My son, if
you will receive my words
And treasure
my commandments within you,
Make your
ear attentive to wisdom,
Incline
your heart to understanding;
For if you
cry for discernment,
Lift your
voice for understanding;
If you
seek her as silver
And search
for her as for hidden treasures;
Then you
will discern the fear of the Lord
And
discover the knowledge of God.
~Proverbs 2:1-5
Use your imagination with me for a
moment: You show up to work, and your boss tells you that he has set up a
treasure hunt for the morning as a problem-solving exercise of sorts. He tells you that he has buried one treasure
box containing a check for a sizable bonus for each employee and that they are
all buried several feet deep in the dirt lot next to your office building. He even went so far as to mark the spots
where he buried the treasures with bright red X’s. Finding your treasure’s location won’t be a
problem. However, the catch is that you do
not have any tools (e.g., a shovel) to dig up your treasure. So, in your khakis, button-up shirts, and
dress shoes, you and your fellow employees kneel down in the dirt and start
lodging dirt underneath your fingernails.
How long will it take before you either get bored, give up, or become
extremely frustrated?
Sometimes, we can feel that way
about reading our Bibles. Those of us
who believe in Christ know that valuable treasure for life is found within the
pages of the Bible, but how often do we feel at a complete loss as to how to
reach that treasure? Some of us stare at
this daunting task in bewilderment without the slightest clue of where to
begin. Others have no problem starting,
but then give up when the passages don’t seem to makes sense or when the lack
of any obvious spiritual progress becomes too frustrating. Still others skim the surface of the pages
consistently and find a few valuable trinkets, but they can’t ever seem to
reach the depth where the greatest riches lie.
On a side note, don’t feel bad if
any of this describes you. I only know
to write about all these groups because I have been a member of each one of
them at various times and still have to guard myself against falling into them
again. These problems arise from a
lack of attention (not reading the Bible at all), a lack of comprehension (not
understanding what the Bible is really saying), a lack of meditation (not dwelling
on the truth of the Bible and letting it sink in and grip our hearts), or a lack of
application (not doing anything with what we have learned in the Bible).
Many of us know what our specific
problem is, and we may also be aware of the root of it, but we still don’t
necessarily know how to get past it.
This is where Bible study tools come in handy. Bible study tools aid in comprehension and
meditation – helping us to truly see and appreciate the magnificent and
beautiful truths of Scripture, which in turn gives us a greater desire to
devote our attention to the Word and points us in the right direction to apply
what the Word says. Personally, one tool
that has been invaluable for my quiet times (the times I spend communicating
with God through worship, prayer, and reading His Word) is my journal. I have never been very good at writing random
thoughts about a passage on a blank sheet of paper; however, a couple of years
ago I came up with a list of specific things to look for and write down from
each passage as I read. I want to share
that list, along with some examples, with you all so that you can have
something new to try if any of you is feeling like our disgruntled treasure
hunters from earlier.
Here is a sample
of the layout of a page in my journal with all the categories:
Passage Date
Praises/Adoration
Thanksgiving
Struggles/Areas to Grow
Memory Verse
Impactful Verse(s)
Lesson for the Day
Prayer Requests
My Husband
Myself
People in Authority
People Needing
Salvation/Restoration
People in Hard
Circumstances
People Serving Jesus
Youth
Answers to
Prayer/Ways God Worked
Things to Remember from Today
Don’t
worry, I don’t suggest writing all of the categories out every single time you
make an entry. You don’t even have to
include every category every day if you don’t want to. On busy days, sometimes I just pick two or
three categories to write down. I have
this list written in the front of my journal so that I can reference it and
remember what to look for. I use the
color coding system to easily figure out which part of the entry belonged to
which category. Also, I don’t recommend
writing in full sentences very often. Of
course, you can if you want to (it’s your
journal after all!), but I find that I’m more likely to stick with it if I avoid
hand cramps by using primarily individual words and phrases. Above all, remember to ask God to show you what He wants you to see before you even read the passage. As you work through the categories, talk to God! The whole point of the journal entry is to help focus your mind and to help spur conversation with God in your heart.
