Faithbase

Thriving, week one, day three. Start with prayer. Dear God, please help me to hear you and understand your message for me. Amen. The beans, or the background. Peter wrote a letter to early Christians to strengthen their faith as they were going through a time of intense persecution. Their faith was weak, as you can imagine, and their fear was making it easier for them to stop believing than to face the horrible consequences. Peter's words were written to these young believers, but certainly provide us with encouragement as well. The verse. 1 Peter 1, verses 24 and 25. All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever, and this is the word that was preached to you. The field. What's the point? All people are like grass. Okay, so I'm not typically a poetry person, however these words really ring true to me. People are grass, fleeting, beautiful indeed, but they also wither and fall. Because people are flawed, and even the greatest of humans, even the closest of friends and family members, well they just aren't as dependable as God and His word. Over and over again, I find myself placing my trust in people, taking the advice of friends and family members before the advice of God. I'm also guilty of determining my worth based on the opinions of people, often people I don't even really know that well, instead of God, and I'm not alone. We're here to trust, worry about pleasing, and seek advice from an actual person who is tangible, physically there to hear and touch, but even though we can't physically see Him, we've got to remember that God is trustworthy, and His word has stood the test of time. There's a reason the Bible remains the number one best-selling book to this day. There's a reason this book has been around for centuries. There's a reason people die to protect their right to read and apply this book to their daily lives. If you want to know God, if you want to feel His direction and guidance and mercy and love, you've got to get to know Him, and that's done best in His word. Esteem. What does this mean to me, and how can I apply it to my life today? Now I hear you. Just picking up the Bible and reading it is scary and hard, and you've probably tried and failed a thousand times if you're like me, but I encourage you to keep trying and starting in less overwhelming ways. Reading the Phil every day is a great place to start. Going to church or listening to sermons online, reading the Bible along with a guide or a book study with friends are also great ways to get going. The thing to remember, though, is the more you do it, the easier it'll be, and it'll start to make sense and then resonate with you in your life. Now this might feel funny at first, but just give it a shot. Before you read or listen to His word, get in the habit of praying and asking Him to help you understand. You may have noticed there was a new section at the top of today's post with just such a prayer. It's that quick and easy, but the impact of asking the Holy Spirit to guide your mind and heart as you read, y'all, it makes all the difference. You can trust me on this. I am not a theological scholar and only have two classes of seminary under my belt, neither of which had anything to do with the Bible. So when I say if I can do it, anyone can, I truly mean that. Anyone can.