Carol Hopson-Trusting God

BREAKFAST #1
Preparing the
meal…
HOW TO DELIGHT IN GOD'S WORD
Thou hast ordained Thy precepts, that we should
keep them diligently.…I will meditate on Thy
precepts, and regard Thy ways. I shall delight in
Thy statutes; I shall not forget Thy word.
-Psalm 119:4, 15-16
My husband was on a mission trip to Russia and was
invited to share his Christian morals and values with public
school educators. As they gathered in a large circle in the
sparse room, he noticed there was no place to set his notes
and Bible as all of the seats were filled, and he was in a
chair also. Before he began, he set his binder and Bible on
the floor beneath his chair, and someone immediately raced
over to pick it up and hand it to him. You see, this dear person
had such respect for God's precious Word that she
couldn't let it sit on the floor, even for a moment. We don't
even know if she was a believer.


I have also heard of believers in third world countries
who didn't have a Bible, but they found a box that a Bible
came in and treasured the box because it once contained
the Holy Word of God. Oh, how far we've come from that
respect in our country. I love shopping at thrift stores, and
I often see used, discarded Bibles in all stages of neglect.
They are usually near the floor and are very dusty. I also
notice that few people take their Bibles to church any more,
and I rarely see anyone carrying one at all.

I wonder what would happen if we treated our Bibles as
we treat our cell phones?
 What if we carried it everywhere in our purses or
pockets?
 What if we turned back to get it if we forgot it?
 What if we felt totally lost without checking it several
times a day?
 What if we treated it as if we couldn't live without it?
 What if we checked regularly for messages and
responded promptly to them?
 What if we gave it to kids and friends as gifts?
 What if we used it in case of an emergency?
Does that give you a little food for thought? It really gets
to my heart. How have we lost sight of the significance and
treasure that we have in God's Word? I think we have
taken our freedom to own, study, and memorize God's Word
for granted so long that it no longer even seems special to
us, and so we are fretting about these troubled times rather
than feasting on God's Word for peace. I once heard a
speaker, who was from Communist Bulgaria, at an
Association of Christian Schools International Convention.
Her family was one of the few Christian families in that
country, and she knew the Lord from an early age. Her
father was a pastor in Bulgaria and was martyred for his
faith when she was a young girl. Her mother and brother
were also killed for their Christian faith, but somehow she
survived.
Years later, after winning a European violin competition,
she was officially assigned to work in East Germany
as a concert violinist. But because of her faith, she was
forced to make a dramatic escape to the United States in
1982. In sharing her testimony, she told us that all of the
Bibles had been destroyed in Bulgaria as the government
officials went around to all of the churches and homes and
confiscated them. However, one brave lady sat on hers,
tucking her clothing around it while sitting through the
search of their church. It was the only remaining Bible in
their city that they knew of.
When it was safe enough, the congregation met at the
little church and wondered what they would do without
their precious Bibles. This one woman, with tear-filled eyes,
began tearing out page after page of her Bible. As she did
this, she handed one to every person there so that each
believer could have a page of God's Word. For twenty-five
years, this woman, who was speaking to us, had only one
page of God's Word...Genesis 16 and 17. As she held that
one well-worn, tear-stained page up for us to see, I couldn't
stop the tears from streaming down my face. How could I
take having all of God's Word so lightly? Do I really believe
that it is "a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path" (Psalm
119:105)? Or can I really say that,
Thy testimonies are wonderful; therefore my soul
observes them. The unfolding of Thy words gives
light; it gives understanding to the simple.
(Psalm 119:129)
This dear child of God said that the one thing she
prayed for all those years, and the one thing she desired
when she came to America, was to have a whole Bible.
I have never forgotten that woman or her story. Because
of hearing it, I have sought to treasure God's Word more
and spend more time studying, obeying, and memorizing
it…especially as I look at the world around me. What a difference
it has made in my life! "Thy testimonies are the joy
of my heart" (Psalm 119:111). "Establish Thy word to Thy
servant, as that which produces reverence for Thee" (Psalm
119:38). I pray that as you go through this devotional book,
you will develop more reverence and love for your Savior
and His love letter to you! This then will be the key to trusting
in troubled times!










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