By Jim Miller
Gray, Maine
What good is the book if you never open it? Look closely the next time you got to worship at the Bibles people bring with them. See how many you can spot that are old and worn from use. Notice that far to many even though they maybe old still look as if they have been opened very few times if at all.
I can remember as a child there was an old worn Bible that sat on my Grandmothers table and it had pages that looked as if they were going to fall out at the next turning of a page. It was marked all over with hand written notations and was highlighted in so many places it was sometimes hard to read.
The Bible that is never opened may be a pretty thing to look at but the one like my grandmothers was so beautiful. You could not even read the lettering on the cove anymore and the spine was coming apart yet as I look back that was the most beautiful book in our family. It showed me something about its owner that Bible just by looking at it showed me the love my grandmother had for the Lord. It showed me that she believed that reading it daily was important. Its worn and battered pages were proof that the owner had not just a respect for the word but believed that its contents were worthy of being read over and over because it told not just of Gods love but also of how He would deal with those who shunned Him.
I recently retired an old Bible I have used for many years and to be honest the new one doesn't feel right yet it isn't broken in, it isn't marked up and notated as my old one is. It isn't that the wording or any teaching is different from the old Bible I had yet it hasn't seen the love and care that was for so long put into the old one.
I sometimes think you can look at the Bible someone is carrying and know if that person really loves Gods word. You will see them in worship flipping through to read each scripture the the preacher or teacher is speaking about. You will see them writing in the margins or highlighting passages.
Friends I do not know about you but I want my Bible to look as beautiful as that old one that sat on my grandmothers table all beaten and battered and marked up showing just how much I love the word of God.
