Living by the Book/Living by the Book Workbook Set (20 page)

O
ne morning many years ago I got up, went into the bathroom, filled the basin with water, and proceeded to shave. But when I went to put my razor into the water, I discovered there was no water there. I thought,
Well, it is a little early
. So I filled up the sink again and continued shaving. But once more the water drained out. So I decided to do a little observing. Examining the rubber stopper that I used in those days, I discovered that one of my creative children had taken an ice pick and punched five of the nicest holes you have ever seen in the form of a star.

That’s a good illustration of what has happened to many of us in the process of getting an education. We’ve got holes in our minds, and as a result they’ve become like sieves. They don’t retain much—at least little of value. We read a book and a week later can’t recall what it was about. We attend a class and afterward haven’t the foggiest idea what the teacher presented. We hear a sermon on Sunday morning, and by Sunday night we don’t even remember what passage it was from. It’s as if we have Teflon-coated brains: nothing sticks.

But we’ve got to learn a different approach if we want to take possession
of biblical truth. We need to read with the ninth strategy of first-rate Bible reading:

That is, read not only to receive it but to retain it; not merely to perceive it but to possess it. Stake a claim on the text. Make it your own property.

How can that happen? The key is personal, active involvement in the process. There’s an old proverb to that effect: “I hear, and I forget. I see, and I remember. I do, and I understand.”

Modern psychological studies back that up with scientific data: We remember at most only 10 percent of what we hear; 50 percent of what we see and hear; but 90 percent of what we see, hear, and do.

That is why I have never given an exam in any of my Bible study methods courses during more than fifty years of teaching them. Students can’t believe it. (Neither can some of the other professors.) But you see, I’d much rather get students involved in the process—the process of studying Scripture, not studying for an exam. What do I care if a kid can ace a test? The real question is, can he or she work with the text of the Word in order to understand it, possess it, and apply it?

Instead of a final exam, I ask my students to devise a creative way to study and present a passage. They can work separately or in teams. On the last day of class, they present their projects to the entire group. I have yet to be disappointed.

For instance, one group of six guys worked out a skit based on Acts 1:8, in which they played the part of three pairs of feet taking the gospel to the ends of the earth. They used their creative writing skills to inject humor, drama, and insight into their presentation.

Another team developed an entire puppet show to demonstrate biblical principles. I’ve seen audiovisual presentations, magic shows, paintings, even creative dance. I’ve heard poems, songs, dramatic readings, short stories. All based on Scripture. All accurate to the text.

Now please note: these are not games or gimmicks. Sure, one could use them that way. But for the students involved, these were exercises in acquisitive Bible study. I guarantee that if you polled them today, the ones who made
a real effort in the assignment could still tell you not only what they did but what they learned by doing it. (How many assignments can you remember from high school, college, or graduate school?)

In the same way, this book will have value to the extent that it gets you involved in the process. What difference does it make whether you’ve read every page, and maybe even underlined parts of the text, if in the end you leave your Bible on the shelf and never get into it for yourself? My goal—and I hope yours as well—is to see life-change as a result of your personal interaction with God’s Word.

What ideas can you come up with to make permanent your work with the biblical text? Are you studying Elijah on Carmel? How about acting out the story with your family or some friends? A group of camp counselors did that for their campers—complete with fire from heaven. Those kids have never forgotten it.

Or try rewriting texts such as Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 (KJV) (“To everything there is a season . . .”), Luke 19:1–10 (Zaccheus), or 1 Corinthians 13 (the love chapter) in your own paraphrase.

Or try a concentrated, month-long, in-depth biographical study of a particular character in Scripture. Look up every reference to that person in the text. Get a Bible dictionary and read about the cultural and historical background in which he or she lived (see
chapter 34
for more on Bible dictionaries). Locate the places in an atlas where the person lived and traveled.

Also develop a psychological profile: What sort of person was he? What attitudes and feelings did he have? What biases? What ambitions? What was his family background? What motivated him? Become a specialist in the life of that person, so that if you met him on the street, you’d know him at a glance.

In short, do whatever it takes to become an acquisitive Bible reader. Marry the truth of the Word with your own interests and experience— through personal engagement in the process—so that you do more than remember a passage of Scripture—you make it your own.