For me, one of
the elements of spending time with God in his word involves meditating on the
same passage of Scripture for a full seven days in preparation for teaching on it
the next Sunday morning. That means that I enjoy the wonder of finding new
treasures in the same passage of Scripture from one day to the next. I often
find that my meditation on God’s word Sunday morning yields even more treasures
that tie everything together in a way that seems to be exactly what our people
need from God that morning.
Summer is a
good time to begin inviting people to spend time in the word in a way I’m
calling, “Digging in the Quarry”. God’s word is the quarry full of treasures of
divine wisdom and knowledge, and these treasures are there for all who will
spend some time digging deeper into the thoughts of God. I encourage you to try
this for a week and watch what happens. If you have a group of people who need
some encouragement to stay in the word throughout the summer, invite them to
join you in this. If you know people who never seem to get into the word, even
though they seem to have the desire to do so, ask them to join with you and “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.“[1]
“Digging in the Quarry” is very simple. Copy and paste
a Scripture into an email.[2]
Send it to your group. Everyone do a “reply all” with the one thing that stood
out to them that day. The next day, send out the same Scripture, and everyone
again respond with the one thing that stood out. By the end of the week, each
person will have seen how digging in the quarry of God’s word yields wonderful treasures
to all who participate, and unites groups of God’s people in finding treasures
that are only discovered when we dig together.
I have opened
up an email account just for the “Digging in the Quarry” focus, as I expect
that I will be encouraging people in this way for a very long time. Although I
hope to get people gathering their own groups around the word and watching what
happens with their own interaction, I also want to see how God works to connect
people together beyond what we could imagine. If you want to interact about
this, or if you need someone to share your treasures with, feel free to email
me at: the7quarry@gmail.com
Our home
church is beginning this week with the following Scripture. If you want to
copy/paste it into an email and share it with others, or share it with me, feel
free. If you would like me to email you the Scripture we are using on a weekly
basis, just let me know. Whatever the case, and with whatever Scripture you are
coming to next, and however many or few days you feel you should spend on any
given passage, the aim is to build up a people who are devoted to the word of
God and prayer both individually and corporately. As each member of the body of
Christ strengthens themselves in the word of God and prayer, we are able to
band together with others to also strengthen and build up the body of Christ.
Here is this
week’s Scripture. Blessed digging!
From my heart,
Monte
PS: Please share this around and let’s see how many people we
can encourage to have a summer saturated in the treasures of God’s word.
1 They came to the other side of the sea, to the
country of the Gerasenes. 2 And when Jesus had stepped out of
the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean
spirit. 3 He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him
anymore, not even with a chain, 4 for he had often been bound
with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the
shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. 5 Night
and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and
cutting himself with stones. 6 And when he saw Jesus from afar,
he ran and fell down before him. 7 And crying out with a loud
voice, he said, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?
I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” 8 For he was saying to
him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9 And Jesus
asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are
many.” 10 And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of
the country. 11 Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on
the hillside, 12 and they begged him, saying, “Send us to the
pigs; let us enter them.” 13 So he gave them permission. And
the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering
about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the
sea.
14 The herdsmen fled and told it in the city
and in the country. And people came to see what it was that had happened. 15 And
they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the
legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 16 And
those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the
demon-possessed man and to the pigs. 17 And they began to beg
Jesus to depart from their region. 18 As he was getting into
the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might
be with him. 19 And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go
home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how
he has had mercy on you.” 20 And he went away and began to
proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone
marveled. (Mark 5 ~ ESV)
© 2013 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517,
Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8 ~ in2freedom@gmail.com
Unless otherwise noted,
Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good
News Publishers.)
[1]
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom,
singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts
to God.” (Colossians 3:16)
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