useful study tool

I've been wanting to blog about this for a while...and now I have a bit of time:

A month or so ago I wrote this down so I'd remember it: No study tool is as useful as a ready and focused heart.

I'm pretty diligent about taking time before I fall asleep each night to pray and read God's Word. But diligence doesn't equal excitement or deep desire. My desire fluctuates.

Recently I've been trying to use more study tools to help me understand what I read. I have MacArthur's study Bible notes that I use to deepen my understanding of a passage. And I also have a book that gives a summary overview of each chapter of the Bible. It helps me get the gist of a passage.

But I've realized that even when I have those tools, and maybe even others, if my heart is not in the right place...the words I read enter my heart and mind without value. There is little to no influence in my life, heart and mind if I don't have a ready and focused heart.

That's the most useful study tool: when my heart is excited to feast on the spiritual food that God's Word supplies.

No study tool is as useful as a ready and focused heart.