CONVICTION

When you experience conviction from the Holy Spirit, it might come out of the blue as you are walking down the street, but more often than not it will manifest during one of two activities: reading the Bible or listening to a sermon. 

Of the two, I would rather experience that conviction while reading the Bible on my own.

For one thing, reading the Bible can happen at any hour, giving the Spirit a wider time frame for action, not limiting him to a 25 minute period on Sunday mornings.

Secondly, if God hits you upside the head while you are reading Scripture at home, you have the option of pushing pause and giving his lesson plenty of time and silence to sink in. Not so in a worship service.

Finally, when God's word leads to conviction, it is more direct than when through a sermon. No middleman is needed. We won't be tempted to dismiss the conviction as a mere byproduct of the preacher's skills in oration. 

I say all this because yesterday morning I experienced conviction while reading my Bible and it left me wanting even more.

I don't want to read the Bible looking for confirmation of what I already believe and do. I want to be told the hard things.