2021-10-18
Psalm 119:143 NLT
Thank God for skilled doctors who know how to diagnose illnesses and prescribe medications that bring health and healing. But here’s something for you to think about: what if many of our stress-related illnesses could be more successfully treated with meditation than medication? The psalmist wrote: “As pressure and stress bear down on me, I find joy in your commands. Your laws are always right; help me to understand them so I may live…Those who love your instructions have great peace” (vv. 143-144, 165 NLT).
When there’s a chemical imbalance in your body it may need to be treated with medication, an altered diet, and daily exercise. But when your soul is starved to the point of dysfunction, it needs to be treated with God’s Word. We’re not talking about skimming through a few verses and rushing out into your day. Butterflies cover a lot of ground, but only bees gather honey! Sometimes you have to stay with a particular Scripture until you extract the honey; to “live with” and “meditate” on it till it takes root and starts to grow within you (see Psalm 119:48).
It takes time to change ingrained character traits. God may work on one area of your life for several weeks, or months. New habits and ways of thinking need time to be established. You must recognize this and allow God to reveal and reinforce new truth in your life. Don’t fool yourself into thinking because you read a certain scriptural truth it will produce instant change. It must be applied daily, and that takes time and meditation.
Soul food: 2 Pet 1-3; John 4:27-38; Ps 87; Prov 24:1-4
Psalm 119:143 DB
Dank God vir vaardige dokters wat weet hoe om siektes te diagnoseer en medikasie voor te skryf wat gesondheid en genesing meebring. Hier is egter iets vir jou om oor na te dink: wat as baie van ons stresverwante siektes deur meditasie, eerder as medikasie, met meer sukses behandel kan word? Die Psalmdigter het geskyf: ‘Al kom ek vragte vol probleme teë, nogtans geniet ek dit om u voorskrifte te lees en daaroor na te dink. U voorskrifte is vir altyd waar en reg, leer my om dit te verstaan sodat ek ‘n slag regtig kan lewe… Almal wat u wet liefhet, leef reg, hulle val nie oor die sonde nie’ (verse 143-144, 165 DB).
Wanneer daar ‘n chemiese wanbalans in jou liggaam is, kan dit met medikasie, dieet en daaglikse oefening behandel word. Wanneer jou siel egter tot die punt van disfunksie uitgehonger is, moet dit met God se Woord behandel word. Dit beteken nie dat jy deur ‘n paar verse spoedlees en dan jaag om jou dag te begin nie. Skoenlappers dek baie grond, maar net bye maak heuning bymekaar! Soms moet jy by ‘n spesifieke Skrifgedeelte stilstaan totdat jy die heuning daaruit kry; om daarmee te lewe en daaroor te mediteer totdat dit wortel skiet en in jou begin groei.
Dit verg tyd om ingeburgerde karaktereienskappe te verander. God mag dalk vir verskeie weke of maande aan een area in jou lewe werk. Nuwe gewoontes en denkwyses neem tyd om gevestig te word. Jy moet dit besef en God toelaat om nuwe waarhede in jou lewe te openbaar en te versterk. Moenie jouself flous deur te dink omdat jy ‘n sekere Skriftuurlike waarheid gelees het, dit onmiddellike verandering teweeg gaan bring nie. Dit moet daagliks toegepas word, wat tyd en meditasie verg.
Sielskos: 2 Pet 1-3; Joh 4:27-38; Ps 87; Spr 24:1-4
2021-10-17
2 Chronicles 15:15 NIV
Lack of nourishment can have a big effect on health. It can cause people to lose their ability to think clearly. It can affect their vision. It saps their strength, and they stop being productive. It’s the same with our spiritual life. Jesus said, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’ (Matthew 4:4 NIV). So knowing that, how come we don’t spend time reading the Bible? We know it’s essential to our spiritual, mental and emotional health, but we fail to do it, or do it inconsistently. Why?
1) Because we’re not motivated. We haven’t experienced the joy that comes from personally discovering great truths from God’s Word. We grow complacent and settle for having our spiritual food handed to us by other people. But when we get serious about studying the Bible for ourselves, we’ll never again be satisfied with second-hand knowledge.
