"this is the law
which Moses set before the children of Israel"
Deuteronomy 4:44
Our church moved to a new location recently. We are renting space in a beautiful old building that is the perfect size for us, but also has a wonderful charm and history to it. As a matter of fact, it's on the National Register of Historic Places. Or the State Registry of Historic Places. Or the County. Or someone official thinks it's cool. Or something....
At any rate, what means is that we cannot make any changes without permission. We can't even put a nail in the wall to hang a picture. Which is fine; it's beautiful as it is. But it's interesting to me that in a way, we're not just renters, we are caretakers ~ entrusted with something valuable.
I thought about that today, as I sat looking at the beautiful architecture. And then I thought about my Bible. Well, my Bible is really not that old. Maybe ten years. But the words in the Bible.... oh those words.... These are the words of Moses, and David, and Peter, and Paul. They are the words of God, spoken by His Spirit into the men who held the pen. Or the quill. Or the chisel. Or whatever they held... People have been reading and reciting and memorizing and loving and living by those words for thousands of years. They are precious.
But I don't always treat them as such. I treat my Bible with respect and reverence. If you consider coloring, highlighting and writing in a book to be respectful and reverential. Which I do. But if I really treasured the words, wouldn't I spend all day reading, and trying to absorb every bit of knowledge and wisdom into my pores? I'm a caretaker of a precious thing ~ His truth and wisdom ~ and I have an obligation to hold it close to my heart and my mind, and my ears, as well as teach it to my children, and anyone else He might want. James wrote in 1:22 "be doers of the word, not hearers only." And I desire to be a doer. But first, I have to make sure I'm a hearer.
~ "You have magnified Your word
above all Your name" ~
Psalm 138:2
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