Noelle is ninety. And amazing. She knows all of my children's names and can match them to their faces. She speaks several languages fluently. When my husband starts quoting a verse in the Sunday School lecture, he can see her mouthing the words before he says them. She asks pointed questions that invite illumination, and her answers to questions impart it.
So when I saw her handing out a Bible reading plan at the first of the year, I wasn't shy. "Noelle, can I have one of those?" She eagerly handed me the folded bookmark and answered in the affirmative with that musical lilt that is her voice.
"And Noelle?" I hesitated. "How do you make yourself DO it? I've probably read Genesis ten times now, given how many times I vow to do it and then falter a month into it."
"Oh," she said. "I know about that. But I decided that I was not going to read ANYTHING else each day until I had read my Bible."
And that was it. It may have been the lighting in the narthex, but truly her white hair was shimmering.
But of course. If something is a priority, then it comes first, right? So just ... make it come first.
I am proud to say that I'm almost done with the Book of Joshua. I'm 3 days behind, but that's only because of my own foolhardy reasoning and deviating from the plan. And I'm looking forward to righting that tonight.
I've found that, just as with many other things, the more I do it, the easier it is and the more enjoyable it is! I actually look forward to spending time in the Word and shoving aside "other" reading (ahem, you Laptop Temptress, you...).
I've been a solid reader for over thirty years. And for over thirty years, I have hemmed and hawed and been flummoxed over reading my Bible.
Which, really, is predictably stupid. If you want to make something come first, make it come...first.
Thank you, Noelle.