Best Kind of Bible

A week ago, on our way to Garden City Beach, S.C. for vacation, Brad and I stopped in Atlanta to see the Passages Interactive Bible Exhibit. I'd heard of the exhibit earlier this year and hoped I'd get a chance to see it before it ended June 30. The exhibit is in part of a stripmall across from Perimeter Mall in Atlanta. Inside the building is a maze guiding you through history in the creation of our Bible ... and it's fascinating. You learn about the original manuscripts; people who translated the Bible into Latin, German and English; the progress from painstakingly handcopying the Bible letter-by-letter to mass producing the Bible on the printing press; beautiful artwork inside and outside of these many Bibles; errors in printings that cost some folks their jobs or even their lives (especially the fellow who accidently put "Thou shalt commit adultery" ... oops); and the price so many paid to be sure the common man/woman could hold in their hands a copy of the Word in their own language.

Take William Tyndale for example, who during King Henry VIII's reign, translated the Bible from its original Hebrew and Greek into English. A harmless and even commendable endeavor, it threatened the religious leaders of the day. He was arrested and charged with heresy (coincidentally after writing a paper opposing Henry's recent divorce) and executed by strangulation with his body then burned at the stake in 1536. King Henry VIII four years later asked for an English translation of the Bible, based entirely on Tyndale's work. Nice.

The fact that our Bible has survived history with so many manuscripts to back it up and with such accuracy in the copies and translations over time is itself a feat. The fact that what started out as oral tradition is now in printed form in every room of my house and in my car, is just mindblowing. I am blessed indeed.

This exhibit made my husband and I appreciate our Bibles all the more. How can we, holding in our hands a copy of this beautiful love letter from our Father, not read our Bibles when so many went to such extremes to see to it we have one?

I have met many folks who have told me that don't read the Bible because they are pretty sure they'd never understand it. Well, that's just piffle (just discovered this word and had to use it. It means "nonsense.") There are so many translations and commentaries out there you can most certainly understand the Word. It's the Holy Spirit who reveals to us the meaning of the Scriptures anyways (John 16:13, 1 Cor. 2:10-13). Read it. Read it again. Make a habit of reading God's Word everyday and then watch as the Spirit teaches you something through it in a powerful way.

Interestingly, there are many languages yet without a copy of the Holy Bible. The Seed Company (a non-profit organization that translates the Bible) estimates over 2,000 languages as yet are without translation of the Word. They have set a goal to see to it every language in the world has a copy of the Bible within the next 20 years. I will be praying for their success. To help them, go to www.theseedcompany.org for more information.

In the meantime, pick up that Bible that you've been blessed to have - yeah, the one under your bed covered in dust - there it is. Now blow the dust off it, crack it open and start wearing out the pages. I tell my Sunday School kids all the time the best kind of Bible is a well-read one. Make yours the best.

Dear Tatiana ... in Jesus' Name.

Wrote Tatiana today. I try to write her once a week. She is our family's Compassion International child. I had wanted to sponsor a child through Compassion for years, but we always felt we couldn't make it work with our family budget. But last Christmas that changed when my husband surprised me with a gift I will never forget. He had designated one present under the tree with the words "Open last." When I opened it up, inside was a picture of our sweet 11-year-old Ecuadorian princess Tatiana. I was so surprised I started to cry. And I couldn't wait to begin writing her.

Compassion encourages sponsors to write to their children at least once a month, but I figured receiving four letters a month would be far more exciting than receiving just one. And typically I don't need too much encouragement to write. Compassion has this wonderful option where you can write your child online, even attach pictures and send it onto your child. From there it's translated, printed and sent off to the country, sometimes taking two to three months to reach the sponsored child. So today, Tatiana is probably about to receive my Valentine's Day letter. I enjoy sharing with her the crazy things our family does, asking about her family and sharing Scripture with her. Three pictures typically accompany each letter showing the different experiences our family has had that week. And I can make a print out of each letter I send so I can remember what I've written her each week. It's a wonderful feature of the organization.

I have received two letters from Tatiana and both were written before she received any letters from us. She writes in tiny pencil strokes, always thanking us, telling us about her school and asking for prayers. And she always says good-bye in Jesus' name. I keep a picture of Tatiana next to my bed so I remember to pray for her before I go to sleep. And I keep a picture of her on my cellphone as wallpaper so I remember to pray for her throughout the day. I have no idea whether or not our family's financial contributions to Compassion or my personal letters to her will make any kind of differerence in Tatiana's life, but I hope so. I know she has certainly made a difference in my life. I try to look at daily experiences through her eyes. I find myself thinking of how to best explain something that will make sense cross-culturally. And I want to share something of God's grace in each correspondence with hope that she will see Jesus in them, which pushes me to dig a little deeper into the Word myself.

It it my hope that one day we will get to meet Tatiana. But it's hard to justify spending thousands of dollars to visit her when that money could go to help her family. So for now, it's weekly letters and monthly contributions to help her with food, clothing, education and lessons about our Savior. If I never get the opportunity to embrace this child, I know that through Compassion she has come to know Him, and we will certainly meet in Paradise.

If you are interested in sponsoring a child, go to www.compassion.com for more information. You can see hundreds of pictures of children around the world waiting for a sponsor. They have the child's birthdate and country listed so if you have a favorite date or wish to sponsor a child from a particular country, you can search based on that information. They have a need right now for sponsors of older children.

I pray it brings you as much joy to sponsor a child as it does to our family. Regardless, it will certainly bring joy to the child. Now if only Compassion would come up with some new letter templates! I've already worn out the ones on their website. God bless those folks. I hear they receive 7,000 web letters per day. That's quite a work load (and doesn't include the letters sent in by post). But what a wonderful affirmation of the love sent out across the miles ... in Jesus' name.