Word for Word

I am a creature of habit.

My morning routine starts before sunrise.

I set my alarm for it.

It’s the time of day when no one is yet to rise except my old fur girl whose alarm clock is determined by mine.  I don’t drink coffee, but I do steep black tea in one of three particular morning mugs.  I have a recliner where I will settle in for an hour or two.  A lightweight blanket will cover my lap while I situate my Bible and journal with a .7 Bic Velocity in hand.  From this position, I begin my day.

A devotional will usually lead my way. Devotionals impart a message through a story or experience but the associated scripture to it is what cracks the spine of my Bible.  It’s what I look up.  It’s what I write out in my journal.

Word for Word.

“Your words are what sustain me.  They bring me great joy and are my heart’s delight.”

I’ve had this practice for a good long while. It was early on that I read in the gospel of John, “the Word was God.”  At a time that I was trying to make sense of spiritual realities in a physical world, I believed that writing His Word was as close to Him as I could tangibly get.  I felt if the Word was God and I wrote the Word, it was like being with God.

I know God is everywhere.  He actually became human and made His home among us. I know the Word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path.  I know it will never fail.  Whether I write it or not does not change what it is.

Alive and powerful.

Nothing helps me more though than to measure my pace and focus on each and every living, piercing, and penetrating word at dark o’clock.

It brings light.

John 1

Hebrews 4:12

Jeremiah 15:16

Psalm 119:105