Posterous theme by Cory Watilo

Bible Time

I yawned and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as I tried to focus on the words in the Bible that depicted the life of Ruth. I quickly read through one chapter, said a prayer, turned off the lights, and climbed into bed. I tried to go to sleep, reminding myself that I had class first thing in the morning, but I felt uneasy. It took me a while to realize that my discomfort came from the way I had read through the Bible. I tried to think about what special meaning I had taken from the reading, only to find that I barely remembered what I had read at all. I thought back to the last few chapters I read and came to the same conclusion. Unsatisfied with my spiritual meal, I asked God to help me find a better way to read the Bible.

A few days later, long after I had forgotten the prayer, I was sitting in the back of my Christian Beliefs class furiously scribbling notes. I’ll be the first to admit that I had not taken the class hoping to find some divine revelation – I just needed a religion credit. However, the more I heard about the Bible, the more interesting it became to me. I copied the Bible verses from the screen and turned my attention to Professor Jacobs, eager to hear what he had to say next.

“The Bible was not originally meant to be read,” he started. “It was written for the ear rather than the eye. That means it was meant to be heard – not just read.” Professor Jacobs went on to explain that the Scriptures were written on scrolls and read to the people in the synagogue during biblical times. He told us how his own reading had been enriched by hearing and encouraged us to read the Bible aloud.

When I returned to my room later in the day, I opened my Bible and decided to give reading out loud a shot. As I read aloud, I began to see things in the Bible that I had never seen before. The stories were no longer limited to the pages – they were real. My mind and heart raced as I excitedly tried to figure out how God would protect His people, and I was always baffled and completely awed by God’s methods. As I got deeper and deeper into the Word, I kept gleefully whispering to myself, “Why haven’t I ever seen this before?!”

The most surprising thing about the Bible was that every verse revealed a little more of God’s character. Some parts took a little digging, but God was always in the text. The more I found out about Him, the easier it became to talk to Him and want to serve Him. As I asked for the Holy Spirit to guide me as I read, God began to show me, though the Bible, the many kinks I have in my character and how I could work on them to more effectively reflect Him.

Even though reading the Bible has become a priority to me, I still find that it is extremely hard to start. When I get to my room after classes have ended, all I want to do is start my homework so I can finish early and go to bed. If it isn’t homework, then it’s a distraction of some sort – hanging out with friends or going online. Although it is difficult, I take a deep breath, put away the textbooks and the computer, whisper “its Bible time,” and dig into the Word.   

Opening up the Bible can be difficult at times, but I believe that what can be found inside is absolutely worth it.