An Essential for Spiritual Growth

Billy Sunday was a professional baseball player when he accepted Christ in 1886. At the time, an older believer told Sunday that if he followed this advice, they would never write the word backslider after his name: Take fifteen minutes every day to let God talk to you. Take fifteen minutes every day to talk to God. And take fifteen minutes every day to tell others about the Savior. Sunday followed that advice and became one of the greatest evangelists in history, reaching thousands and thousands of people.

If you want to be a growing Christian, you must read, study, and love the Word of God. Why? Because one of the first things that a young Christian will face is doubt. When I became a believer, I didn’t feel anything emotionally, but I could see changes in my life. And right away I started doubting. I thought, Oh man. What if this isn’t true?

I went and told a Christian friend what was happening, and he said, "Oh, you are going through a trial."

I said, "What? I’m on trial?"

"No," he said. "You are going through a trial."

He went on to explain that I was being tested by the Devil. And that was true.

When the Devil came to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, what did he say? He challenged the Word of God: "Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?" (Genesis 3:1). He was saying, in effect, "Did God really say what you thought He said?"

If you know the Word of God, you can defend yourself against the Enemy’s attacks. It’s nice to carry a Bible in your purse, briefcase, or on your smartphone, but the best place to carry God’s Word is in your heart.