What Have You Learned Today?

When I awake every morning to my ‘quiet time’ with the Lord, I get out my notebook. I expect that I will have some ‘new’ truth to record. I expect to learn from the Holy Spirit as I study the Bible.

The word ‘disciple’ derives from the word to “learn” and means, literally, a ‘learner.’ We are all called, as His disciples, to be LEARNERS! Do you have such an expectation? When I meet with my friends, I almost always ask the question: “what are you learning in your quiet time?” Since I have come to know the Holy Spirit as the “Teacher,” I am eager to know what He is teaching my friends— because whatever they have learned, I can learn too!—some new insight about Jesus, or maybe something about me that needs to change. In his first letter to Timothy (1:5), Paul says: “…the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” As we study the Bible, we learn what it is to have a pure heart, a good conscience, and to grow in our faith.

Jesus said to His disciples (His learners): “Come unto me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest…come and LEARN from me” (Matthew 11:28-29). We have all learned ways of dealing with the stresses of life that are not very effective. We have to UNLEARN these things if we are going to “learn” from Jesus. As I read the Word, I see how Jesus lived peacefully in a world full of conflict. I am learning how to live like Jesus. And I have much more to learn. That’s why I approach every morning with an expectation of what I will learn today. After all I am a “disciple,” i.e., a learner. How about you? Are you truly a disciple? a learner?