by Joel Hilliker

Don’t forget your other three tools!

Okay, so we talked about having the right attitude in studying God’s Word in Part One. We’ve seen how that will go so far to open up the knowledge God is yearning to pour out to you, and how it will help you be more happy, more inspired and more on-track with God. We’ll cover how to use all those Bible references and helps that we hear our parents and ministers talking about so much in Part Three. But before that, we need to look at three terrific tools that combine with Bible study to give us the huge Bible study breakthrough we need!

These four main tools we use in our spiritual lives are: Bible study, prayer, meditation and fasting. To understand God’s Word, we must have a proper attitude, and also use these three other tools He has given us to draw closer to Him!

Prayer First we should be in the habit of praying about our studies. Ask God to guide you, to teach you what you need to know, to open your mind to receive His instruction and correction. Just as we pray over our physical meals to give God thanks and seek His blessing, so we should also pray over our spiritual meals! Ask God to deepen your study and help you see where you need to change and give you the encouragement you need.

Meditation An often-overlooked tool that is essential for deep Bible study is meditating about what you read. The 1965 Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course said,

Mr. Armstrong has divided his time for Bible study into three parts, using one third of that time on his knees in prayer to God, devoting another third of the time to the study of the Bible, and using the remaining third to THINK OVER the things just studied.

That third part is probably the easiest portion to skip, especially when you are busy. It is easy to sacrifice meditation, thinking you have to get through a certain amount of material. We can fool ourselves into thinking that is more productive than just getting through a few pages. But in order to apply what we are studying in our own lives, we have to think about it! Psalm 1:1-2 say that the blessed man is he who delights in God’s law and meditates on it day and night. We get these thoughts into our minds when we study, then we can think about them throughout the day, even into the night—in our spare moments—as we’re munching on a snack, taking a walk, driving in the car, waiting for an appointment, trying to go to sleep, whatever it might be. The correspondence course recommended:

If you hear or study some religious knowledge during the day, it is advisable that you review it mentally just as quickly as you can after hearing or reading it. Picture it in your mind in its real setting as nearly as possible. …

In the evening of each day, or early the next morning, you can group off these newly learned thoughts with similar thoughts you remember, and draw from them conclusions or principles. Answer for yourself such questions as, what, where, when, who, how and why?

Decide immediately how these newly learned principles will guide you in your daily problems that you know are going to come up. Apply these principles constantly! It will gradually become second nature for you to act by them! God wants you to learn deeply every day!

Another great method of Bible study is to occasionally review what you’ve already been studying, just hitting the high spots you’ve already gone over. You could draw up a single-page summary of a message you’ve read or heard, perhaps writing out the most significant scriptures and bulleting all the main points. This only takes a few minutes to glance over and review.

Fasting Although less frequent than daily Bible study, fasting is also a wonderful tool for drawing closer to the mind of God. It reminds you that you are physical, and thus temporary, and how much you need God! You need His knowledge and His way of life even more than you need your next meal!

Mr. Armstrong combined all four main tools of Christian living when he fasted, taking an hour to pray, an hour to study and an hour to meditate.

Before you sit down, click your pens and crack open your Bible, pause for a moment to bring these things to mind. Take on a proper attitude; seek correction; repent of your way of thinking; believe what God’s Word says; and use prayer, meditation and fasting to draw close to God.

And decide immediately to apply the principles you learn constantly! Then your life, socially, physically, mentally, spiritually, educationally—in every way—will open up into new heights you didn’t even know existed! Crack open that book and study your Bible!