Last Sunday night at church, I listened to a sermon preached from Psalm 16, What Cannot Be Shaken, Rejoices.  The preacher’s main point focused on showing how this psalm demonstrates that devotion to God deepens our delight and our confidence in God.

Then, as the providence of God would have it, as I did my 7-miler walk the next day, (I usually listen to sermons while walking), the one I happened to listen to was also a Psalm, the very familiar, Psalm 23 by Pastor H. B. Charles preaching The Ever-Present God.

Both of these sermons helped me realize how much my daily Bible reading is deepening my being in awe of our Great God. Until the past few years, I had never been good at following a Bible reading plan. I write about this in a post.

But I must share that going through the Bible, Genesis through Revelation has been monumental in me seeing God, knowing God, and being in awe of him. So far this year, I have read, Genesis, Job, Exodus, Leviticus and now I am in the latter part of Numbers. (This plan is the chronological plan, but I usually read a Genesis through Revelation plan.)

In these books, not only have I seen where we all began in Genesis, I’ve seen God’s wisdom in creation, his sovereignty to speak things into being, his patience and longsuffering with man, his faithfulness to his covenants made with man, his mighty hand in delivering the Israelites, his ability to rescue and protect Lot, and his love and compassion as he considers the stranger and the poor.  I’ve seen how God is a God of specificity in the building of the ark, and the tabernacle. I’ve seen God’s righteous jealousy and his anger. All of these characteristics are seen just in these five books.

Seeing God’s character displayed in the scriptures has and continues to deepen my awe.  My post, A Fresh Awe decribes my fascination with God. But it is first through the reading of his word that I obtain this. Yes, reading takes discipline, but even in that we can ask God to incline our hearts to desire his word. Oh, the benefits!!!!

I have no doubt about his lovingkindness, his ability to save, his forgiveness, his mercy and his judgments.  I know that he is sovereign over all things, and that nothing or no one is out of his control. He can set up or put down kingdoms.

Reading and seeing God’s wonderful works to the children of men, gives me confidence that he is able to save, that he knows my frailty, and that he has already made provision for me and will cause everything to work out for my good!

Reading his word, realigns our heart and minds to see everything through biblical perspective.  It provides me guidance, comfort, hope because I have seen how he works, and trust that he is working.

I had planned to cite biblical references where all of God’s characteristics I cited can be seen, but why rob you of this opportunity to see it for yourself?

You too can know that God is sufficient, that David describes in Psalm 16, and learn to trust God as the Shepherd who is always with you, guarding you through life as seen in Psalm 23.

But how can we know this Great God if we don’t read his book? How can we love him if we don’t know him?

Read the book!