Day 122: 1 Chr 2:1 - 3:24

You know, it's a little difficult to jump from stories about royalty and war and excitement into pages and pages of lists of names. But in the introduction to the books of Chronicles, I was reminded of a very important point. God's Word is not just a book that will change our lives and breathe new life into our spirits, It's also a book to teach us the history of God's people. One purpose of a book of history is for mere information, but another reason is to make the history real enough to us to keep us from making the same mistakes and help remind us to make the same good decisions. In the case of the kings of Israel and Judah, without names and dates and places, all we would have are abstract ideas and fluid thoughts and intentions. But when we are able to add names and dates and places to these ideas, thoughts, and intentions, we are then able to relate to them and they become something more than just words on a page - they become real experiences.

- God, help me to store these names and places in my heart so that I will be able to not only recall thoughts and ideas, but actual people and places and the actual events that lead them to their ultimate resting places. Help me to focus and pay attention so that these passages will be more than shallow words, they'll be Your words that I can take with me wherever I go. -