The problem is not that God hasn’t spoken but that we haven’t listened.

Imagine your reaction if I were to take a telephone book, open it up, and proclaim, I have found a list of everyone who’s on welfare! Or what if I said, Here is a list of college graduates! Or, This book will tell us who has a red car. You’d probably say, “Now wait a minute, that’s not the purpose of that book. You’re holding a telephone book. Its purpose is simply to reveal the name and number of residents of a city during a certain time frame.”

Only by understanding its purpose can I accurately use the telephone book. Only by understanding its purpose can I accurately use the Bible!

The purpose of the Bible is simply to proclaim God’s plan to save his children. It asserts that man is lost and needs to be saved. And it communicates the message that Jesus is the God in the flesh sent to save his children.

Though the Bible was written over sixteen centuries by at least forty authors, it has one central theme – salvation through faith in Christ. Begun by Moses in the lonely desert of Arabia and finished by John on the lonely Isle of Patmos, it is held together by a strong thread: God’s passion and God’s plan to save his children.

What a vital truth! Understanding the purpose of the Bible is like setting the compass in the right direction. Calibrate it correctly and you’ll journey safely. But fail to set it, and who knows where you’ll end up.

What do you Want?

By Max Lucado
From: Let the Journey Begin: God’s Road map for New Beginnings
Used by permission.

To learn more about Max Lucado visit his website at:    
https://maxlucado.com/about-max/

RELATED READING

Where to Start Reading the Bible

Read the Manual

The Christian and the Bible

You Have a Bible?

The post Set Your Compass in the Right Direction appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.” Acts 10:44

Over the years, I have toured many industrial facilities, always having an interest in how things are made, packaged and delivered to the customer. When I was invited to tour a book bindery in Bogota, Columbia it didn’t appear to be that exciting of an engagement, but when I walked through the doors and onto the assembly floor, my perspective suddenly changed. You see, this was no ordinary book bindery. It was a Bible bindery, where pre-printed blocks of printed paper are bound into a variety of covers and bindings, for shipment in several languages to a number of countries in the world.

As I stared at the rows of cardboard boxes, I was told that on that floor, ready to be shipped, were a little less than a quarter of a million Bibles, in different sizes, different bindings and in different languages, but all containing the same message of God’ redemptive love that runs like a scarlet thread all the way from Genesis to Revelation. I wasn’t looking at a book inventory,  I was looking at God’s message to the world, all neatly packed in a well sealed, weather protected, box destined for shipment to many people in many lands.

As I looked at the hundreds of boxes, I could only visualize the ultimate recipient of each one and what impact it would make on one life. I thought about how each Bible would get placed in the hands of the ultimate recipient and how someone would tell them and help them to grow in a more dynamic, personal, and intimate relationship with Him so that they could become more like Him.

There is nothing more important in the world than knowing Jesus Christ and we know Him through his Word. It is powerful, it is divine, it is life changing, and it has to be communicated. That’s our calling as followers of Christ, spread the Word. But how many of us keep the Word of God tightly wrapped up in a box, failing to share the greatest message in all the world to someone even as close as our next door neighbor?

Looking at those boxes touched my heart. I thought of all who had never had a Bible and had never heard the Word of God or had even an opportunity to appropriate His saving grace. I asked myself how often I take my faith for granted, keep it to myself and fail to share with others before it is too late.

Recently, I came upon the scene of a bad automobile accident, right after it happened. People were running from every direction to help as they could, pulling bandages, or whatever they had from the trunks of their car to do what they could until the paramedics arrived. It was a tragic, yet beautiful sight to see people doing everything they could to help people they didn’t even know.

Yet, when we see someone lost without the security of God’s assurance and plan for salvation, how often do we drop what we are doing and run to help before it is too late? I am ashamed to say that all too often, I don’t respond they way I should. How about you? Can we both make a commitment to share God’s Word and make sure Jesus doesn’t stay trapped in the delivery box?

Question: Do you care if those around you hear about Jesus?

Jesus Talks About Jesus

The Bible

The Christian and the Bible

The post Getting Jesus out of the Box appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11

When God’s Word is hidden in your heart, it doesn’t lie dormant like a buried seed. It’s alive—growing, reaching, reshaping who you are from the inside out. It’s not about memorizing verses or collecting knowledge; it’s about internalizing truth until it begins to think and move through you.

Hebrews 4:12 reminds us that, “the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword.” Once planted in your heart, it becomes a living force, powered by the Holy Spirit to guide, convict, and compel you into action.

The Compulsion to Act
When God’s Word takes root deep within, it does not stay still. The Spirit animates it—pressing you to speak truth, show mercy, and step forward when it would be easier to stand back. This is not about performance or religious effort; it’s about cooperation with the Spirit who turns His Word into action.

When the Word is alive, you begin to feel divine tension: moments when silence feels like disobedience, when compassion feels urgent, and when love becomes the only reasonable response.

