Hidden knowledge

This morning I was continuing my read through the book of Joshua. I must admit, I was not overly focused and felt a bit distracted, but this one verse did stick out in my mind:

Joshua 8:35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them.

It impressed me that Joshua took the time to read "all" the words that Moses had commanded. I cannot imagine this was a simple task or accomplished in a matter of a few minutes... but, nonetheless, Joshua set his mind to do it, and do it he did! It certainly was designed to have an impact on everyone that was listening. This was not an exercise in futility but truly had the expectation of greater understanding and therefore greater purpose and focus. This was not just an exercise for the leaders but for the men, women, children, and even those outside the Jewish realm.

Well, I moved on from there and started my day which included taking care of weekly household issues as well as make a payment on our auto insurance. While at the Insurance office, I met up with a man that I had not known before (Brian). Brian is very intelligent and in fact spent 4 years in South Africa studying theology with the intent of coming back to Zambia and helping his fellow pastors grow in maturity and understanding. 

I began to ask him about theology and doctrines that he may have studied - he confessed that during those 4 years, there was not much study about doctrine but more study on the practical side of Christianity. Oh, ok. I then began to question him about different theological books he may have read while studying... I was quite astonished at his reply. He said, "If you want to hide knowledge from a black man, just write it down". Wow! I dont know that this sentiment is true for only African men but maybe all of us are guilty of this principle. 

If we would just open the Book, I am sure ALL of us would benefit from a vast amount of wisdom. Truth is... the Truth is sitting right before us, we just dont take the time to read/search it out. Certainly made me want to spend some more time reading today.