Reading about Reading

Psalms 1:1-6
(1) Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
(2) but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
(3) He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
(4) The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
(5) Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
(6) for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Now that I finished Isaiah I'm taking a little time to read through some of the articles in my ESV Study Bible. I read two articles about reading this morning. One was an article about reading the Bible for personal worship and the other was about reading for personal application. Great stuff.

As I think about what I read I am convicted on a couple of fronts:

• My prayer life is not particularly vibrant. This would be helped by taking the time to pray through Scripture.
• My reading is often too heady.

Sometimes I fall into the trap of thinking that some spiritual discipline substitutes for prayerful time spent in the Word. What I realize more and more is that nothing substitutes for it. For example, memorizing and reciting Scripture is a great discipline. However, if I'm never pausing on anything I've memorized then what is the point? Doesn't it seem a little strange that I can recite this in about 20 seconds every week without really dwelling on it:

Ephesians 1:3-10
(3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
(4) even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love
(5) he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,
(6) to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
(7) In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
(8) which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight
(9) making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ
(10) as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

This speaks of how the God of the universe chose me before the beginning of time to be part of His master plan. How can I not dwell on that?

Sorry to get away from the usual journaling here. This is on my heart this morning and I ask for your prayers.