After reading the Bible story through in such a short amount of time, what stood out to you or struck you that you had not thought of before?
One of the repeated questions within the study questions "What does this chapter teach you about the character of God". I've been told and taught before to read through the Bible looking for the character and characteristics of God. However, reading through the entire Bible with fluidity within the narration pointed one characteristic out that was pretty astounding to me. It sounds silly but what impacted me the most was this thought "God is intentional". Which again, sounds ridiculous - of course He is! BUT reading the actual story written there I was struck and amazed of how intentional each moment is - how intentional the lineage of Jesus was (how different people were used to bring about the birth of Jesus from the line of Abraham directly). How Esther was intentionally born with such beauty that the King would favor her in order to avoid the annihilation of the Jewish race. How Peter denied Jesus three times, then was asked three times by Jesus if He loved Him. How God consistently worked all things to meet His original design. How the prophesies in the Old Testament were fulfilled consistently and deliberately in the New.
Reading in such a way brought me so much awe and wonder again - to the point that I told my husband that I think we should start reading this edition to our three children so that they can understand the Bible and creation as God's intention and to be able to experience the same awe.
Of the 5 directions for practicing humble interpretation of Scripture, which one do you find the most difficult to put into practice?
The practice that I find most difficult is discussing different theological perspectives - however, this most likely stems from my own insecurity of the knowledge of Scripture. There is a deep fear I have of entering into theological discussions and not being able to clearly communicate/have a strong enough basis for an argument (impromptu and extemporaneous speaking have never been my strong suit) - therefore I avoid conversations where I know I might be challenged, especially when talking with people who have been saved or worked in ministry longer than I have. This is an area that I am growing in - but will probably need to continue for quite some time.