Tasteless Steak; Tastey Sewage

Time to talk about reading rote the Bible (mechanically or out of habitual repetition)… The question I have to ask myself is would I rather eat steak that has no flavor or eat sewage that tastes like steak, but is slowly poisoning me? … I have been convinced by certain tells in my attitude that I have been consisting on to much of the wrong diet in my free time.

(Oh Lord, here he goes) Please hear me out, because this is not about “right or wrong” or about “do this or don’t do this.” This is more about the choices I make and the peace/ success these choices bring.

I love movies and TV shows. In fact, thanks to Netflix, lately I can be found spending much of my idle time in front of the tube. I know I am free to do so without guilt or condemnation and I am not against enjoying these forms of entertainment, but the reality is the more I consume the world, the more I bare the fruit of it… And lately, the fruit ain’t been so hot.

In my youth, when I struggled with difficult problems life threw my way I’d escape in entertainment (I’d use it like a drug), while the Lord has drawn me away from this pattern, I still occasionally fall into it. Inevitably my attitude sours, I begin to lose hope, my perspective narrows, my desire to resist sin weakens, and so on… Regardless what entertainment source I’ve leaned towards (movies, the news, sitcoms, literature, music, whatever…) my experience tells me that in large quantities it can profoundly affect my behavior; I think particularly when I use it as medication to numb the hurt of life… If numb to the pain, I lose sensitivity and the ability to recognize the areas within that need God’s healing.

Above I compared reading rote the Bible to eating steak that has no flavor. The truth is that Jesus is the Word and the only thing that can separate Him from the Word is our approach when reading it. (John 5:39) If I come to it with the intent to earn salvation or earn blessing or to gather ammunition for our next theological debate, then He will not be revealed within. However, if I come to feed because I know I’m malnourished, whether I can taste it’s goodness or not, over time His living Word will satisfy me and meet me “spot on” in the place of my need.

All of this to say, I am once again at the place where I know I need more time in the Word. At first it is a bit tasteless (boring) and I find myself just going through the motions, but my past experience tells me something will soon shift in my spirit and I will begin to crave it… Its taste returns and brings with it my hope in Him and a positive outlook on life (regardless of the circumstances I find myself in).

I don’t want this to sound formulaic or cliche, because honestly there are ebbs and flows even within this process… One step forward, two steps back, but having repeated this cycle a few times (more than I care to), the overall gist of this post, in my humble opinion, is accurate.