The bible is an astounding book, or so I’m told. Its thousands and thousands of pages hold stories that have been referenced time and time again, and without this base of understanding you would be left in bewilderment as someone will allude to how they are David to someone’s Goliath. Maybe there’s one in your life who is better with animals than Noah and his Ark, or they complain how it’s such a Job to have terrible events occur constantly in their life.
I’m always flabbergasted by people that I talk to that can pull verses from thin air, complete with verse numbers, book names, annotations [1], and related anecdotes. They sadly mutter, “I still need a mnemonic to remember the order and names of the books of the bible.” Oh, I’m sorry about your inability to also list the order of all 66 books in addition to knowing every story and verse. I still have to sing the alphabet song repeatedly while alphabetizing anything that isn’t on a computer.
Indeed, it seems I accidentally surround myself with these types on occasion, completely to my surprise. I recently started in an @ group. This is the name for the small groups at my church, the ‘middle circle’ that our pastor refers to. They are based on either age or interest, so there were a few that were on the lookout for new members: the exercise group, the 20’s age group, 30’s age group, 40’s age group (and so on), and the boating group. A brief introduction of myself: I’m 20, overweight, and am not a fan of the water. The 20’s age group it was.
It turned out to be less the “20’s age group” and more the “young married couples” group. I, myself, am engaged, but live apart from my fiancé. I am not in the same stage of life as them, and it showed. There were a few singles there; single women, and all seemingly younger than me. There was one individual I knew there, but he was occupied with his wife and trying to fish out conversation from the other members. I can't speak for the other members of this group, but for me the experience felt awkward and forced. I am indeed in the 20’s age range, but this group was not for me. However, I'm sure either I'm the only one who felt this way, or they have ironed out the kinks by this time. I hear they are all doing quite well!
Fast forward a few months, and my friend Rodney got involved in the SRQ Commit @ group. This was based around a ministry that the individuals in the group were doing together, which was the aforementioned SRQ Commit event on Thursday mornings in the early mornings focused on teaching men, secular or otherwise, to be ‘better men’. I have not gone yet, but I plan to in the future to see how it works. The ‘vision leader’ of our church, Val, insisted I go with my friend, and my last attempts to be in any @ group had fizzled in failure.
I tried my best to give an excuse. I lived far away, I didn’t have money for gas, a dragon was attacking my village; all my normal excuses kept being countered by Rodney. “I’ll drive.” He said. “Don’t worry about gas money.” He said. “I’ll slay it.” He said. Without an excuse left, I really had no reason not to go beyond, “I’m slightly socially awkward and would be a little uncomfortable. Plus, video games are calling my name.” This is not a valid excuse for friends who wish for you to grow in your relationship with Christ, and thusly I went.
My @ group consisted of a gentleman in his 40s, Rodney (who had gone to college for being a pastor), a pastor and his wife, a gentleman who might of well have been a pastor and his wife, and me. Our meeting commenced after some brownies and we started to peruse the question’s we had been given for that week’s sermon. I was used to the awkward stutter-talking that happens commonly in my age range, where a new person in the midst of conversation threw a wrench into the gears. However, these people were unfazed by my presence, continuing as though I had been in attendance the entire time. They brought up answers to the questions that I would never have thought of. Every word from my mouth felt childish and immature before these seeming pillars of biblical knowledge. I mentioned a couple of my opinions in hopes of showing off my limited erudition. They then proceeded to complete my thoughts, with dotted i’s, crossed t’s, and annotated verses [2].
Lest I paint the wrong picture, it was quite enjoyable. I am now a hopefully permanent member of this group and look forward to each of our meetings. I mentioned to Rodney after the meeting that I had felt handicapped when going toe-to-toe to these biblical leviathans. Everyone there had years of experience over me, and in some cases formal training. I had felt spiritually outclassed.
That thought was on my mind this week at church, where Steve (the pastor) gave his sermon. If you wish to hear it, here is the link. In brief summation, the message was that we should be self-seekers of the truth, instead of relying on others for our faith. Through his visuals, he motioned that it would be like an adult cow still feeding from its adult mother, yet we need to go and ‘feed’ ourselves. It was a good message, and very close to home. Indeed, it knocked on the bathroom door in the most awkward of times.
