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Q. Is Bible study really essential?

A. Yes. It is a basic practice in which all Christians need to engage. We learn about God's interaction with men and women and nations down through the ages. And so we learn where we can look to see God's activity in history and in our own lives.

How we study the Bible is not so important as the fact that we do study the Bible. One ancient method of Bible study involves a four-step process:

1. Read a passage from Scripture, preferably aloud, and listen carefully to what the text says. Believing that the Bible is literally the Word of God, we listen for God's messages to us in the text. As we read, we are struck by a certain word or phrase.
   
   
2. Meditate on that word or phrase. What is God saying to us? How does this connect to our lives?
   
   
3. Take the meditation and turn it into prayer. We offer back to God what God has said to us.
   
   
4. Rest in the presence of God (contemplation). Having opened ourselves to God by means of Bible study, we encounter the presence of the living God.
   
   

What should I do when my daily devotions seem more an obligation than a joy?

Some days we may sense God's presence in a vibrant way. Other days we may think that God has disappeared. But by keeping at our devotional life, we develop a reflex for God—stay aware that we're connected with the Creator of the universe. Daily devotions help us stay open to God, to the world of spirit.

Richard Peace teaches at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.

Adapted from: Decision (Billy Graham Evangelistic Assoc., 7-8/00) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Lord, help me regularly to go straight to Your Word and find direction and nourishment.

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