Monday July 14th, 2014 Isaiah 55:10-13
...so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty... (verse 11a)
Since my early teenage years, reading the Bible has been part of my daily routine.
My love of God’s word has been nourished by many people: extended family, godparents, Sunday school teachers, pastors, authors, friends and co-workers. Some of these people looked on reading the Bible as a way to participate in a conversation with God. My Auntie Lillian was one of them.
A farm wife who had seen more than her share of poverty and life’s disappointments, my Auntie Lillian was a regular Martha where hospitality was concerned, but a true Mary when it came to reading and meditating on God’s word.
Though dead for many years, her influence has not passed away. When I hold and read her Bible, something I do every summer while visiting at her son’s home, I feel her presence. My Auntie Lillian’s Bible teaches me a lesson about faithfulness and love every time I open it. In the passages that she has underlined and the places where she has inserted bookmarks, memorial cards or dried wildflowers, I find the source of the strength that sustained her. Auntie Lillian is still reminding me that when I read my Bible, God and I are talking.
Lord, thank you for keeping the conversation going. Amen. — CKA
Contributed by Ongoing Conversation
Since my early teenage years, reading the Bible has been part of my daily routine.
My love of God's word has been nourished by many people: extended family, godparents, Sunday school teachers, pastors, authors, friends and co-workers. Some of these people looked on reading the Bible as a way to participate in a conversation with God. My Auntie Lillian was one of them.
A farm wife who had seen more than her share of poverty and life's disappointments, my Auntie Lillian was a regular Martha where hospitality was concerned, but a true Mary when it came to reading and meditating on God's word.
Though dead for many years, her influence has not passed away. When I hold and read her Bible, something I do every summer while visiting at her son's home, I feel her presence. My Auntie Lillian's Bible teaches me a lesson about faithfulness and love every time I open it. In the passages that she has underlined and the places where she has inserted bookmarks, memorial cards or dried wildflowers, I find the source of the strength that sustained her. Auntie Lillian is still reminding me that when I read my Bible, God and I are talking.
