“And it will be said, ‘ Build up, build up, prepare the way. Remove every obstacle out of the way of MY people.“ Isaiah 57:14
One day last week, Bertie and I went for a long walk with a difference, I wanted us to get lost a little. Not completely, just a little, my reasoning was simple. In this day and age of electronic devices, GPS, Satellite navigations and Mobile phones with pinpoint positioning, it was oh so easy to know exactly where you are at any given minute. Well, I didn’t want my mobile phone company or GCHQ at Cheltenham or anybody else for that matter knowing exactly where I was, not that I had anything to hide, I just wanted to walk and listen to my Bible and not be in anyway distracted by where we were going specifically. I just wanted to walk and listen to my Bible and not be in anyway distracted by where we were going.
You see, I often like nothing more than to be lost in The Word. To be deep in scripture that I am in tune with what the Holy Spirit is trying to teach me or guide me into, and though I am only 52 years old, my mind can be a little stubborn, so I have to persevere in repetition in many things. So today, this afternoon, we set off again on another longish walk with no phone or map, just a rough idea of direction and my I-pod with the Holy Bible in audio version called “The Word of Promise“, in NKJV, I can highly recommend this version.
I had been reading this morning, I like to read first thing as my mind seems more astute then and capable of more understanding with clarity , and this afternoon as I was listening, I was thinking about concentration and a number of facts that we get in the Bible and how to take them in, or not as the case may be.
In the Bible, there are countless genealogies, numerical listings of tribes, assets, livestock etc.. There are names, waves and oceans of names, many of them may seem unpronounceable at first and for some time, there are measurements and specific instructions of what sort of material, wood, or precious stones certain things are to be made from like Noahs Ark, the tabernacle of meeting and the Ark of the covenant . Many things that may be distracting and confusing when you first set out to read the Word of God.
Please, don’t be put off, or allow any of these things to be a hindrance to you, here are a couple of tips to help you through if I may…
When it comes to names that are completely unfamiliar to you; attempt to pronounce it as it is written and just go straight through them, spend only a fraction of a second on your attempt, if the same name comes up again soon, do the same again. It is not to ignore them, it is not to spend time being distracted away from the context or the fact. There are some 8000 names in the Bible and very few of them are familiar names at first. As time goes on, more will become known to you and their pronunciation.
When it comes to lineage of genealogies, there are a lot of these, try not to spend too much time initially on these as there are many specific studies on these which you may wish to at a later date come back to, but for now, just read through them.
Numerical listings are numerous, especially in the Pentateuch, there are again specialist studies into numerology in the Bible, so try not to get distracted this time.
I would say, consider all of these things like hurdles and obstacles that are not purposely there to slow you down, they are all there for a reason, some will become apparent at some point, but there is no need to be hindered by any of them at present.
“And it will be said, Build up, build up, prepare the way. Remove every obstacle out of the way of MY people.“ Isaiah 57: 14
Imagine for yourself if you may.Walking through a wheat-field, waist high is the heads of wheat. Your purpose is to get across the wheat-field to the other side. There are millions of heads of wheat in the field. Some as your hands flail by your sides will touch the palms of your hands. Some will just miss as they sway in the breeze of the warm summers day. The aroma of some will enter your senses, some the glint of the sun will illuminate more than others to give swirling golden movement. Some near, some afar , but it is all the same field. With prayer and direction from the holy spirit, we will get to the other side. It is not for us to attempt to touch, smell, see, inspect every head and stalk of wheat at this time, for that would be impossible. But it is for us to make ourselves available and obedient to go this way or that as such the holy spirit leads.
God bless
Bless you Den wise words:)
Bless you and thank you John.
Your encouragement is most welcome.