“One of the neighborhood children stopped by yesterday as I was trimming some bushes in the front yard,” Stan began one morning. “He had something to show me.”
“What was it?” I asked.
“He had a frog he had caught down by the creek,” Stan replied. “He said he was going to take it to school for ‘Show and Tell,’ and then he was going to take it back to the creek and let it go.”
“Show and tell,” I commented. “That brings back a lot of memories. How do you think the teacher will react to the boy bringing a frog to class?”
“It will be fine,” Stan replied, “but the whole subject of ‘show and tell’ has an important aspect for me and my faith walk that can lead it to be more that just ‘fine’.”
“In what way?” I asked.
“It has to do with God’s word, His voice, and whether or not I am just being casual about my relationship with Him—or whether I am committed to allowing Him to show and tell me what He has for me to see and to hear.”
“God is involved with ‘show and tell’?” I asked.
“Absolutely,” Stan replied. “And to use the example of the person I know best, for way too long my approach to reading God’s word and listening to His voice was way too casual. I approached His word, the Bible, as a reader, not as a meditator.”
“Reader not a meditator?” I replied. “What’s that mean?”
“Rather than focusing on what God had to show and tell me about His word, I was just reading it without taking the time to focus or meditate on what God had for me to see and to hear as the Holy Spirit led my time in God’s word. It was me leading the reading, not me following His leading.”
“How did you change from being a reader to being a meditator?” I asked.
“It was a matter of choosing after I was shown by the Holy Spirit that I had a choice,” Stan replied. “I began to choose to spend time in prayer before ever opening the Bible. And it’s the same every time I choose to spend time in God’s word.”
“Same in what way?” I asked.
“Before I ever open the Bible,” Stan replied, “I pray, asking that I will be open to seeing all that God has for me to see in His word, as well as asking that I be open to hear all that He has for me to hear as He tells and shows me what He has for me in His word.”
“And you think that asking God to be a part of His show and tell makes a difference?” I asked.
“Indeed, I do, my friend,” Stan responded. “Indeed I do!”
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Bible verses to consider:
How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. Psalm 1:1-2.
O God, you are my God; I shall seek you earnestly. Psalm 63:1.
Why do you call Me, “Lord, Lord,” and do not do what I say? Luke 6:46.
Prayer: Thank you, Father, that you provide your word, the Bible, for me to know you more deeply. Thank you, too, for your voice through the Holy Spirit to tell me what you have for me as I pursue an ever-deepening personal relationship with you. I confess that too often I approach your word and your voice in ways where I do not seek to know you and what you have for me to know. Please help me in being open to seeing and hearing all you have for me. Help me to follow every step of your lead into the deepest possible personal relationship with you as I am open to your “Show and Tell.” Thank you I can and do bring these prayers before you in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Think on this: Do you agree that there is a difference between reading God’s word and meditating on it? Why or why not? How do you approach the time you spend with God’s word? Are you as open as you would like to seeing and hearing all that God has for you? As open as God would like? If no, changing from a reader to a meditator is possible if that is what you want. Are you open to finding out if that is what God wants for a deeper and closer relationship with you? Why or why not?
Waiting for the Train 