I was brought up to follow Christ...

Through the ages, God has used a variety of ways to speak to His people. He spoke directly with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, meeting them in the cool of the day (Gen.3:8). After God expelled the disobedient pair from the garden, He turned to other forms of communication. These forms have included direct revelation, dreams and visions, the words of prophets, and others. Today, God's primary (though not only) form of communication with His people is the written Word, the  Bible. We read in Exodus 31:18: "And when He had made an end of speaking with him [Moses] on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God." God has always placed great value on the written Word. In fact, the Hebrew people were among the first on earth to have an alphabet that allowed them to record documents. The reading of the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) has remained a main stay in synagogue services through the centuries. The early church received God's counsel through both spoken and written means. The Gospel accounts document the life and words of Jesus, while much of the rest of the New Testament consists of letters from the apostles to various groups of believers. Behind the written Word of God always stands the inspiration of God. We read in 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." The psalmist acknowledged the importance of knowing and obeying the word of God when he wrote, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Ps. 119:105). Centuries later, the apostle Paul referred to the written Word as a weapon to be used in spiritual battle: "Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. 6:17). God's Word really is an immovable anchor in times of storm! {Taken from the Life Principles Bible of Dr. Charles Stanley) (Who is a great inspiration to me}