Pell City, Alabama

Prayer-Reading the Bible

EM Bounds said, “The Word of God is the food by which prayer is nourished.”  Reading and studying the Word of God is key to our spiritual growth, but one of the most helpful things I do is pray the Scripture as I read it.  It’s conversation with the Word as we read His word.  

Recently I read someone who said, “When I look back on forty years of walking with the Lord, I realize that pray-reading the Word—using the Scripture as the “conversational material” for my communication with Jesus—has been the single most significant activity in my spiritual life. This simple activity is essential to abiding in Christ.” (Mike Bickle)

When we let the Word of God drive our conversation with God, we find that we are praying according to His will and in His name.  The first time I really encountered this was in a hotel room in China.  The sounds of the city were all around me, but I got down on my knees and opened my Bible to Ephesians and found myself ‘prayer-reading” it.  It changed my life.

I’ve written about Don Whitney’s book Praying the Bible and I can’t recommend it enough…but ultimately, as you read the Word ask the Spirit to help point out areas where you are spiritually deficient and ask Him to move in your life.  

You’ll find things to stop doing, things to start doing, promises to believe, commands to obey, and simple encouragement to love God more deeply.  Try prayer-reading the Bible today and see what God does.

John Thweatt

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