Word of the Day
Hebrews 4: 12 KJV
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword.
The Word of the Day is back to a its regular schedule. Summer is over sports fans. I thought I would take a moment to recount how we got here, especially since we have some new folks. Let’s begin with why this devotional is called the Word of the Day.
The Word of the Day began in 2006. My brother had just been diagnosed with cancer months after our father passed away from the same disease. I knew my brother need to hear the Word of God on health and healing. God’s Word has power. His words are life and truth and health to those who find them. And therein lies the entire premise of the Word of the Day, that it is God’s Word which has power. His Word has healing in its wings.
So, I decided to send my brother my list of healing scriptures. Just as quickly as I had that thought, another one came to me. Instead of sending him the entire list at one time, maybe it would be better to send one scripture a day. At first, I was just going to send the verse citation but immediately realized I should type out the verse so he only had to read it. Then, just as quickly, the thought occurred to me that there were probably lots of other folks who needed healing for something. In fact, don’t we all have some issue in our bodies that needs God’s grace? So, I determined to send the list of healing verses, via email, to a small group of friends and family. Within moments I went from sending my brother my list of healing verses, one email with the entire list of citations, to sending one verse a day fully typed out to a whole list of people. That was a 43 day commitment. Now here I am 15 years later.
It was begun on June 16th, 2006. At the end of those 43 verses, the Word of the Day had gained momentum. “Now what?”, I mused. So, I picked another list of verses and kept going.
In those days, knowing that it was God’s Word that people needed to hear, I sent only the verse. I didn’t write anything. After a while, though, readers began to ask for explanation. At first, I did so sparingly, primarily giving background information. Finally, on June 24, 2008, on the 405th Word of the Day, I relented, and the Word of the Day evolved into its current format.
With that committment made, I had to learn to trust God at a whole new level. No longer was it simply a matter of finding a good verse. Frankly, that is pretty easy, and didn’t take a lot of faith. Having something to say five days a week, well, that was a whole new thing. I needed revelation every day. I know pastors who struggle to find Sunday’s sermon. All of a sudden, I needed five sermons a week. Was my faith and trust up to this challenge? I had to learn to relax and trust. I also learned that sometimes I had to stick my toe in the water, by which I mean, I had to put my fingers on the keyboard and begin. Then God would reveal Himself. It’s like Joshua 3: 14, sometimes you have to put your foot in the water before you see the move of God. That is a good lesson. When God gives you something to do, sometimes you just need to begin. He will steer you once you are moving.
Well, I still believe the most important part of this devotional is the Word. If you are in a hurry and don’t want to read the commentary, no worries, just read the verse. Read it several times. God’s Word has power. It created the universe and everything you see. So, meditate on what God said. You will never go wrong with that. And that is why this devotional is called, the Word of the Day.
And by the way, this is devotional number 3391. Wow, what God can do!
