// KENNETH W. HAGIN

"My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
—Proverbs 4:20–22

 

The Word of God is like medicine to our bodies. We need to learn how to take God's medicine so it can do its healing work.

 

Most people have had to get a prescription filled at a pharmacy at one time or another. There are always instructions on the bottle of medicine that tell how much to take, when

Most people have had to get a prescription filled at a pharmacy at one time or another. There are always instructions on the bottle of medicine that tell how much to take, when to take it, and how to take it. The bottle may read, "Take one tablet every six hours," "Take one pill three times a day," or "Take one pill in the morning and one pill at night
with food."

If we don't follow the instructions, we can get into trouble. We can take too much or not enough of the medicine. Or we can take it too often or not often enough. With medicine, we must take it according to the doctor's prescription. It will only be effective if it's taken properly.

We need to do the same thing with the prescription that God has written for us. It's very simple and is found in Proverbs 4:20 and 21. In these verses we find four steps to taking the medicine of God's Word.

1. Attend, or give attention, to God's Word.

The word attend means "to give one's undivided attention." Proverbs 4:20 could be better understood if we read it like this: "Give your undivided attention to the words of God."

When someone says, "I want your undivided attention," we know that means we're not supposed to think about, look at, or do anything else. We're supposed to focus directly on what that person is saying to us.

This is what God wants us to do. He wants us to shut out everything around us and, without any interruptions, give our undivided attention to His Word!

2. Incline your ear to God's Word.

Incline simply means "listen." Proverbs 4:20 could be read this way: "Listen with your ears to what I am saying." God is telling us to open our ears to the words He is speaking to us.

When we open our ears to God's Word, we are closing them to everything we hear that is contrary to that Word. So many times we are listening to what God says but we're also listening to what others say. We begin listening to this person and that person, this preacher and that preacher. But what matters is what God says.

Our victory lies in opening our ears to the Word of God and turning off everything else. That way our undivided attention is on what God has to say. When we close our ears to outside things and keep our ears open to God's Word, we are closing out fear, doubt, and unbelief.

Our victory lies in opening our ears to the Word of God
and turning off everything else. That way our undivided attention
is on what God has to say.

3. Don't let the Word depart from before your eyes.

In other words, we must focus on what God's Word says about our situation, not on what the circumstances or a negative report says. We must believe the report of God's Word, which says we are healed and whole.

If we've been attacked with sickness, we can look at our bodies and see that an illness is present. But we shouldn't respond to that! Instead, we need to look to the Word of God, which says, "You are healed and made whole," and respond to what the Word says.

A lot of people go to God and respond to His Word when they're experiencing bad times. When things are good, they don't give God's Word the same attention. Then, when they find themselves in bad times again, they falter.

We need to respond to God's Word in the bad times and in the good times. Scripture tells us how to stay healed and live victoriously just as much as it tells us how to be healed and get out of difficulties.

4. Keep God's Word in your heart.

The Word won't work for us if it's only in our heads. We have to get it down into our hearts! When God's Word is in our hearts, we can walk into God's kitchen, so to speak, open the pantry door, make a "healing sandwich," and eat the bread of healing. Remember, Jesus called healing the children's bread (see Matthew 15:21–28).

That means that we as children of God don't have to go to God and beg Him, "Please heal me. Please help me!" We can simply take what rightfully belongs to us.

That's when we will see Proverbs 4:22 come to pass in our lives: "For they [God's words] are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh."

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Faith Nugget

The Children's Bread

One time Jesus was approached by a woman who kept crying out to Him, begging Him to heal her demon-possessed daughter. At first Jesus didn't say anything. But at the urging of His disciples, He responded to the woman's cries by saying, "'It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs'" (Matt.15:26 NKJV).

This woman could have been offended. Instead she persevered, and her daughter was healed. But Jesus made it clear that healing is "the children's bread." Galatians 3:29 tells us that "If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (NIV). And according to Ephesians 1:5, God has adopted us as children through Jesus Christ. If we are born again, then we're children of God. And the children's bread—which is healing—belongs to us!