No Updates Available

We get this message when we try to update our computer software.  We are constantly reminded by the software giants of the world to continuously update our ever changing editions of our trusted programs.  The computer industry has created something that will change daily, if not more often.  We will do what we have to do to have the latest and greatest version so that we can feel that we are ahead of the game, out in front of everyone who are slow to upgrade their software.  But there is one piece of software we should never update.  God’s Word will never change.  His intentions and plans for our lives will never change.  The trusted lessons included in the 66 books of the Bible will never be changed in order to be “current” or become the latest version.  They will always stand as the ultimate truth in a world that is constantly looking for a new version or update.

“Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:6-9(NKJV)

God did not create something that would need to be updated on a regular basis.  This is made known by the fact that He encourages us to “meditate in it day and night.”  If a book is going to change, we would spend more time making sure we had right version, instead of paying more attention to applying what we read.  I find myself at times reading a passage, then struggling to find application in today’s world.  The trick is to ask God to help us with this.  When we pray to God for a clear picture in our mind of what He wants, He will provide us with a clean screen ready to be updated with His will for our lives.  The Bible is fluid, applicable and current.  The problem comes when we rush through it looking for the obvious application and miss God’s intentions.  We need to update our approach to applying God’s Word to our lives, and stop looking for the latest update, because there is no need for one. 

We should spend more time looking at how we can apply God’s Word to our current situations, trusting and believing He will intercede when and where needed in order to get us through the computer crash.  We tend to try several ways of “rebooting” or simply unplugging and we hope that when the switch is turned back on, we will be fine.  We do this because we want to go back in time and do things different.  If we all had a “reboot” button, we would be much better off.  We pretend the bad situation never existed, or will disappear on its own, so we just wait for the our computer to restart. 

We need to apply the fixes we find there and stop thinking we can fix it by just “rebooting.” 

“in the world, not of the world”