Psalms 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God:
I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth."
Isaiah 50:4 "The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned."
As you will find within the postings on this page, daily time spent with Christ is key to a strong Christian walk! It is impossible to be strong and full of faith without this daily time. Accordingly, I have gathered resources together to assist you learn about and experience mountaintop experiences with Christ. Some people refer to this as having moments of communion with God, worship, the daily devotional. Whatever the name, it refers to private time when you seek to be in communication with Christ. Ideally, it takes place early in the day, but it can take place at other times too. The important point is making sure time is being taken to spend with God.—Dan
Having an adequate Bible in a favorite version is essential having a meaningful time with Christ. I use the term "adequate," because adequate doesn't need to be expensive. I personally use a "journaling" wide margin New Kings James Version Bible, published by Thomas Nelson, as well as a NKJV Bible that doesn't have wide margins. I have spent so much time in the traditional format and written in so many notes that it is hard for me to fully embrace the journaling Bible. At this web site you can find the journaling Bible for a very reasonable price: Book Depot. If you want to buy the best Bible you can, than consider buying a Cambridge Bible or a Schuyler Bible, but these Bibles are VERY expensive!!! If you would like to read a blog that talks about all the best Bibles and the design of good Bibles, click on this link.
When I speak of Bible study tools, I am referring to electronic tools or something printed.
This is the one I use the most. It is free and has great tools.
This tool is available within other electronic resources, but this site has it independent of other tools. I learned about this tool from Paul Maxwell, the son of L. E. Maxwell (author of Born Crucified) and I will always be grateful for his tip. I would describe this as a concordance on steroids. Because it is driven by themes instead of being slavish to a particular word, you can find many verses with this tool that you won't find any other way.
Some people highlight, others don't. If you, find a pen that doesn't bleed. The best is the pigma micron from what I read. I personally use a Papermate Flexgrip Ultra that bleeds very little. I get paid nothing for sharing these suggestions!
Taking Notes
"The particular point to which I refer is contained in the second and third verses, "as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word." As growth in the natural life is attained by proper food, so in the spiritual life, if we desire to grow, this growth is only to be attained through the instrumentality of the word of God, It is not stated here, as some might be very willing to say, “the reading of the Word may be of importance under some circumstances." That you may gain more by reading this tract, or this and that book, is not the statement here; it is "the Word, " and nothing else, and, under all circumstances, stick to the word of God." (Read the rest of this excellent treatise on reading the Bible in a devotional manner.)
Here is a sample paragraph: "We need not say, 'Lord, give Thyself to me,' for He has already done that. But we should say, 'Blessed Saviour, since Thou has given Thyself to me, and invited me to receive Thee into my heart, I now open wide the door, and welcome Thee in. I thank Thee that Thou hast come in, and Thy presence is a reality this moment.' The promise is realized as soon as we meet the conditions and claim its fulfillment." (Read the rest by clicking on the link.)
"The father and, in his absence, the mother should conduct the morning and evening worship, selecting a portion of Scripture that is interesting and easily understood. The service should be short. When a long chapter is read and a long prayer offered, the service becomes wearisome, and a sense of relief is felt at its close. God is dishonored when it is made dry and irksome, when it is so tedious, so lacking in interest, that the children dread it." (Read the rest of this wonderful article on getting through from day to day.)
Years ago I was asked to develop handouts that could be used in a group study of Henry Blackaby's book Experiencing God. I was blessed in making the compilation and those studying commented how meaningful the quotes were. Six compilations were handed out that went with each chapter. Accordingly, I offer the quotes from the individual handouts here.
"Do not take your views of Divine truth from man; draw them primarily from God’s Word. Do not study the Bible through your theological system, but let your system be taken from, and faithfully weighed with, the Bible. Our theological system must not be allowed to give its complexion to, or to be the interpreter of, revealed truth. But, on the contrary, God’s Word is to suggest and mold and tint all our thoughts and opinions and systems." (Read the rest of Winslow's book on prayer.)
