In my very last book club at Osan (shed a little tear here...) we read "Israel, My Beloved," a phenomenal fictional allegory of Israel and God. After reading the 450+ page book, my desire to read the prophets took off. The number of years I've been a Christian outnumber the years I've spent in school, and it is shameful how little I can recall and how little I truly understand about the Old Testament. Armed with a fabulous (suggested) visual about what life could have been like during the prophecies of Jeremiah and the subsequent Babylonian Captivity, I decided to dive in and start studying. I found a great set of commentary/Bible study guides by Warren Wiersbe on the Minor Prophets. I started with "Be Concerned" and went through Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah over the past two months. My Bible has never had so many markings in it! I finished that book yesterday and started "Be Amazed" this morning, which covers Hosea, Joel, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Malachi.
It has been amazing to see how my heart has yearned to read and learn more through these books. Wiersbe does such an excellent job expounding the verses by providing societal, historica, and additional Biblical context and support. And it feels like I'm really getting to know God in a way similar to when you start to realize that your parents are real people, too. I'm reading about the relationships He had with people that came long me and in seeing these relationships, I have a better context for how little ol' me fits into the big picture of Kingdom living. I'm learning about the Jews and how, really, the world's history and future revolves around God's relationship with them. It is truly a transforming time for me.
So, I encourage you--if you are tired of reading all of the same things in the scripture, STOP! There is so much more to the Word than all of the directives of Christian Living that Paul so eloquently dictates in the Epistles! And there is so much more we will glean and benefit from in the NT when we understand our "Jewish roots in Jesus"!
So much more to say, but my bed is calling :)
Monday, October 01, 2007
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3 comments:
I have been looking for something besides wifely/momly books. I'm interested!
Woohoo! I am smiliing ear to ear to read this post - I LOVED that book, too, and was so blessed to be able to read it with the Osan gals. Sooo, now you have inspired me to do my own prophet study - thanks, thanks, thanks! Love you, miss you!
*sigh* Why couldn't we be a traveling bookclub, as in we all go the same places together. I'm still giddy about this book too, and while studying Daniel I feel like I already know him. He was Sarah's friend. HA!
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