Good morning, Pastor John.
I have been thinking about our Bible study* and what we learned and did not learn. The whys, if you will. “Why didn’t Abram trust God enough to tell the truth about Sarai” “Why didn’t Lot just leave the evil place he was living?” etc. While pondering these things, the question came to me, “Why don’t you?” We seem to always look at others and wonder why those people don’t do right and trust God more, and we miss our own log in our own eye. Then the thought came, “It’s a good example for us that even though these great men and women were not perfect, God still loved them because their hearts were in the right place. If they always had done the right thing there would be no examples of God’s mercy for us to have hope, so that even a lowly being like me could have hope.” What a great God we have!
I have slowed my pace on my Bible study. I was trying to finish, and it was revealed to me that it’s the journey to strive for, not the completion. Going too fast, I was missing important lessons. Study a bit and reflect on it, and let God work is my goal now. There’s a lesson in nearly every sentence if you take your time to see it. The book could have been very huge. I think that God chose these particular words in the Bible for a reason, and each one carries weight for us.
What a glorious day for learning the lessons from God!
Thank you for your years of service to God.
Mark