Take It Off the Shelf

In my kitchen I have a cabinet that contains all of our vitamins, minerals and specialized health foods. These shelves hold such things as vitamin C, multi-vitamins, Fish Oil soft-gels, Calcium & Magnesium and Glucosamine & Chondroitin among others. In addition to these we also have a large canister of flaxseed, a ziplock bag of oat bran and a jar of wheat germ. All of these things promote good health if I take them off the shelf and make an effort to incorporate them into my daily diet.


But when it comes to taking vitamins, minerals and eating healthy – good intentions count for nothing – these items must come off the shelf and into my mouth to have any positive effect on my health. I can make the effort to go to the health food store and buy the flaxseed. I can then find out how to prepare my flaxseed. I can buy a cute canister to hold my flaxseed. I can purchase a grinder to grind my flaxseed. But until I actually take it off the shelf, prepare it and eat it, I won’t gain any of the wonderful health benefits of flaxseed.


And – (I hope you saw this coming) – the word of God is just like that! Full of spiritual health benefits, abounding in Godly principles, that when taken daily, have life-giving properties!


In my den I have a bookshelf where I can find an NIV Bible, New King James Bible and an Amplified Bible. In addition to these, there are numerous devotional books such as My Utmost For His Highest, Our Daily Bread and Abundance From God’s Heart. My bookshelves are bursting with life-giving, joy-giving, peace-giving nourishment.


But when it comes to quietly spending time with God and drinking in his word each day – good intentions count for nothing – these items must come off the shelf and into my heart to have any positive effect on my spirit.


I have a worship CD (Never Looking Back by Vineyard Music) that I listen to often, and on it is a song entitled “So Amazing.” It says “You are great and marvelous, God of all the universe, let your Spirit come to us, we’re waiting here for you.” I like to think of that as my morning quiet time with God. Sitting on my deck with a cup of coffee, Bible spread out on my lap, my journal and pen next to me, with this hour totally set apart for my time with God. As I sit there praising God because he is “Great and marvelous”, my heart waits for his presence. I wait for his word to come alive as I read it. I wait for his leading and direction in the situations that trouble me. I wait to feel his guidance in prayer… I wait to connect with him.


And while this sounds simple it’s not always easy. Taking the Bible off the shelf and setting aside a “quiet time” in the midst of our busy, hectic lives can be a daunting task. But I guarantee, that as we yield our hearts over to God, determined to have a daily time of spiritual nourishment, he will lead us as to how and when we could possibly fit this in, and remember the first step is to take it off the shelf!

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Paula Friedrichsen is a conference speaker and the author of "The Man You Always Wanted is The One You Already Have" (Multnomah 2007). She lives with her husband and daughter in Northern California.
© 2008 Paula Friedrichsen - All rights reserved.
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This column is used with permission.