Don’t Leave Home Without It

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (Psalm 119:1)

I made a decision a long time ago that has served me in ways I cannot fully count. I made up my mind that I will not leave the house until I have prayed and put some Word in me. Here is the truth. I have no idea what I might run up against out there. I need to be prepared before I go, not after I get hit.

The Psalmist understood this. He said he had hidden the Word in his heart. The word hidden there means to store up, to treasure, to deposit in a safe place where it can be drawn on when needed. He was not just reading the Word. He was depositing it in the deep places of his heart, like building a reservoir his spirit could draw from when life demanded something of him. So when the pressure came, when temptation came, when the moment arose that required a Word, it was already there.

Think about it this way. If you are driving and something comes at you full speed with no warning, you do not have time to find the right Scripture. You do not have time to look up your notes on a series taught a year ago or to think through the correct response. What comes out in that split second is whatever is in your heart in abundance. If the Word is in there, the Word comes out. If fear and confusion are in there, that is what comes out. You want to be like a Twinkie, soft on the outside, full on the inside, so that when you get squeezed, what pours out is something good.

This is why the Word is a daily thing and not an occasional thing. Every day you face things you did not anticipate, and every day you need what only comes from having spent time with the Lord and His Word. The angels hearken to the voice of the Word. When what comes out of your mouth in a crisis is the Word of God, things move. And people around you will wonder how in the world you survived what should have destroyed you.

Practical Application

Before you leave the house each morning, make it a point to pray and put some Word in you. This shouldn’t be an option; it needs to be a commitment and a pattern. Keep doing this like your day depends on it, because in ways you will not always see, it does.

Psalm 103:20; Proverbs 4:21