Watch the Bible come alive in your life like never before.
Many Christians long for a deeper, more meaningful relationship with God’s Word—but engaging on our own with the Scriptures can be intimidating. We rely on the writings of others to help us understand what it says, or we read simply to gain information without allowing it to personally touch our lives. But the Bible is a living, breathing, life-changing book, and God wants you to have a first-hand encounter with Him through its pages.
In Holding the Word, Bill Mowry offers good you don’t need a theological education to engage with Scripture. Mowry unpacks five spiritual practices—hearing, reading, studying, memorizing, and meditating—that will help you personally encounter God every time you open your Bible. This multi-sensory, relationally-rich Bible reading and discipleship tool will transform your relationship with the Author of Scripture.Discover a whole-body experience of the Bible using your senses,Learn from contemporary teaching and brain theory on why relational connection is so important for your walk with God,Develop a lifestyle of integrating the Bible into every aspect of your daily life, leading to personal transformation and spiritual growth and maturity.Let God's Word saturate every aspect of your being. Immerse yourself in the timeless truths of the Bible and discover the abundant life that comes from living and loving God’s Word.
“When many people left Jesus due to his challenging teaching, he asked his twelve disciples if they were going to leave as well. Peter spoke for the twelve and said, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).”
The author states upfront-This book is for anyone who wants to meet the God of the Bible.
Do not expect to encounter the God in nature, the God in all things, all peoples, and all belief systems. Do not expect to encounter God as the only source of love.
This book may be perfect for you if you believe: God is male God is “out there” somewhere God must be sought out The only relationship you can have with God is one where you must be utterly obedient That love is a decision
This is a “head” book. A book of deciding, obeying, denying feelings, and not trusting your own truth.
If this is where you are, this may be the book for you.
Solid suggestions for beginning or deepening your time in the Word, taking it from passive task to intimate relationship. Thanks to the local Navigators who shared this book with us.
“For those who do read the Bible, there's an increasing reliance upon devotional books by popular authors. Many Christians are content to read another's thoughts about the Scriptures rather than experiencing the personal joy of discovery through Bible study or meditation. We make celebrities of Bible teachers but seldom take the time to read the Bible for ourselves.”
“While media is robbing our attention spans, we can fight back by rewiring our brains through the act of attention. Attention is an act of love; we pay attention to what we love. Reading [God’s Word], then, becomes an attentive avenue for loving and holding fast to our Lord.”
“The internet and social media fragment content and disrupt our concentration. There's no easy answer or quick fix to our cultural challenge to reading. Reading demands engagement, which demands attention (there's that word again), which is done from love. Love is our resistance, enticing us to pay attention to what we love. We can rewire our brains through the loving discipline of attention.”