Reading Scripture

With over 5 billion copies sold, the Bible is consistently the best selling book of all time. What's so special about this ancient text? How can it possibly be relevant to me today?

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Hey friends!

London is experiencing the hottest days of the year this week and it appears no one is wasting a single moment of daylight. We are emerging from the most sacred time in the Christian calendar, Holy Week and Easter. During Holy Week and Easter, we journey with Jesus in his final days of earthly living, along his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, through betrayal, his torture and death, the silence of Holy Saturday, and then the joy of resurrection Sunday.

It is the most sacred time in the Christian calendar because the entirety of our faith rests on the truth of Jesus’ resurrection. Without the resurrection, well it all kind of falls apart. It is the crux that holds it all together. It is the hope we have in the midst of the brokenness of this world, knowing that regardless of the trials we face and the troubles we experience, amidst the heartbreak of violence and the sadness of death, we have an unchanging hope which speaks freedom and restoration — a promised renewed world, free of suffering and pain, reconciled with God. A future that is only possible through the sacrifice of the cross where the great paradox of joy and suffering converge. The stone rolls away and the resurrection life promised blossoms out of what seemed to be the end of it all. New life bursts forth. Hope is restored. Death is defeated.

It’s quite beautiful really. I suppose I’m sitting with this truth as much as I can as I navigate quite a difficult season in my own life, leaning into the hope only God provides. And the best way for me to draw near to God, to hear his voice in how he speaks, is through Scripture.

The Bible is the best selling book year after year because it brings God into close proximity. In the Old Testament we read story after story of God attempting to partner with humanity to bring Heaven to Earth. Through the biographies of Jesus recorded in the Gospels in the New Testament, Jesus is God in human form, and through His life, we see the clearest picture of who God is. As we near the end of the practices of Jesus together, we finally land on one of my favorites, reading Scripture.

So, let’s dig in together…

Reading Scripture is the most common avenue through which we hear God’s voice.

Pete Grieg writes, “When it comes to hearing God, the Bible is the very language of his heart”.

Peter says in Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is breathed out by God.” Because of this, reading Scripture is our best opportunity to encounter a living God who is both timeless and proximate. Reading an ancient text like the Bible can be challenging, especially if we don't take into account the diverse styles and genres that make up its books. ¹

And yet, when we approach the Biblical texts with curiosity, we find hidden in its pages, the very heart of God and his love for humanity. Through the lives and stories in the Biblical narratives, we begin to see ourselves. More importantly, we see God weaving a redemption story, refusing to give up on a humanity who continually rejects him. Through the stories in the Bible, we find a voice which is constant and true. A voice that comes from before time and stretches out into eternity. A voice of love — deep and pure love beyond human capability — pulses through the pages and suddenly a God who seemed distant or removed is in close proximity. This is the power of God’s word.

In my own journey, I’ve encountered God's voice through Scripture in two powerful ways: by reading the Bible and by praying it.

When we read God's word, he speaks directly to our hearts through it. Whenever I read Scripture, I try to place myself within the scenes I’m reading — to imagine the sights, sounds, emotions, and struggles as if I were there. This is especially powerful in the narrative stories of the Bible and in the biographies of Jesus. Stepping into the story in this way helps me connect deeply with the experiences of those I’m reading about, making their encounters with God feel real and personal. It creates a space where God can reveal fresh insight and speak new truths into my own life.

Reading the biographies of Jesus as told through the Gospel narratives shows me God’s character in action through the person of Jesus. In his book, The Gift of Being Yourself, David Benner writes, “Spending time with Jesus in the Gospel meditation has begun to put flesh on the God I have been seeking to know for so many years.” This has certainly been true for me.

I also practice praying the Bible. Lectio Divina is an ancient exercise to help practice praying the Bible and hearing from God through his word. When we pray through the Bible, we use the words written and turn them into prayers. Or, we read small passages slowly and ask God to speak to us through the verses. Usually, you can tell God is speaking through his word when you notice something jump out at you while you read, or you feel a stirring in your heart around a particular word or phrase. This is a powerful way to engage with Scripture, opening space for God to speak into our lives through his word.

Reading and praying Scripture are deeply active practices — they ignite our senses, stir our emotions, and draw us into the lives of God’s people. Though the people in the Bible are culturally different from me in just about every way, it often seems our hearts are set on the same pursuit: knowing God and living in alignment with his will. Through Scripture, we discover that across time and culture, we are part of the same unfolding story of faith. We are all part of God’s story of redemption.

