Beside Still WatersSample

THE TRUTH SETS YOU FREE

Key Verse

"The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul." (Psalm 19:7 NIV)

Thoughts on Today’s Key Verse

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1 NIV). Allow the Holy Spirit to awaken Himself within you, causing stillness to rule.

When I started reading my Bible, I thought it was filled with laws that had to be kept for God to love me. Boy, was I wrong! I still know people who think this way, but it’s because they’re unable to see the love in the letter.

When the Scripture uses the word law, it’s simply talking about instructions from the Bible. Depending on one’s experience in their life with “the law,” the word can sometimes have a negative connotation. However, the Word of God is His love for us in providing us with direction and boundaries. In them, we can find protection and refreshment for our souls.

Just as our phones come with manuals to ensure we’re operating properly, so is the Bible our manual for life. Sometimes your phone gets crowded with too much junk or is just not functioning as it should, and you have the option to do a reset. When you reset the device, it returns to its original settings.

When we read the Word of God, we’re pressing the reset button for our lives. The world can cause you to forget who you are or what God has said about you, but reading the Word refreshes your memory. It is okay to trust the reflection on the waters.

Today, be reminded that the Word of God comes to quiet your heart, reset your mind, refresh your soul, and fuel your faith. Open the Word and allow it to subdue the noise of the mind and up-root every hindrance to your peace. No matter what you’ve been through, it’s never too late to let God's refreshing Word reset you to who God has created you to be. It’s easy to lose sight of your identity, but if you have the restorative power of God’s Word, you’re never far from your true self.

Many self-help and motivational books leave you feeling good and charged. The Bible is the best and most reliable true transformational tool for a weary soul. Spend some time reading the Word of God, and allow it to refresh your soul. Let it remind you who you are: a Daughter of the Highest God.

Soon after, you’ll be able to rise, take control of your life, and become the woman who allows the personal power within to release the pain from her yesterday and thread the peace of God into today.

PRAYER

I admit, Lord, that I have taken on an identity that has resulted from the terrible things that have happened in my life. But I know that’s not who I am. Help me to turn to Your Word when I find myself lost and allow it to refresh my memory of who I am in You. May it wash away every false sense of self that has haunted me over the years. Thank You for Your Word and its transformational power. Today, I choose to press the reset button on my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.

PERSONAL DECLARATION

The Word of God refreshes me.

TAKE SOUL CARE ACTIONS

1. What time will you set aside to read the Word of God?

2. What beliefs and habits do you want to keep, release, and establish today?