This Hit Me Today: Don’t Just Listen—Live It

This morning, during my devotion, I landed on a passage that made me read and reread:

“But become doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror.”- James 1:22–23, LSB

I’ve read this before, maybe a hundred times. Quoted it. Even preached it. But today, it hit differently.

I sat there with my Bible open and my coffee getting cold, and the Holy Spirit whispered, “You’re good at listening—but are you doing what I’m saying?”

That stung a bit.

As a pastor, I spend a lot of time in the Word—studying, preparing, teaching. But James reminds us that proximity to Scripture doesn’t equal obedience. It’s easy to feel spiritual because we’re around the Bible a lot, but being near the Word isn’t the same as being transformed by it.

The Mirror Test
James gives us a picture that couldn’t be more relevant: a man looking at himself in a mirror, then walking away and forgetting what he saw.

That’s me sometimes.
That’s us.

We hear a convicting sermon.
We read a verse that cuts deep.
We feel that nudge to act, to change, to obey…

Then we move on like nothing happened.

James calls it self-deception. And honestly, he’s right. We’re not fooling God—we’re fooling ourselves.

What God Showed Me
This morning, the Lord reminded me: He doesn’t just want my attention—He wants my action. He’s not just speaking, so I can feel something. He’s speaking, so I’ll do something.

So I asked myself—and I’ll ask you too:
What has God already shown you that you still haven’t obeyed?

Maybe it’s a step toward forgiveness.
Maybe it’s a call to repentance.
Maybe it’s serving where you’ve been resisting, or letting go of something you’ve held too tightly.

Whatever it is, today is the day to stop hearing only and start doing.

Let’s not just be men and women who know the Word.
Let’s be people who live it out.

That’s where the blessing is. That’s where the power is. That’s where transformation begins.

In Love,
Pastor Jody