"How can a young man stay pure? By reading Your Word and following its rules. I have tried my best to find You - don't let me wander off from Your instructions. I have thought much about Your words, and stored them in my heart so that they would hold me back from sin" (Psalm 119:9-11).
Carl, a Christian leader who had made a mess of his life, wept as he shared his defeat. "As a young Christian, "he said, "I was warned that God's Word would keep me from sin, or sin would keep me from God's Word.
"For many years," he continued, "I studied and obeyed God's Word faithfully. A few years ago I became very busy and took less and less time for God's Word. So when temptation came, I had no strength to resist. Now my life and marriage have disintegrated and I am thinking of committing suicide."
If you do not already have a daily practice of spending time alone with God - studying, reading, memorizing and meditating on His Word, and spending time with Him in prayer - I encourage you to do so, beginning today. The spiritual food of God's Word is absolutely essential for victorious, supernatural living. Great benefit can be found in listening to recordings of the Old and New Testaments, sermons and Christian music on your cassette player, in your home and in your car as you travel.
Scientists and health nutritionists confirm that our physical well-being is largely determined by the food we eat. For example, many people cannot tolerate high quantities of refined foods, such as sugar, white flour and chocolate. When they eat such foods, they become seriously ill physically, mentally and emotionally. Some have even been known to develop criminal tendencies because of what is often diagnosed as hypoglycemia, caused by poor nutrition.
In like manner, our spiritual bodies are influenced by what we absorb from God's Word and other scripturally based writings. It is impossible to be happy, healthy, strong, virile and fruitful for God without a regular intake from the Word of God.
I will determine, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to set aside time each day to read the Bible and pray and wait upon God for His leading and maturing in my life.
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