I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
Psalm 119: 16
Do you find delight in the Word of God? Do you want to?
Will you choose to make the Psalmist’s words both your proclamation and your petition? Will you ask the Spirit of God to help you make the Word of God your daily priority?
As you and I will ourselves to “not neglect the Word,” our just-do-it commitment will be transformed to delight. Our have-to will become a want-to. As God’s Word becomes your delight, I’m convinced blessing upon blessing will roll back upon you and your children.
“As God’s Word becomes your delight, blessing upon blessing will roll back upon you and your children.”
In the stress and frenzy of the daily too-much-to-do-and-not-enough-time-to-do-it-in, our daily appointment with God helps ensure we keep the main thing the main thing.
What does “not neglecting the Word” look like? I’m glad you asked!
I’m a huge fan of journaling. My daily quiet time includes writing out the passage God has drawn me to. As I write it out, I’m able to savor each phrase – sometimes each word. The Holy Spirit often brings fresh insight from even familiar passages as I take the time to write the Word. As He teaches, I journal any insights, often writing out a prayer of response. For me, this has been life-changing and life- sustaining.
Even secular psychologists have released studies indicating that students who take handwritten notes tend to retain information better than those who type their notes. There’s a connection between reading with our eyes, thinking with our brains, and then writing with our hands. The neurons are firing, our brains are synapsing, and connections are forming. The field of neuropsychology reveals that various parts of our brain are devoted to different types of information: visual, auditory, emotional, verbal, etc. As we read and then write, we engage spatial links and heighten the likelihood we will remember vital information. God’s Word becomes hidden in our hearts and minds.
I’m glad there’s science to back up what we probably already know intuitively: we remember what we write! Would you like to test this truth out?
I’m launching a new monthly blog post called Write the Word. Would you like to try your hand at some writing this month? How about joining me for a journaling journey? Each month, I’ll choose a key word or phrase and then provide a verse for each day that includes that key word. We will read the Word, and then write the Word. Slowing down to write it after reading it gives the Holy Spirit time to help us unpack and appropriate the truth found there.
This month’s word is REST. This is not only a time for planning and catching up, but a time for finding rest in Him, a time for prayer, and a time for the Holy Spirit to fill us up so we can continue to pour out. You can download your own
I’m praying for you, Sister Friend. I’m praying that as you read His Word and then write the Word, you will find yourself meditating upon the Word. I’m praying this will heighten the likelihood you remember and own what you read. And, finally, I’m praying you will choose to live it out so that your life also reflects the Word. Now that’s A Reason for Writing!
Laura Macfarlan
A re-post of a devotion written by Laura Macfarlan