Saturday, February 13, 2016

Texting God 2/12-13

12-13 Feb 2016 - Texting God – Devotion by Dorothy Callies

Colossians 1:9 NKJV, “[We] do not cease to pray for you.”

The word, “text” seems to be the most popular word nowadays because we might have heard others say, “I will text you” from our cell phone. The word, text means a subject on which one writes or speaks. Surprisely, it also means a passage from the Bible chosen for the subject of a sermon.

An article in The Washington Post told about a 15-year-old girl who sent and received 6,473 cell phone text messages in a single month.  She says about her constant communication with friends, “I would die without it.”  And she is not alone. Researchers says that US teens with cell phones average more than 2,200 text messages a month. [David McCasland, Our Daily Bread]

This could be a remarkable illustration of what prayer could be like for every follower of Christ. Paul seems to be constantly in an attitude of prayers for others: “[We] do not cease to pray for you” (Col.1:9). “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” (Eph.6:18). “Pray without ceasing” (1Thess.5:17). In a sense, Paul was “texting God” for the people he prayed for.

In the kitchen beside the sink, I have a jar full of card verses to draw from.  I have a need to “text” God something from one of the card verses I choose, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him (you) out of them all” (Psalm 34:19).  From the dresser desk, I have a different Card Verse Box.  One of the card verse is like God texting me, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee.” –Isaiah 41:10. When I looked at the card verse as God’s text to me, it really gave me a greater encouragement.

Has God ever “text” you? Yes, you have the Bible! The Holy Spirit inspired 40 different authors to write God’s Word into 66 books. It took 1,500 years to put together many books into “The Bible.” When we read the Bible, we pray that the Holy Spirit would make God’s Word to come alive, active, and powerful inside of us (Heb.4:12). Let God “text” us every day with His Word! Amen? Amen!

      “Texting a Prayer”
Texting a prayer in the morning,
Texting a prayer at noon;
Texting a prayer in the evening,
To keep your heart in tune.
  (Unknown author)

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