Do you Facebook?
Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.
Deuteronomy 11:18
It is pretty obvious where we are going with this one, huh? But wait, there’s more. This is not a rant about how we should not use social media. (Although, there are some people who really shouldn’t use it.) Social media can be a very useful tool when used correctly; but, can also cause a lot of damage when not handled with caution, just like anything in this world. We, as Christians, should seek to use it in a manner which would bring glory to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now to get to it!
Do you facebook? My wife and I share a facebook page. (I will blog another day for why we have chosen to have shared Facebook page) Anyway, we do have a facebook page and I am always amazed, although I should have learned, how when I, on a rare occasion, decide to peruse the annals of most recent updates from my “facebook friends” without fail an hour later I look up and realize it sucked me in again! I always think to myself I am not going to let that happen this time, but similar to Wal-mart, it seems that somehow Mark Zuckerberg has found the same secret time vortex that Sam Walton did. This vortex makes it so that when you enter the portal i.e. superstore doors or facebook page you cannot help but lose time you had not expected to spend this way.
This got me asking. When was the last time anyone of us could say that we opened up the only book, in which we can actually come face to face with the God of the universe, the Holy Bible and began reading; only to look up hours later having found ourselves so consumed with the conversation the Lord was having with us through His infallible word the same way we do when we log into our social media accounts.
In the verse we read above we hear the instructions of the Lord how he calls us to lay up, as in to store away for yourself. Lay up what though? His Word! I am always so perplexed by Christians who will say they love the Lord God and His word yet when pressed the only time they find their face in His book is on Sundays and Wednesday nights. The Lord here is challenging us to store up His word in our heart, our soul, if you would the word of God ought to be a very part of who we are. The Prophet Jeremiah said this about the word of the Lord.
Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
Jeremiah 20:9
Jeremiah said this in a time when He was trying to hold his tongue and not share the word of the Lord but He could not contain it because as those he was surrounded by tried to blaspheme The Lord God almighty he expresses that His heart so contained the word that it felt as if His bones were on fire in trying to contain the word.
The Psalmist would express it this way to the Lord.
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
Psalm 119:11
What an amazing thought, hide the word in your heart, have it such a part of you that when you are living, your life moments and conversations bring verses to your mind.
So many seem very quick with a quote from a movie or quick to respond how a situation reminds them of something they saw on TV, but far too often we will miss the opportunities to share insight from the word of God and only because we have not had our Face in His book.
The Psalmist brings up an interesting point. For why it is that we should have the word of God become a very present thing in our lives? The answer: “that I might not sin against thee.”
Maybe that is the problem; perhaps we are not afraid to sin against God. I often, to help keep a right heart, ask myself would I rather be caught by God? Or by man in sin? Valid questions, I think, unfortunately, most of us would be more ashamed if men found out about our sin than if God does (and He does). This, Christian, is not how it should be. We, as Believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, should desire to be so close to Him that we would be afraid to cause offence and lose that fellowship with Him. The same way we are with our BFF, (best friends forever, for us older folks). As a matter fact, if we were to back up in our text in Deuteronomy, we would read these words before this instruction.
Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD’S wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you.
Deuteronomy 11:16-17
Take heed to yourselves, this is a warning. If we turn our heart toward other gods and worship anything, like electronics, your smartphone, social media or status, or even yourself, over God there will be consequences. But then he gives the antidote to this problem in the text we first read, laying up His word in our heart.
So, perhaps, you are already feeling like God has left you and that leaves you saying something like, “Lord where are you? We used talk all the time?”
Well, friend, I know where He can be found and so do you. You will find Him when you get your face in His book.
