Why me is all I can wonder.
But no matter where a person is born, each soul must decide what they believe about that good book.
I believe the Bible is God's revelation to mankind about Himself and ourselves and everything in between.
I believe the Bible is the word of the living God.
I believe this - not in a blindly accepting way that I did years ago, but in the blood, sweat, and tears of wrestling with questions.
Questions about taking it literally or not
Questions about the first 11 chapters of Genesis.
Questions about gaps and contradictions
Questions about how it was written down and put together
I've wrestled with questions about the validity and authority of this book called the Bible. But God has answered most of those questions, and where mystery still lingers, I trust Him in and through that mystery. I believe the Bible is the way the triune God chose to tell us about Himself, mankind and His dealings with us throughout time and eternity.
While I've listened to teaching and read articles about the Bible, both pro and con, that discuss and argue about where it came from and how we have what we have today, I could not regurgitate any of it. I just can't keep straight how many fragments of scripture were found where and what year, etc. However, I came away from those times convinced that God did an amazing work bringing those 66 books together like He did.
Moreover, scholars that I trust and admire and who have studied waaay more than I have, who can regurgitate important historical details, are also convinced the Bible is the book it claims to be.
And, its words ring true to how life is. It doesn't sugar coat anything. And yet, it is still quite mysterious on many levels. That too, makes sense, because it is trying to describe - using finite, limited words - the infinite, sovereign, creator, all powerful God.
The words of the Bible speak truth and life to me like no other words.
I can only explain this as a miracle.
I became a Christian at 9, and from that point on, as a general life trajectory - though not perfectly by any means, I have hungered for God and his word. God did that in me. And since then, God has shown me sin-forgiving, life-giving, life-sustaining, sorrow-comforting, God-enlarging, battling-for-joy and hope-filled truth in the word of God. On my best days, God's word makes my heart soar and strengthens my soul. On my worst days, God's word, at the very least, keeps my head above the quicksand of this life that can so easily drag me down. All that is such grace.
I pray that it is slowly but surely translating into loving God more.
I pray that it is slowly but surely translating into loving my neighbor more.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Some of my favorite Bibles:
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| Bible given to me by my grandmother, Mama Trudy |
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| LOVED this NT Bible for kids. (and the OT) Kids played "Library" with it |
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| Example of script and illustration from OT version of above Bible |
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| Bible given to Luke by his great grandmother the year he was born |
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| My current Bible Where so many things are underlined, and so many margin notes Also, where "For my funeral" thoughts are recorded |
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