Ezekiel 11-13, James 1 • Key Verse: James 1:21
I started using computers, before my daughter was born, and therein lies the, difference. While I
have learned, she has always lived with computers. There has never been a time in her life when
a computer wasn’t in the house. Using electronic gadgets seems to come easier for her than
learning to ride a bike! When she has my cell phone, I wince, wondering how it might be
reprogrammed before she returns it. I keep my PDA out of her sight, just in case.
Then comes the time when, looking over my shoulder, she says, “Dad, you need to . . . .” You
know, it can be hard to take instruction from a preteen, especially about something that you have
been doing before she came on the scene—and especially when she is right. There is something
challenging about saying, “Youre right, child of mine.” You can’t do it without either being
humiliated or without being humble enough to listen.
The same is true about the Word of God. We sometimes fail to learn from what it says because
we are not humble enough to listen. That is why James says, “Receive with meekness the
implanted word,” which means that a person must have the right kind of attitude to accept the
Word. The proud person does not receive any instruction well.
Pride can keep a father from listening to his daughter. It also can keep you and me from listening
to the Word. The result from the first refusal might be having to learn the lesson the hard way—
and that may well be the result of refusing to listen to God’s Word too.
“God, help me today to have a teachable spirit, humbly receptive to Your Word. Guide me and I
will follow. ”
Woodrow Kroll & Tony beckett
www.backtothebible.in