James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. I was listening to Christian radio the other day, and there was a man talking about a ministry where people will read and record the bible in different languages and put it on tape. These tapes are then given to different tribes to hear the gospel in their own language. As he was talking about it, he would mention how the men would all be sitting there listening to God’s word spoken on the tape. When all of a sudden, they would hear a passage like: Ex 20:14 You shall not commit adultery. Now, adultery was a common practice in these different tribes, but when they heard this, they would rewind the tape, listen to it again and again, then talk about it for 45 minutes and decide that they would no longer have adulterous affairs. Then they would come along to another passage which would speak of being good to your wife and treating her with love. Once again they would rewind the tape, listen to it again and decide that they would no longer hit or beat their wives, which was also a common practice. Then I started to think about us, and how we read God’s word and skim over things, thinking that in that portion of scripture I just read that God did not mean that for me, or that it is just for the Jews or those other people, but not me. Yet Paul said: Romans 2:11 For there is no partiality with God. When we read something in the bible and the Lord speaks to us, we should not just shrug it off and continue reading on, but rather we should be like these tribes and go back over it again and again, and examine our own hearts and see if we need to change, or what the Lord is speaking to us, and not think this is for someone else. We tend to do that sometimes, read something in the bible and think how so and so really needs to read or hear this, when in actuality, the Lord is trying to speak to our hearts, not someone else’s. So, what if we would pray this next Psalm before we got into our daily reading of the bible? Psalms 26:2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart. (underlined for emphasis) It seems like a scary thing to pray, but if we prayed it and meant it from our hearts, then God will show us through His word what we need to change. Then as the Lord speaks to us, we just need to do it. When we do, then we are living today’s devotional verse. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. But don’t just skim over that verse, but stop and meditate on it, reading it over and over, maybe slower, treating every word like it’s a fine meal. Even pray over it and ask the Lord what He is saying to you personally in this verse, But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Then hide it in your heart and be obedient to what the Lord is saying to you, not to someone else, but to you! Psalm 119:10-11 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You!