If you know me, and we have talked very much, you know my lack of biblical knowledge. Now, the implication is not that I am deficient of wisdom in this manner. I have attained a grasp of our Lord through the way I believe most people begin; through other people. I believe I know at least the most fundamental characteristics of God, and I’d like to think that I have a high level of spiritual maturity to my age group. However, much of my knowledge is based solely upon situations that I have happened to be a part of. My scope is very focused, though not all too intense.
I’ve made plans to read the bible, I’ve asked people to hold me accountable, I’ve tried to absorb the bible via diffusion, but nothing has as of yet worked (though I will post if anything breaks through on the diffusion front). I’m certain this is not an odd problem, that I cannot wade through such thick waters without a little hesitation, correct? The problem isn’t even my aptitude for reading. My science books in high school were always read cover to cover during classroom boredom. During long pauses in band, I would glance at tutorials online on how to better myself in my music. I’ve been known to gorge myself on a book if it catches my fancy, but there’s one crucial difference. They were simple.
English made itself known in the middle of my “favorite classes” list due to being both despised and loved in my mind. I’ve always enjoyed the complicated and interpretive rules of grammar, and the ability to weave magic into other’s minds with a story. I’ve even spun threads for my fiancé during special events, such as our anniversary. She keeps them, despite my counsel. However, English also glazed over the art of finding recurring themes in a book and then linking them to some lesson or morale in life.
I didn’t really board that specific train very easily in high school, but I can understand it to a degree. I tend to divulge meaning at face value. When I’m told by a friend that they are leaving to buy ice cream, I don’t expect them to return triumphantly announcing they have bought a new pair of shoes. This is a level of abstraction I can only define as a cuil. However, when occurring in a book or movie, people will loudly gasp as if ice cream was simply a code word for shoes the entire time. They leave the theater in tears, pronouncing how this filmmaker had wrapped up the human condition with laces and 31 flavors. I understand some movies have something more to say, but sometimes I just don’t see it. Enter Rodney, stage left.
He loves to see the deeper meaning in movies or books, to see what the writer says about life. When the chance to see ‘Chocolate and Vanilla: A Tale of Two Cones’ arrived, he would jump (in his New Balance sneakers) to see it; though I like to imagine he would slip ironically on an empty container of banana-flavored ice cream upon departure. He even classifies movies between ‘islands’ and… I guess not-islands. He never gave a name for the latter to my memory. An island is a movie which is fantastic, but doesn’t give a message pertaining to the world at large. Reverse that meaning for the reverse island, the movie is fantastic and says something about the world at large. With that image, I shall call them ‘lake’ films, or perhaps oceans if they’re deep. You’re welcome Rodney. (P.S. If you are also highly interested in film, here is his blog about said films.)
When I view a film, my priority is entertainment. When I read a book, that same priority exists. When I play video games, the purpose is to ‘pwn noobs’, not to understand more about myself. This isn’t to say I do not appreciate these ‘lake’ films, nor do I miss epic storylines in particular games; it simply doesn’t come without effort, and is not the first thing on my mind. I suppose that would be the primary issue I have with pouring through the bible. Every word drips with meaning, there are coincidences and connections all the way through, and everything ties in. This is not an activity for my entertainment. The closest event I can compare it with is studying for a big test. Spoiler: I never studied in school. I presume this is the block I have. I don’t look forward to reading an assignment every day. Unfortunately, the test is more in line with a pop quiz, and I don’t know when that particular trap will be sprung. Though with that analogy, everyone would be students and the classroom needn’t be so alone, especially since we already have our homework assigned.
With that said, here is my mission statement for this blog. Firstly, I am going to attempt to read one (1) book of the bible per week and jot down my thoughts on it. This will be in order as it is in the bible, from Genesis to Revelations. I encourage any individuals reading to take part as well. If you are Christian, learn more about your faith and be less spiritually outclassed. If you are not, the bible may not be your cup of tea, but it is one of the most referenced books in literature. Likely, it would benefit you to have the bible under your belt for general knowledge. Secondly, addition to my weekly readings, this blog will detail my 'trials' and 'tribulations' past and present. This will be about me and my life, so anything pertaining to that shall be fair game for a post. I believe God made my life and everything I interact with, so technically it isn't off-topic! Inspiration can come from anything, and lessons have the potential to be taught through a variety of means.
I am a student. I do not know or understand everything, nor do I believe I ever will in this life. I’m going to try my hardest though. Care to join me?
