That Sunday Spiders Crawled Out of my Bible...

True story...

When I was a young mother, being able to attend church while my children were safely tucked away in the nursery was sheer heaven. Time to relax. My husband and I like to sit up close. So here we are on the front row of church and I pull my Bible out as the pastor reads his sermon passage.

Suddenly, tiny black specks begin crawling across the words.

Spiders. Baby spiders.

I try not to scream as I smash them into my Bible page as subtly as possible. I am relieved to hear the pastor say, “Let us pray!” and heads bow, hopefully eyes closing to shield church members from witnessing my arachnid mayhem on the front row and the painful death of my pride.

Baby spiders meet their doom. Mortified doesn’t begin to describe my humiliation.

The pastor is still praying. Then it hits me. Where is mama spider?! The spine of my leather Bible, with my name imprinted in gold on the front cover, must be where she has taken up residency to await her maternal release of a million spawn. I smash that spine and pray she doesn’t emerge.

Thank God, I obliterate her.

By the time the prayer ends, I am done. My heart pounding, I wonder where my Bible has been to pick up Mama spider?

Under my bed.

I had relegated God’s Word to the dusty underworld beneath my bed and it hadn’t seen the light of day for how many days now? I couldn’t remember.

I hear you, God! (And don’t always appreciate your sense of humor.)

Cleaning under the bed became an urgent priority. But so did reading and studying God’s Word... which is now a lifelong passion and pursuit.

Spiders in my Bible means darkness in my soul. Renewing my mind in Christ means immersing myself in His truth, His life-changing, darkness-dispelling Word.

Don’t be like me.

Find time in your busy life to hide God’s Word in your heart. Don’t let your Bible become a nesting ground for spiders and your heart a breeding ground for sin.

"I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." Psalm 119:11 NLT

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