A Better Reflection

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-he will be blessed in what he does."
James 1:22-25


This is a lot to unpack.  But what I want to share is something that has helped me, as a busy mom, spend quality time in God's word; quality time that leads to a change in heart, behavior, and a closer relationship with the Lord.  


Most days I don't have a lot of time to spend in Bible reading.  I set my alarm, I sneak into our office room, crack open my Bible and get right into some scripture, when it never fails...I hear little footsteps coming down the hall.  It does not matter what time I get up, there's some sort of mommy radar they seem to have to alert them to my wakefulness.  Some days I can only squeeze in about five minutes, some days I get to read maybe just one verse, and there are the rare days I can actually read a whole passage.  The point is that in this season of my life, my attention and time is in high demand.  I do not need to neglect my reading of the Bible and growing in my relationship with Christ, but I do not have the long, luxurious hours I had in college or when my hubby and I first got married....we could literally spend HOURS reading and analyzing the scriptures!  


Whatever season you're in, plan to make some time each day to spend in God's word...even if it's just five minutes.  What you do after that, however, is most important.  Do not read just to fill your head with knowledge or check off your to-do lists, read to change.  See what James says in the verse above..."do what it says."  Dwell on the verse you read.  Think about it all day.  Pray about it.  Look for ways in your own personal life to apply it and do what God says.  Let's not read our Bibles, only to close them and immediately forget what we've read.  Look to get some good heart truth into your life.  2 Timothy 3:16 says that all scripture is useful.  Whatever verse I read, I want to ponder "what can I learn from this and how can I use this in my life to glorify God." By doing this, and by living out God's love and his word, we can be truly blessed in what we do.