For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4

​The same weed I fight in my garden blooms like morning glories along the dry country roads I run. Bindweed is almost impossible to eradicate here in Kansas. It's roots can reach twenty feet deep. It snaps off when I try to pull it and efforts to tame it only serve to encourage more vigorous growth. It can be frustrating.

Yet it can be so pretty. July was dry here. We only got about two inches of rain, and that came late in the month. The lawn yellowed. The dirt roads cracked. But the bindweed reached out from the ditches and up rustic fences and spread across dusty roads and blossomed.

Sometimes I'm overwhelmed by the Bible. Sometimes I'm frustrated by the way the Bible convicts me. Sometimes I want to pluck out the challenging verses. Jesus, him I want to sit down with on a hot day and share a lemonade. The Book of Job? Well, it scares me. My heart doesn't yearn to dig into Job the way it rests in a garden of purple coneflowers or in a good Psalm. Or in Jesus.

But, oh, how the Word can deliver hope on an emotionally parched day. The more I read it and listen to it and study it with our women's church group the deeper it roots within me.

The whole of the Bible, it's not an easy thing. It's not all lilies and gentle lambs. It isn't generally popular. It is the firm truth to rely upon beyond emotion, though. It can be a living thing within us that thrives under any and all circumstances. The help we can call upon in times of uncertainty, grief, and need. We can count on its wisdom and comfort and holiness.

My challenge is to prioritize quiet time immersed in the Word. We must schedule it every day and be consistent. Get into a good Bible study with fellow believers. Read the Word out loud. Wrestle with it. Marvel at it. Let it spread rest over you when you are weary and all other language fails.

A good resource for starting a Bible reading plan is YouVersion, which is available on the web and as a phone app.