New Bibles...New Seasons

What is podcast Tuesday without a podcast? Well, it's a lot like today. Ryan and I sat down to record it for you this weekend and realized...we didn't really have anything we felt was important to share. The whole week had been full of saying goodbye to his mom and trying to find our footing in life again, and none of it seemed appropriate podcast material. So we decided we'd sit this week out and we'll be back next week with a fresh round of stories for you!

Meanwhile...

I was unable to verify this online in a quick search, but I am almost certain I once read that Billy Graham got a new Bible every year. I've written before about my own practice of using a new Bible in different seasons of my life, so that the notations I make inside reflect what God was teaching me then.

Even though I haven't been rigid and predictable about how long I use one Bible before I move on to the next one, I have a handful of them now that tell the spiritual story of my life. There's the Bible I read from toward the end of high school and all of college. I find notes I made when tests overwhelmed and friendships were tested by scholastic stress. I have one I used throughout parts of my twenties, when singleness overwhelmed me, and I clung to promises that God hadn't forgotten me. I have one from my desert years, where I highlighted all the verses people sent me, and I wrote their names beside the verses. There are more Bibles in the collection, but those represent some of the big seasons.

I've been using the same Bible for almost two years now and absolutely love it. I have no plans to stop using it throughout the rest of this year, because I'm making notes of my study of the gospels in its pages. SO many sermon points are jotted in the margins. I've marked verses I turned into prayers on specific occasions. My memory verses for this year are marked with pink sticky notes. I love that Bible. I love the journey it reflects - and I'm still living that journey.

Yesterday morning though, as I did my devotions, I ran across a couple of verses from James, and I loved the wording in the NKJV.

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. (James 5:7-8)

This month, with all its unexpected twists and turns, has been a time when I've spent even more time just sitting quietly before the Lord, listening, asking questions, and waiting to hear. I have no idea specifically what He has ahead for us, but I do believe He's doing a work in our hearts right now, and it's both exciting and maddening. (Maddening only because patience isn't my most natural gift.)

So with all those thoughts in my head, I read through those verses again and again. I didn't remember ever seeing that exact wording.

And then I remembered...I just received a copy of the NKJV Bible to review a couple of months ago! I went to the shelf where I'd placed it carefully for safekeeping (until the next Bible season arrived) and turned to James 5. I read the words over and over from the brand-new-to-me pages.

See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth.

You also be patient.

And then the part that stood out to me most of all:

Establish your hearts.

Patience may not be my forte, but I love to have a job while I wait (for anything). My job right now? To establish my heart. To soak up whatever God wants and needs to teach me. To listen and pray and make sure I'm fully in tune with Him.

So I'm not abandoning my current Bible just yet, but with the introduction of those verses from James, I feel the Lord brought on the first hint of a new and unknown season. And the Bible is ready, waiting, and the first verses to hold special significance for me have leapt from the pages already.

I'm excited to see what He does for me...for us...with me...with us.

The middle of March may not be the time you really think about introducing a new Bible, but God can bring on a new season anytime He wants. He isn't bound by calendar years. So I'm trusting Him to introduce this season in His way and time, and I'm poised with my fresh Bible pages, ready to learn.