Here is a sample of my category page along with some
additional notes and explanations:
Passage – Can be as little or as
much as you want Date –
Don’t skip this!
Praises/Adoration – I usually read through the passage
and write down whatever I see about God’s character. Then, I often stop here to pray and praise
Him for what I see about Him. This would
also be a good time to listen to a worship song or two if you want.
Thanksgiving – Make a list of what you’re thankful for that
day (this can go on forever – it’s okay to limit it). You can narrow it down by writing down only
the things that the passage itself makes you thankful for. The point isn't just to make a list, but to cultivate an attitude of thankfulness.
Struggles/Areas to Grow – Make another
list of your own sin struggles that you’re currently facing or that the passage
pointed out in your heart. Confess those sins to God.
Memory Verse – Choose a verse to
memorize, and write the reference here.
I recommend Scripture Typer as one mobile app that can help you memorize
Scripture. Again, you don’t have to come
up with a new memory verse every day.
You can write the same one for a whole week if you want. Customize this to fit what works for
you!
Impactful Verse(s) – Write down the references of the
verse or verses that stood out the most to you from the passage.
Lesson for the Day – Write down what you think the main
lesson was that God was teaching you from that passage that day. Usually, this will come from your “Impactful
Verses,” but not always. This will help
you to focus your attention while you read and to think through the message
more instead of simply reading to check it off of your to-do list.
Prayer Requests – I recommend limiting yourself, especially
when you first get started. Don’t make
the list so long that you get overwhelmed trying to make it through. Just write down about 1-3 names for each
category. Pay attention to who God
brings to mind as you are making your list.
Remember, you can make an entirely new list tomorrow! Then, pray!
*My Husband – I have him
as his own category because I want to pray for him every day. You could also do this with your
children.
*Myself – List a few
specifics.
*People in Authority –
Choose one or more authority figures – some examples include: people in your church
leadership, government leaders, and school teachers.
*People Needing
Salvation/Restoration – Choose one ore more unsaved people or people who aren’t
walking with Christ.
*People in Hard
Circumstances – Choose one or more people who are facing cancer, the loss of a
job, the death of a loved one, etc.
*People Serving Jesus –
Choose one or more people who serve in ministry – the nursery helpers, a
missionary, your local FCA leaders, etc.
*Youth – This one is more
specific to me because I serve in youth ministry, but young people face a lot, they are at a
crucial age of learning and forming their beliefs, and they definitely need prayer. Choose one or more pre-teens or teenagers if
you have any in your life.
Answers to
Prayer/Ways God Worked – This can be a sort of memorial to what God has done. You will be able to look back during dry
times and be encouraged that He has been working in your life and that He has
answered your prayers.
Things to Remember from Today – This
is more like a typical journal entry.
Write down anything significant about the day that you want to be able
to look back on and remember.
Here is an example of an actual entry from my
journal (some prayer requests/names have been changed for the protection of the
individuals):
Heb. 6 October
6, 2015
God is just and does not forget the work we do in serving
Him. He cannot lie, His Word is good, He
desires His heirs to know the certainty of His promises, and He has given us
hope.
*Hope
*Certainty/Assurance
*A crackling candle in
a quiet house
*My dogs
*A working husband
*Long-time friends
*Skills I can use for
others
*My house
*Healing
*Trust God’s will
for children
*Lack of
compassion/love
*Bitterness
*Pride
Hebrews
6:19
Hebrews 6:10-12
God sees what I do
for Him. He also sees when I am
sluggish. With faith and patience, I
need to continue to serve Him diligently and imitate those who do the
same. It isn’t in vain.
Jon – Discernment,
Fulfillment, Confidence in who he is in Christ, Humility, Teachability, Vision,
Diligence, Protection
Myself – Joy, Kindness
Authority – Pastor Smith,
President Obama
Needy – Joe, Jane,
Sally
Hard Circumstances –
The Smith Family
Servants – Suzie, The
Stevens Family
Youth – Lucy, Billy
Right after God directed me to pray for the Stevens family,
I received an e-mail update from them with prayer requests. Also, Mrs. Stevens is pregnant!
- (I didn't have anything written in this category for this particular day.)
