Halftime...

Today I post an excellent word about Garland's One Year Bible Reading Journey from one of our church elders, Lynn Weitz:

Well we're at the half way point of our "read through of the Bible" journey. As most journeys go, there are challenges, detours, discoveries, surprises and memories. Through daily reading of His Word we have an encounter with Him. I hope you will take some time soon and reflect on some of the things you have learned while on this journey, maybe even what you've learned about the journey itself.

I'll tell you one thing I've learned is that each day of the journey takes planning and effort. There's a reason that delays and detours so easily hamper our progress. Its because this journey is no trivial one. It is a most sacred journey. It is one that our enemy does not want us to take. This journey brings us to an encounter with the very God of the universe. But remember, we are not on this journey alone. He walks it with us.

If you think about it, it's very strange that He should be the One that steers us to the Word where we can have such an encounter with Him. Why can't we just have that encounter with Him all along the way?

I'm glad you asked! That is the goal! But for whatever reason, it just doesn't happen without "touchpoints" like reading His Word or prayer (or any number of other spiritual disciplines). We were made to be both physical and spiritual beings. As such, our point of contact with our heavenly Father is born out of spiritual and physical activity. Faith without works is dead. Our faith really only becomes faith when it is "worked out" physically through the bending of the knee in prayer, or the opening of His Word and digesting the truth within. Even obedience to the very truths we encounter in His Word necessitates physical action. But when we persist in these "touchpoints", we become increasingly able to continue encountering our God beyond the "Amen" or the closing of His Word.

Interestingly enough, when we "walk" with God in this manner we become hungrier and hungrier for these touchpoints, which in turn plunges us deeper and deeper into the richness of our experience with Him throughout the journey. The flip side of that is also true. If we don't feed on His Word when we are hungry, we become anemic. (Seven days without His Word makes one weak.) We become less able to hear His voice or see His goodness. And He has to work harder at bringing us to His Word.

But God is persistent. He pursues us until we find Him. Recently we read in 2 Chronicles 15:2 "...the LORD is with you when you are with Him And if you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you."

So by faith be diligent to read the Word and God will reward you. He will let you find Him.