Ephesians 3:14-21 - An Instrument in His Hands

 Happy New Year!!!! This year the devil will do everything he can to distract or keep you from taking daily time to be in the Word of God and to pray and commune with the Lord. I believe it was John Wesley who said the devil trembles when the weakest Christian gets on his knees!   In the same way that we take time each day to eat, sleep and to exercise so that we can stay physically healthy, we must plan and take the time to “rest in Jesus” by reading and meditating in His Word, praying and exercising our spiritual gifts, if we are to grow strong and stay healthy spiritually! My wife Edith has created and developed beautiful daily Bible reading calendars that we have been using for years to keep us on track to read the Bible through from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21.   Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). He was quoting from a verse in Deuteronomy 8:3. Paul instructed his “son in the faith”, Timothy, with these words in 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”   “Every Word…. All Scripture”! The last time I checked, “every” still means every, and “all” still means all! I cannot emphasis enough the importance of reading or listening to every Word in the Bible this New Year! As you read or listen to the Bible daily you might think that you are not understanding or getting much out of it, but I assure you, It is getting a bunch of “dirty stuff” out of you! Jesus told His disciples in John 15:3: “Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” A strainer might not hold the water running through it, but it will be much cleaner after the water has run through it!   The writer of the Book of Hebrews declared: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). The Bible is a living Book, A living Word! Jesus said in John 6:63: “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”   Reading or listening to the Word of God daily is like turning on a light in this dark world in which we live, and it will keep you from stumbling, and also give you guidance for all the decisions that you make every day! Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”  God’s Word will bring joy into your heart as you read or listen to It. The prophet Jeremiah said, “Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts” (Jeremiah 15:16). It is no wonder that Job said, “But he knows the way that I take: when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:10-12).   This link will take you to the January Plan A, Daily Bible Reading Calendar on my website: https://www.pmiministries.org/daily-bible-reading-calendar It will only take 15 plus minutes a day and you will read the OT once, the NT twice, the Psalms twice, and the Proverbs every month.   This link will take you to the January Plan B, Daily Bible Reading Calendar on my website: https://www.pmiministries.org/bible-reading-calendar-plan-b It will only take 10 plus minutes a day and you will read the OT once, the NT once, and the Psalms twice.   Be encouraged and may you have a great year as the Lord uses you as an instrument in His hands to impact and change the world around you in 2025! (Ephesians 2:10).   God bless!