Spiritual Fitness
We read the words and we hear the words but do we really listen? Sixteen times in the New Testament Jesus challenges us to use our ears to listen. If we are really listening then we will apply the words to our lives. In the case of Matthew 4:4 it would mean the intake of God’s Word just as frequently as we have our meals. I think we can agree we should read/study/mediate on the Scriptures at least once a day. But do we do it?
Why would we want to give up our time and spend it in the Scriptures? If we do not eat physical food what happens? We grow weak physically. If we do not have our spiritual food we will grow weak spiritually. When we grow weak physically we become susceptible to all kinds of physical ailments/diseases. When we grow weak spiritually we become susceptible to the attacks of the devil, the allurements of the world, and the lust of the flesh.
Having a quiet time where we spend time reading the Bible and praying is much like physical exercise. The time spent in physical exercise is returned to us in the need for less sleep and better quality of life. In much the same way God provides the energy we need to seek Him. Time spent in prayer and reading the Bible is not time lost. Instead it seems to generate its own time with more energy and better quality of life.
We are now living in the 21st Century. This century brings with it moral pressures which will destroy those who are not spiritually fit. The only way to be spiritually fit is to have a daily quiet time which includes Bible reading/study/meditation and prayer.
(Having a quiet time where we spend time reading the Bible and praying is much like physical exercise.)