Who’s in it for me?

Not What, But Who

With the turn of each new year, I, (doubtless) like you, give plenty of thought to how I can improve my devotional life.

Indeed, Bible Copy Club was born last year from the realization that I was continually outsourcing my devotions to professionals and experts, and that was leading to a lack of true engagement and pleasure in the word.

My devotions had become a 'job to be done" rather than a joy to be experienced. Copying the Bible - and writing these emails has gone a long way to address that in the past year.

I coined our tagline "God's Word In Your Hand" to capture the sense that God's word is both precious and personal. It is something to be cherished and held, both tightly and gently.

Something that is given to us and something we can and must hold on to and make our own.

A New Year Revelation

As we came to the end of our Advent series, I was wrestling with what to cover in the new year and initially had the idea that we might hit the ground running in "resolution season," when spirits and aspirations are high, with a series that went through one of the gospels (probably Mark) from beginning to end.

This would be a longer commitment than our typical 2-3 week seasons, but I thought a good New Year's resolution would be to copy out one of the gospels in full. An achievement.

But I had a change of heart while listening to an interview with Tara-Leigh Cobble, the creator of the Bible reading plan and podcast The Bible Recap.

Every year, she commits to reading through the Bible chronologically. But conceded that the first year she completed the exercise, it left her distressed and angry with a God "I didn't like."

Troubled, she discussed her concerns with her pastor, who advised her to "read it again and this time stop looking for yourself, and start looking for Him."

And that changed everything for her.

A Better Resolution

Hearing this, I was shocked to admit how much of my personal devotions, study, church attendance, and notes are really based on "What's in it for me."

My unstated question while listening to a sermon is too often, "How does this apply to me?" Points of application often become the heart of my notes.

Or I listen or study to acquire more knowledge, which in turn becomes a badge of pride. My mind turning quickly to how I might deploy this new understanding to impress others and puff myself up.

This revelation led to a new, better resolution for BCC. Rather than trying to copy more lines to complete a book, we'll focus on seeing more of God in every passage.

No longer "What's in it for me?" but rather "Who is in it for me."