Today’s Reading: Psalm 81

9 There shall be no strange god among you; you shall not bow down to a foreign god.
10 I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
Psalm 81:9-10

Do you hear the allusion to the Ten Commandments? 

In verse 9, about the middle of the Psalm, the author quotes the first (or second) commandment (depending on who you ask!). Scripture is full of allusions; times where it reminds the reader of something else in scripture. To read scripture and catch these allusions is to have a richer, fuller, experience. 

Here, that richer and fuller experience is to note that the author is calling the people to consider that they reap what they sow. In referring to the start of the Ten Commandments, the author refers to the base of the law for the ancient Israelites and to the entirety of the Ten Commandments themselves. His point is clear, as evidenced in verse 10 and throughout all of Psalm 81: you will reap what you sow. Follow the law, good things will come. Fail to uphold the law, the basics even like the Ten Commandments, and evil things will follow. 

To catch these allusions, this richness, requires that we read on a regular basis. This is a common place of struggle, but it’s easy to establish a routine of scripture reading if we’ll follow a few principles and stick with these for three weeks:

1. Attach the new routine of reading scripture to something you already do on a regular basis. For example, when you pour a second cup of coffee, or after you feed the dog, read scripture. 
2. For three weeks, read scripture after doing that same thing you already do (coffee, the dog, etc.). 
3. After three weeks, it’ll be a habit: you’ll naturally move from coffee or the dog to reading scripture. 

This method for establishing a habit comes from the great book The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. I recommend it!

Establish a habit of reading scripture daily and discover a new depth of richness to your Bible reading.

Think
How often am I reading scripture? How varied are my scripture readings? 

Pray
Commit to God to keep a schedule, a routine, of reading scripture.

Do
Establish a new habit, following the guidelines above. For a bonus, check out the book on establishing habits I referenced! 

Think, Pray, Do. As we respond in faith to scripture, God moves in power through our minds, hearts, and bodies. We are the people of God. Thanks for reading today. Go in peace. Amen.

Think, Pray, Do devotionals by Ted Goshorn follow the suggested bible reading plan from his website and book, Prayer Changes Us. Find this Bible reading plan at tedgoshorn.org/biblereading. If you have found today’s devotion helpful, don’t forget to subscribe for daily emails at tedgoshorn.org and share with others that we may think, pray, and do faithfully.