What do You Treasure?

"He handed me the scroll and said, "Eat this and fill up on it." So I ate the scroll, and it tasted sweet as honey." Ezekiel 3:3 CEV

When you read this verse, what is your immediate thought? The picture that comes into your head?

In the Old Testament, they didn't have the Bible like we do today of course. But everything was written down on scrolls. God is telling Ezekiel to eat this scroll, and then, if you read on, in the next verse, God tells Ezekiel to go the house of Israel and "speak my words to them."

God is basically telling Ezekiel to fill himself with the word of God. To feed upon the words of the Lord God and then he will have the courage and the knowledge to be able to share the Word of God to those in his world, which at that time, was the Israelites.

The Words of God are sweet. They may seem bitter to us at times because of the way we live. The truths that are being revealed to us may be a little hard for us to swallow. The truths revealed may make us feel ashamed of what we are doing or not doing. Saying or not saying. Thinking or not thinking.

You will notice that whenever they refer to something as sweet, it is referred to 'as sweet as honey.' In Biblical days, they didn't have Sweet'n Low, Splenda, or just good ol' plain white sugar. They had honey. Honey was the sweetest thing that they could compare something to. Today, we have sugar coming out of our ears. But back then, honey was not easy to find or cheap. It was a commodity that was treasured.

So, when you think of that fact, does the verse take on a different light? Do you see that not only is God saying that His words are sweet and pleasant, but shouldn't they be treasured? Shouldn't you guard them with the same ferociousness that you would guard your most valued treasures in your treasure chest?

These days, everything is disposable--God's words aren't. God's words are the greatest of all treasures and they should be treated as such, don't you think?

How do you show them respect? By reverently reading them. Don't just skim over the words so that your conscience can say, "I did my Bible reading today. I'm good to go." Truly read the words. Savor each word. Mediate and pray on the meaning that your Lord wants to show you. Some days, you may just get a couple of verses done. That's wonderful!

Compare it to, let's say, a love letter. If you are sent a love letter, don't you read each and every word? You may even read it 3 or 4 times during the day. Then, when you are through with it, don't you put in a really safe place? Don't you think about the words during the day? Smiling occasionally--getting all warm and gushy inside?

Well, that is what the Bible is from your God to you. Treat it the same. And as you read, please remember to thank Him for this most beautiful and treasured love letter.