And here’s the truth: every time I open Scripture, God reveals something new to me.

Through the Easter season, I spent time reading and praying through Jesus’ final days of earthly living as recorded in his biographies, specifically focusing on the Gospel of John. I’ve read this section of Scripture countless times and heard these verses at nearly every Easter service, yet God continues to reveal something new to me each time.

This time while reading the story of Jesus’ crucifixion, I couldn’t help but linger on the reality that it is the women who remained near Jesus through his torturous death.

John 19:25 says, “Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.”

As I read this part of Scripture, my heart burned within me, so I lingered on the women. I imagined the indescribable pain of seeing someone you love tortured and murdered, and not turning away, not running to hide, but facing it, standing with him. Refusing to leave. Staying at the cross until Jesus said, “It is finished.” Watching the blood pour out, seeing his anguish, and knowing that in his suffering was also the weight of sin and death.

I sensed God say, it’s so important not to overlook this, Jamie. The women stayed. Scholars say nearly all of the disciples left, apart from John. Most of the disciples fled the scene. Perhaps in fear. Perhaps because they couldn’t bear seeing their Saviour tortured. Perhaps in disappointment. Or frustration. Or sadness.

But, the women remained.

They were strong for him. They stayed at Jesus’ feet and refused to leave. They wept. They cried out to God. They suffered watching him suffer. But they remained. Even though it meant immeasurable pain as they watched someone they love suffer a torturous death. History books list crucifixion as the most brutal and barbaric way to die. Even the Romans stopped doing it because it was so cruel.

The women remained at the cross.

Even though it meant having a lasting memory of seeing Jesus in pain. Even though it must have crushed them in every way. Even though their hearts broke as they witnessed the traumatic scene unfold.

They remained.

They did not flee.

They stayed at the cross.

There is something deeply powerful about that.

As I asked God what he was saying to me through this— why it was so captivating to me this time around, I sensed him revealing how strong women are when confronting painful places. A woman’s ability to hold both pain and hope is astounding — to trust God in the midst of suffering.

You see, I am battling quite a painful situation of my own at the moment and I’ve been wondering how I will make it through. I’ve been seeking God’s guidance as I navigate significant grief and uncertainty. God reminds me through this story that I am also strong. I can also hold both suffering and hope.

I like to think that I would have remained at the cross. That I would have stayed despite the barbarism and violence and suffering. That I wouldn’t have left Jesus.

I don’t think I’ve ever sat in this part of the story before. It is the women who remain. It is the women who return to the graveside before day break and see the stone has been rolled away. It is a woman, Mary Magdalene, who Jesus first reveals himself as the resurrected Christ to. It is this woman who then becomes the first apostle to the apostles, telling them of Jesus’ resurrection.

You see, God has used women powerfully all throughout history. And in the most important story of all, Jesus’ death and resurrection, it is the women who remained faithful to the end.

In my ordinary life, it gives me hope that I, too, can do hard things. It gives me strength that God made me with an ability to carry both suffering and hope.

This is what’s so beautiful about Scripture. Written thousands of years before my life and yet its meaning is incredibly close. Each time I read Scripture that I’ve read a hundred times, God reveals something new to me. It never ceases to amaze me.

God speaks through his living word. He speaks through a collection of books which have stood the test of time. He speaks into my life, my circumstances, my hopes and my fears, my broken world. Through the lives and stories of people who lived so far removed from me, God comes into close proximity. I feel it in the pages as I read. I feel it as I pray the Psalms. I feel it each time I approach God’s word and ask him to speak to me through it. It is the most alive text I’ve ever encountered.

Read Scripture. Read it again and again. It is the breath of God and it will breathe life into you.

‘Boldly Rising’ Course Update

A course I developed called ‘Boldy Rising’ was birthed in 2023, which was a really challenging year for me. In that wilderness season, God was teaching me how to live as his beloved daughter in the whole of my life, not just when things were going well. The journey he led me through became the foundation for this course—created to empower other women to walk rooted in their identity in Christ and boldly in their gifts. ‘Boldly Rising’ officially launches in person tonight. Forty five women will gather for the first session and I’ll speak on the unchanging characteristic of God as a compassionate Father, discussing how a deep knowing of God can lead to a deeper knowing of self.

