John 16:33
April 3rd Devotional
On this day in 1953 Triangle Productions introduced the world to the first official version of the TV Guide. Another version of a tv guide was published years earlier but it only contained information relevant to New York City. The magazine was a huge success in NYC and Triangle Publications purchased the rights to produce it on a more national basis. The first guide cover featured Lucille Ball and her baby, Desi Arnaz Jr. The picture was far from flattering but the publication was extremely well-received. The first TV Guide appeared on the newsstands in ten cities, costing .15c, and would go on to sell over 1.5 million copies. The first TV Guide was naturally a smaller magazine, consisting of only four main articles, a few reviews, and a schedule for shows running from April 3rd through April 9th. At that time there were only three major tv networks, ABC, NBC, and CBS. It was the best-selling publication from the 1960s into the early 1970s. The magazine naturally evolved over the years and became a staple item in almost every American Home. A quick way to date yourself is by your knowledge of the TV Guide. Many of us can remember the red tv logo with the words TV Guide blazoned on the upper left front cover. We can remember our family picking it up at the local grocery store. We can remember some incredible front covers, we can also remember our grandmothers religiously looking over the contents (especially when Soap Opera time came). Or maybe some of us tried the crosswords at the end of the book. Or maybe we can recall it sitting beside some very dated couch with floral or forest designs. The TV guide would continue to be printed for 53 years until the final print run in 2006, selling countless millions of copies during that time.
The TV Guide was used to help us navigate the mysteries of what was on television each night. We would simply turn a page, run our fingers down to the right listing, and find out what time our favorite show aired and a few details about the show. Over time the Guide became dated and irrelevant. There is another guide though that is far older, far more published, and is never dated. That guide is the Bible. Each Christian needs to be committed to spending time in the Word of God. We need purposeful time set aside to dive into the Word, but our study in the world is not a single-person operation, we have a God-given guide that helps direct us. Jesus spoke out our Guide to God’s Word in John 16:13, which says “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth…” The word guide here means someone who will lead you on your way. So who is our guide to the Word? Jesus said “the Spirit of truth”, referring to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in our life once we are saved. As a believer, we need the Holy Spirit’s help to navigate the Scriptures. We cannot simply study and understand them on our own. This week ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in your Bible reading. Ask Him to open your eyes to the truth and ask Him to help you apply it to your life. Ask Him to lead you.
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