmed at the very thought of it.  I’m also quite embarrassed to say that I don’t even know any of the basic stories that many other folks know, like Noah’s Arc.  I am familiar with the boat and the animals and the why behind it but I know nothing else that goes along with that story.  What I do know, is that in 2012, not only do you have the Bible to read, you also have blogs, websites, social media, and computer software that can help guide you in the right direction and answer simple questions.

Several weeks ago, I attended a Joyce Meyer conference.  I have followed her long before I had real Faith because of her blunt, tell like it is talks.  God has given her a talent to reach through us stubborn ones and I’m thankful.  I bought two things at that conference; 1) my Bible, the Amplified version and 2) Computer Software – WORDsearch.  First, the Amplified Bible is not for everyone I realize.  I know it adds a lot of extra unnecessary words but at the same time, it’s those words that allow me to understand scriptures more and feel as if someone was sitting there speaking to me. It works for me.  Second, WORDsearch Bible is amazing.  It does just what it names says.  I can put in any word I want and it will find each and every verse in the Bible that contains that word.  These two items will play a big part me learning the Word in 2012.

Because ‘learn’ has been a word that comes to mind every single time I think about God and the Bible, I decided to search the word ‘learn’ using the handy software.  There were several verses that came up and as I scrolled through, I noticed this one:

 Your hands have made me, cunningly fashioned and established me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. Psalm 119:73 (AMP)

Click on photo to enlarge.

And since I’m still learning how to pray, I was grateful to some guidance on what to say when asking God to help me learn.  If you look at the photo, towards the top right (colored box), you’ll see that it says:

Lord, I pray that You would open my spiritual eyes so that I can have revelation of the wonderful things in your Word. 

So in a matter of minutes, I was able to search a word, find many verses fitting the word, one that caught my attention, and prayer guidance.  I could go on and on about the software but I won’t.  Now that I’ve used this tool, I can now take that to my Bible and notebook and do some SOAP journaling.  I know that once I learn more scriptures, I’ll be able to go straight to the Bible but I feel like this sort of technology was meant for me and part of God’s plan for me to continue my spiritual journey.

One of the messages that spoke to me at the Joyce Meyer conference was just this; taking time for me and God so that I can learn his Word.  Not just on Wednesdays or Sundays at church but every single day, at my home.  You can’t live the Word if you don’t know the Word. Amen yes?  Worship time is what moves me and makes me feel closer to God. I’m thankful for that, very thankful but I want more. I want the Bible, the Words of the Bible, and the alone time I have with God to be what moves me even more.