"I have in my own experience found it of the utmost moment to make the care about my own soul the chief business of my life. Abundant as my work is, so much so, that if I had strength to work 24 hours every day, I would not accomplish what is ready for my hands, and feet and head, and heart; yet with all this I consider my first business to be, and my primary business, day by day, to get blessing for my own soul, food for my own soul, to be happy in the Lord; and then to work, and to work with all diligence." (Read the rest of Müller's letter to Hudson Taylor.)
“For sixty-nine years and ten months he had been a very happy man. That he attributed to two things. He had maintained a good conscience, not willfully going on in a course he knew to be contrary to the mind of God; he did not, of course, mean that he was perfect; he was poor, weak, and sinful. Secondly, he attributed it to his love of Holy Scripture. Of late years his practice had been four times every year to read through the Scriptures, with application to his own heart, and with meditation; and that day he was a greater lover of God’s Word than he was sixty-six years ago. It was this, and maintaining a good conscience, that had given him all these years peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.” (Read the rest of what George Müller had to say on studying the Bible.)
Be Still and Know (some thoughts on meditative prayer and the devotional experience)
"I was converted in November 1825, but I only came, into the full surrender of the heart four years later, in July 1829. The love of money was gone, the love of place was gone, the love of position was gone, and the love of worldly pleasures and engagements was gone. God, God, God alone became my portion. I found my all in Him; I wanted nothing else. And by the grace of God this has remained, and has made me a happy man, an exceedingly happy man, and it led me to care only about the things of God." This also includes information on Müller's second conversion. (Read all of George Müller's thoughts on the work of the Spirit In Teaching the Bible)
"READ THE BIBLE WITH CHRIST CONSTANTLY IN VIEW. The whole Book is about Him. Look for Him on every page. He is there. If you fail to see Him there, you need to read that page again." (There are only a few lines from Ryle, but they may transform your daily devotional experience. (Read the rest of what Ryle says on reading the Bible)
"Whatever you learn from the Word, labor to put it into practice. For to him that has, more will be given. Those people who make no effort to put into practice, what they already know about God's Word, will get very little insight into the Bible. But while the stream runs through a holy life, the fountain will always be more refreshing." (Read more of Boston's insights on the important subject.)
Here is one brief thought from Watson's treatise on reading the Bible: "Read the word as a book made by God Himself. It is given 'by divine inspiration' 2 Tim. iii.16. It is the library of the Holy Ghost. The prophets and apostles were but God's amanuenses or notaries to write the law at his mouth. The word is of divine original, and reveals the deep things of God to us." (Read all of what had to say on this topic.)
"Read God's Word with a deep desire to know all His will. If there are things which appear difficult, commands which look too high, or for which you need a divine guidance to tell you how to carry them out,-and there are many such,-let them drive you to seek a divine teaching. It is not the text that is easiest and most encouraging that brings most blessing, but the text, whether easy or difficult, which throws you most upon God."
"The father and, in his absence, the mother should conduct the morning and evening worship, selecting a portion of Scripture that is interesting and easily understood. The service should be short. When a long chapter is read and a long prayer offered, the service becomes wearisome, and a sense of relief is felt at its close. God is dishonored when it is made dry and irksome, when it is so tedious, so lacking in interest, that the children dread it." (Read the rest of this excellent article from the Pacific Union Recorder)
"We may measure our growth in grace by the growth of our love for private Bible study; and we may be sure that there is something seriously wrong, when we lose our appetite for the Bread of Life. Perhaps we have been eating too many sweets; or taking too little exercise; or breathing too briefly in the bracing air which sweeps over the uplands of Spiritual Communion with God. Happy are they who have learnt the blessed art of discovering for themselves the treasures of the Bible, which are hidden just a little below the surface, so as to test our real earnestness in finding them!" (Read the rest of Meyer's wonderful chapter on reading the Bible.)