I was never a huge comic book fan. Too many pictures. Not enough words. But I enjoy space in the words, and sometimes, including a photo or diagram to break up the words is fine.
There was a time when I lived on books like The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and the like. The genre grew into Louis L’Amour, Alistair MacLean, and the like as I matured. Then, I reached a saturation period where I no longer looked for new authors to read en masse. Rather, I was selective on the steady flow of the story into my mind. Mystery. Cold War and Spies. Anything with airplanes. Historical Fiction. Science Fiction.
Even to this day, I enjoy a good novel, but I’m more interested in authenticity. In other words. This could happen!
I enjoy a steady drip of good stories. They keep me hungry for more knowledge.
When I want to do something new, it’s a book in my hands that takes me down the path of knowledge. Long before my first flight to become a pilot, I read about ten books on aeronautical and training-specific books you can pick up at almost any bookstore. When I met the trainer and we went through the motions of preparing to fly, nothing in the books prepared me for the exhilaration of starting the engine, talking over headsets, and taxiing to the runway. I was allowed to keep my hands on the yoke as the instructor lifted us up into the wild blue yonder!
I could take a steady drip of this! So, I sought to obtain my license and received it!
Books can tell you the history, the where’s and why for’s, but they cannot give you the experience of being and doing.
It’s like the guy who bought a new gadget to cut up logs faster. It was called a chainsaw. He took it home, and after a few days, he returned it. “It doesn’t work. It’s too slow. I want my money back.” The clerk fiddled around with the chainsaw, made a few adjustments, and pulled on the cord. Whappp…. Whappp…. Rumble, rumble. You know that beautiful noise a 2-cycle chainsaw makes as the spark plug ignites the fuel in the cylinder? The customer was surprised! “What’s that noise?”
Now. That little story cannot tell you the experience of pulling on the cord and feeling the power of the chainsaw waken. You’ve got to experience it.
Experience is the steady drip of reality.
That being said, what about your experience with God? Some are happy to be closet Christians. They show up when tough times approach, but you would never know who they are when the times are normal.
My Bible has been a steady presence throughout my life through all my reading interests. Instead of trying to approach it in total, I love to break out characters and times and read to understand God’s plan. He does have a plan. And I’m part of it. I just want to know everything I need so I can be effective.
A steady drip of the daily word... Give us this day our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11) Give us day by day our daily bread. (Luke 11:3) From The Lord’s teaching and my study of the Bible, I knew he was teaching a daily approach to God’s Word that would be like the manna presented morning to Israel when in the wilderness. “Gather just what you need…” Every day. His Word supplies exactly what I need to make it through.
Mom had a thick study bible with all kinds of study aids in the back half of the bound Word of God. I loved to root around those study aids. To this day, I’m hooked on aiding my study with tools that can be more quickly accessed through my computer. I take my library of thousands of books with me!
The Apostle Paul told Timothy:
Give diligence to present yourself approved to God,
a workman unashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.
(2 Timothy 2:15 LITV)
If you knew the final outcome of your entire life was that final presentation to God, what would you do differently to ensure a positive outcome? I do know you can be distracted by things that do not matter. Read the next few verses of Paul, and you’ll find out what he thought about that, but what you give diligence to produces the person you are evolving into.
What’s that old song about a little (daily) talk with Jesus?
Now, let us have a little talk with Jesus,
Tell him all about our troubles,
He will hear our faintest cries,
And he’ll answer bye and bye.
When you feel a little prayer wheel turning
You will know a little fire is burning,
And you’ll find a little talk with Jesus makes it right!
Patiently. Steady. Daily. That’s how we work out who we are and want to become.
Steady Drips: What you give to yourself with a steady approach will bring big results for the person you are aiming to become. Click To Tweet
Thank you for reading.
Please share with others.
It helps me get my book written!