Good Morning,
I pray that the day is finding you well.

I was one of those people.

I remember when I started my seminary experience I thought I would concentrate on Biblical Studies. I quickly realized that gaining a master of why a word was used, or why we translated a word or phrase in a certain way, while important, was really a secondary issue to why God gave us the Bible. For me the Bible is less about information and more about transformation.

I have begun reading Life With God and I must admit Foster didn’t wait long before he started in! He states:

In point of fact we often use the Bible in ways that stifle spiritual life or even destroy the soul…The source of the problem is rooted in the two most common objectives people have for studying the Bible. The first is the practice of studying the Bible for information or knowledge alone. This may include information about particular facts or historical events, or knowledge of general truths or doctrines, or even knowledge of how others are mistaken in their religious views, beliefs, and practices…The second common objective people often have for studying the Bible is to find some formula that will solve the pressing need of the moment. Thus we seek out lists of specific passages that speak to particular needs rather than seeking whole-life discipleship to Jesus…If we want to receive from the Bible the life “with God” that is portrayed in the Bible, we must be prepared to have our dearest and most fundamental assumptions about ourselves and our associations called into question. We must humbly and in a constant attitude of repentance. [1]
Richard Foster, Life With God. (San Francisco: HarperCollins Publishing Company, 2008), 4-5.

My prayer is that we truly start reading the Bible as God intended. That we do less proof texting (looking for scripture to support what we currently think) of scripture, and truly begin to exegete (reading the scripture and letting it reveal God’s meaning) scripture. Remembering always that attitude is the direction that our feet will follow.

Blessings,