BIBLE READING:
1. Take a passage or paragraph and read it 3-4 times.
2. Then make a list of every thing it says about God (Father, Son & Holy Spirit)
3. List anything that it tells you about yourself
4. List example to be followed, commands to obey or things that need to be avoided.
MEDITATION:
Then choose one or two thing that you think were most important or the best thing that you learned from the reading. Keller says that mediation is talking to yourself about God, in the presence of God (Psalm 103).
Keller recommends 2 ways to meditate upon the passage:
- The Shorter Way
Ask yourself how you would be different if this truth was explosively alive in my inner being? Secondly, ask why is God showing me this passage today? What is going on in my life that i need to learn this truth?
- The Deeper Way
ACTS= Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving & Supplication
Adoration: What can I praise God for in this truth?
Confession: What false attitudes, behaviour emotions or idols come alive in me whenever I forget it?
Thanksgiving: How is Jesus Christ or the grace that I have in Jesus Christ the key to help me overcome the sin that I have just confessed?
Supplication: What do I need to do or become in light of this?
"Read a text and begin to mediate on it until the Holy Spirit starts to preach to you" Tim Keller
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January 15, 2013 at 3:05 pm
Wayne Augden
I really like the posts you’ve made about Bible study. So many people think you can read the Bible like a regular book, and therefore miss so much. The Bible is a supernatural book, and it’s treasures are missed by those who don’t take the time to dig them out. Keep up the great work. God bless you as you continue to faithfully serve him.
January 15, 2013 at 3:10 pm
fireball3316
thanks wayne – most of it came out of a podcast i heard the other night and the research i did after it. i so advocate that people have a bible plan and MAKE that time to read the Word, not to tick off a list or get a gold star, but to KNOW God and make Him known, to hear His heart and His voice. sometimes its a practiced discipline though and can sometimes be hard to know where to start! thank you for your encouragement
)
January 17, 2013 at 3:21 pm
Joe
I love this Claire…it’s so hard to NOT check off the day’s reading and move on and these tips from Keller are ones I’ll try to put into practice. I remember you said once that we should always be looking for the “one thing” in our reading. I’ve tried to remember that ever since
God bless!
January 17, 2013 at 6:48 pm
fireball3316
i’ve for ages always when i read a chapter asked myself
1. what does this reveal about God
2. how can i make it (what is in this chapter) real in my life
so loved the challenges and insights that tim keller’s question can give… and thats so cool re the one thing – always on the look for that “thing” that God speaks into – that jumps out!