The Bible - it's a big book when you're looking through it for something written specifically to and for you.
The Bible Draft is a fun and creative way to connect your experiences, thoughts, and feelings directly to the words of Scripture. Played similar to the format of a fantasy football league with the commeraderie among players in your league, the creativity of team names, and the personalization of Scripture passages just for you, the Bible Draft is a worthwhile challenge for those who have never opened the Bible before as well as for anyone else at any stage in the journey.
AoB 2028 Deacon Formation Class Begins 2024 Bible Draft!
To the participants of the AoB 2028 Deacon Formation Class Bible Draft - may you be turned to fertile soil as the Word of God is cast richly into your hearts and minds in this, your Bible Draft! With great confidence, Bible Draft prays for joy in your discovery and encounter of our Lord in the wisdom of and pages of Scripture! “All Scripture is inspired by God … that the man of God may be complete …” - May you have all the grace necessary for this journey!
Reflection Spotlight
There is crying in this love story
| Lamentations 3:31-33 | |
|---|---|
| 31 | For the Lord does not reject forever; |
| 32 | Though he brings grief, he takes pity, according to the abundance of his mercy; |
| 33 | He does not willingly afflict or bring grief to human beings. |
A famous line from the movie based upon the 1943 All American Girls Professional Baseball League is “there is no crying in baseball”. The coach of the team (Tom Hanks) screams at one of the girls who screwed up a play, “there is no crying in baseball”.
He didn’t want her focusing on her mistake but to move on and try again.I suppose this strategy works for sports.
However, this is not the strategy that Lamentations identifies for those of us playing the game of life, with the hope of winning our very salvation.
I have to remember that the Bible is a love story and that it is in this context I find it easiest to understand all the sorrow, anger and punishment described in Lamentations.Verse 8 of chapter 1 says, “Jerusalem sinned grievously therefore she became filthy, all who honored her despises her, for they have seen her nakedness; yes, she herself groans, and turns her face away”.
So the good thing is that Jerusalem sees her sin and finds it repugnant.
I remember vividly, a short time after giving my heart to Jesus Christ, seeing my sin clearly for the first time.
(I am pretty sure others could see it but I couldn’t, blinded by pride.) It was horrible, ugly and I wanted to turn my face away.
Yes, it brought me to tears, the gift of a true repentance.I never wanted to commit those sins again.The grief over the “falling” from the innocence of my youth was very real, very embarrassing and more importantly I could “see” where my sin truly hurt another.In a sense I needed to be dragged through the mud and “put my mouth into the dust” Lamentations 1:29 so I would never walk that path again. The grace of tears and the illumination of my conscience restored me to the love and friendship of a good, good God who waited for me to return.
This brings me to my highlight verse, “For the Lord will not cast us off forever but, though he cause grief, He will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men.” Lamentations 3:31-33.
I take this to mean that the Lord doesn’t want to see me cry or miserable but He will allow me to experience it for the purpose of drawing my heart back to Him. He is ever the lover desiring me to come to Him, abandon ever other false lover and live under the umbrella of His compassion.
