“When Jesus walked the earth in his earthly ministry, he often invited people into conversation. He ate dinner in their homes, he attended weddings, and he told stories they could relate to. . .He listened to women who had been ignored, and he welcomed children who had been silenced. . .When Jesus spoke to people, he drew them in right where they were.”
And he still does. That not only is the premise of Tricia Lott Williford’s new book, This Book Is for You, but it also becomes a promise as the reader delves into its pages. In her book, Williford writes, “Jesus’s most personal and direct invitations are buried well into the second half of the Bible, but even the sometimes hard to understand Old Testament is a story of the grander invitation of God inviting His people into relationship. Of how He moved toward them again and again, even when they lost their way.”
Williford acknowledges — even empathizes — with people’s most popular obstacles for reading the Bible. But, like a dear friend who’s invited us over for coffee, she gently tears down those walls and invites us into an experience of God we can have no other way. For instance, in her chapter called “Modern Day Psalmist,” Williford invites us not only to read the Bible’s Book of Psalms, but also “to weave (our) words into theirs, adapting the psalms to become (our) own.” In Chapter 2, the author talks about the many translations of the Bible and encourages us to choose the best one for us. “If you’re not reading a version that engages your heart, then pick a different one,” adding later, “When I relied on somebody else’s teaching of the Bible’s stories, I was settling for secondhand.” She went on to share the warning of Teresa Swanstrom Anderson, who says, “. . .we need to make sure we’re not spending more time in books about the Bible than in the actual Bible.”
This Book Is for You is filled with fresh reminders for how to keep God’s Word in the forefront of our minds, and also illustrates why it’s so important. From encouraging young moms with the power and beauty of a 3×5″ note card to advocating the recording of our life’s headlines and seeing how God’s love has endured through it all, Tricia illuminates the living, active power of God’s Word for each of us. This Book Is for You, friend. Easily digestible and highly motivational. Read it!
