A devotion about devotions.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

I confess. Usually when I read a devotion I pay more attention to the devotional words than the scripture they expound on. I’ll skim through the verses – often being ones I’ve heard a lot – to get to the point made by the author. I have also developed a tendency to read books about God, spiritual growth, and how to study scripture rather than spending significant time searching His Word directly. In response to this conviction, I’ve recently set aside my habit of spiritual snacking in favor of sitting at the table and consuming scripture as my main meal again.

Devotionals can be good for a quick boost, however they are not meant to be our main diet. Some devotionals are filled with words based on verses taken out of context. Some are laden with candied verbiage which may appeal to our appetites, but only amount to spiritual junk food. How can we decipher which are nourishing snacks rather than empty calories? We need to be familiar with scripture as a whole. It is as essential for our souls to be feasting on the Word as it is to eat regular, balanced meals, not living off of convenient snack foods.

 ^“We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand.  In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.  But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”
Hebrews 5:11-14 English standard Version

There’s no substitute for the meat God gave us for maturity in Christ. His Words are worthy of our hunger and devotion.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, CO