Listen and Do

“We have examined this, and it is true. So hear it and apply it to yourself.”Job 5:27

This is an interesting verse, it's said by Job's friend, Eliphaz, and if you read Job 4 and 5 you can figure out that it's probably said in a rather patronizing manner. I'm going to encourage you to do something that you should never really do, take this out of context. Take this verse, pick it up, and place it just after anything Jesus said, or Paul said, or Peter said or even James said. Wait...James already said something like this, check out James 1:22-25.

Ironically, I was thinking about something like this while my mind was wandering while I was reading my Bible. One of the things I've learned to do when I find my mind wandering while I'm reading is to start reading out loud. By the way, for anyone writing something important that other people have to head, this is also a great way of proofreading your work. I find reading things out loud force me to focus more on what I'm reading, because it doesn't just involve my eyes doing something, it also brings in my mouth, which forces my brain to engage. But again, I wander...

Think of how many times things would have gone better if you had just listened to what someone told you. I recently have had some success with losing some weight, I still have quite a bit to go, but since I've lost 80 pounds so far, I'm kinda happy. [I know, I did cheat the last five or ten pounds, I just had them cut it off. ;-)] But I only had that success when I decided to listen to what people were trying to say to me, but I also had to change things up, so I went to Weight Watchers. Weight Watchers was great for me, I had people who could help me out by giving me instructions but also provided a way of accountability for me. I know WW isn't for everyone, but I wouldn't be surprised that one of the reasons they're so successful is because they're running on a model that could be called Biblical.

Look at the apostles, they went around in teams, gave instruction, and lived with people to provide an example and accountability. And it speaks on this in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.

To sum up, this is not a commercial for Weight Watchers, I simply used them as an example. What I am trying to say is follow the example of the Bible, read, listen, and do what it says. Ultimately, it will be a blessing to you, it probably won't make life easier, but certainly more rewarding and purposeful.