Category: Bible

Driving with the Bible

February 9, 2024

One of the things I have been doing over the past year is listening to the Bible as I drive to and from school. I live 110km from my school I work at, so I have to find things to keep me entertained on the 75 minute drive.

I have listened to all of the New Testament in the last year and I am on my second go. The other day on my drive home I listened to Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians. I turned on Galatians as I left school and as I drove down my street I finished Colossians.

Recently as I was driving it really hit me afresh that all of these books are actually letters that were read out to the churches at the time. Not everyone could read or write, but they could all listen and take it in. So in a way I am hearing the text just like the people 2000 years ago.

I actually use the YouVersion Bible app as it connects via Bluetooth to my car sound system. I set it up before I leave and I can put my phone in the glovebox, so I am not tempted to look at it while driving. We have big fines for this where I live and it is not safe too!

Next time you are going on a longer drive I would encourage you to give it a go. It is a great way to be filled up on God’s Word and renew your mind as you drive.

Just before I finish I need to make comment on the beautiful red Corvette Stingray pictured above. Yes it is me, but no it is not my car sadly. Someone drove through town and I got talking to them. He asked if I wanted to have a photo in it. I jumped at the chance!

Side by side comparison

February 4, 2024

One of the things I was taught to do at Bible college is to use side by side comparisons of biblical texts. This can be especially helpful if you are unsure of what the text is saying or you need clarification.

In the above example I have John 3:3 open in five different translations. It talks about being born again to enter God’s Kingdom but it uses slightly different wordings.

In years gone by I had to do this manually with seperate Bibles. I would go to the library at Bible college and get out a number of versions. If I was at a Bible study I would ask friends to read their versions out to compare them.

These days it is a lot easier with programs like e-Sword (pictured above) and Logos, you can just open them and easily compare them. I generally use a plain English version, a literal word for word translation, a paraphrase idea for idea translation and a devotional translation.

Using this variety sometimes helps us to understand the text and what it is saying. It gives us a wider view of things and broadens our understanding. This helps us to apply God’s Word to our hearts and our lives.

My original Bible

February 2, 2024

This year I have decided to go back to my original Bible. It was a hard cover Good New Bible. I must say that when I say my original Bible, I do not mean my first Bible, but my main first one that I used most.

I remember I got it on holiday when I was visiting my sister in Queensland. We went to her local Christian store and I looked for about half an hour until I made my choice.

We then went back her house and we put the Bible tabs on it. It seemed like it took hours to do, but it was probably not that long. It did not matter anyway as we talked a lot.

I chose a Good News Bible as it was very simple and plain English. I was not a big reader so it was perfect for me. I probably used it for the first five years of being a Christian.

It is funny how when I picked it up again recently it felt so familiar. It felt good in my hands and the pages opened nicely to my favourite passages. In many ways it feels like meeting an old friend again.

Over the years I have used a variety of translations. I started with the Good News, went to the New International Version at Bible college, then changed to New Living Translation for my devotions. I found I had so many verses memorised in the NIV that I was not reading the text deeply enough.

So why the change back to the GNB? I guess just for a change. It is nice to switch things up every now and then to give you a fresh perspective. It is very similar to the NLT, but different enough to make me read closely.

If you are interested here is some information about the translation style from their website…

“The Good News Translation (GNT), formerly called the Good News Bible or Today’s English Version, was first published as a full Bible in 1976 by the American Bible Society as a “common language” Bible. It is a clear and simple modern translation that is faithful to the original Hebrew, Koine Greek, and Aramaic texts.

This Bible uses simple everyday language and vocabulary shared by everyone regardless of age or background. The “dynamic equivalence” in translation communicates the meaning and style of the original in a unique way.”

Book I want to read

January 27, 2024

What books do you want to read?

I have to admit I was never a great reader at school. Getting me to read was like pulling teeth for my teachers. I loved sport and maths, but reading was not my thing.

After leaving school this continued until my early twenties. All of a sudden though, I had a desire to read the Bible. I did not have one so I went to the local church and purchased one.

After getting a Bible of my own I found I actually loved reading for the first time in my life. It was nothing to read for an hour of more. Looking back I now know this was God drawing me to His Word and enabling me to do it.

Many years later the Bible is still my go to book. I very rarely read other books as I prefer to listen to them while I am travelling. But I can always just sit down and read my Bible. I can pick it up any time of the day or night and just read.

I just love the fact that the Bible has 40 different authors, it is made up of 66 books, was written over a 1600 year time period, but it has one central theme – God’s love and saving message for mankind. He loves us all and He wants us to be in relationship with Him.

This is why I love the Bible so much. It tells us how we got here, who we are, that God loves us and He has a plan for our lives. For me there is no other book that compares or even comes close to it.

So which book do I want to read? It is the Bible for me by a long long way.

Two weeks on women of the Bible

January 14, 2024

I have added four new Bible readings plans today to our website. The plan below looks at women of the Bible.

Two Weeks on Women of the Bible

Day 1 – Genesis 2 – Eve, the first woman.
Day 2 – Genesis 18 – Sarah laughs at God’s promise.
Day 3 – Genesis 24 – Rebekah’s marriage to Isaac.
Day 4 – Genesis 27 – Rebekah, the manipulative mother
Day 5 – Judges 4 – Deborah’s leadership frees her people.
Day 6 – Ruth 1 – Ruth and Naomi’s deep friendship.
Day 7 – 1 Samuel 1 – Hannah prays for a son.
Day 8 – 1 Kings 17 – A poor widow and the prophet Elijah.
Day 9 – 1 Kings 21 – Jezebel, an emblem of wickedness.
Day 10 – Esther 2 – Esther is chosen as queen.
Day 11 – Esther 4 – Esther’s courage at the risk of death.
Day 12 – Luke 1 – Mary and Elizabeth receive great news.
Day 13 – Luke 2 – Mary gives birth to Jesus.
Day 14 – John 11 – Mary and Martha and their brother’s death.