Know what I’m loving this week? This is a bit of a departure from my typical “things I love” posts… we’re not talking about a housework gadget or coffee or birthday cake… this is one of the things I love most of all.

I love it when God speaks.

I’m not talking an auditory voice (although, I’m positive He does that, too!) – I love it when God clearly shows me something in His Word.

If you haven’t noticed from the random bunny trails I take within the “studies” on here, I tend to have quite a few topics and study-focuses (foci?) spinning in my head at once. I have been spending a lot of time in the Proverbs this summer and specifically reflecting on how the Proverbs speak to parenting. I hope to come back to this down the road, but buckle up… we’re taking a detour.

Back when we were going through the Psalms, I had a lightbulb moment (or at least a partial lightbulb moment) when I did a word study on “blessed” in the Psalms. After compiling the verses in the Psalms about those who were blessed, it was ringing a bell – Jesus’ definition of those who were “blessed” in the ‘beattitudes’ lined up amazingly well with how the Psalms described the “blessed.” It gave me a deep hunger to study more closely the words of Jesus.

I had the privilege of walking a dear friend through the book of John after she came to know the Lord in high school. As we discussed how the Old Testament and New Testament tie together, I loved that she exclaimed, “Jesus is like the decoder ring to the Old Testament!!” This is such a great analogy! I think it also works a bit in the reverse – the teachings of Jesus make much more sense to us with the background of the Old Testament in our minds!

I think we often miss out on the vivid pictures He paints and the Truths that He teaches because we are unfamiliar with the Old Testament that He draws from so frequently – His listeners would have known the law well, if not had it memorized, so it makes sense that He would allude to it frequently. And sadly, it usually flies right over our head.

So, we read those words of life, shrug our shoulders when they don’t make sense to us, and take a blind stab at what it means based on how we feel about it. I’m speaking about myself here, too – that’s why I have felt burdened to start studying the words of Jesus, keeping them in context with the entire scope of Scripture, longing to hear more of what He is telling us as His followers.

As we continue through this bunny trail, I will tell you more of the spinning ‘foci’ in my mind that are lining up as I study Jesus’ teachings. I’m sorry if it bugs any of you that I keep switching subjects, but I’m loving that God is redirecting. His Word is so rich – sweeter than honey from the comb – and it is a delight to study it with you. I hope and pray you hang on for the ride, that God would bless you as you consider His Truths, and that the Holy Spirit would use them to change and transform you into the image of Jesus Christ.

Open our eyes to your Truth, Lord – how we need your decoder ring!