Stepping Out of Yourself
The Word in your heart calls you beyond yourself—past fear, ego, or self-protection. It stretches your comfort zone, asking you to trust what you cannot yet see. The Spirit uses Scripture to reframe your instincts until obedience flows naturally and courage becomes your new normal.

This is what it means to live by faith: not calculating outcomes but trusting the One who spoke the Word that now lives in you.

Present-Tense Readiness
“I have hidden your word in my heart” is not a past achievement—it’s a present reality. The Word you’ve stored there shapes the moment you live in now. When temptation comes, truth rises up as a shield. When opportunity calls, obedience is already in motion. When the need is great, our response is greater.

The hidden Word creates readiness: readiness to forgive, to serve, to love. You are prepared because the truth within you has already written your response.

The Holy Spirit’s Role
The Holy Spirit turns the Word from words on a page into the voice of God.

• Empowerment: You act not by willpower but by partnership.
• Conviction: The Spirit presses truth on your heart until it becomes impossible to ignore.
• Sensitivity: You become tuned to divine timing—when to act, when to wait, when to speak.

Breakthrough Reflection
Hiding God’s Word in your heart is not about holding truth—it’s about being held by it. It prepares you for every temptation, every opportunity, every act of love.

When the Word lives deep enough, it moves through you like breath—effortless, powerful, alive. The Spirit does not ask you to try harder; He invites you to yield more deeply. The more you trust the Word within you, the more your life begins to echo it.

Let God’s Word shape your heart, and you will find yourself stepping out of yourself—acting, loving, forgiving—not by your strength, but by His.

by John Fischer
used by permission

RELATED READING

• The Power of the Book
• His Word
• The Broken Bible

The post The Dynamics of God’s Word in Your Heart appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“…and the people stood in their place. And they read in the book, in the law of God, distinctly; and they gave the sense, so that they understood the reading. Nehemiah 8:7-8

As we decorated the front yard with Christmas lights one recent night, it was handy to have the headlights of the car to see what we were doing. After finishing our decorating, we realized that while the Christmas lights operate off of household current, the car depends on a battery and it is only good for so long and hence the need for jumper cables to the rescue.

I eased one car grill to grill to the other, opened the trunk, got out the jumper cables and then could not figure out how to pop open the hood. I looked and looked but could not figure it out, so I removed the owner’s manual from its original wrapping and found out how to proceed.

My friend Pastor Bob Record claims that the automobile owner’s manual is the least read book, even though most households own more than one. Is there a spiritual parallel here?

How often do we try to tackle the challenges of life and ignore the greatest book of advice …… God’s Word? Maybe the car manual is the least read, but the Bible isn’t far behind for many people, even though most own one or more. We struggle with life and leave the greatest advice book on life and living unopened.

Studying and reading is important in understanding God’s word and learning how to apply it in our lives. As Christians, it’s a major way that we draw closer to God.

Jesus realized the importance of people knowing Scripture, because He would teach from it when He was traveling from town to town. Not only that, but Jesus also used Scripture to battle Satan during his 40 days in the wilderness. Jesus said that the truth sanctifies us and that the word is this truth.

In Hebrews 4:12, the Word says, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

Is God’s Word living and active in your life today? Read it daily and it will change your life.

by John Grant
used by permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

FURTHER READING

• Where to Start Reading the Bible
• The Christian and the Bible
• You Have a Bible?
• Open Bible, Open Heart, Open Ears

The post Read the Manual appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.” Isaiah 45:3

Throughout this past summer a small gray squirrel relentlessly burrowed into the flowers and herbs on my small patio. With upright bushy tail and cocked head, he seemed to almost gleefully resist my shouts and hand clapping, scurrying away to the security of nearby trees, only sneaking back when he sensed I was absent.

With the onset of winter, however, this neighborhood resident isn’t visiting as often. Has he buried his findings under fallen leaves in someone else’s larger garden where he can peacefully uncover his store when the cold of winter arrives?

Squirrels and other animals know they must prepare for the harsh realities that lie ahead. They work hard to store up what they will need when they can no longer find nutrients in my small garden.

The Apostle Peter told early Christians not to be surprised when difficulties—even severe persecution—arrived in their lives. He told them to be alert and always forward looking, trusting that the one who provided their salvation would see them through the difficulties.

Like those first century Christians, we have the responsibility and privilege to prepare ourselves by always digging into the truths of the Bible, discovering the food that will sustain us not only in the present but in the wintry days of increasing darkness. Peter understood the prophet Isaiah’s words, that God could be depended upon to release the treasures, the riches of God when we need them most.

Oh, that we would be as persistent in the discovery endeavor as the squirrel!

by Marilyn Ehle
used by permission

FURTHER READING

• Living Beyond the Darkness
• In The Darkness
• Up From Depression

The post Preparing for Winter appeared first on Thoughts About God.