2) Because we don’t know how. We hear a great sermon and think, ‘Why didn’t I see that?’ Often it’s because most church leaders spend hours studying the Scriptures, and we don’t. The more we get into God’s Word, the more we can make new connections and understand what He’s saying through Scripture.
3) Because we get lazy. Bible study requires self-discipline. It takes time, effort, concentration and persistence. Most great truths don’t lie on the surface; we have to dig for them. In the Old Testament, when Israel ‘sought God eagerly…he was found by them. So the LORD gave them rest on every side.’ And God will do that for us too.
Est 4:9-5:3; Heb 4:7-16
2 Chronicles 15:15 NIV
Prolonged starvation can have a profound effect on your health. You lose your ability to think clearly. Your vision gets blurry. Your strength wanes, and you stop being productive. And if you go long enough without nourishment, the chances are, you’ll end up in the hospital being fed through a tube.
Guess what? It’s the same with your spiritual life. Jesus said, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4 NIV). So knowing that, how come we don’t spend time reading the Bible? We know it’s essential to our spiritual, mental and emotional health. Yet we fail to do it or do it inconsistently. Why?
(1) Because we’re not motivated. We haven’t experienced the joy that comes from personally discovering great truths from God’s Word. We grow complacent and settle for having our spiritual food handed to us by other people. But when you get serious about studying the Bible for yourself, you’ll never again be satisfied with second-hand knowledge.
(2) Because we don’t know how. We hear a great sermon and think, “Why didn’t I see that?” Because most pastors spend hours studying the Scriptures – we don’t!
(3) Because we get lazy. Bible study requires self discipline. It takes time, effort, concentration and persistence. Most great truths don’t lie on the surface; you have to dig for them. In the Old Testament when Israel “sought God eagerly…he was found by them. So the Lord gave them rest on every side.” And God will do that for you too!
Soul food: Est 4:9-5:3; Heb 4:7-16
2 Kronieke 15:15 NLV
Langdurige uithongering kan ‘n diepgaande effek op jou gesondheid hê. Jy verloor jou vermoë om helder te kan dink. Jou visie raak vaag. Jou krag kwyn weg en jy hou op om produktief te wees. As jy lank genoeg sonder voeding gaan, is die kans goed dat jy in die hospitaal sal opeindig en deur ‘n buis gevoed word.
Raai wat? Dis dieselfde met jou geestelike lewe. Jesus het gesê: ‘…’n Mens het meer as brood nodig om van te lewe. Wat jy eintlik nodig het, is om te leef van elke woord uit God se mond’ (Matteus 4:4 NLV). Hoekom bestee ons dan nie meer tyd daaraan om die Bybel te lees nie? Ons weet dat dit noodsaaklik vir ons geestelike en emosionele gesondheid is. Tog doen ons dit nie, of ons doen dit nie gereeld nie. Hoekom nie?
1) Omdat ons nie gemotiveerd is nie. Ons het nog nie die vreugde om persoonlik groot waarhede in God se Woord te ontdek, ervaar nie. Ons is tevrede daarmee dat ander mense ons geestelike kos vir ons gee. Wanneer jy egter ernstig daaroor raak om self die Bybel te bestudeer, sal jy nooit weer met tweedehandse kennis tevrede wees nie.
2) Omdat ons nie weet hoe om dit te doen nie. Ons hoor ‘n wonderlike preek en dink: ‘Hoekom het ek dit nie raakgesien nie?’ Omdat die meeste predikers ure daaraan toewy om die Skrif te bestudeer – en ons doen nie!
3) Omdat ons lui raak. Bybelstudie verg selfdissipline, tyd, inspanning, konsentrasie en volharding. Die meeste groot waarhede lê nie op die oppervlak nie; jy moet daarvoor grawe. In die Ou Testament, het Israel: ‘…gretig die wil van die Here gesoek en Hy het Hom deur hulle laat vind. Die Here het hulle rus gegee van hulle vyande aan alle kante.’ God sal dit vir jou ook doen!
Sielskos: Est 4:9-5:3; Heb 4:7-16
