A New Bible

I have to confess that I have a weird thing about books in general. I love new books. I have shelves and shelves of books. I love to hold them, smell them, crack them open and turn those crisp new pages. I truly enjoy going to bookstores and walking up and down the aisles and just looking at the covers, wishing my budget was unlimited. Books A Million coming to Prattville has been wonderful. Gene and I have spent many date nights sipping their flavored coffee and walking up and down those aisles of books, showing each other interesting things that we have found.

My favorite book store is Lifeway. I LOVE all the Bible studies and books written to help me in my Christian walk. I could stay in there for hours. I could literally spend about an hour in each section: The Women's Growth Section, The Bible study section, The Family section, The Children's Section, The Music Section, The Bible section, The Gift collection section....you get the idea. Well, for Christmas I told Gene that I wanted a new Bible, but I wanted to go to Lifeway with him and pick it out. This is going to sound crazy, but a Bible really needs to feel right to me. I love new Bibles, and I wanted to hold it and smell it and turn the pages. I don't like hard back bibles or paperback bibles. They don't feel right to me. I probably shouldn't be confessing all this! HA!

I wanted a slim New Living Translation Bible. I have many translations and many different types of Bibles, but I wanted one that I could just read....like a book. I have a great study Bible and a Life Application Bible, and a slim New American Standard version that I carry to church because that is what my pastor uses. But, I wanted a version that was very easy to understand, and as much as I like The Message version, I think it goes a little too far in its interpretation. The radio station Way FM uses the New Living Translation for their Word on the Way segment, and I always like the way the verses are worded.

I have been reading my new Bible since Christmas day and I love it. I look forward to waking up in the morning and sitting down with my new Bible and my cup of coffee and praying that God would show me something new...something to walk on during the day. I just love it. It is probably my favorite gift. I can definately feel the presence of God as I start each day with Him.

I want to encourage each of you to pull out the Bible and start reading it this year. Read it from cover to cover...maybe skipping Leviticus...and see it as a beautiful love letter that God has written to us, his children. If you need some encouragement, maybe you should go and and buy a beautiful new Bible that you will look forward to holding and reading each morning. Maybe, like me, you might benefit from a new version of the Bible, to shake things up a bit.

Psalms 1:2-3
"But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither and they prosper in all they do."

Isn't that a great verse? I want to delight myself in God's Word. I want to meditate on it day and night. When I do that, God promises that I will be like a tree firmly planted and I will bear fruit in each season of my life. Just as a tree soaks up water and bears luscious fruit, I am called to soak up God's Word, producing actions and attitudes that honor God.

As this new year begins, join me in reading God's precious and holy Word every single day. Be a tree firmly planted this year and let your life bring God glory.