Romans 15:13 English Standard Version (ESV) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

I admit that my life was a mess and I felt bad about myself and that is why I returned to reading the bible. I continued reading my bible because reading the bible made me feel better about myself.

I was not aware that I was believing. I thought I was just reading and that the act of reading was what made me feel better about myself. I had no one to study with. I had no one to discuss the passages with me. I studied alone in the dark and that in itself made a difference in me. I was finding relevant meaning without understanding how the Word of God was making a difference.

How could the Word of God give me joy and peace in believing if I didn’t even understand that I was believing?

Just receiving the Word changes us in ways that only time can reveal. Without someone to guide you through the nuances of meanings, you are left alone with your thoughts. The fact that I favored the archaic language of the KJV made things even more unclear. I might have favored it because it was archaic and required me to think.

Reading the Word of God alone had one distinct advantage which I was not even aware of during those days. No one else was influencing me in what to think. Error was not being taught. Any mistakes were of my own making and not those of others.

During those times I had a guide that I was not even aware of because His influence was so gentle and considerate of me that He was not a strong presence. It took time to come to know Him in His role in my life.

I did not know the Holy Spirit but He was always there.

Revelation 14:6 English Standard Version (ESV)

 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people.

PCV stands for personal computer version. Today computers and phones make the bible available to nearly everyone everywhere. There are a number of really good websites that offer a large number of different versions of the bible as well as different languages. Phone apps make the gospel portable.

2 Peter 3:1 King James Version (KJV) This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:

Because I did the majority of my bible reading in the KJV, the Holy Spirit reminds me of scripture using the KJV. It is the stirring of memory which I place in my brain, and hopefully in my heart.

These days I do my reading on my desk top PC using BibleGateway as my primary search engine. What I search for comes to mind as I quiet myself and listen. Often times I will wake up with Godly thoughts on my mind. I carry those thought to my PC to study His Word.

It is so much faster to find passages by putting those words into the search bar. I find scriptures listed by book and then verse. Mind you this is only a tool and does not do anything more than give me easy access. Those list do not speak to me.

As I read there will be passages that become meaningful or place me in seeker mode. A subject might peak my interest, or passages surrounding a particular verse might hold meaning or lead me elsewhere.

The search is on.

Jeremiah 29:13 English Standard Version (ESV) You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

The right heart attitude makes it possible to receive His Word with relevant meaning.