There are little details addressed in the Proverbs — the book I’m reading right now — and big things too. And some of them speak to me profoundly.
There are days when the Holy Spirit points to a specific proverb and reveals all kinds of truths in just a few words on the page.
But there are days like today when I read and agree with everything, yet that specific nugget eludes me. And I strive to find it. I long for it. But it’s not there. I feel like I must be missing something.
And I decide, finally, to go away praising — because that’s what I do — yet feeling a little disappointed because I really wanted that amazing word or revelation from the Holy Spirit. I really needed it.
So I praise, resigned that it’s not there today. Only, it is.
I’ve missed the forest for the trees.
Today, the word I finally hear is to fear God. It’s the theme of the chapter I’ve read, Proverbs 28. It just wasn’t in one specific verse or phrase. It was in the whole chapter.
It’s the theme of chapter 28. It’s the theme of all the Proverbs. It’s the theme of the whole Bible.
And it’s the theme of every word my Lord speaks to me. Every word He gives me turns my eyes to Him.
It’s okay if I don’t have some new insight every time I read scripture. It’s okay if I don’t have much to say. It’s okay if I sit at His feet and rest.
I do know one thing. And my reading today confirms it. And I’ll dwell on this truth today while I rest at the feet of Jesus. And it’s this: I am called to fear God, to honor Him, to love Him and love others, to trust Him, to rest in Him.
I am called to honor God, and He will honor me. The specifics may escape me, but the theme remains.
