The B-I-B-L-E

The Good News Today Is...we have the good book. I'm not talking about the latest Nora Roberts mystery romance either, although I do like her books. The bible is here and is ours to read, peruse, study. I just read an interview with Eugene Peterson - the man who changed the way we look at the bible by writing The Message. As I struggle with making sure I understand biblical context and I do appropriate exegetical studying, Peterson suggests to forgo all that we have been taught and Eat This Book:A Conversation in Spiritual Reading. I have not read Peterson's book but in this interview he gives a brief overview of his thoughts. He suggests we read the bible using a technique called "lectio divina". This technique involves four steps that should be repeated over and over in any particular order until we absorb what we have read and we feel it's meaning. The basic concept is to listen, reflect, pray and obey. This is just another step in understanding what the bible has to offer us that is relevant in our world today. I'm not sure we should give up the intellectual study of the bible but I believe we should always listen, reflect, pray and obey. If we don't do that then we lose the purpose behind the scriptures. The bible isn't just another good read, it is the book of life.