Wow! What a Book!

I've hosted several authors and talked about a number of different books since the inception of this blog. Today, I want to present a series of books, written by several different authors, but inspired by only One. Genre classification is mixed and includes history, action, and mystery, to name a few.

Mostly, it is the greatest love story in the history of man.

By now, I'm sure you realize I'm talking about the Holy Bible.

Somewhere around mid-January, I came across one of those "read the Bible in a year" schedules. It had been a while since I'd done that, so I thought it was about time to make that commitment again.

Something's different this time around, though.

Perhaps it is the version of the Bible I'm using (The Life Application Study Bible in Large Print). The notes at the bottom of each page, the charts, the detailed insets depicting the characters, and the maps, along with other helpful features,  bring the story to life.

From Joseph in Genesis to Job and back to Moses in Exodus, I have a heightened sense of awareness that the events I read about actually happened to real people.

Joseph's betrayal by his brothers made me sympathetic, his forgiveness brought tears to my eyes.

Job's confusion and despair as he faced his losses,  his increased frustration as his friends heaped their accusations on him, and finally God's response to all of them compelled me to read on.

Today, I read nine chapters in Exodus.I just had to get through those plagues and up to the point where the Pharoah finally let the Israelites go.

I can't help but wonder if my new fascination with these age old stories that I have heard and read since childhood has anything to do with the way I relate to them today. As my life progresses, I find myself identifying with more situations and people depicted in the Bible.

Man's mistreatment of man, man's jealousy, man's disobedience, man's greed.

My sin, my desire to know God better, my longing to seek His will, my need to be as perfect a servant to Him as I can be.

Above all, I marvel at the recurring theme of God's mercy, grace, and undying love.    

Thanks for reading my blog.