2 Timothy 3:15-17 – From infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (NIV)

I remember a Bible that I purchased some years ago. I reverently placed it on the coffee table. Each time I dusted, I would take it and carefully remove it, dust it off and put it back into its revered place on the coffee table. Have you ever done that?

I believed that the Bible was so holy I didn't want to crease a page. With the passing of time my thinking started to change. The Lord entered in; He called me to come; and a new movement was afoot in my life. Jesus came into my heart; I joined a Bible study; I needed a Bible. I took that holy Bible from its revered place on the coffee table, opened it up, and began my study.

As I matured in the word, I began to highlight some of the important words and phrases. Then I found myself writing notes in the margins. Today as I look at that Bible, I believe it is not only holy, but it is so meaningful; it's an old friend. The last part of Revelation has broken out of its bindings, and the cover is torn and battered. I have read it from cover to cover more than once. I love that holy book and I still revere it.

I understand it a lot more, now, than when it sat on the coffee table. To me "abused" doesn't always mean "battered". I believe the abused Bible is the one that remains on the coffee table and is never used.

Though this devotional has been about my Bible, and me, I have written it for all of us. Hopefully our Bibles have become the most important part of our lives. We know that in using our Bibles more, we will not be abusing them.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for opening our eyes and our hearts so that we may know and love you. Make us instruments of Yours, so that we may be used by You. Amen.

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About the author:

Anne Russell <annerussell80@gmail.com>
Brampton, Ontario, Canada
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