Something to Talk About Every Day
[4] “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. [5] You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. [6] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. [7] You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. [8] You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. [9] You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4–9 ESV
Everybody has their thing: that friend that can quote every line from any Austin Powers movie, that family that explains everything to each other in terms of trading grain, wool, wood, and brick. When God was establishing His people as a country, He really wanted them to succeed. Instead of telling everything to Moses and having him answer everyone’s questions, God said to talk about it all the time and work through this new law.
The word that we read in the Bible as “law” is the Hebrew word “Torah” most of the time. The Torah wasn’t just a law, it was a way of life. Like guys that come home from the Navy and all fold their shirts the same way, the Torah was not just a list of rules, but a method pattern of life. Right after the 10 Commandments, God tells Moses, “Take these things and talk about them to you kids. Talk about them when you are at home and while you go down the road. Talk about them with your wife when you lie down at night and with a bunch of old guys over donuts when you wake up!”
A preacher named Bob Warren used to hold up his Bible and say, “If you make this your hobby, your daily news, your continuous teacher, and adventure, it will change your life. It’s the cheapest hobby out there! It’s only about $70 every few years if you buy an expensive one.” I couldn’t ever imagine buying a $70 Bible, but making Bible reading and interacting with God daily will change your life.
Work in natural ways to talk about it with your family or friends. Asking people questions can open up deeper friendships with them and God that you never knew were possible:
Did you read anything cool in the Bible this week?
Did you have any prayers answered lately?
Today I heard that the Bible says dinosaurs were vegetarians, where do you think it says that?
If you clothe such questions in the love and humility of Christ, as you are clothed in Him, you can even ask questions like that to people that don’t believe it because it’s so doggone interesting! Israel didn’t have it figured out when God said to talk about it all the time, but He knew the only way for them to live it out was to keep it at the top of their minds every day.