For me there is a simple pleasure in reading God's Word. On days that I spend away from it I feel out of sorts. I try to read a small portion of the Bible every day but I am human and sometimes I fail in this. It is probably my Evangelical roots that mean I feel guilty if this happens, or maybe it's my conscience? I like days that are not hurried and where I can read as much as I want to, but spending time in God's Word isn't about how much I read but about how much I listen to God as I engage with him. There are lots of different versions, or should I say translations and paraphrases, of the Bible. The Old and New Testament were written in Hebrew and Greek respectively. Our English translations try and capture the original meanings but sometimes our English language doesn't help for instance we have only one word for 'love' but in the Greek there are five words: 'agape', 'eros', 'philia' and 'storge'. I will leave you to google their exact meanings! The Bible is not just a book it is the main way in which God communicates with us today. It is the vehicle in which he uses to speak, hence the term Word of God.
This week I picked up a copy of The Message, a brilliant paraphrase, I found that the following Psalm spoke to me (see photo). Perhaps it will speak to you to? Today's simple pleasure to give thanks for is 'The Word of God'.
A great blessing for the day Jo - - the word of God - been spending time in Psalm 42 recently as well - also using Christian Aid Lent resources for "Counting our Blessings" alongside your blog - So so much to realise in our lives - keep our souls awake and alert Lord that we might "Count our Blessings" + it's the Rev today !!!!!
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