Not long after Lorie and I purchased a somewhat dilapidated hobby farm for our family, we went to work getting it ready for some cows.

We had no idea what we were doing but the lessons will last us and our children a lifetime! And those cows were amazing.

When you get around them, they are generally calm and calming.

They're also content to chew grass for a very long time.

Looking at them, you'd think they're just lying there thinking about life.

Their stomachs have four compartments so during their digestion process they regurgitate what they've eaten and "chew the cud".

They ruminate while in a state that resembles deep contemplation.

That's instructive.

Not that cows sit around contemplating life, but that we should spend more time chewing on what God's word says… We all need to get more out of God's word and meditation helps…

The above excerpt from my soon to be published book came back up the other day while reading Pro. 12:11. And that made me think of Hosea 12:1.

Social & news feeds.

Following vain people.

Feeding on wind (nothingness).

Ruminating on those two verses gives us plenty to think about. And it’s all right there if we’ll take the time to chew on what Scripture feeds us.

God even points to cows and other beasts to teach us right here in Job 12:7.

But who has the time with all the social media and news consumption?

We’re being served foolishness, emptiness, vanity and fear on our social feeds and don’t think much about it.

No wonder many feel empty yet hungry all the time. But what would you expect if your diet consists of eating wind and following vain people?

Our spiritual growth is at risk of being stunted by a social feed or other overly indulged forms of amusement (no-think-ment).

When we just follow along, little by little we become more empty in the process.

What we feed on matters. After all, it’s likely to come up later.

Maybe it’s time to learn a lesson from those cows and trade out some of our social media for Scripture and then chew on it until we squeeze every last bit of nourishment that we can from it.

That might even make it easier to swallow.

If you become what your social feeds you and who you follow, what will you become?

It’s worth thinking about. Maybe those cows are on to something.

And speaking of spiritual digestion, here’s a quote from Andrew Murray worth chewing on from that chapter in my book:

“…to avoid personal meditation is to receive all your spiritual nourishment from material that has passed through the spiritual digestion of others.”

Talk about a gut check.

Here’s my question for you: What vain activities have you been allowing to crowd out time in Scripture and thinking about what God’s word says? I’d love to hear your answer. Reply and share it with me, or better yet, jump into our free community and engage with others.

PS: I set a goal to double the reach of this ministry. Can you forward this newsletter regularly to a few people you know — in your household, workplace and church — and encourage them to subscribe? Thank you.

Book Excerpt (this book is going to make Bible reading easier and more enjoyable):

When I got up off the floor, the puddle of tears and snot in the carpet weren’t my first concern. I checked on my one-year-old daughter asleep on the floor nearby then sank into my couch. Sitting there processing what happened I knew life would never be the same. What was Lorie, my wife, going to think? And how was I going to tell her when she got home?

I made my way down the narrow hall past a little closet and made two phone calls. First, to my brother. It was 1994 and a few years earlier he gifted me a beautiful leather-bound Bible that he knew Lorie and I needed more than what little money they had to make ends meet.

I wasn’t interested in God at the time and so I put that Bible on the upper shelf in the back of that closet. When I opened the door and reached up it was right in the corner where I placed it: still unopened.

But that was about to change. Bible now in hand, I sat back on that couch, looking at my daughter, having had my first real conversation with God. I just invited Jesus into my life and didn't know what to do next. But I did know it started somewhere in that Bible…

You can read the rest of the excerpt in the community space. Just click on the link below:

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