The Best-Selling Book You've Never Read

The Best-Selling Book You Haven’t Read

If I've heard it once, I've heard it a thousand times..."read your bible."  It sounds like an easy concept, but it only took me 30+ years to grasp the idea. Even after I re-dedicated my life to Christ, reading the bible still didn't rise to the top of my list of things to do.

One day after church one of the ministers from came up to me and a friend, as she knew we were both babes in Christ. So, playing on our enthusiasm, this minister says "y'all are doing marvelous things here, and I can see that you guys are hungry for Christ and want to be closer to God." We agreed. "The only way to really get closer to God is to read the word. Do you read your bible?" (Bible...what Bible? I don't even own a bible.) We both answered no. She tells us, "Take a few minutes each morning before you go to work or at night before you go to bed and read a chapter of the bible. It will change your life."

She said these words with such passion and sincerity, I had to answer "Yes;" and I meant it.  I was on this fabulous journey, things were looking up, I was feeling good...why not?

I went home and downloaded a bible app to my smartphone and read the verse of the day.  Hmmm, that wasn't so bad.  I continued to read the full chapter.  I can't recall which book I was reading from that first night, but as I read those first couple of nights, I came across Matthew 6. The last verses of that Chapter really struck me that night and confirmed my suspicion that there may be something to this "Bible reading" thing.

It reads:

“Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.  Is not the life more than meat, and the body more than raiment?  Behold the fowls of the air; for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them.  Are ye not much better than they?  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?  And why take ye thought for raiment?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;  they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?  Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things to the Gentiles seek) for your heavenly father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.  Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.  Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

Matthew 6: 25 - 34

At that time and at that moment, I needed to read that. It was soothing to my soul, and allowed me to understand that God will provide me with everything thing I need as long as I continue to seek him.  If the birds, and the fish and even the stray cats and dogs in my neighborhood have everything they need to survive, then why wouldn’t my God give me everything I need and more?  At the time this scripture was so comforting, reassuring, calming.  Even now when I read it, I still get emotional.

I challenge you to pick up the world’s best-selling book and read it sometimes.  Read a little here and there if you can't commit to reading every day. And I pray that something will reach out and grab you, just like it’s taken a hold of me.

Is there a favorite scripture of bible verse that has changed your life?

God Bless