Devotionals are supplements

Loose ends and Tight Knots

I wonder if many of us suffer from a bad case of Devotionalitis (noun /devo·​shun·​al· ītəs). It's a growing malady among GenX'ers whose symptoms include scriptural atrophy by theological degeneration and gradual decline in spiritual effectiveness. Its side effects are stunted spiritual growth and poor Bible memory recall. Millions suffer from it every day.

As Christians, we can't just pretend that we're immune to the postmodern culture we're living in. We're all swimming in it. We want everything fast and easy, including our spirituality. Lately, it seems like reading devotionals has become the new way to read the Bible. Yes, you read that right. We’ve come to the place where we believe that reading a single verse, along with the comments of a great author, constitutes our daily bible time.

But I have to wonder if God is really happy with this trend. There are so many new devotionals coming out all the time (just in time for Christmas!), that I can’t keep up. And they're mostly written by famous dead people who are supposed to be scripturally gifted. And don't get me wrong, they are! But where do these authors get their wisdom from in the first place? The Bible.

I’d probably survive if all I ate and drank were power bars and Ensure. But I doubt I’d thrive. Why? Because they are supplemental. They were never meant to replace my daily food. I understand the help a devotional can be, I read and write them all the time. But there’s more a soul needs than the essentials. We need to recapture the methodic, deep, meditative study of the Word of God like the previous generations and reap its greater reward.

Job 23:12 "I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.”