The Bible Feast...Jen's progress report

Greetings to all.....

When I first read about the "Bible Feast" activity in the Fisherman's Net, I was immediately interested in the idea. I am an avid reader, with wide-ranging interests, and the Bible has always been on my "to be read" list. However, since late 2007 I have felt compelled to actually commit to reading the Bible; in addition, around that time I began reading a handful of blogs written by actively Christian parents whose faith lives both inspire and challenge me. Several of those blog authors would include verses from the Bible in almost every post, and while I know it is a simple thing to do a quick internet search and find the appropriate verse, still I was intrigued, impressed, and challenged by their ability to consistently relate the Bible to their daily life.

And so, a few short weeks ago, along comes this idea from A. and D. to read only the Bible during the 40 days of Lent. Hmmm.....this would be quite a challenge. This meant putting aside any other "recreational reading": newspapers, magazines, books from the library whether fiction or non-fiction, and any news-based websites. For me, this also included not reading the several blogs I would check in on daily, and also refraining from listening to any recorded books, both in my car and at home. I did check out a book-on-cd recording of the Bible from the library, and even though the Old Testament was read by James Earl Jones and so is probably an excellent "listen", oddly enough I have not felt tempted to play it. Still, there are piles of books all over my house, and many books in those piles have yet to be read. I am on the computer several times a day, and it is a serious temptation to just click over to one of the blogs I had been reading daily. Even my MSN homepage is a temptation, with its news bites about celebrities and such. So, definitely there is a great deal of other "stuff" constantly around me by which I can be so, so easily distracted from reading the Bible (not to mention the ordinary distractions of everyday life!).

Another source of some caution was the fear of feeling "convicted" by reading the Bible. After all, what human out there can sit down to read this book without coming upon multiple examples of how they have obeyed their human impulses, with negative consequences, instead of attempting to live a wholly Christian life searching out God's will?? I wasn't exactly looking forward to 40 days of feeling like an awful person. But, of course, it has not turned out like that. So far I have managed to read Acts, Romans, and Corinthians 1 and 2 - and feel inspired and hopeful instead of "convicted" and hopeless. After all, who knows better than God how to reprimand lovingly, and reaffirm His commitment to us humans in the process?

Just a few days before beginning the Bible Feast, I was straightening up a pile of books and came upon one called "100 Favorite Bible Verses", a book which was a birthday present and one which I have not yet read. For whatever reason, I opened the book to where the ribbon bookmark held a page, and read the entry for #12, Hebrews 4:12: "God's word is alive and working and is sharper than a double-edged sword. It cuts all the way into us, where the soul and the spirit are joined, to the center of our joints and bones. And it judges the thoughts and feeling in our hearts." The explanatory entry for this verse goes on to say that "the Bible is not a reference book to teach you about God. The Bible is an invitation to connect with God in a personal way - and to learn more about yourself in the process. The more time you spend reading the Bible and meditating on how God wants you to apply what you've read, the more you'll learn to recognize the whisper of God's Spirit in your life and to see his hand at work in the world around you."

Well. Basically I had, just by chance, picked up this one book and felt led to open it - and came upon an entry that spoke directly to my thoughts and anxiety about going ahead with the Feast! Now, let me say here that there is nothing wrong with reading all that other "stuff" - the blogs, books, newspapers, magazines, etc. etc.; I am a huge fan of public libraries and reading in general and I will continue to read all of those things after Lent is done (although maybe not as much...but, that's another post in and of itself!). I guess the thought that kept nagging at me, as I pondered the Bible Feast exercise, is this: if I am going to call myself a Christian, shouldn't I also have read the entire Bible? If I desire a closer, more vital relationship with God, isn't reading His Word a good way to start? And by this I mean reading the whole thing, cover to cover, for myself - taking it in more often than in church on Sundays. In addition, so many things have changed in my life over the past 6 years; I am in a place I never would have envisioned 6 years ago, and I find myself asking those age-old questions "why?" and "what is this all about?". Of course I am not expecting that reading the Bible will completely answer those questions for me! But, I am hoping and praying that spending time with the Bible...with God....will bless me with grace, hope, and perseverance for the road I'm on, as it is at times a frustrating one.

That's my report from the field. Thanks for reading, and have a great night.
Jen