The whole purpose of this course is to know your identity as beloved and walk boldly in your gifts to help Heaven break into a broken world, and to do this in all life’s seasons. This work is deeply personal, not only because it is a journey very close to my heart, but it feels especially raw as I navigate my own unexpected experience of loss. This week I found out some news which has utterly devastated me. I’m not quite ready to talk about it yet, but it has been the hardest few days of my life. I wrestled with God about whether I should still launch the course tonight, unsure if I could teach on a topic that feels incredibly hard given my circumstances. In some ways, it actually felt quite cruel that this would happen during this particular week.

And yet, as I prayed, I felt the pull of the Spirit to continue. Because here is the reality, this is exactly what the course was designed for — what I am experiencing right now. How can I live as deeply loved in all life’s seasons? How can I live as deeply loved when my heart is broken, when my circumstances are nothing like what I hoped, when it seems like God’s promises are far away? This is the work of identity. This is the work I am called to. It is the most important work I will do in my life. Living as beloved in the midst of a broken world.

In suffering and in joy, I am loved.

In suffering and in joy, you are loved.

So, in tears and with a broken heart, I will teach on God as a compassionate and loving Father. And my heart will still feel broken. And the sadness will still feel fresh and deep. But I will believe every word. God is not distant in our pain, he is actually closest to us in it.

I am not immune from tragedy because I follow Jesus. But I do have a God that walks with me in my sadness and grief. I have a God who comes close to the broken hearted. I have a God who promises redemption even in the mystery of loss. And I can’t see the plan nor can I find a reason for the suffering, but I can hold onto the truth of who God is and believe that he is weaving a redemption story through my life.

So I hold that truth even when it feels distant, and I believe in his promises even when they feel further away than before. And, I feel it all. I move through the grief, the pain, and I let God hold me in the midst of it. And I am loved by him in the pain.

If you are a person who prays, I ask you to pray for me as I step out in this new stage of my calling launching this course tonight. It has been a massive prayer project and bringing it to life has been a real gift. I didn’t imagine myself in the position I’m in now for this first session, but I know God is calling me to continue.

For now, the course is just being offered in person at my local church. Plans are in motion to make it more widely available and you will be first to know as things develop, so stay tuned.

The Poetry Nook

The Wait

In the early mornings before dawn,

sometimes I think about all the people

who will wake up heavy with dreams.

I want to stand on the rooftop and yell,

“Don’t forget them!”

“Don’t let them go!”

How patient we must be sometimes to see a promise fulfilled.

There’s a Book on That

Eugene Peterson is most famous for his translation of the Bible called The Message, which is incredibly beautiful. He is a remarkable writer, thinker, and theologian and just about everything I’ve read of his has moved me deeply and challenged my theologically. This book is one of the best books out there on reading Scripture.

As always, here is a taster:

“Christians don't simply learn or study or use Scripture; we assimilate it, take it into our lives in such a way that it gets metabolized into acts of love, cups of cold water, missions into all the world, healing and evangelism and justice in Jesus' name, hands raised in adoration of the Father, feet washed in company with the Son.”

Bonus Resource

There’s also an amazing resource which has consistently helped me understand the Bible and that is The Bible Project. Do not skip over this as a valuable resource. I have gained so much insight over the years through the work of The Bible Project and I cannot recommend it enough. Particularly for this post, their introduction to reading the Bible series is incredible and will help you understand the various narrative styles at work and context, which is all really essential to reading the Bible well.

Just in case you missed these recent posts:

• Humble Service in a Status-Driven World: In a culture that sees power and status as the highest goal, what would it look like to see greatness through the eyes of Jesus? Jesus teaches us that the path to fulfillment is one of humble service.

• Being a Witness to a World Seeking Truth: What does it mean to be a witness to the transformative power of Jesus? It's quite simple really, let your life speak.

• Revisiting the Sacred Practice of Fasting: The ancient practice of fasting as a spiritual discipline has deep roots in Christianity, stretching back thousands of years. How can revisiting this sacred practice deepen your faith?

• Into the Quiet: Exploring the spiritual practices of solitude and silence in a noisy world.

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Thanks again for reading this month’s newsletter. Cheers to diving into the deep together!

With love,

Jamie

1. Check out The Bible Project’s introduction to reading the Bible series for more information on the various literary styles and genres in the Bible.