It is important to eat - eat regularly, eat the right food, eat sufficient amounts of it (and chew it thoroughly!)
It
is also important to exercise - exercise regularly, exercise according
to what your body needs, and exercise for a suitable length of time.
It is important to do both of these things -
-Eat without exercising and you will probably become bloated, heavy and lacking in energy.
-Exercise without eating and you will get overly thin, malnourished and lacking in energy.
Why do I say such (painfully) obvious things? Because I like analogies, and perhaps this is a good one.
It is important to read God's word - read regularly, read a right translation of it,
read sufficient amounts of it (and chew it thoroughly!)
...but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
-Ps 1:2-3 ESV
It is also important to pray - pray regularly, (1 Thes. 5:17)
pray for yours and the other's needs, (Lk. 11:1-4)
and pray according to the will of God. (1 Jn. 5:14-15)
It is important to do both these things:
-Read
God's word without praying and you will become puffed up with head
knowledge, unable to understand its spiritual meaning, (Ps. 119:25) and
lacking in spiritual energy.
"Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” - Matt. 26:41 ESV
-Pray
without reading God's word and your prayers will become shallow and
trite, your soul will be malnourished and unable to stand up in trials
of daily life, (Mat. 7:24) and you will lack spiritual energy. (Ps.
119:28)
Isn't it interesting how the physical often parallels the spiritual?
________________________________________________________
A good read on prayer
And a good (and not-too-long) read on God's word
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• Friday, August 4, 2006 - Great analogy!
~Betsy