3-5-18 <\/p>\n
I recently returned from the wonderful Writers On the Rock conference in Colorado. I was one of several speakers, conducting a couple of classes, and meeting a lot of great new friends. I also was reacquainted with some old friends. <\/p>\n
I managed to squeeze in some private time. My friend and I visited Breckenridge and Vail and thanked God frequently for His amazing handiwork. We visited historic sites in Denver with our hosts Penny and Norm Carlevato \u2013 you can thank Norm for the faithful appearance of this blog; he has been the web-master for years.<\/p>\n
The Christian writers\u2019 conference was attended by almost 200 people, a majority of whom were aspiring writers, and many who had published one book or some blogs, still looking for tips to advance further.<\/p>\n
There were many writers, even the aspirants, who had something or other in print. When you want to write, you write. And write. And read and write. It\u2019s what you do because you are wired that way. Which is a good thing! God has inspired us; planted seeds of creativity; and God bless (He will) anyone who exercises those gifts.<\/p>\n
I told the organizer, Dave Rupert, how often I heard people before and after classes, in the auditorium and lunch room, in hallways: \u201cDid you read what I wrote since last year?\u201d or \u201cHave you read my book?\u201d <\/p>\n
Never boasting, these questions were asked by people from justifiable pride, and every writer\u2019s sub-textual intention \u2013 hoping that people notice and understand your message; affected by what you have to say.<\/p>\n
It struck me afterwards, especially since this was a Christian-focus conference, that the frequent question \u2013 \u201cHave you read my book?\u201d \u2013 might indeed have been the de facto<\/em> theme. \u201cUp above our heads\u201d; all around us; and a part of everything we did, everything to which we dedicated our careers\u2026 in a very real sense, God Himself also asked \u201cHave you read My Book?\u201d<\/p>\n Of course He asks that every day. <\/p>\n He asks us, not to read the Bible every moment of every day, but sometime during every day, as many of us do. A passage, a chapter, a book. It is not an unreasonable request \u2013 but a request is inherent in the question \u2013 as God\u2019s admonitions never are unreasonable.<\/p>\n The Bible is what we know of God. Yes, there is nature \u2013 I know well enough from our mountaintop experiences in Colorado. Agnostics who pose, and Christians who are lazy, can say that they can know God from communing with nature. <\/p>\n Wrong. That is one of the ways we can see<\/em> God, even feel<\/em> Him. But to know<\/em> Him, we must read His book.<\/p>\n He meant it to be so. We have the Ten Commandments\u2026 written. We have Jesus\u2019s teachings\u2026 recorded and written and published. I recommend visiting the new Museum of the Bible in Washington DC. I saw its substantial portions when it was on tour (in Colorado a few years ago!), and a lesson for believers and skeptics alike is that, for the hundreds and hundreds of texts from different countries, different scribes, different languages, different centuries, the texts of the Holy Scriptures vary hardly at all. The Holy Spirit \u201cdictated\u201d to the hearts of many writers, and oversaw the consistency of God\u2019s Words.<\/p>\n Words. <\/p>\n Jesus communicated God\u2019s love for us. And words, books, scripture, communicate Jesus to us.<\/p>\n The Bible says we are to \u201chide His word in our hearts.\u201d How better than through study of those words? They are precious. I shared with an attendee at the conference that, even when I read a Bible passage for maybe the hundredth time, some new revelation dawns on my heart.<\/p>\n How much Bible reading is proper? Are some passages obsolete? II Timothy 3:16 tells us, \u201cAll scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.\u201d<\/p>\n Have you<\/em> read His book lately? <\/p>\n + + +<\/p>\n Stephen Hill (1956-2012) Was a Baptist preacher and session singer before he launched his own gospel-music career. This is a song he sang when he and Woody Wright were invited to perform in the Netherlands. A moving song; you will be impacted in spite of the overlapping Dutch and Norwegian (he was very popular in Europe) subtitles. Words! <\/p>\n