March - 12
SPIRITUAL CHECKUP
See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:24
Something strange happened to me as a teenager. I was working on some electronic equipment, and I was so deeply immersed in the project that my mouth was a bit open as I concentrated. As I cut a tiny piece of wire with sharp pliers, it shot off unexpectedly. I felt that little piece of metal hit my lip and then stick somewhere in my throat!
That night I experienced sharp pain, and the next morning I rushed to the hospital, where the doctor first X-rayed my throat and then ordered a full-body scan. Finally she said, “I don’t see any metal in your body. That piece never got into your mouth. Your pain might feel real, but it’s not.”
Sometimes physical pain can be deceiving, and this can also happen spiritually. Our concepts of God and ourselves can seem very real, but they might not be accurate. Just as we visit a doctor to check our physical health, we must always seek an objective picture of our spiritual condition from the Great Physician.
Scripture is God’s powerful scanner. God uses it to tell us if something is wrong in our heart—and how to fix it. Scripture also teaches us how to live out our faith in healthy ways that please God.
Through his written Word, the Lord who searches our hearts equips us for the journey of faith.
PRAYER
Lord, as we study the Scriptures, open our eyes to the truth about you and about ourselves. Heal us with your inspired Word and lead us “in the way everlasting.” Amen.
当我年轻时，曾有一件奇怪的事发生在我身上。我正在装置一些电子仪器，全神贯注工作，咀巴也微微张开了；当我用锋利的钳子切除一条小小的电线时，它突然飞了出来，我觉得这块细小的金属击中我的咀唇，然后哽在我的喉咙里。
当天晚上，我感到非常疼痛，第二天早上我赶忙到医院，医生首先用X光照了喉部，跟着进行全身扫描。最后她说：「你身体内找不到任何金属，那片金属根本没有进入你的咀呢。你以为你感到疼痛，但这只是你的幻觉而已。」
身体的痛楚有时只是幻觉，而我们的灵性也会有同样的情形。我们对神和对自己的看法有时似乎相当真实，但它们却不一定准确。就如我们到医生那里进行体格检查，我们也应经常到那位伟大的医生那里，检查一下我们灵命的实际状况。
圣经是神有力的扫描仪器，神用它来让我们知道，在我们里面有没有问题 —— 并且如何去解决这些问题。圣经又教导我们，应如何以合宜和取悦神的方式，来活出我们的信心。
这位鉴察我们的心的主，使用祂写下的话语，来装备我们行走信心之路。
祷告
主啊，我们研读圣经时，求祢开我们的眼目，看见祢的真理和我们的实况；又以祢默示的话语医治我们，引导我们「走永生的道路」。阿们。